Parliamentary questions
Monica Lennon
3,484 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
24 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what date it will publish the updated Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy.
Answer · Maree Todd: We will publish the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy in June. A programme of stakeholder engagement will take place over the summer on the accompanying Delivery Plan, with the intention of publishing it alongside the Workforce Action Plan in the autumn.
24 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has paid to private contractors for the purposes of public relations since 1 January 2022, broken down by (a) firm and (b) contracting department.
Answer · Shona Robison: A. The Scottish Government paid a total of £209,743 to Smarts Communications and £333,082 to Stripe Communications during the period 1 January 2022 to 10 May 2023. B. Both companies were commissioned to provide public relation services by the Scottish Govern…
24 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what additional financial support it plans to provide to (a) local authorities, (b) housing co-operatives and (c) housing associations to buy existing housing stock, in light of reports that private landlords are exiting the market.
Answer · Paul McLennan: Funding is already available through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme to support local authorities, housing co-operatives and housing associations to buy existing housing stock where this meets a clear strategic purpose and can be clearly seen to suppo…
24 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it last met South Lanarkshire Council to discuss rural housing issues.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government meets with South Lanarkshire Council on a regular basis to discuss housing matters. We last met on 19 April to discuss the Local Housing Strategy (LHS) which covers all housing issues across the Council area.
24 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it will support local authorities to buy any housing stock freed up by the exit of private landlords from the market.
Answer · Paul McLennan: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-17543 on 12 May 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/…
24 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to propose time in the business programme for the Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy to deliver a statement to update the Parliament on any revisions to the proposed restrictions on alcohol marketing and promotion laid out in the previous government consultation.
Answer · Elena Whitham: We are currently reflecting on the wide-ranging feedback we received from stakeholders during the recent stakeholder roundtables and are working with an independent contractor to analyse the public consultation responses to understand the views and perspectiv…
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to address the so-called "baby blind spot" in the care system as reportedly identified by NSPCC Scotland.
Answer · Natalie Don: We acknowledge the findings of the report and recognise the importance of providing the right support to families during the early years. Investment in prevention and whole family wellbeing is a key element of our commitment to keep The Promise. This includes…
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many responses it has received to the alcohol advertising and promotion consultation.
Answer · Elena Whitham: We received around 3000 responses to the consultation on restricting alcohol advertising and promotion.
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what date the responses to, and analysis of, the alcohol advertising and promotion consultation will be published.
Answer · Elena Whitham: We will publish both the stakeholder roundtable notes and the consultation findings later this year.
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any plans it has to launch a future consultation on specific proposals to restrict alcohol advertising and promotion.
Answer · Elena Whitham: We will publish both the stakeholder roundtable notes and the consultation findings later this year, which will inform the potential content and scope of any policy proposals and our consideration of appropriate next steps for this work. If we are to take fo…
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it remains committed to its plans set out in the Programme for Government 2022-23 that, subject to the outcomes of its consultation, it will introduce legislation on alcohol advertising and promotion within the current parliamentary session.
Answer · Elena Whitham: We will publish both the stakeholder roundtable notes and the consultation findings later this year, which will inform the potential content and scope of any policy proposals and our consideration of appropriate next steps for this work. The content of futur…
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it remains committed to its statement in the Alcohol Framework 2018 that it "will not work with the alcohol industry on health policy development".
Answer · Elena Whitham: It is crucial that we prevent and reduce alcohol-related harms, but that aim has to be balanced with careful consideration of the impact restrictions may have on business. We will not work with the alcohol industry on the development of health policy but wi…
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its plans are to address the alcohol public health emergency, and what its position is on whether it considers these plans to be proportionate to the scale of the problem.
Answer · Elena Whitham: We remain determined to reduce alcohol-related harms and take a proportionate, whole population approach to address them. For example, we are reviewing our world-leading Minimum Unit Pricing as well as Alcohol Brief Intervention Programme. We are also workin…
21 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action is being taken to include lamppost charging as part of the expansion of electric vehicle infrastructure.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: Last year the Scottish Government announced the £60 million Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund that aims to draw commercial investment in the public charging network across all parts of Scotland. Transport Scotland has already provided funding to Scotland’s…
20 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many patients have had to pay for prescriptions after utilising private healthcare in each of the last 10 years, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Neither the Scottish Government nor Health Boards hold data on privately paid prescriptions provided by independent healthcare providers.
20 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it is planning any future engagement with churches regarding the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (Register of Persons Holding a Controlled Interest in Land) Regulations 2021.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: In letters of 16 February 2023 and 27 March 2023, the Scottish Government offered the Church of Scotland the option of another meeting with Registers of Scotland and Scottish Government officials to discuss how they can work together to help achieve complianc…
20 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with churches, regarding the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (Register of Persons Holding a Controlled Interest in Land) Regulations 2021, since 1 January 2023.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-17467 on 17 May 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/…
19 Apr 2023 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide an update on what progress has been made on its commitment to pilot access to universal free school meals in secondary schools.
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it will take steps to reform or replace council tax to raise more revenue in a fairer way.
Answer · Tom Arthur: The Scottish Government is committed to a fair, inclusive and fiscally sustainable form of local taxation. We convened a Joint Working Group co-chaired by Scottish Ministers and COSLA which is actively considering targeted changes to reflect the current circu…
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review how new local taxes could be used to (a) redistribute wealth and (b) meet the aims of the so-called polluter pays principle.
Answer · Tom Arthur: As part of our New Deal for Local Government, we are working with COSLA to agree a Fiscal Framework for Local Government, with the aim of delivering greater flexibility over financial arrangements, improving accountability for the delivery of national priorit…
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to commence any preparatory work ahead of introducing more progressive income tax changes, including any work to consider the introduction of new tax bands.
Answer · Tom Arthur: As is standard practice, any planned changes to Scottish Income Tax will be announced during the regular annual Budget process. Our approach to taxation will continue to be guided by the strategic objectives and principles set out in our Framework for Tax, wh…
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what date the Ministerial Working Group on Abortion Buffer Zones last met; whether the minutes of that latest meeting will be published; whether the group plans to meet again, and whether it plans to publish a concluding report of its findings and next steps.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Ministerial-led working group last convened on 26 th October 2022 and the minutes of this meeting will be published within the coming weeks. The working group was formed to consider short, medium and long term actions to address anti-abortion activities w…
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its support for the proposed Abortion Services Safe Access Zones (Scotland) Bill, as stated in the Programme for Government 2022-23, what discussions it has had with Gillian Mackay MSP regarding the proposed bill, and what support and resources it has provided in relation to…
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government is fully committed to supporting Gillian Mackay MSP's Abortion Services Safe Access Zones (Scotland) Bill. To this end, the First Minister met with Ms Mackay during his first full week in office to recommit his unwavering support. In …
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of the justice-related organisations that have received resources to help clear the court backlogs that were built up during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how much each organisation has been awarded.
Answer · Angela Constance: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-16363 on 25 April 2023. This set out which justice organisations received resources through the ‘Recover, Renew, Transform’ (RRT) Fund in 2021-22 and 2022-23, and how much each organisation received. A central …
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to decarbonise the NHS Scotland estate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Central Government Energy Efficiency Grant scheme will invest, as a minimum, capital funding of £30 million in 2023-24 to enable the delivery of heat decarbonisation projects across the public sector, including the NHS, and £1.5 million of resour…
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will establish an independent review of the governance of nationalised enterprises in Scotland, including Ferguson Marine.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government has no plans to establish an independent review of governance of its portfolio of strategic commercial assets. The Scottish Government is working in partnership with Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow (Holdings) Ltd to review the Framework …
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will initiate an independent review into the architecture of political integrity and transparency in Scotland.
Answer · George Adam: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of political integrity and transparency, and takes these issues seriously. We review and update guidance when necessary. Since 2016 Scotland has been a member of the Open Government Partnership, a global partn…
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will appoint a Good Governance Champion.
Answer · George Adam: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of good governance, and takes this issue seriously. We undertake regular reviews of our corporate governance system and will consider the matter of a Good Governance Champion as part of this work.
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have (a) been accepted to study and (b) graduated from Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland accredited undergraduate environmental health courses, in each of the last 10 years.
Answer · Jenni Minto: There is one Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) accredited undergraduate course currently available in Scotland, provided by the University of West of Scotland. The University of West of Scotland are able to provide data over the past 9 …
18 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many ovarian cancer patients have self-funded related surgery, such as a hysterectomy, in each of the last five years, and whether there are any NHS board inequalities regarding the NHS funding private treatment.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held centrally within the Scottish Government. Any arrangements for NHS patients to be treated at an Independent Sector hospital would need to be made between the patient, NHS Board and their clinical team. While a patient has the r…