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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

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 4 May 2021
  6. Current session: 13 May 2021 to 4 February 2026
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Displaying 1251 questions Show Answers

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Question reference: S6W-43275

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether its presentation of the local government settlement is consistent with recent independent analysis that suggests that the real-terms increase is closer to 0.4% once in-year transfers are rebased.

Question reference: S6W-43277

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether its presentation of the local government settlement announced in its draft Budget 2026-27 as a fair deal risks overstating local authorities’ room for manoeuvre when they are facing ongoing cost pressures that were funded through in-year top-ups in 2025–26.

Question reference: S6W-43272

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide information on the reason why (a) it uses the Autumn Budget Revision (ABR) when presenting year-on-year changes in portfolio funding and (b) a different approach has been applied to local government funding in the calculation of the claimed 2% real-terms increase.

Question reference: S6W-43274

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it would expect independent analysts to be able to replicate its real-terms funding comparisons using published budget documents, and what steps it has taken to ensure that the calculation of the claimed 2% real-terms increase of its draft Budget 2026-27 can be independently verified.

Question reference: S6W-43276

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its draft Budget 2026-27, what its position is on whether its presentation of a 2% real-terms increase in local government funding is consistent with recent independent analysis suggesting that local authorities may need to increase council tax by around 8% on average in order to maintain current levels of service.

Question reference: S6W-43278

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reported suggestions from independent analysts of significant council tax rises, what assessment it has made of any impact on public understanding of local government finances of its presentation of a headline 2% real-terms increase in its draft Budget 2026-27.

Question reference: S6W-43279

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what value of in-year funding provided to local government in 2025–26 has been excluded from the baseline used to calculate the real-terms change in funding in its draft Budget 2026-27.

Question reference: S6W-43273

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether its standard practice is to use the latest available Autumn Budget Revision (ABR) as the prior-year comparator when presenting real-terms changes.

Question reference: S6W-43271

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 6 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether removing in-year funding provided to local authorities in 2025–26 from the baseline used for comparison has the effect of increasing the apparent real-terms growth rate for 2026–27.

Question reference: S6W-42766

  • Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Date lodged: Friday, 19 December 2025
  • Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government when officials first became aware that census data from 2001 and 2011 continued to be used in the social care funding formula after more recent census data was available, and what action was taken at that point.