Chamber and committees

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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: S7W-02722

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 28 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 18 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what work it has done on progressing the second recommendation in the Misogyny – A Human Rights Issue report published by the Working Group on Misogyny and Criminal Justice led by Baroness Helena Kennedy KC.

The second recommendation contained in 'Misogyny – A Human Rights Issue'; the report published by the Working Group on Misogyny and Criminal Justice' was:

2. The Working Group concluded too that legislative change is essential but insufficient to address the insidious problem of misogyny in Scotland. In addition, therefore, to the creation of a Misogyny Act, the Working Group recommends that the Scottish Government:

i. Involves all relevant stakeholders (including women’s groups and the Police Scotland) in implementation of the Misogyny Act.

ii. Provides sufficient resources for:

a. Education and training within the criminal justice system and for multi-agency support and awareness (medics, dentists, social services, educators) as well as the development of any new interventions such as awareness training required for diversions to social workers from the Procurator Fiscal).

b. Resourcing social work and other interventions, as required by prosecution policy.

c. Technology capability and police officer capacity for recording and reporting.

d. Campaigning and awareness – within public institutions, workplaces, education.

e. Learning from projects and good practice in other places and jurisdictions – e.g. Nottingham, Washington DC, France"

Many of these recommendations relate to the implementation of the proposed Misogyny Act. As such, they will be matters for consideration during the implementation of the legislation, should it be passed by Parliament.

We also recognise the importance of campaigning and awareness-raising to address misogyny more broadly. Earlier this year, we delivered a campaign aimed at boys aged 11 to 18, as well as parents and carers, to raise awareness of the scale and impact of misogyny and to encourage positive behaviours and support for those affected. Our Programme for Government includes a sustained, multi-year public health campaign to address misogynistic attitudes and violence against women and girls, alongside a range of wider measures to challenge harmful attitudes and behaviours.

We have also published a national framework for schools to support action to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and gender-based violence. Misogynistic behaviour was identified as an emerging concern in the 2023 Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research report. The publication of the Gender Based Violence in Schools Framework, developed by a working group jointly chaired by us, Rape Crisis Scotland and Zero Tolerance, demonstrates our commitment to responding to these concerns and ensuring that pupils and staff receive the support they need.

In addition, we remain committed to supporting the implementation and expansion of both the Time for Inclusive Education programme and the Institute for Strategic Dialogue's Digital Discourse Initiative in Scotland. Schools, teachers, trade unions and young people have highlighted the value of the Digital Discourse Initiative in helping educate young people about online hate and disinformation. Zero Tolerance has also contributed to the programme by supporting the development of content and case studies on misogyny and the so-called "manosphere.

Question reference: S7W-02908

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce the disparity between the time taken for rape and attempted rape cases to reach trial in instances where the accused is (a) on bail and (b) remanded in custody.

Decisions on the scheduling of individual criminal cases are a matter for the independent Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. It is important that delays in the criminal justice system are minimised insofar as possible and statutory time limits exist to prevent unnecessary delays in criminal cases coming to trial and help the judiciary to effectively manage the progress of cases. This is particularly important in trials for offences of rape, serious sexual assault and domestic abuse where delays can impact on complainers.

Different time limits apply depending on whether an accused is in custody or in the community and prioritise cases where an accused person has been remanded in custody prior to trial, recognising the particularly importance of minimising the length of time which an accused person who has not been convicted of a criminal offence spends in custody prior to their trial.

Section 65(1) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act) provides that in any case where an indictment has been served on a person, the trial must commence within 12 months. A stricter time limit applies where the accused has been remanded in custody prior to trial. Section 65(4) of the 1995 Act provides that where an accused has been remanded in custody prior to trial, the trial must commence within 140 days failing which the accused shall be released on bail. These time limits can all be extended by the court on a case-by-case basis. These time-limits apply to all cases and are not specific to rape or sexual offence cases.

Question reference: S7W-02913

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered introducing a mechanism for serious sexual offence cases involving an accused individual on bail to receive earlier trial dates where the case has already been subject to a prolonged period of delay, and if not, for what reason.

Management of the progress of criminal cases is an independent matter for Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and the judiciary. In individual cases, effective judicial management of the progress of a criminal case is an important element of the role of the judiciary. Where trial dates are sought to be moved by either the prosecution or the defence, the judiciary will consider carefully whether a move of date is in the interests of justice. The length of time a case waited for trial and the number of times a trial may have been moved back are relevant factors the judiciary will consider in any request to move a trial date. The judiciary must ensure the overall fairness of a trial when making decisions about moving trial dates and the Scottish Government has no direct role in such decisions.

Question reference: S7W-02910

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether cases involving an accused remanded in custody are routinely prioritised for trial ahead of otherwise comparable cases where the accused is on bail, and what assessment it has made of any impact this has on the waiting time for complainers in serious sexual offence cases.

As set out in my answer to question S7W-02908 on 15 September 2026, while decisions on the scheduling of individual criminal cases are a matter for the independent Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, the long-standing statutory time limits at section 65 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 require the prioritisation of cases where an accused person has been remanded in custody prior to trial. This approach relates to an accused person having the presumption of innocence and the importance of seeking to minimise the length of time they are held in custody prior to trial.

It is important that delays in the criminal justice system are minimised insofar as possible and the statutory time limits exist to prevent unnecessary delays in criminal cases coming to trial and help the judiciary to effectively manage the progress of cases. This is particularly important in trials for offences of rape, serious sexual assault and domestic abuse where delays can impact on complainers.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Question reference: S7W-02912

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many rape and attempted rape cases proceeded to trial where the accused was (a) on bail and (b) remanded in custody, and what the median time was from first appearance to trial in each category, in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S7W-02911

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether accused individuals on bail in rape and attempted rape cases wait longer for trial than those remanded in custody, and, if so, by how many days on average.

Statistics on justice journey times are published in the Journey Times in the Scottish Criminal Justice System bulletin and accompanying dashboard:

Criminal justice: journey time statistics.

The publication includes information on the time taken for accused individuals to progress through different stages of the criminal justice system, including cases involving rape and attempted rape.

However, we do not hold data on whether an accused person was on bail or remanded in custody, nor do we hold the information required to identify which cases proceeded to an evidence-led trial. Consequently, we are unable to provide times to trial for accused individuals by bail status or assess whether waiting times differ between those on bail and those remanded in custody.

Question reference: S7W-02909

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many rape and serious sexual offence cases are currently awaiting trial while the accused is on bail.

Question reference: S7O-00248

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on ensuring that families, particularly those in rural areas, have choice and flexibility in accessing childcare services

Question reference: S7W-02558

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered reducing the period for which Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) data relating to vehicles that are not of interest is retained.

Question reference: S7W-02559

Asked by: Yi-pei Chou Turvey, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential for Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) data to reveal whether an individual has visited sensitive locations, including healthcare facilities, places of worship, political meetings or domestic abuse support services.