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-17437

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to (a) ban and (b) restrict the breeding of the Scottish Fold cat.

The Scottish Government has no plans at this time to ban the breeding of the Scottish Fold cat. The breeding of this particular breed is however restricted under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 (the 2021 regulations).

The 2021 Regulations include a licence condition (section 8(4), schedule 2) which states that "no cat may be kept for breeding if it can reasonably be expected, on the basis of its genotype, conformation, behaviour or state of health, that breeding from it could have a detrimental effect on its health or welfare or the health or welfare of its offspring". Given the well documented conformational health issues with this breed, the licensing authority is likely to refuse any application for a licence or a request to vary a licence where the intention is to breed the Scottish Fold. Comprehensive guidance produced for local authorities and cat breeders also makes it clear that persons seeking to breed the Scottish Fold are unlikely to be granted a licence to do so.

Question reference: S6W-17375

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what recent assessment it has made of the prevalence of cryptosporidium in source water, and whether it can provide a list of where it has been detected.

Cryptosporidium is a protozoan parasite which is found in the gut of warm blooded animals and enters the water environment from faecal matter.

Scottish Water is required to assess the risk of Cryptosporidium in the water sources it uses for drinking water supplies and to design and operate water treatment processes that will remove the parasite or render it harmless. Scottish Water is also required to monitor drinking water supplies for cryptosporidium. The Drinking Water Quality Regulator provides a commentary on treated water detections in her Annual Report. Page 4 of the 2021 report covers Cryptosporidium

Question reference: S6W-16798

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether the pathfinder phase for Bairns' Hoose has begun, and, if it is the case that it has not yet commenced, when it will do so.

Question reference: S6W-17319

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the NatureScot publication, Avian Influenza Report on the H5N1 outbreak in wild birds 2020-2023, published on 11 April 2023.

We welcome NatureScot’s Avian Influenza Report on the H5N1 outbreak in wild birds and agree that our priority both now and in the future should be on continued disease surveillance, demographic monitoring and research to inform the long-term management of our wild bird populations in light of HPAI and other pressures.

The Scottish Government will continue working with the Scottish Avian Influenza Task Force to monitor and respond to HPAI in wild birds.

Question reference: S6W-16828

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) injuries and (b) deaths were reported in connection with the use of e-scooters on (i) roads and (ii) pavements, in 2022.

Question reference: S6T-01344

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported comments from the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association that its plans for juryless trials would be an affront to justice and that any proposed pilot could result in boycott action.

Question reference: S6W-17154

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many homes have been returned to use with support from the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership since 2022, and whether it can provide a breakdown of the information by local authority area.

Question reference: S6W-16789

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it expects purposeful activity levels in Scottish prisons to be restored to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS is using learning from the pandemic to reshape its delivery model for purposeful activity as part of our 5-year Corporate Plan which is due to be published in Summer 2023.

Although purposeful activity hours have increased since the pandemic, focus will now shift to qualitative improvements rather than quantitative improvements. SPS recognise the importance of an individual's rehabilitation and reintegration and will structure pathways to support progress towards release.

Question reference: S6W-17425

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities do not currently have Empty Homes Officers; how long these positions have been vacant for, and whether it will provide an update on whether it still plans for Empty Homes Officer support to be available across all of Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-16792

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether any court closures will take place during the current parliamentary session.

There are no plans for any court closures during the current parliamentary session. The current court model provides appropriate access to justice for Scotland’s communities.

The management of the court estate is an operational matter for SCTS. SCTS have stated that there is no current evidence to support any further court closures following the most recent court closures in 2015.

Court locations can only be closed following the approval of the Scottish Parliament.