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-32124

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 7 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any concerns with the reported lack of ISO standards around ultra-high frequency electronic identification technology in livestock.

Question reference: S6W-32122

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 19 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of any impact of adopting ultra-high frequency electronic identification technology on the trade of Scottish beef in Europe.

Question reference: S6W-32127

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 19 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what data it holds on the number of Scottish animals slaughtered in England and vice versa, and what assessment it has made of any impact of its proposal to adopt ultra-high frequency electronic identification technology.

Question reference: S6W-31979

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 19 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the funding announced in its Budget for Stranraer town centre is money that was originally committed to the town in 2011 as part of the regeneration of the former ferry terminal.

The Scottish Government has continued to engage with Dumfries & Galloway Council and the regeneration funding announced in the draft Scottish Budget will support the delivery of the community's ambitions for the regeneration of the town building on their Local Place Plan - Creating Stranraer.

Funding will be subject to the Scottish Budget being agreed by Parliament and final allocations being agreed by Ministers.

Question reference: S6W-32121

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 19 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of any impact of adopting ultra-high frequency electronic identification technology on the trade of Scottish cattle and beef with England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Scottish Ministers are considering all the available information on bovine EID and technology use across the UK. This includes the ScotEID pilot findings into UHF, the results and analysis of the consultation held on Cattle ID and Traceability earlier this year and ongoing close discussions with the livestock sector. All potential impacts, including those on trade, will be fully considered before a final decision is made.

Question reference: S6W-32123

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 19 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it expects to conclude its review of the use of ultra-high frequency electronic identification in livestock.

Question reference: S6O-04180

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 December 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to invest in frontline primary healthcare to support rural pharmacies.

Question reference: S6W-32025

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it can provide to the primary care sector in Scotland in response to the impact of the increase in employer national insurance charges.

The Scottish Government has published its estimates of the direct costs to the Scottish public sector from the employers NI change, looking across our health and social care services, education providers, the third sector and others. We have shared those costs with the Treasury and have asked it for urgent clarification on the level of compensation that Scotland will receive.

If the chancellor does not fund that in full, it could be, that despite costs of more than £700 million across all sectors, at best £380 million would be forthcoming; leaving a shortfall of around £400 million. We continue to press for clarification.

Question reference: S6O-04098

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 December 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much it will allocate in its Budget to housing associations, including to support them to meet their aids and adaptations targets.

Question reference: S6W-31083

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 20 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-07245 by Mairi Gougeon on 18 March 2022, which agency is responsible for (a) the authorised pet checkers and (b) enforcement of puppy smuggling offences, at Cairnryan ferry port.

Persons undertaking basic checks on pets travelling with their owners on the Cairnryan ferry route are ferry employees and are, therefore, responsible to the ferry operator. These staff are not however authorised pet checkers as movements from Northern Ireland are within the UK. Where ferry staff on the Cairnryan route suspect a commercial movement or otherwise non-compliant activity, they will inform the harbour police and/or local authority to enable appropriate action to be taken.

Authorised pet checkers on official Pet Travel ferry routes into England from the EU are also ferry operator personnel responsible to their employer, but they have been specifically trained by the APHA to undertake checks on documentation and conduct visual inspections of animals. Authorised pet checkers will alert APHA or the local authority where issues are identified either with travel documentation or with the animals.

In terms of enforcement responsibility at Cairnryan where puppy smuggling offences are suspected, this generally sits with the local authority and/or Police Scotland. However, either may request that the Scottish SPCA intervene to take appropriate action under the Animal Health & Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006.