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: S7W-01044

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 15 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it provides to schools on responding to incidents involving knives.

Question reference: S7W-01035

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 15 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 9 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what funding has been provided to local authorities for antisocial behaviour prevention and enforcement in each year since 2021.

The Scottish Government has provided record funding to local authorities for 2026–27. It is the responsibility of individual local authorities to manage their own budgets and to allocate the total financial resources available to them, including on antisocial behaviour, on the basis of local needs and priorities.

The Scottish Government complements this with specific national community safety interventions, for example, record funding for Phase 7 of CashBack for Communities, which supports diversionary activities for young people across Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-01587

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what additional funding is available to local authorities to enable them to increase their budget for community police officers.

Question reference: S7W-01588

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what further funding can be devolved to local authorities to enable an increase in the provision of funding towards the community policing fund.

Question reference: S7W-01585

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on introducing a Scottish statutory instrument to devolve powers to local authorities for determining the location and deployment of speed cameras and speed calming measures within local areas.

Question reference: S7W-01589

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 4 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding each local authority in Scotland has been provided to fund their community police force.

Question reference: S7W-01562

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 06 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 3 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the Scottish National Party manifesto commitment of expansion of childcare provision for children from nine months old, (a) whether this will this be subject to a phased introduction and (b) when will two-year-olds receive expanded provision.

Question reference: S7F-00021

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 June 2026

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S7W-00760

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 08 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 22 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it is planning to ensure the safety of jobs available for graduates in the ever-increasing world of AI.

The Scottish Government recognises the challenges facing graduates from changes in technology. Our 2026-27 Budget invests over £2.4bn in post school education and skills and reinforces our steadfast commitment to free education. The Scottish Government seeks to ensure Scotland has a strong, responsive skills system, as this is key to Scotland’s future.

Our investments in apprenticeships, careers support, Developing the Young Workforce and adult learning will strengthen pathways into and through employment. This budget supports learners to progress into and through work, helping address poverty and cost of living pressures.

This support is reflected in the statistics for positive destinations for graduates with 89% of 2023-24 UK graduates from Scottish universities in work or further study 15 months after graduation and 85.4% of 2023-24 College qualifiers went on to work or further study.

We want this close alignment with the skills employers to continue. The Scottish Government has introduced a new skills planning model, being developed with partners, to ensure the post-school education and skills system is more responsive to Scotland’s strategic skills priorities. Digital has been identified as an early area of focus within this model, reflecting current and emerging skills needs and its alignment with national policy priorities.

In parallel Scotland’s AI Strategy published in 2026, sets out the Scottish Government’s five-year plan to harness the potential of AI to drive responsible and inclusive growth across our economy and make a positive difference at every level of society. In the Strategy’s first year, the Scottish Government will establish a Future Jobs panel to assess AI’s impact on workforce and to help guide national skills planning.

Question reference: S7W-00761

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 08 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 22 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it is planning to ensure that young people will still be able to access low experience jobs despite the rise of AI.

Careers support is provided to school-age pupils through teaching in the curriculum, access to professional careers advisers, Developing the Young Workforce(DYW).and specialist additional support is available as required.

DYW, funded by the government, was set up specifically to connect young people with employers and experience the world of work. Activities include visits to and from employers, skills projects and challenges, work tasters and careers fairs. Careers support is also provided by colleges and universities to prepare students for their destination post-education.

Through our No One Left Behind approach, we are delivering an all-age employability offer across Scotland. Young people who are unemployed or economically inactive are eligible for support with provision designed locally, with input from a range of partners, including Skills Development Scotland, colleges, and third sector provision ensuring it reflects local labour market needs.

As set out in the Scottish budget, we are investing up to £90million in 2026-27 for the delivery of devolved employability services, ensuring people of all ages, including eligible young people, receive a tailored offer of support based on their needs and circumstances.

Young people who require ongoing or intensive support as they transition from secondary education towards a positive destination, can access tailored support to help them progress towards employment, or move into another positive destination, such as higher or further education, where that is more appropriate to their aspirations, including routes that build skills for evolving job roles.

Published in 2026, Scotland’s AI Strategy sets out the Scottish Government’s five-year plan to harness the potential of AI to drive responsible and inclusive growth across our economy and make a positive difference at every level of society. In the Strategy’s first year, the Scottish Government will establish a Future Jobs panel to assess AI’s impact on workforce and to help guide national skills planning.