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: S3W-38949

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 21 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 3 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in identifying candidate large strategic habitat restoration projects, as mentioned in paragraph 96 of the National Planning Framework for Scotland 2.

RSPB Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and Falkirk, Stirling and Clackmannanshire Councils are in discussion on the potential for large scale coastal habitat creation on the Inner Forth.

SNH, Scottish Environmental Protection Agency, the Central Scotland Green Network and RSPB Scotland have agreed to fund a project officer to undertake their Inner Forth Futurescape Project, which will result in the production of a strategy and delivery plan for landscape scale habitat restoration and management along the Inner Forth. Throughout the Central Scotland Green Network area a suite of integrated habitat network plans are being developed by partnership working between local authorities, SNH, Forestry Commission Scotland and Central Scotland Forest Trust. These will help identify the potential for future projects.

Forestry Commission Scotland recently convened a meeting of agencies and environmental organisations to agree how best to co-ordinate future work on landscape scale ecosystem restoration initiatives throughout Scotland.

Question reference: S3W-38948

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 21 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 3 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in establishing a national ecological network outside the area covered by the Central Scotland Green Network and the Glasgow and Clyde Valley Green Network.

Action 42 of the National Planning Framework 2 (NPF2) Action Plan is to Develop a National Ecological Network potentially encompassing large strategic habitat restoration projects. As with the other actions, information on milestones and progress is available on the Scottish Government''s website.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/planning/National-Planning-Policy/npf/action-plan.

The Scottish Government has started work on the NPF2 Monitoring Report as part of its commitment to keeping the framework under review. This will be published in 2011 and will monitor the progress made in implementing NPF2.

Question reference: S3W-38981

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what pre-application consultation is required under the Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006 for an application for quarrying.

Question reference: S3W-38982

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what persons must be notified of a pre-application consultation on an application for quarrying.

Question reference: S3W-38985

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what organisations must be consulted in a pre-application consultation on a planning application for a new quarry.

Question reference: S3W-38983

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what form a pre-application consultation on an application for quarrying should take under the Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006.

Question reference: S3W-38984

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what action will be taken if a developer has not undertaken the required processes for a pre-application consultation on a planning application under the Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006.

Question reference: S3W-38980

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive for what classes of development a pre-application consultation must be undertaken as specified in the Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006 and what provisions are made for each such class.

All applications for planning permission for national and major developments require pre-application consultation (PAC). National developments are those specified in the annex to the second National Planning Framework (NPF2) and major developments are categorised in the Town and County Planning (Hierarchy of Developments) (Scotland) Regulations 2009, links provided below.

NPF2: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/07/02105627/0.

The Hierarchy Regulations: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2009/51/contents/made.

The Hierarchy Regulations specify that development for the extraction of minerals where the area of the site is or exceeds two hectares is a major development. This threshold relates to the area where extraction is proposed. Where an extension is proposed to an existing operation, the threshold only applies to the proposed extension.

The statutory requirements for PAC are the same for all national and major developments. Prospective applicants are required to:

consult every community council whose area, or part of, is within or adjoins the land where the proposed development is situated;

hold at least one public event for members of the public where they can make comments to the prospective applicant proposals. The event must be advertised at least 7 days in advance in a newspaper circulating in the locality of the proposed development. That advert should also specify a timescale and address to which written comments on the proposal can be sent to the prospective applicant, and

serve a proposal of application notice on the planning authority.

In addition to these mandatory steps, the planning authority can require the prospective applicant to carry out additional pre-application consultation.

A report on the pre-application consultation must accompany applications for national and major developments. If an applicant has not complied with the statutory requirements for PAC, or any additional requirements specified by the planning authority, the planning authority can not process the planning application.

Further information on PAC can be found in Circular 4/2009 on Development management Procedures at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/07/03153034/0.

Question reference: S3W-38052

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 December 2010
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 28 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will respond to the report on its consultation on permitted development rights for microgeneration technologies on non-domestic buildings.

The draft proposed secondary legislation was notified to the European Commission under the Technical Standards Directive (98/34/EC) on 17 November, setting out the permitted development rights we intend to introduce. The proposals can be viewed on the European Commission''s website at:

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/tris/pisa/app/search/index.cfm?fuseaction=pisa_notif_overview&iYear=2010&inum=731&lang=EN&sNLang=EN.

Question reference: S3W-38469

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 20 December 2010
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 26 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it can take to influence the rules governing the repayment of student loans to the Student Loans Company.

The Scottish Government must liaise with the other three countries of the UK in respect of issues relating to the repayment of student loans. This is because the rules around the repayment of student loans are governed by UK legislation. Details can be found in The Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) Regulations 2009.

Her Majesty''s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) operates the student loan collection system on behalf of the four countries in the UK.