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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 MSPs 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-44291

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 19 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many GP appointments were conducted (a) in-person, (b) by telephone and (c) virtually in the Highlands and Islands region in each year since 2021, broken down by NHS board.

The Scottish Government does not hold data on how many GP appointments were conducted (a) in-person, (b) by telephone and (c) virtually in the Highlands and Islands region in each year since 2021.

PHS publishes information relevant to this question using GP encounters data as part of the General Practice in-hours activity visualisation publication. Encounters are not the same as appointments as not all encounters will be recorded on an appointment booking system. Further information on the limitations of this data can be found on the publication website.

NHS Board / HSCP	Year	In-Person	Virtual
NHS Board / HSCP	Year	In-Person	Telephone Consultation	E-consult and Video Consult
NHS Highland*	2021	868,446	324,857	848
	2022	867,843	251,858	398
	2023	916,085	197,036	508
	2024	948,075	207,380	1,134
	2025	921,642	184,412	2,129
NHS Orkney	2021	77,793	19,998	678
	2022	77,274	15,626	555
	2023	79,690	12,430	415
	2024	77,845	10,091	270
	2025	74,667	8,988	5
NHS Shetland	2021	55,927	26,307	3,753
	2022	56,115	23,379	3,472
	2023	59,639	19,077	2,124
	2024	57,251	17,529	1,742
	2025	63,881	17,667	1,927
NHS Western Isles	2021	50,470	32,892	1,644
	2022	47,269	30,887	2,334
	2023	50,988	28,193	2,402
	2024	66,471	17,952	1,348
	2025	62,322	17,595	122
Moray HSCP**	2021	80,552	122,929	19,180
	2022	95,733	88,557	15,640
	2023	112,575	69,815	17,051
	2024	140,347	62,772	18,838
	2025	148,494	61,762	15,480

* Not all of the NHS Highland area is within the Highland and Islands electoral region.

** Not all of the Moray HSCP area is within the Highland and Islands electoral region.

Question reference: S6W-44080

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 19 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many crimes involving a knife have been recorded in North Ayrshire in each year since 1999.

The requested information is not held centrally as the data received from Police Scotland for production of the recorded crime statistics is a simple count of the number and type of crimes and offences recorded. We do not in general hold further details as to whether any of these crimes included a knife.

There are two exceptions to this. The first are crimes of homicide, where information is held on method of killing (including by sharp instrument and more specifically since 2013-14, a knife). Table One below presents the number of knife-related homicide victims in North Ayrshire from 2013-14 to 2024-25.

The second are those types of crime that specifically reference the presence of a knife or bladed/pointed article. The only crime category of this type where data is available prior to 2017-18 is Weapons possession involving a bladed or pointed article that was not used in other criminal activity. Table Two presents the number of these crimes in North Ayrshire from 1999-00 to 2024-25.

Due to changes in recording practices for 2017-18 onwards, data is also available on the number of recorded crimes of Weapons possession involving a bladed or pointed article that was used in other criminal activity (see Table Three).

Finally, data is available on the number of recorded crimes of Possession of certain dangerous knives in a private place since 2022-23, following the implementation of Part 4 of the Offensive Weapons Act 2019 on 27th March 2023. There were no recorded crimes of this type in North Ayrshire up to 2024-25.

Table One: Number of knife-related homicide victims, North Ayrshire, 2013-14 to 2024-25

Year	Knife-related Homicide Victims
2013-14	1
2014-15	1
2015-16	0
2016-17	2
2017-18	0
2018-19	0
2019-20	1
2020-21	0
2021-22	2
2022-23	0
2023-24	0
2024-25	2

Source: Homicide in Scotland, 2024-25

Table Two: Recorded crimes of Weapons possession involving a bladed or pointed article (not used in other criminal activity), North Ayrshire, 1999-00 to 2024-25

Year	Recorded crimes
1999-00	91
2000-01	113
2001-02	96
2002-03	107
2003-04	113
2004-05	121
2005-06	129
2006-07	131
2007-08	123
2008-09	157
2009-10	88
2010-11	70
2011-12	101
2012-13	45
2013-14	47
2014-15	32
2015-16	55
2016-17	55
2017-18	56
2018-19	83
2019-20	83
2020-21	96
2021-22	69
2022-23	81
2023-24	100
2024-25	83

Source: Recorded crime in Scotland, 2024-25

Table Three: Recorded crimes of Weapons possession involving a bladed or pointed article (used in other criminal activity), North Ayrshire, 2017-18 to 2024-25

Year	Recorded crimes
2017-18	51
2018-19	52
2019-20	47
2020-21	39
2021-22	60
2022-23	48
2023-24	46
2024-25	48

Source: Recorded crime in Scotland, 2024-25

Question reference: S6W-44254

Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 19 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what recent engagement it has had with (a) SSE, (b) other developers, (c) local communities, (d) trade unions and (e) environmental organisations regarding (i) the proposed Peterhead Carbon Capture Power Station and (ii) the associated environmental impact assessment.

As this is a live application which will come before Scottish Ministers for determination, it would not be appropriate to comment on the specific merits of the proposal.

Where appropriate, the Scottish Government engages with developers, statutory consultees and other stakeholders on procedural or policy matters.

Potential impacts on communities, nature, landscape and other valued natural assets are important considerations in the decision-making process. The merits of each proposal are considered on a case-by-case basis, and a careful balance must be struck between the potential impacts of the development and the associated environmental, economic, renewable energy and climate change benefits.

A final decision will only be taken after careful and thorough consideration of all material issues including the representations received, consultee advice, relevant environmental information, as well as all planning information in accordance with the relevant legislative obligations.

Question reference: S6W-44102

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 19 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support the work of the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) to ensure we have a robust independent oversight body to secure public confidence in policing.

The 2026-27 Scottish Budget provides funding of £8.5m for PIRC, an additional £1m (a 13.5% increase) compared to the 2025-26 ABR budget, in recognition of the additional demands being placed on the organisation.

The Scottish Government will continue to work closely with PIRC to understand the demands on the organisation and any requirement for additional resources, to ensure that it can continue to deliver a high level of service and fulfil its statutory responsibilities.

Question reference: S6O-05687

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether local authorities are fully utilising the powers available to them under the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019, such as Bus Service Improvement Partnerships, franchising and the ability to run their own services, to safeguard essential routes such as the 46 and 48 in Midlothian.

Question reference: S6O-05686

Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting workers at Grangemouth who have been made redundant.

Question reference: S6O-05689

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to comments by the Scottish Information Commissioner who stated, in relation to the Government's handling of information concerning the Salmond files, "I can no longer trust the government to handle this information unsupervised and will explore more intrusive options to ensure compliance."

Question reference: S6O-05688

Asked by: Marie McNair, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting families in Clydebank and Milngavie to access affordable childcare.

Question reference: S6O-05685

Asked by: Keith Brown, MSP for Clackmannanshire and Dunblane, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the reported decision by Forth Valley College to retain its Alloa Campus for 2026-27, what engagement it will have with the College and the Scottish Funding Council to ensure the long-term future of further education provision in Clackmannanshire.

Question reference: S6O-05691

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its commitment is to a sustainable funding package for Forth Valley College to ensure its long-term future.