Jamie Greene

1 Aug 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many train journeys have been cancelled for non-weather-related reasons in (a) 2025 to date and (b) each of the past five years, and what compensation was offered to passengers.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Details on cancelled rail passenger services, for each train operating company for the period until December 2024 are available on the Office for Rail and Road website, and can be found here: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/compendia/toc-key-statisti…

1 Aug 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which region of Scotland has the (a) fastest and (b) slowest broadband connection speeds, and what its investment plans are to ensure that all parts of the country can access reliable, high-speed connections.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government does not hold data on domestic or commercial broadband speeds for Scottish regions. The broadband speed that a premise can receive is determined by a number of factors including the infrastructure available in the area and the broadban…

31 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the use of the 101 non-emergency number is an appropriate and sufficient reporting route for incidents of suspected spiking, and whether it plans to review its guidance on this matter.

Answer · Siobhian Brown: The Scottish Government encourages individuals who suspect that they (or someone else) may have been spiked to call NHS 24 on 111 for advice and to seek medical help right away, but in a life-threatening emergency to always call 999. Spiking is a criminal off…

31 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government at what time the last ScotRail service of the day on each route (a) currently departs and (b) departed in 2019.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: This is an operational matter for ScotRail Trains Ltd. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail Trains Ltd directly to obtain this information.

31 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many ScotRail evening rail services currently operate on each route, and how this compares with the number of evening rail services on each route in 2019.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: This is an operational matter for ScotRail Trains Ltd. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail Trains Ltd directly to obtain this information.

31 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much financial support it has provided to local authorities specifically to maintain or enhance rural bus services since 2019, broken down by local authority.

Answer · Jim Fairlie: In 2025-26 the Scottish Government provided record funding of over £15.1 billion to local authorities, a real terms increase of 5.5%. It is, however, the responsibility of each local authority to allocate the total financial resources available, includi…

31 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many rural bus routes have been reduced or withdrawn ineach year since 2010, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Jim Fairlie: This information is publicly available on the Traffic Commissioner website under PSV notices and proceedings for Scotland. The address is https://www.gov.uk/guidance/notices-and-proceedings-for-scotland

30 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average time has been between initial project approval and start on site for affordable homes in each year since 2010.

Answer · Mairi McAllan: Prior to 2018-2019 site start dates were not collected as there was no requirement on our previous recording system for this information. Due to this, approval dates were used as a proxy for start dates. The following table provides an average time between ap…

30 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average cost per unit has been to deliver an affordable home in each year since 2007, and what assessment it has made of how many additional homes could have been delivered if a greater share of investment had taken place during years when construction costs were lower.

Answer · Mairi McAllan: We publish information on Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) average cost per unit in our annual out-turn reports, available here: Affordable Housing Supply Programme - More homes - gov.scot. The following table show the average cost per unit to deliv…

30 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the total underspend has been in its housing capital budgets since 2007, and what assessment it has made of how any underspend has affected affordable home delivery.

Answer · Mairi McAllan: Since 2008-09 we have published information on Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget and actual spend in our annual out-turn reports, available here: Affordable Housing Supply Programme - More homes - gov.scot. Reasons for variance in spend against budge…

29 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of bankruptcy were declared in the past fiveyears, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Ivan McKee: The Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) publishes the number of bankruptcies by local authority area in the Annual Scottish Statutory Debt Solutions statistics publication. The latest available data for the April 2023 – March 2024 are available here: Scottis…

29 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much was spent on local authority housing, including for repairs and new housebuilding, in the North Ayrshire local authority area, in each of the last five years.

Answer · Shona Robison: Revenue expenditure from the Housing Revenue Account in North Ayrshire Council is detailed in Table 1. Revenue expenditure is the cost of delivering services each year and includes loan charges, supervision and management, repairs and maintenance, allowances …

28 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that the economic benefits of Scotland’s role in hosting the 2028 UEFA European foootball championships benefit communities in all areas of the country, and what legacy planning it has conducted.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Spreading benefits across Scotland is a key objective for the Scottish Government of hosting the 2028 UEFA European football championships. This includes economic benefits and a well-designed social impact programme to enhance the wellbeing of people living i…

28 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people are currently in apprenticeships in the digital and engineering and manufacturing subject areas and how many new newly qualified apprentices have entered the workforce in each of the past five years.

Answer · Graeme Dey: Data on the latest number of individuals currently undertaking modern apprenticeships in the digital, engineering, and manufacturing subject areas was published by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) on 5 August 2025.Data on the number of modern apprentices in …

25 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) paramedics are currently working in Scotland, (b) newly qualified paramedics entered the NHS in each of the last five years and (c) individuals are currently in training to become paramedics.

Answer · Neil Gray: Number of paramedics currently working in Scotland:2,156.6 WTENumber of Newly Qualified Paramedics who entered the NHS (in Scotland) in each of the last five years:2020-21 = 242021-22 = 582022-23 = 472023-24 = 1792024-25 = 181You should note that the Scottish…

25 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many offensive weapons have been found within HMP (a) Greenock and (b) Kilmarnock in each of the past five years.

Answer · Angela Constance: I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:SPS remain vigilant to the threat presented by weapons within our estate. Despite tactical and security measures, there are a number of …

25 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that businesses, particularly small and medium-sized businesses, are equipped and supported to implement artificial intelligence into their work.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government is committed to supporting businesses, including SMEs, to harness the benefits of artificial intelligence (AI). As part of the Programme for Government, we have committed to launching AI Scotland, our national transformation programme,…

22 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of public electric vehicle charge points met the minimum power output standards for (a) rapid and (b) ultra-rapid charging in each of the last five years, including the most recent figures available.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The UK Government Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 define a ‘rapid charge point’ as a charge point capable of delivering a charge of 50kW and above at nominal voltage. Ultra-rapid charging is not defined within the Regulations, but generally …

18 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what data it has collected from local authorities on the number of streets assessed for compliance with the pavement parking ban, and how many enforcement officers each local authority has allocated to enforce the ban since December 2023.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government does not hold central data on the number of streets assessed or enforcement officers allocated. Local authorities are responsible for deciding their enforcement approach based on local priorities.The latest Decriminalised Parking Enfor…

7 Jul 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-38588 by Richard Lochhead on 17 June 2025, whether it will provide comparative data for each year since 2015.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Data are available on the number of SMEs operating in Scotland, that are registered for VAT and/or PAYE, broken down by Scottish parliamentary constituency. These estimates, sourced from the Businesses in Scotland 2024 publication, are shown in the following …

27 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of the economic impact of hybrid and remote working policies on city centre economies, and whether it will publish any such data.

Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Government has conducted an evidence review on hybrid working to support decisions on hybrid expectations for its own staff but has not undertaken analysis on the economic impact of hybrid and remote working policies on city centre economies.The …

19 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how many small and medium-sized businesses have returned to their pre-COVID-19 pandemic profit levels, and how the value of those businesses compares with pre-pandemic levels.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Data is available on the share of SME employers that report a profit. These estimates, sourced from the Small Business Survey, are shown in Table 1. In 2019, 78% of SME employers in Scotland reported generating a profit, this fell to 70% in 2020, with the lat…

19 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of eligible businesses have accessed each of its national support schemes since 2020, broken down by (a) sector and (b) business size.

Answer · Kate Forbes: Our Programme for Government 2025-26 sets out a range of actions to make it easier for businesses in Scotland to grow and prosper, secure investment and compete globally. Working in tandem with the Scottish Government, our enterprise agencies are focused on h…

19 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that (a) school pupils, (b) (i) college and (ii) university students and (c) people seeking work are aware of self-employment as a legitimate pathway, and what further steps it will take to support them in that choice.

Answer · Natalie Don-Innes: The Scottish Government remains committed to an all-age careers information advice and guidance offer that supports people to progress rewarding careers. Learners must choose their own paths; however, we need to ensure that in making their choices, they are a…

19 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the current total economic cost associated with autistic adults is, and what percentage of this figure is a result of underemployment or unemployment.

Answer · Tom Arthur: We do not hold the specific information requested. However, a 2018 report suggested that, in financial year 2013-14, the total economic cost associated with autistic adults in Scotland was £2.1 billion. Of this, £884 million, or 41.6%, was attribu…

18 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people it currently estimates are not in education, employment or training, broken down by (a) local authority area, (b) gender and (c) the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) decile of the area in which they are located.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS), an estimated 710,700 people in Scotland aged 16 to 64 were unemployed or were economically inactive for reasons other than being a student in April 2024 to March 2025. This …

17 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage more local authorities to consider and utilise their existing powers under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to adjust non-domestic rates.

Answer · Ivan McKee: The original policy intent of the powers under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 was to support local decision making around non-domestic rates reliefs. Local authorities are independent bodies, and it is for local authorities themselves to consid…

17 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities have used or are seeking to use their powers under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to adjust non-domestic rates, broken down by financial year.

Answer · Ivan McKee: All local authorities have used their powers under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to adjust non-domestic rates.Table 1 shows relief awarded under section 3A of the Local Government (Financial Provisions etc.) (Scotland) Act 1962, as inserted by…

17 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what powers local authorities have under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to reduce non-domestic rates, and when any such powers came into effect.

Answer · Ivan McKee: Under Part 11 of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015, local authorities have very broad powers to reduce or remit any non-domestic rates bill for a property in their area. This part of the Act came into force on 31 October 2015.Before using these po…

12 Jun 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much small and medium-sized businesses currently contribute to the economy, and how this compares with each of the previous five years.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Data are available on the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) share of businesses, jobs and turnover. These estimates, sourced from the Businesses in Scotland 2024 publication, are shown in the following table.Table 1: SME share of businesses, jobs and tu…