Hansard

Tess White Con Chamber

11 Mar 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Freedom of Speech (Culture Sector)

Poet and novelist Polly Clark was shamefully cancelled by literary magazine Gutter for her gender critical beliefs. Gutter is funded by Scottish National Party quango Creative Scotland. This is yet another chilling example of state-funded censorship in Scotland’s cultural sect...

7. Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

11 Mar 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Freedom of Speech (Culture Sector)

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support freedom of speech across the cultural sector. (S6O-05617)

Tess White Con Chamber

05 Mar 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Renewable Energy Infrastructure (North East Scotland)

Human beings matter, and my question relates to the Scottish Government and its powers. Can the minister confirm that the proposed infrastructure will conform to all statutory and regulatory requirements and that consent will not be granted unless the Scottish Government is sa...

2. Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

05 Mar 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Renewable Energy Infrastructure (North East Scotland)

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the social justice secretary has had with ministerial colleagues regarding the protection of people’s human rights in relation to new renewable energy infrastructure, including the proposed SSEN Transmission 400kV overhead power ...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

05 Mar 2026

First Minister’s Question Time · Legal Rights (Women and Girls)

It is scandalous that the Scottish National Party Government has spent millions of pounds funding self-identification groups while shutting sex-based women’s organisations out of public funding. Ahead of international women’s day, will the First Minister commit to finally open...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Mar 2026

“Sign LOUD: Perspectives of Deaf mothers and signing practitioners on domestic abuse, communication issues and the impact on Deaf families”

:When it comes to legal aid reform and access to justice, there is national provision through the citizens advice bureaux, although I recognise that they are struggling for funding. At the moment, a woman who is fleeing domestic abuse cannot get legal aid, because she might be...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Mar 2026

“Sign LOUD: Perspectives of Deaf mothers and signing practitioners on domestic abuse, communication issues and the impact on Deaf families”

:The Scottish Government and the committee are considering legal aid reform. That might be a good opportunity to say—as you suggested, Professor Napier—that we should train somebody who is deaf as a solicitor and start the ball rolling.Are there any role models? Are there coun...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Mar 2026

“Sign LOUD: Perspectives of Deaf mothers and signing practitioners on domestic abuse, communication issues and the impact on Deaf families”

:Thank you. The figures are 2.2 per cent versus 2.5 per cent, yet £30 million-plus a year is spent on Gaelic. You talk about scrabbling around for money for workshops and training a couple of people and it being great that we have Lucy. You are scrabbling around for, let us sa...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Mar 2026

“Sign LOUD: Perspectives of Deaf mothers and signing practitioners on domestic abuse, communication issues and the impact on Deaf families”

:That creation of role models is something that the Scottish Government could take up with the Law Society as part of legal aid reform.I am delighted that the Deputy First Minister has taken an interest in BSL since our inquiry and since we had a debate and questions in the Pa...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Committee

03 Mar 2026

“Sign LOUD: Perspectives of Deaf mothers and signing practitioners on domestic abuse, communication issues and the impact on Deaf families”

Professor Napier, you said that we are failing deaf women in many ways. Dr Houghton, you spoke about the power imbalance between women and the male perpetrators of domestic abuse. We have been looking at legal aid reform. One proposal that came from the Scottish Government a c...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

26 Feb 2026

First Minister’s Question Time · Transmission Charges (Wind Farms)

Does the First Minister agree with his Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy’s comment that, if people do not want pylons, battery storage or other destructive infrastructure in rural Scotland, they are on the far right? If he does not agree with her, will he apologi...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:I will move on. Maybe we can take the conversation offline. Would you meet with me so that I can share with you the evidence that demonstrates that the public sector organisations are not collecting that data? You can have all sorts of finders and reports, but you are not col...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:Before Kevin comes in, I want to point out that I have made freedom of information requests of 160 public sector organisations. Many of them cannot even define sex; they collect data on gender. Some of them could not give me an answer on what actions they have taken on the ni...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:To address the most basic point, there is a cross-party group on changing places, and very little progress has been made on the issue. I acknowledge that there is a fund, but the number of toilets and changing places is decreasing in local areas—there is only one in the north...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:If the public sector was collecting data on four core protected characteristics—age, disability, sex and race—you would not be facing what you term “systemic discrimination”. We have just spoken about race, and you could say that race and religion are characteristics to addre...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:At the start of this evidence session, you talked about the four priorities, and I noted that one of those key goals, which drive all of the actions, is delivering high-quality, sustainable public services. The fact is that data and its recording matter; you mentioned non-bin...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:Good morning. What steps will be taken to improve the availability of intersectional and disaggregated data, given the quite significant gaps identified by civil society organisations and the Scottish Human Rights Commission?

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:Perfect—thank you.

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:When we had the debate on legal aid in the chamber, we discussed the issue of women fleeing domestic abuse and the recommendation that the financial thresholds be removed. On the Scottish Legal Aid Board—or SLAB, which is an unfortunate word—there was heavy criticism of it an...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:My next question is on something that my colleague Paul McLennan touched on, which is longer-term legal aid reform. It is difficult to say, because this is for the next parliamentary session, but have you stressed the point that reform is long overdue and needs to be looked a...

Tess White Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

:So, that is Government funded, and there might be some requirement that those people spend time on legal aid cases.

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Committee

24 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

Before I ask my main question, I want to ask the minister about the 40 traineeships that she mentioned. Those are definitely to be welcomed, so thank you for that. Will you require any of the trainees who have qualified to give back X number of years, so that, once they are qu...

Tess White Con Chamber

18 Feb 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Libraries

Libraries are the beating heart of our communities, but since the Scottish National Party came to power, 16 per cent—that is, 97—of them have closed. Funding has fallen by 30 per cent, but footfall has increased by 40 per cent. In my region, just in the city of Aberdeen, six l...

1. Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

18 Feb 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Libraries

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the current state of libraries in Scotland as part of any action it is taking to protect and strengthen these services. (S6O-05515)

Tess White Con Committee

17 Feb 2026

Neurodivergence

I am a Scottish Conservative MSP for the North East region.

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Committee

17 Feb 2026

Neurodivergence

I am a member of the committee from the Scottish Conservatives, representing the North East Scotland region.

Tess White Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Presiding Officer, the rules say that MSPs need to show respect to other MSPs. There is a conversation going on beside me, involving a cabinet secretary and a minister, while I am trying to listen to Ash Regan’s closing speech. I think that that is disrespectful.

Tess White Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

On a point of order, Presiding Officer.

Tess White Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

—is a vote to support the general principle of the bill.

Tess White Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

A vote for this bill at stage 1—

Tess White Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

At its core, the bill is about the protection of vulnerable women and girls and reducing organised crime, including grooming and human trafficking. Let right be done today. I say to the SNP members who are just sitting there looking at me: do not be cannon fodder for your whips.

Tess White Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I am afraid that I will not take an intervention from my colleague.I thank Rhoda Grant, because she made us pause for a moment. She asked the question: if this was your mother, sister or daughter, how would you feel? As my colleague Stephen Kerr said, is this a country we want...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

03 Feb 2026

Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I thank Ash Regan for her courage, and I thank her incredible team. I also thank the survivors of prostitution who shared their harrowing stories with MSPs. Today, we vote as a Parliament for the principles of this bill to put an end to state-sanctioned torture of women and gi...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

Thank you.11:45

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

During the debate on the issue in the chamber, there was huge criticism of the way in which the Scottish Legal Aid Board operates and its poor consultation. Has that been heard as well?

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

Did you hear the feedback that the rates are too low and that the work is becoming a loss leader for law firms? Those firms are in crisis mode, and the most vulnerable people in our society—adults with incapacity—feel that they are being left behind.

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Subordinate Legislation

Good morning, minister. Thank you for acknowledging that the committee’s recommendations have not been included, as that was what my first question was going to be about. The committee notes that the changes to civil legal aid that we proposed have not been taken forward. You ...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

No. I have taken up enough time on this. We will send you the Sunday Post article and I will write to you separately. I ask you, pending a review and an investigation, if you would consider withdrawing funding. I will leave that question with you and I will pass back to the co...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

That is fine. We will give you a copy of the Sunday Post. Thank you.

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

Thank you.

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

It is not a question of liking or disliking—I think of the head of Children in Need stepping down, for instance. There were huge concerns in the Sunday Post only last week regarding safeguarding at a particular organisation. Significant concerns have been raised in the nationa...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

But you oversee it.

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

I am talking about your accountability, minister, and the cabinet secretary’s accountability. You cannot delegate accountability for health and safety. Are you satisfied that every pound of Government money—of the taxpayer’s money—that you are spending is being spent wisely an...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

I hear you. Are you doing your own safeguarding and due diligence checks on organisations to which you give funding?

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

I hear you, cabinet secretary. Thank you for that clarification, because when organisations look at this, they just go, “Oh my goodness, the Scottish Government is marking its own homework.”My next question is linked to that budget sheet, which people are looking at in terms o...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

That is true. However, let us look at the outcomes in relation to violence against women and girls. This committee has had debates on that in the Parliament fairly recently, and we looked at evidence that was compiled by the Women’s Rights Network on sexual assaults in hospita...

Tess White Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

Thank you. I hear you about the importance of transparency, accountability and spend. This is the first document that has brought those things together in one place, which makes it is easier to come back and ask questions.I want to drill down into one specific line: item 31, o...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Committee

03 Feb 2026

Budget Scrutiny 2026-27

Good morning. I will start with the cabinet secretary, then go to the minister and then go back to the cabinet secretary.Cabinet secretary, what impact has the new strategic integrated impact assessments approach had on the budget process?

Tess White Con Chamber

28 Jan 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Portfolio Funding (Value for Money)

The Government’s tax and spending plans show that funding for international and European relations will rise by 29.3 per cent. Two years ago, it rose by 12 per cent. During that time, in the north-east, Angus has lost its award-winning Gateway to the Glens museum, Dundee Rep h...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

28 Jan 2026

Business Motion

On a point of order, Deputy Presiding Officer. I would have voted no.

Tess White Con Chamber

21 Jan 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Rape and Sexual Assault in Hospitals (Protection)

That is welcome. However, last year, the Women’s Rights Network exposed the facts that there have been 276 sexual assaults and 12 rapes in Scottish hospitals over a period of five years. The Patient Safety Commissioner said that those numbers might be underestimates and called...

7. Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

21 Jan 2026

Portfolio Question Time · Rape and Sexual Assault in Hospitals (Protection)

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to protect women from rape and sexual assault in hospitals. (S6O-05401)

Tess White Con Committee

20 Jan 2026

Neurodivergence

I am an MSP for the North East Scotland region.

Tess White Con Committee

20 Jan 2026

Neurodivergence

Do they need a diagnosis? You said that there could be multifactorial issues including diet, drinking and smoking, and those risk factors will need to be eradicated. Is data being recorded and kept to show that the person might not have ADHD and that it could be something else?

Tess White Con Committee

20 Jan 2026

Neurodivergence

You talked about 45,000 people waiting for diagnosis, and I think that more than half of them are children. Is there a huge risk arising from the fact that people are going for private diagnosis, because, as you said, that means that their condition will be looked at in a silo...

Tess White Con Committee

20 Jan 2026

Neurodivergence

They used to play outside.

Tess White Con Committee

20 Jan 2026

Neurodivergence

Noise is another issue, as Dr Boeing said. I wonder whether, when schools were designed to be open plan, anyone actually thought about the human factors.I want to ask another question before I go on to my question about private diagnosis. An article on the consequences of ultr...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Committee

20 Jan 2026

Neurodivergence

A few things that you have said have really resonated, and I thank you for the report. I want to pick up the point about what humans need to grow and thrive. Dr Crabb, you talked about working practices. My background is in human resources, and you touched on human factors and...

Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con) Con Chamber

15 Jan 2026

General Question Time · Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 (Addition of Sex Characteristic)

The minister says that the SSI will be laid “in due course”, but we do not know when that will be. Only this Tuesday, at the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee, the Minister for Equalities informed us that she had not met the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and...

Tess White Con Committee

13 Jan 2026

Public Sector Equality Duty

But you would be willing?