Asked by: Ewing, Fergus (Independent - Inverness and Nairn)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what cumulative impact assessment it has carried out of the regulatory and fiscal changes affecting microtourism businesses over the last five years.
Answered by Lochhead, Richard - Minister for Business and Employment
The Scottish Government undertakes a range of impact assessments when developing or introducing new policy, taking account of other ongoing policy development that may interact with the options being considered. Where relevant, this includes Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments, which consider businesses of all sizes and the cumulative impact of multiple policy changes and their timing.
The Scottish Government report on the 2023 non-domestic rates revaluation was published on 5 July 2023. The report set out the changes in rateable values for different property classes as a result of the 2023 revaluation. A report on the 2026 revaluation will be published once final values are available.
On Short-term lets we continue to work with stakeholders to monitor implementation of the licensing regime. In response to stakeholder feedback we commissioned VisitScotland to launch an expert group to revise short-term let guidance, bringing industry and local authorities together to provide recommend updates to short-term let licencing guidance.
In relation to the visitor levy, impact assessments were carried out to support the original Visitor Levy Bill/Act and we are revising them for the new Bill, but these were on the overall impact of a Visitor Levy. Each Local Authority must assess the impact of its proposed local Visitor Levy’s scheme while it is developing and consulting on it.
Asked by: Kerr, Liam (Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party - North East Scotland)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018, when it will publish the statutory review of qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS), which it is required to undertake “as soon as practicable after the end of the 5-year period", which was 5 June 2023.
Answered by Brown, Siobhian - Minister for Victims and Community Safety
Under section 23 of the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018, Scottish Ministers must review the operation of Parts 1 to 3 and report to the Scottish Parliament as soon as practicable after the end of the five-year period following Royal Assent. The intention behind this period was to allow sufficient time for those Parts to be fully in force and operating as intended before the review took place.
While some sections came into force on Royal Assent and others shortly thereafter, implementation of Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting (QOCS)—which sits within Part 2 —required detailed court rules. Work on these rules was delayed because urgent rule changes were needed to keep courts operating under COVID-19 restrictions. As a result, QOCS did not come into effect until June 2021.
The Act specifies that the review must include information on the effect of QOCS on access to justice and the administration of the courts. To provide a meaningful assessment based on robust and meaningful data, the review will therefore focus on five years of actual operation rather than five years from Royal Assent. This approach reflects the original policy intention.
The Scottish Government will publish the review once sufficient evidence has been gathered and analysed. This will be after QOCS has operated for five years, ensuring the review reflects its practical effects on access to justice and court administration.
Asked by: Kerr, Stephen (Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party - Central Scotland)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide information on the number of babies who are expected to require transfer to one of the three specialist neonatal intensive care units remaining under its proposed reforms, per year.
Answered by Minto, Jenni - Minister for Public Health and Women's Health
The RSM report, published on 29 May 2024, New Model of Neonatal Care – RSM UK Consulting - Report, included data collection and modelling alongside engagement with both operational and strategic stakeholders, to validate data, generate and test planning assumptions.
Activity and capacity data was collected from each of the eight units included within the model scope, as well as Public Health Scotland (PHS) and, Scottish Specialist Transport and Retrieval (ScotSTAR) / Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS). The report has undergone a detailed review by the Perinatal Sub Group (PSG) and has benefited from discussion with the three elected Regional Planners and Chief Executives.
The report to date has been well received and supports the findings of the options appraisal report.
Asked by: Briggs, Miles (Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party - Lothian)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the cost of expanding the Young Patients Family Fund’s eligibility to include children and young people with cancer who are (a) day-case patients, and (b) aged 18-25.
Answered by Minto, Jenni - Minister for Public Health and Women's Health
The Young Patients Family Fund (YPFF) is just one of the means of financial support available to patients and their families. YPFF supports families to visit a child or young person aged under 18 while they are an inpatient. Financial assistance for attending hospital appointments, including outpatient and day treatments, is available through the patient travel reimbursement schemes.
These schemes provide financial assistance for eligible patients and authorised escorts, including for outpatient appointments and day treatments, and apply to travel both within and outside Scotland. All eligible patients aged 16 and under automatically qualify for an escort. NHS Boards are responsible for assessing eligibility and have the flexibility to consider individual circumstances and make decision in the best interests of patient care and wellbeing.
Asked by: Briggs, Miles (Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party - Lothian)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the (a) allocated budget and (b) actual outturn expenditure for the Young Patients Family Fund in each financial year since its introduction.
Answered by Minto, Jenni - Minister for Public Health and Women's Health
The first year of YPFF delivery was from July 2021 and there is complete expenditure data up to March 2025. The fund is demand-led and the Scottish Government is committed to ensuring sufficient funding to NHS Boards to support all valid YPFF claims. Actual spend may differ from profiled spend as demand requirements change over time. Budgets for Young Patients Family Fund are as set out in the following table along with the outturn expenditure for each financial year.
Year | Budget | Expenditure |
2021-22 | £5 million | £1,486,464 |
2022-23 | £4 million | £2,692,814 |
2023-24 | £4 million | £2,923,657 |
2024-25 | £4 million | £3,111,953 |
Asked by:
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what further action it is taking to address the problematic use of fireworks.
Answered by Brown, Siobhian - Minister for Victims and Community Safety
The Scottish Government continues to work with partners throughout the year in addressing the misuse of fireworks. I welcome that Police Scotland reported a more peaceful and safe Bonfire Night period in comparison to recent years and that they recorded an almost 37 per cent reduction in calls relating to fireworks offences compared to the previous year. I commend the important preparatory and preventative work of Police Scotland, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and local authorities, including the introduction of firework control zones, which all contributed to a safer Bonfire Night.
We continue to keep the operation of the legislation under review. As the sale of fireworks is a reserved matter, I also continue to engage with UK Ministers to ensure that the Scottish Government is kept closely updated on the UK Government’s plans in relation to fireworks, including on its consideration of a Private Members’ Fireworks Bill which calls for stricter rules for fireworks sellers and a reduced noise limit from fireworks.
Asked by: Kerr, Stephen (Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party - Central Scotland)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with any midwives who have raised concerns that the reported plans to downgrade neonatal intensive care units will endanger mothers and babies, and how it is responding to any such concerns.
Answered by Minto, Jenni - Minister for Public Health and Women's Health
Modelling maternity capacity is essential to the development of the new model of neonatal care. The RSM report has outlined the maternity modelling in relation to data captured.
The principles underpinning the changes to neonatal intensive care are supported by Scottish Executive Nurse Directors (SEND) and the Midwifery Directors of Scotland (MiDS).
To mitigate any concerns raised about the implications of the change for maternity services, SEND, in support of the MiDS, recommended that the Scottish Government undertake a national-level data collection to better understand the impact of the neonatal care remodelling on maternity services.
This data collection report has now been completed and the additional data and evidence gathered required for maternity services will inform maternity capacity implementation planning.
Asked by: Baillie, Jackie (Scottish Labour - Dumbarton)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-42209 by Neil Gray on 5 December 2025, what action has been taken by Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs) to mitigate any disruption to the supply chain in the medium to longer term, and whether there has there been any evaluation of lessons learned as a result of the collapse of NRS Healthcare Limited.
Answered by Gray, Neil - Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Scottish Government remain engaged with Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs) following the insolvency of NRS Healthcare, however ultimately decision making around procurement is the responsibility of local services.
Through this engagement we know that HSCPs are taking immediate steps to mitigate any disruption and ensure continuity of service delivery, this includes continuing to work with the equipment providers included in their contractual framework and by entering new contractual arrangements with other suppliers.
The National Equipment and Adaptations Network provides HSCPs with a platform to discuss mitigations and share lessons learned at a national level.
Asked by: Briggs, Miles (Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party - Lothian)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the evidence given by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 17 December 2025, in which the Cabinet Secretary commented that she had made a "private call" to a person with no officials present, stating that she subsequently made a note of this on the basis that “everything needs to be on the record”, whether it will confirm how many other similar such calls have been made by each minister since May 2021; what the circumstances of each call was, and what subsequent note of the call was recorded by the minister.
Answered by Forbes, Kate - Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic
All engagements carried out by Ministers where government business was undertaken are published on Scottish Government website three months in arrears, as is required by the Scottish Ministerial Code and the Scottish Government’s Records Management policy. There is no requirement for the origin of any such information to be collated and there is no mechanism for capturing the detail on the number of calls made by each Minister since May 2021.
Asked by: Slater, Lorna (Scottish Green Party - Lothian)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the responses to its consultation, Enhancing the accessibility, adaptability and usability of Scotland’s homes, which closed on 21 December 2023.
Answered by McAllan, Màiri - Cabinet Secretary for Housing
We expect to publish the consultation responses over the coming months, where respondents have consented to their comments being made public.