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-10861

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 23 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what estimates it has made of any potential revenue loss to ScotRail of not selling alcohol on trains.

Question reference: S6W-10865

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 23 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many times enforcement action has been taken in relation to the alcohol ban on ScotRail trains, and what estimate it has made of how many times the ban has been breached.

Question reference: S6W-10863

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 22 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to make consuming alcohol on trains in Scotland illegal.

As a publicly owned and controlled railway, it is important that ScotRail plays its part in delivering Scottish Government ambitions for its success. As part of that, ScotRail quite rightly reviewed the ban on alcohol and brought forward proposals for consideration. Following robust scrutiny against wider Scottish Government priorities and policy implications, it was considered that further work on these proposals would be required including wider consultation on the implications.

Given the diversity of views on the sale and consumption of alcohol on ScotRail services, consideration of its reintroduction will form part of the National Conversation on Rail. This will enable a wide range of views to be taken into account before any final decision is made. In the meantime, everyone needs to be mindful that, while many of the pandemic restrictions have been lifted, Covid hasn’t gone away and the Scottish Government’s advisory guidance remains in place.

Question reference: S6W-10862

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 22 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether alcohol should be banned on (a) LNER, (b) Avanti, (c) Cross Country and (d) TransPennine express services when in Scotland.

LNER, Avanti, Cross Country and TransPennine Express are cross-border railway passenger operators whose contracts are specified and managed by the Department for Transport, under UK Government railway legislation which the Scottish Government does not have devolved authority to amend. Therefore the sale and consumption of alcohol on these services is currently a matter for the individual operators in accordance with applicable legislation and the policy of their franchising authority, the Department for Transport.

Question reference: S6O-01406

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care last met with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, and what issues were discussed.

Question reference: S6W-10472

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 21 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how much in total has been allocated to bus operators to support them through the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Scottish Government has provided funding to bus operators through various funds since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic at the end of March 2020. The funding streams within this period that relate to Covid-19 support include the Covid Support Grant, Covid Support Grant – Restart and Network Support Grant Plus.

Detailed information on the funding amounts under each of these grants can be found in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre under Bib number 63569.

Question reference: S6W-10471

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 20 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether there will be a further round of support grants for bus operators as they continue to recover passenger numbers to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.

The Scottish Government continues to provide financial support for bus services to keep services more extensive, and fares more affordable than would otherwise be the case. On 1 April 2022, the Network Support Grant was introduced, with up to £93.5 million allocated for 2022-23 and an additional £25.7 million is being provided to extend the Network Support Grant Plus until October of this year. The Scottish Government continues to engage with bus operators and local government to keep support under review.

Question reference: S6W-10470

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 20 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is offering to bus operators that may be impacted by COVID-19 support subsidies ending in October 2022.

The Scottish Government is supporting bus operators through the Network Support Grant and Network Support Grant Plus which started on 1 April 2022 and which replace the Bus Service Operators’ Grant and emergency Covid funding.

I met with operators over the course of Summer recess to identify actions for Government and the sector to work in partnership on. As a result I will be convening a Taskforce with operators to further explore what practical solutions can be delivered to help maintain bus services across the country.

Question reference: S6W-10422

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government when its emergency budget review will be completed.

The cost crisis represents an unprecedented challenge to which the UK Government must respond.

The Scottish Government is taking action to prioritise support for Scotland, within the constraints of its limited budget and powers. On 7 September I wrote to the Finance and Public Administration Committee and I set out our progress to Parliament, including the savings taken to date. Here is a link to the Committee letter - .

The Scottish Government’s Emergency Budget Review is an ongoing budget process and I have committed to publishing its outcome within two weeks of the UK fiscal event planned for later this month.

Question reference: S6W-10281

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 20 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any reports of bus operators that are in receipt of public subsidy being unable to deliver services in Scotland due to resources being diverted to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and, if this is the case, what plans it has to recoup any funding.

I am aware of reports about a bus operator deploying drivers to the Commonwealth Games, and my officials have raised this directly with the relevant operator, reminding them of the expectations in our Network Support Grant Plus funding about the service levels they will provide. The operator confirmed that a small number of drivers from Scotland were involved in delivering the services needed for the Commonwealth Games, and mitigations were put in place to ensure the impact on local services was minimised. I can confirm that no buses funded through the Scottish Ultra Low Emission Bus grant were deployed to support the Commonwealth Games. In addition Network Support Grant Plus funding is only provided for services actually run, and payment recovery will take place when the scheme ends for any service kilometres that did not operate.