Tory MSP Liam Kerr raises possible job losses at Don & Low in Forfar.

The first minister confirms the government will liaise with the company and help employees find alternative employment if required.

Labour MSP James Kelly expresses concern about the proposed closure of six public golf courses in Glasgow.

Ms Sturgeon says the SNP administration in Glasgow City Council is currently having to raise the revenue to meet equal pay claims, before adding it is for Glasgow Life to carry out a consultation on facilities.

Image source, bbc

SNP MSP Clare Adamson says redundancies have been announced at the Liberty Steel Daziel Works.

Liberty Steel, which employs a pool of 163 staff who work across the Dalzell and Clydebridge plants, confirmed the redundancies this week.

Ms Sturgeon says the redundancies are due to the uncertainty of Brexit.

Labour MSP David Stewart asks about a data breach by NHS Highland which exposed details of 37 people living with HIV.

The email addresses of almost 40 people who have HIV have been made public by mistake.

The first minister says the safety of patient data is of the utmost importance. The board has rightly apologised to patents and an internal review is under way, she says.

SNP MSP Richard Lyle says an official is to receive a redundancy payment of between £400,000- £800,000 to leave North Lanarkshire Council.

Audit Scotland are aware of this payment, replies Ms Sturgeon, adding there is a duty on all public bodies to ensure money is spent in the public interest.

Image source, bbc

Mr Leonard says the first minister is defending a decision to freeze the fund, insisting it is "fundamentally underresourced".

Local authorities are not advertising the fund for fear of too much demand, he warns, and he calls for an increase.

Ms Sturgeon reiterates the fund has been protected.

She adds that every penny on the Scottish budget is account for and suggest Mr Leonard highlight where the extra money should come from.

The first minister highlights a statement next week to set out plans for an income supplement.

Image source, bbc

Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard asks how much the Scottish Welfare Fund is this year compared to when it was first launched in 2013.

The first minister says £38m per year is given to the fund, with more that 600,000 crisis grants awarded since 2013.

"We will continue to do what we can to provide support for individuals and families in need," she says.

Mr Leonard says "not a penny more" cash is available through the fund than was available in 2013.

This represents a real terms cut of £3.5m, he says.

Ms Sturgeon says Scottish Labour did not raise this issue during budget negotiations earlier this year.

We have protected the welfare fund in the face of cuts to the budget from the UK government, she argues.

The Scottish Welfare Fund helps families and people in Scotland who are on low incomes through Crisis Grants and Community Care Grants.

You can apply for a:

• Crisis Grant, external– if you're in crisis because of a disaster (like a fire or flood), or an emergency (like losing your money or an unexpected expense)
• Community Care Grant, external– to help you or someone you care for to start to live, or to carry on living, a settled life in the community

According to reports in the Daily Record, external Scottish children are going hungry because councils are deliberately failing to ­advertise financial support available to them, according to a new report.

Food poverty campaigners, A Menu for Change, are calling on the Scottish Government to make more cash available for the Scottish Welfare Fund.

Image source, bbc

Ms Davidson says parents have been facing difficulties in having medical tests carried out on their children, with some having the pay privately.

The first minister says officials are liaising with NHS Lanarkshire to put in place the resources that are required.

The review team will look at whether population testing is necessary but the view of the health board at the moment is that is it not, she adds.

Ms Davidson says concerns about potential contamination were raised in 2009 when plans for the schools were first proposed.

Ms Sturgeon accepts there is an issue of trust here, which is why the review has been established.

Information on planning from 2009 will be looked at by the review if it is considered necessary, she adds.

Image source, bbc

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson begins with a question on the environmental safety at the campus shared by Buchanan High School and St Ambrose High in Coatbridge,

Will the Scottish government confirm its review will be wide enough in scope to look at all the evidence coming to light, she asks?

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon says she is determined to "do everything necessary" to allay concerns raised by parents and the community.

The review will have the ability to look into any relevant matter she confirms, adding the team visited the school yesterday.

Ms Sturgeon and deputy first minister John Swinney will meet with officials later today to get an early update, and Mr Swinney will meet with parents next week, she adds.

Trust, transparency and good communication is key to dealing with these issues, says Ms Davidson.

The first minister makes assurances that government "will not rest" until all issues have been looked at and parents are assured about safety.

The school is safe for pupils to attend according to the health board, she adds.

Image source, bbc

Teachers at a Lanarkshire school at the centre of chemical contamination fears have started a week-long strike.

NASUWT union members at Buchanan High School in Coatbridge have walked out after four teachers developed cancer.

The union is calling for the entire campus - built on a former landfill site - to be tested and its two schools to be closed early for the summer.

North Lanarkshire Council said no serious illness had been linked to the schools or the site.

Read more here.

Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham says the government supports the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme and details other measures being undertaken.

Ms Martin says in the last couple of months two humpback whales have been killed by entanglement and she asks if the government backs a pilot to address this.

The cabinet secretary says she fully supports the Scottish Entanglement Alliance Programme but any pilot will have to follow discussions with the inshore fishing industry.

Image source, Karen Munro

A humpback whale may have become entangled in fishing gear thousands of miles away from where it was found dead on Scotland's north coast.

It came ashore close to Scrabster, near Thurso, in Caithness.

Scientists who have examined the carcass said it was likely the juvenile male, which was tightly wrapped in creel rope attached to a buoy, drowned.

Contact details for the owner of the gear, a fisherman in Nova Scotia, Canada, was on the buoy.

Read more.

SNP MSP Gillian Martin asks about protecting marine mammals from entanglement.

Social Security Secretary Shirley-Ann Somerville says the data on disability is based on voluntary self-declaration, and the estimate was based on a survey from December 2018 where the status of 62.5% of the workforce was unknown.

Ms Somerville says the most recent staff survey found 22% of those who completed it have a disability or long-standing illness.

Mr Griffin calls for a plan to close the gap and for more disabled people to be put in positions of leadership.

The cabinet secretary reiterates the high proportion of disabled people employed by Social Security Scotland and highlights efforts to ensure there are opportunities for promotion.

Labour MSP Mark Griffin asks about the median disability pay gap of 26% in Social Security Scotland.

Image source, Thinkstock/Getty

Click here for the full list of questions., external

Welcome to Holyrood Live on Thursday 20 May 2019.

Here's what we're covering today:

• General questions
• First minister's questions

Image source, bbc

• First anniversary of the Glasgow School of Art fire: Member's debate
• Ministerial statement: 2018-19 Scottish Government Provisional Outturn
• Portfolio Questions
• Ministerial statement: Update on review of the 2004 Gender Recognition Act

• Stage 3 Consideration of Amendments: Planning (Scotland) Bill

• 4.00-5.00 pm:Stage 3 Debate: Planning (Scotland) Bill