Skip to main content

Tell us your views

Help us do xxx by completing this short survey!

Link to survey goes here

What's on today Watch Parliament TV
Main navigation
Loading…

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

Filter your results Hide all filters

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 October 2025
Answer status
Question type
Clear search

Displaying 360 questions Show Answers

|

Question reference: S6W-37863

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what specific actions within its strategic childcare plan for the period 2022-26 are intended to improve (a) qualifications and (b) workforce retention in early learning and childcare.

Question reference: S6W-37861

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has assessed the sufficiency of current (a) pay, (b) career progression and (c) conditions in retaining experienced early learning and childcare staff.

Question reference: S6W-37856

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken any analysis of child development outcomes in settings led by graduate-level staff, compared with those without.

Question reference: S6W-37866

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address any regional inequalities in the early learning and childcare workforce in (a) general and (b) relation to (i) recruitment and (ii) retention in (A) rural and (B) deprived areas.

Question reference: S6W-37862

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how its early learning and childcare workforce strategy aligns with the expansion of funded hours of childcare, and whether staffing levels are projected to meet demand over the next five years.

Question reference: S6W-37818

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many times its ministers have intervened in the delivery of local early learning as a result of any failures in (a) infrastructure and (b) staffing, since 2015.

Question reference: S6W-37817

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish an updated cost-benefit analysis of its policy to provide 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare, since its roll-out in 2014.

Question reference: S6W-37813

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its reported commitment to recruit 12,000 people into the early learning profession by 2021, how many people were recruited by the end of 2021.

Question reference: S6W-37819

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the national standard for early learning and childcare has reportedly not been fully implemented across all providers, in light of it being nearly five years since its introduction.

Question reference: S6W-37816

  • Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Thursday, 22 May 2025
  • Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish National Party 2016 manifesto commitment that “Every nursery already has a teacher or qualified childcare professional. By 2018, every nursery in a deprived community will have an additional teacher or childcare graduate to support children’s learning”, how many nurseries currently operate without a fully qualified teacher.