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: S2W-24289

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any further plans to amend how poverty levels are calculated and, if so, what these plans are.

The Department for Work and Pensionsare developing a long-term measure of child poverty – which the Executive will adopt.This is being introduced this year in two stages. Future low income estimates forall individuals, working age adults and pensioners will be brought in line withthe equivalisation methodology used in the new child poverty measure from next year.

Full details on current and futuremethodologies for calculating low income estimates can be found in the latest ScottishHouseholds Below Average Income 2004-05 publication (Bib. number 39177 on pages8-10).

Question reference: S2W-24284

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of children living in poverty are from an non-ethnic minority group, expressed also a percentage of the total non-ethnic minority population.

It is only possible to identifythe ethnic group of the head of household.

In Scotland in 2002-03to 2004-05, after housing costs, an estimated 94% of children living in householdsthat are in relative low income poverty, have a non-minority ethnic head of household.Before housing costs the figure is estimated to be 93%.

In Scotland in 2002-03to 2004-05, after housing costs, an estimated 24% of children with a non-minorityethnic head of household, live in households that are in relative low income poverty.Before housing costs the figure is estimated to be 21%.

Question reference: S2W-24410

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the comments made by the Minister for Transport and Telecommunications on 15 March 2006 in respect of my national concessionary travel pass application (Official Report c. 24045), whether his assurance on timescales applies to all individuals whose applications have been received.

Question reference: S2W-24411

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how many applications have been received for the national concessionary travel scheme, broken down by local authority area.

The information requested isprovided in the following table.

Number of Applicationsto the Scotland-Wide Free Bus Scheme for Each Local Authority as at 17 March 2006

Local Authority	Application Count
Aberdeen City	32,576
Aberdeenshire	25,312
Angus	15,611
Argyll and Bute	11,530
City of Edinburgh	52,734
Clackmannanshire	6,010
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	1,312
Dumfries and Galloway	16,048
Dundee City	23,634
East Ayrshire	16,071
East Dunbartonshire	13,034
East Lothian	15,789
East Renfrewshire	10,573
Falkirk	24,367
Fife	43,166
Glasgow	66,213
Highland	15,013
Inverclyde	11,409
Midlothian	11,394
Moray	9,786
North Ayrshire	19,182
North Lanarkshire	36,571
Orkney Islands	2,698
Perth and Kinross	17,339
Renfrewshire	22,173
Scottish Borders	15,065
Shetland Islands	2,520
South Ayrshire	16,433
South Lanarkshire	35,007
Stirling	11,832
West Dunbartonshire	11,408
West Lothian	18,417
Grand Total:	630,227

Question reference: S2W-24413

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will extend the national concessionary travel scheme to carers whose assistance is necessary to enable those entitled to a pass to use it and, if so, whether a GP’s certification would be sufficient to determine eligibility or what other evidence would be required.

Question reference: S2W-24414

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost would be of extending the national concessionary fare scheme to the carers of those entitled to a pass.

Question reference: S2W-24412

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 28 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how many individuals are eligible for the national concessionary travel scheme, broken down by local authority area.

The information requested isprovided in the following table.

The estimate of the number ofpeople eligible for the Scotland–wide Free Bus Scheme has been calculated by usingthe numbers of older people for each local authority obtained from the 2001 censusand increasing the total by 10% as an estimate of the number of eligible disabledpeople.

Estimated Number ofPeople Eligible for the Scotland-Wide Free Bus Scheme for Older and Disabled Peoplefor Each Local Authority

Local Authority	Number Eligible
Aberdeen City	46,327
Aberdeenshire	48,064
Angus	28,231
Argyll and Bute	24,808
City of Edinburgh	97,859
Clackmannanshire	10,357
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	7,594
Dumfries and Galloway	41,350
Dundee City	36,795
East Ayrshire	28,490
East Dunbartonshire	25,180
East Lothian	22,401
East Renfrewshire	20,513
Falkirk	33,292
Fife	82,405
Glasgow	129,563
Highland	51,275
Inverclyde	20,373
Midlothian	17,982
Moray	20,621
North Ayrshire	32,520
North Lanarkshire	67,131
Orkney Islands	4,825
Perth and Kinross	35,900
Renfrewshire	39,392
Scottish Borders	29,059
Shetland Islands	4,559
South Ayrshire	30,820
South Lanarkshire	68,274
Stirling	19,863
West Dunbartonshire	21,288
West Lothian	28,479
Grand Total:	1,175,590

Question reference: S2W-24286

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to undertake a detailed independent study to determine the underlying factors which result in child poverty and what additional measures will be required to ensure that existing targets to eradicate child poverty are met.

The Scottish Executive has noplans to commission an independent study into the determinants of child poverty.Extensive independent research already exists, such as the annual Joseph RowntreeFoundation/New Policy Institute report on Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusionin Scotland.

Poverty is a complex social issuethat has no simple remedy and the Executive considers research from many differentsources in determining how its policies can best tackle poverty in Scottish society.Our Closing the Opportunity Gap (CtOG) approach focuses the efforts of all Departmentson tackling poverty and is consistent with, and complementary to, the UK Government’starget for eradicating child poverty within a generation.

Question reference: S2W-24293

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 27 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether livestock grazing takes place on farms affected by emergency prohibition orders related to the Chernobyl incident under and, if so, why that livestock is considered safe for human consumption.

I am advisedby the Food Standards Agency that restrictions resulting from the Chernobyl incidentstill apply to sheep on a small number of restricted farms.

These farms are subject to statutorycontrols under the terms of the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985. In orderto ensure food safety, all sheep leaving restricted farms are live-monitored usingportable radiation monitors and any sheep exceeding the 1,000 Becquerel per kilogram(Bq/kg) control level is prohibited from entering the food chain.

Question reference: S2W-24291

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 27 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what restrictions emergency prohibition orders related to the Chernobyl incident place on the affected farms.

I am advised by the Food StandardsAgency that affected farms are subject to statutory controls under the terms of the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985 and the current restrictions are specifiedin the Food Protection (Emergency Prohibitions) (Radioactivity in Sheep) Order 1991(SI 1991/20), as amended.

In order to ensure food safety,a monitoring system known as “Mark and Release” is operated to ensure that sheepexceeding the 1,000 Becquerel per kilogram (Bq/kg) control level do not enter thefood chain. Sheep from restricted areas are live-monitored for radioactivity usingportable radiation monitors prior to being moved. Sheep exceeding the control levelmay either be kept on-farm and subsequently re-monitored; or marked with an indeliblepaint and moved under licence. Marked sheep are prohibited from slaughter forthree months and a set rotation of colours under “Mark and Release” allows sheepto be automatically released from slaughter controls three months after the useof a particular colour ceases.