Questions and answers

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for ��˿�� to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-38449

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-37774 by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025, what the estimated cost will be across all local authorities of introducing household collections for recyclable plastic film and flexible packaging.

Question reference: S6W-38448

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-37767 by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025, what assessment has been made of the proportion of (a) public bodies, excluding local authorities, and (b) private sector businesses that are ready to comply with the ban on municipal biodegradable waste to landfill by sending to another facility in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-38270

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what subsidies are provided to publicly operated electric vehicle (EV) charge points run by ChargePlace Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-04798

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the implications and consequences of not achieving net zero by 2045 would be for Scotland, including the economy.

Question reference: S6W-38156

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether (a) there is disposal capacity to treat all biodegradable municipal waste and (b) all biodegradable municipal waste will be treated in Scotland in 2026.

Question reference: S6W-38157

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it, its agencies, or anyone acting on its behalf have had discussions with parties outwith Scotland regarding treating municipal biodegradable waste after 31 December 2025.

Question reference: S6W-37772

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on ringfencing any funds raised from the extended producer responsibility for packing for investment in frontline waste management services.

Extended producer responsibility for packaging funding will be paid directly to local authorities by PackUK (the scheme administrator) and it will be for each local authority to decide how it manages this funding. Under the Verity House Agreement, local government funding in Scotland will not be ring-fenced or directed, unless there is a clear joint understanding to do so. However, the purpose of packaging EPR funding - to pay for the cost of managing household packaging waste - is clearly set out in legislation. There will be no reduction in the local government finance settlement as a result of extended producer responsibility for packaging payments in the first year of the scheme (2025-26).

Question reference: S6W-37771

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to (a) identify any points of confusion and conflict in waste legislation and (b) develop a coordinated strategy to ensure the optimal sequencing of upcoming waste policy actions.

Scottish Government officials engage regularly with waste industry stakeholders to ensure clarity and avoid misunderstanding of Scottish waste legislation and to assist with any changes in regulatory approach.

In terms of strategy, the Scottish Government published Scotland’s Circular Economy and Waste Route Map to 2030 in December 2024, following extensive collaboration and consultation with a wide range of stakeholders. The Route Map sets out how we will deliver priority actions to accelerate more sustainable use of our resources across the waste hierarchy. It takes a whole system approach to deliver coordinated, properly sequenced actions, designed to deliver cumulative impact and wider benefits to Scotland.

The Route Map can be viewed at the following link -

Question reference: S6W-37769

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of treatment facilities that are capable of processing waste upholstered domestic seating, broken down by capacity.

Question reference: S6W-37774

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the development of markets for recycled plastic flexibles and films.

The Scottish Government is working to support the development of markets for recycled plastic flexibles and films through a combination of policy commitments and infrastructure investment.

As part of its broader strategy to enhance recycling services, the Scottish Government has committed to introducing household collections for recyclable plastic film and flexible packaging by 31 March 2027. This initiative aims to increase the availability of recyclable materials and increase demand for recycled products.

To bolster recycling capabilities, the Scottish Government has provided funding through the Recycling Improvement Fund. For instance, Fife Council received £470,000 to develop plastic film recycling services locally. This assisted in the installation of advanced sorting equipment, allowing the council to accept flexible plastics at the kerbside and process them into high-quality materials for the market.

Scottish Enterprise would also consider supporting growing businesses in this area, particularly if they are directly aligned with their mission to boost capital investment.