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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 15 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S7W-03947

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2026
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Angela Constance on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the Cabinet Secretary's announcement in June 2026 that an Independent Review of Maternity Services would commence in September 2026, whether it will provide an update, including when the review will commence, when its findings and recommendations are expected to be published, and what steps it plans to take thereafter.

I am pleased to confirm the Independent Review of Maternity Services is now underway. Professor Christine McCourt has published the review methodology on a dedicated website and has begun establishing two advisory groups who will provide support to her during the review.

The review will take nine months to complete. Once it concludes, Professor McCourt will submit her report and recommendations to Scottish Ministers one month later, in July 2027. Once the report is received, I will give careful consideration to Professor McCourt’s findings and recommendations and set out my response. I intend to update Parliament as soon as possible given the significant interest in improving maternity services across the Chamber.

This review represents an important opportunity to ensure that women, babies and families receive the highest quality maternity care possible.

This review is system-wide, and I will work with partners across the maternity system to take forward the changes identified.

In the meantime, Healthcare Improvement Scotland continue to conduct their unannounced inspections of all 18 of Scotland’s acute maternity units. I am clear that learnings from these inspections must inform ongoing improvement across our NHS and I will of course continue to engage with Members directly on any specific local issues identified.

Question reference: S7O-00347

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 September 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on discussions it has had with the UK Government in advance of the UK Budget.

Question reference: S7W-03189

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 September 2026
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Jim Fairlie on 14 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the action being taken to further increase protection for Marine Protected Areas and Priority Marine Features.

The Scottish Government is pleased to announce that the consultation on proposed fisheries management measures for inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPA) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) management areas in Scottish waters has today been launched: https://consult.gov.scot/marine-scotland/fisheries-management-measures-for-inshore-mpas/.

Scotland’s seas are a shared resource and protecting them means safeguarding marine habitats and species while supporting long-term sustainability of the industries and communities that depend upon them. This consultation seeks views on proposed fisheries management measures that will further protect the inshore MPA network and the 11 PMFs most sensitive to bottom-contacting mobile fishing gears, which are habitats and species of national conservation importance.

The development of these proposals has been informed by years of stakeholder engagement, scientific evidence gathering and discussion with representatives from the fishing industry, environmental organisations, coastal communities, local authorities, and other interested parties.

Given the scale and complexity of the proposals, covering more than 160 sites and areas across Scotland’s inshore waters, the consultation has been extended beyond the standard 12-week duration and will run until 18 January 2027, going beyond the intended sixteen week period due to the festive period. This extended consultation will provide stakeholders and members of the public additional time to consider the evidence, reflect on the proposals, and provide informed views to help shape the future management of Scotland's seas.

I recognise that these proposals are of significant interest to those who use and depend on Scotland’s seas. The Scottish Government remains committed to working closely with fishing communities, conservation organisations and local leaders throughout the consultation process to ensure that we achieve an appropriate balance between environmental protection and the social and economic wellbeing of our coastal and island communities.

Question reference: S7O-00209

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to deal with housing shortages in rural communities, including in Moray.

Question reference: S7O-00143

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its plans to review the wildfire strategy following the recent such incident in the Cairngorms National Park.

Question reference: S7W-00229

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 5 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, given that original plans for establishing a permanent MRI scanner at Dr Gray's Hospital were halted several years ago, whether it will provide an update on the timetable for progressing this work.

A business case was submitted to the Scottish Government requesting funding for the provision of MRI services at Dr Gray’s Hospital under the National Treatment Centre (NTC) programme. The Business case process was subsequently paused in line with the decision in early 2024, due to capital funding constraints to pause all new capital infrastructure projects that were not already under construction including NTC projects.

The Scottish Government is working with all Health Boards to develop a Whole System Infrastructure Plan (WSIP), which will identify investment priorities across NHS Scotland. Projects previously paused, such as the MRI scanner at Dr Gray’s, will be considered within this process, with priorities determined through a national strategic assessment of the NHS estate and linked to capital funding availability. Ministers are expected to decide priorities next year, once this process concludes.

Question reference: S7W-00231

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Gethins on 4 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the high costs of home heating oil and any impact these have had on rural communities, including in Moray.

The conflict in the Middle East has had a significant impact on rural communities who rely on heating oil, including in Moray. That is why we established the Scottish Emergency Heating Oil Scheme, enabling eligible households to apply for £300 towards their bills. Former Cabinet Secretary for Housing, Miri McAllan, engaged with UK Government on this issue prior to the election and official level engagement is ongoing.

We have repeatedly urged the UK Government to take their responsibility for energy pricing and market regulation seriously. This means putting in place robust and effective consumer protection and support in the heating oil sector as a matter of urgency.

In order to make use of Scotland’s abundant homegrown renewable resources, and ensure communities like Moray are not reliant on volatile global markets, we have formally requested the devolution of energy powers to the Scottish Parliament. This will allow us to take decisive action to bring down energy bills.

Question reference: S7O-00049

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 June 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce waiting times for patients in Moray.

Question reference: S7W-00228

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 1 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many journeys have been taken where patients have travelled from Moray to Aberdeen for MRI scans, to date in 2026.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. We would direct the member to the NHS Grampian health board to obtain this information.

In order to support the reduction of waiting times, patients may be asked to travel to appointments out with their local health board. It is expected that most patients will be seen and treated locally wherever possible and appropriate, based on clinical need and operational effectiveness. However, it may not always be possible for Health Boards to provide access locally, for all patients and for all services, where Health Boards are, for example, constrained by geography or specialist services.

Question reference: S7W-00230

Asked by: Laura Mitchell, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 1 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many journeys have been taken where patients have travelled from Moray to Aberdeen for MRI scans in the last five years.