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: S4W-24768

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 March 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 March 2015

To ask the Scottish Government where the public can access the biodiversity compliance reports submitted by public bodies in accordance with the Wildlife and Natural Environment (Scotland) Act 2011.

Question reference: S4O-04132

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S4O-04101

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 March 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 March 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what support it has given to community arts groups across rural South Scotland in the last year.

Question reference: S4W-24504

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 2 March 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many prosecutions have been made under the habitats directive for offences relating to native mountain hares.

Question reference: S4W-24506

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 2 March 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what research it has carried out into diseases that mountain hares may carry.

A study by Laurenson et al. (2003), which was part-funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the then Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department (SEERAD), focused on how culling mountain hares can reduce tick burdens and louping ill virus (LIV) seroprevalence in red grouse. The study site, however, was unusual with very high LIV seroprevalence levels in grouse, and an absence of red deer. A review of the evidence concerning mountain hare culling as a management tool to reduce louping ill in grouse was supported by NERC and the Scottish Government Rural Environment Research and Advisory Directorate (Harrison et al., 2010). In addition, NERC has funded or part-funded research into mountain hare intestinal parasites and their potential impact on population dynamics (e.g. Newey et al., 2005). Another paper by Newey et al. (2007) was part NERC funded and part RESAS funded (among others) and discusses diseases in mountain hares. Other work funded or part-funded by the Scottish Government (or SEERAD or the Rural Environment Research and Advisory Directorate) has focussed on louping ill virus which mountain hares carry. This consists of both empirical and mathematical modelling theoretical studies. Several papers have been published, e.g. Gilbert et al. (2001).

Question reference: S4W-24505

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 2 March 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many mountain hares there are in Scotland.

The only published population estimate for mountain hares is now 20 years old and suggested that there were 350,000 mountain hares in Scotland, but this estimate had large error margins attached to it (+/- 50%). Furthermore, it pre-dates the trend over the past 10-15 years towards intensive culls on some grouse moors that can result in locally depleted hare populations. Furthermore, caution is needed when interpreting indices of population density especially for species such as mountain hares that show population cyclicity.

Population trend data are available from two independent sources: the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust National Gamebag Census data from 1995 to 2009 indicate a 36% decline in the index of mountain hare numbers, while the British Trust for Ornithology Breeding Bird Survey data suggests a decline of 26% over the same period. When combined these indices give a statistically significant decline of 28%, see: http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/pdf/468%20and%20Appendix%20web.pdf

Scottish Natural Heritage, the James Hutton Institute and the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, acting on the advice of several mountain hare experts, have started work on field trialling a range of methods of assessing mountain hare numbers, in order to develop a better monitoring strategy and to improve the quality of the information used to assess population status and the sustainability of hare management measures. This programme of work is due to be completed in 2017.

Question reference: S4O-04069

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 February 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 March 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the future of the Glasgow Centre for Integrative Care and its funding arrangements.

Question reference: S4W-24333

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the final version of its Heat Generation Policy Statement.

Question reference: S4O-03992

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making toward meeting the target of 11% of demand for heat being met by renewables by 2020.

Question reference: S4W-24024

Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 16 January 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 28 January 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has (a) introduced and (b) plans to ensure that the work being carried out to increase finfish production by 2020 does not impact on the marine environment; how often it measures the impact of this work and with what methodology.

Scotland has a regulatory framework in place, providing the right balance between growing aquaculture and protecting the marine environment on which farmed and wild fisheries depend. It was further enhanced by the Aquaculture and Fisheries (Scotland) Act 2013 to help meet the National Marine Plan objectives, ensuring that farmed and wild fisheries and their interactions continue to be managed effectively, maximising their combined contribution to supporting sustainable economic growth with due regard to the wider marine environment.

The Ministerial Group for Sustainable Aquaculture, which I chair, comprises the aquaculture industry, wild fish interests and other stakeholders, and was established to facilitate industry to achieve its 2020 sustainable growth targets with due regard to the marine environment. The group meets twice a year to review progress.

For any new fish farm or extension to an existing one, operators must apply for planning permission from the relevant local authority, which conducts a detailed assessment. This includes advice from Marine Scotland, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), Scottish Natural Heritage, Historic Scotland and local district salmon fishery boards on potential impacts on water quality, interactions with predators wild salmonids, species and habitats, conservation areas, landscape, marine cultural heritage, noise, and waste.

As with existing farms, operators must also apply to SEPA for a controlled activities regulation consent. SEPA then conducts a programme of monitoring and evaluation of the use of medicines at each fish farm, ensuring that consent conditions are not breached. Fish farming businesses are also authorised by Marine Scotland under the Aquatic Animal Health (Scotland) Regulations 2009, and inspected regularly for disease control, containment measures and sea lice management.