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 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-44034

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 17 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what support it has provided to Médecins Sans Frontières in relation to its humanitarian work in Gaza.

The Scottish Government has not funded the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) humanitarian response in Gaza. MSF is primarily funded by private donations, as opposed to government funding, as a way of prioritising operational neutrality.

However, Scottish Government funding through other organisations and UN-led pooled funds has directly responded to the pressing humanitarian needs of the civilian population in Gaza.

Since the outset of the current conflict, the Scottish Government has committed £2.3 million in humanitarian funding for Gaza and the wider Middle East. This includes £750k for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), £550k to the Disasters Emergency Committee Appeal, Mercy Corps and Scottish Catholic Aid Fund (SCIAF) and a £600K contribution to the multi-donor pooled fund led by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs(OCHA) for the Occupied Palestinian Territories. This funding has funded the provision of life-saving health services, food and nutrition assistance, emergency shelter, water and sanitation, protection services, education support and cash for families, ensuring aid reaches those most at risk.

The Scottish Government has also recently provided £400,000 to the Dundee-based global health charity Kids Operating Room to establish the Gaza HOPES Field Readiness Hub which will support a rapidly deployable hospital in Gaza for provision of essential surgical, maternity and paediatric services, and facilitate the future recovery of the decimated healthcare sector through ongoing training of medical staff.

The Scottish Government has repeatedly expressed its concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Scottish Ministers have called for the unfettered access of humanitarian aid throughout the conflict and reiterated the importance of an immediate influx of humanitarian aid following the ceasefire agreement that commenced on 19 January 2025.

Question reference: S6W-44339

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Ben Macpherson on 13 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the review of modern apprenticeship contribution rates.

The review of modern apprenticeship contribution rates will be undertaken in two stages. The first stage of the review will begin imminently, in March 2026, and the initial evidence gathering work will be complete by the end of June 2026. The second stage will commence in February 2027 and will involve a more in-depth consideration of contribution rates.

The scope and terms of reference for the MA contribution rates review can be found on the Scottish Government website at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/modern-apprenticeship-contribution-rates-review-scope-and-terms-of-reference

Question reference: S6W-44346

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its (a) engagement with the UK Government and (b) other work it is undertaking regarding a UK-wide social tariff in energy.

Question reference: S6W-44294

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the results of the latest Scottish House Condition Survey, which indicates that there has been a decline in the rates of fuel poverty in Scotland, largely reflecting the fall in energy prices, and what action it is taking to use all of its existing powers to end fuel poverty.

Question reference: S6W-43809

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what the target date is for carrying out remediation of unsafe cladding in Scotland to ensure that all high-risk buildings are made safe.

Question reference: S6W-43805

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on when it will conclude its review of Land and Buildings Transaction Tax, and when it will publish its findings.

Question reference: S6W-43808

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the number of residential buildings affected by unsafe cladding, and what proportion of remediation costs it expects to be met through levy funding.

Question reference: S6W-43806

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on which stakeholders it has engaged with during its review of Land and Buildings Transaction Tax.

Question reference: S6W-43807

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce regional variation in Land and Buildings Transaction Tax relief for first-time buyers to reflect differing housing market conditions across Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-05526

Asked by: Paul McLennan, MSP for East Lothian, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 February 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how the recently announced legal aid reforms will ensure the accessibility of justice.