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-28349

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 September 2006
Current Status: Answered by Johann Lamont on 22 September 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is aware of any research into on-site compliance with energy standards in building regulations in Scotland and whether it is aware of the Building Research Establishment report, Assessment of energy efficiency impact of Building Regulations compliance, which surveyed new buildings in England in 2004 and found that 43% of new houses surveyed did not meet energy standards in building regulations.

Question reference: S2W-27579

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 July 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 23 August 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether patients without traceable medical records are entitled to the same level of access to NHS treatment as those with full records.

Question reference: S2W-27065

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 22 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Rhona Brankin on 8 August 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will issue its consultation on the technical specifications surrounding the use of snares under the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004.

Question reference: S2W-26892

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Rhona Brankin on 16 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether Scottish Water has provided it with a satisfactory delivery plan for 2006-10.

Scottish Water submitted a newdelivery plan to the Executive on 26 May. The plan set out to the satisfactionof the Executive how Scottish Water will meet the objectives set by the Executivefor 2006-10, for improved standards for drinking water quality and environment protectionand enough strategic capacity to support new development across the country, withinthe financial limits set by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland. TheWater Industry Commission for Scotland, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the DrinkingWater Quality Regulator for Scotland each indicated that they were content with the planfor their respective interests. In these circumstances, the Executive has informedScottish Water that it has approved the plan and that Scottish Water should nowdirect all of its energies on implementing the plan.

Copies of the Scottish WaterDelivery Plan are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib.number 39877).

Question reference: S2W-25072

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 April 2006
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 11 May 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the stakeholder groups which currently have interests falling within the remit of its Environment and Rural Affairs Department.

The Environment and Rural AffairsDepartment utilises a range of stakeholder groups to support the work of the Department,and these are listed below. The remit of the groups varies according to the subjectmatter. In some cases members are appointed in their own right, rather than as representativesof particular organisations.

ClimateChange Review Stakeholder Group

ScottishOdour Steering Group

AntisocialBehaviour Act Noise Implementation Advisory Group

FloodingIssues Advisory Committee

ScottishLiaison Group on Waste

Scottish Water Outputs and Capital Monitoring Groups

Working Group on Diffuse (Water) Pollution

Bathing Waters Review Panel

National Stakeholder Forum for Water Environment and WaterServices Act

Scottish Sustainable Development Forum

Scottish Biodiversity Forum

AdvisoryGroup on Marine and Coastal Strategy

Marine Biodiversity Research Co-ordination Group

SealsForum

Sea Fisheries Advisory and Reference Group

Scottish Inshore Fisheries Advisory Group

UK Quota ManagementChange Programme Consultative Group

Scallop Advisory Group

Pelagic Review Group

Tripartite Working Group (on wild fisheries and farmedsalmon)

Fish Farm Location/Relocation Group

Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum

Highlands andIslands Aquaculture Forum

Ministerial Working Group on Aquaculture

Freshwater Fisheries Forum

FIFG Fishery Management Groups

CroftingPanel of Experts

External Communications Panel (on IACs literature and forms)

Single Farm Payment Implementation Advisory Group

Sheep and Goat Identification and Traceability AdvisoryGroup

Electronic Identification/Electronic Data Transfer AdvisoryGroup

Less Favoured Area Stakeholder Group

Agriculture Strategy Implementation Group

Scottish Rural Development Plan Stakeholder Group

Land Management Contracts Stakeholder Working Group

Organic Stakeholders Group

Farm Business Advice and Skills Task Group

LEADER Stakeholder Group

Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (Scotland)

National Goose Management Review Group

Animal Health and Welfare Stakeholder Group

Scottish Animal Health and Welfare Advisory Group

Strategic Science Advisory Panel.

Question reference: S2W-24145

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 13 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 11 May 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of its target to double cycle use between 2002 and 2012, how it will respond to research findings by the Lothian Cycle campaign, Spokes, suggesting that cycle project expenditure in Scotland on current trends is likely to fall from 1.4% of total transport expenditure in 2004-05 to 0.6% in 2006-07.

The Executive will continue tosupport cycling through funding to local authorities and cycling organisations toassist them in delivering the facilities and infrastructure needed to encouragecycling. Local authorities were granted £8.65 million for cycling, walking and saferstreets projects in 2005-06 and this will increase by 2.5% to £8.87 million in 2006-07and by another 2.5% to £9.09 million in 2007-08. It is, of course, a matter forindividual authorities as how they choose to spend this money.

In addition, funding will beprovided to Regional Transport Partnerships (RTPs) across Scotland of £35million in 2006-07 and 2007-08. RTPs are likely to consider regionally strategiccycle projects as part of their Regional Transport Strategies.

Question reference: S2W-25355

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 April 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 2 May 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what predictions it has made about the impact on climate change of the policy options set out in its new consultation on Scotland's national transport strategy and when such predictions will be published.

Question reference: S2W-25376

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 21 April 2006
Current Status: Answered by George Lyon on 28 April 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether existing local government finance legislation would allow Scottish local authorities to introduce a council tax rebate scheme for householders who invest in energy efficiency measures, along the lines of the scheme introduced in England and Wales in partnership with local authorities and energy companies.

Question reference: S2O-09545

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 April 2006
Current Status: Answered by Robert Brown on 20 April 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what changes it will make to schools¿ procurement guidelines to ensure that they contribute to the Executive¿s Climate Change Programme objectives.

The Executive’s Scottish ProcurementDirectorate provides advice on best practice procurement to local authorities inScotland, including guidance on sustainability. It is expected that local authorities,who are responsible for the procurement of schools, would reflect best practiceand ministerial objectives in their own policy and procedures.

In addition, Changing OurWays: Scotland’s Climate Change Programme includes a commitment to publish aScottish Sustainable Procurement Action Plan by the end of 2006, which will furtherassist local authorities in ensuring that their procurement policy contributes tothe objectives of the Climate Change Programme.

Question reference: S2W-24148

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 13 March 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 22 March 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-9677 by Nicol Stephen on 9 August 2004, which local authorities have approached it to discuss funding for cycle infrastructure projects and what the outcomes were.

No local authorities have approachedExecutive officials to discuss possible funding for major cycle infrastructure projectssince question S2W-9677, which was answered on 3 November 2005. The developmentand funding of such projects is now a matter for the statutory regional transportpartnerships.

Discussions have beenon-going with the south-east Scotland transport partnership (SESTRAN), through Falkirk Council,regarding support funding in relation to the Round the Forth Cycle Route since October2004. In May 2005 the Scottish Executive agreed to match-fund 50% of the £120,000requested by SESTRAN, for a period of three years, ending in 2007-08.