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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 1407 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S3W-31597

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 08 February 2010
Current Status: Answered by Adam Ingram on 4 March 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance has been given to local authorities on achieving parity in levels of kinship carer payments with that of foster carers by 2011.

A commitment to treat kinship carers of looked after children on an equivalent basis to foster carers is set out in the concordat between the Scottish Government and Local Government. Regulation 33 of the Looked After Children (Scotland) Regulations 2009 creates the framework for local authorities to pay foster care and kinship care allowances. Local authorities are best placed to decide how to achieve the commitment in the context of local needs and priorities and taking account of the carer''s overall financial circumstances, which can be affected by the payment of a kinship care allowance.

Guidance to local authorities on the regulations will be published during 2010 to replace earlier interim guidance. Neither of these have the aim of setting the level of allowances for either foster care or kinship care.

Question reference: S3W-31476

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 February 2010
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive what hourly direct payments rates are paid by each local authority.

Question reference: S3W-31408

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 February 2010
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 23 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive what evidence there is of progress in implementing Achieving our Potential: A Framework to tackle poverty and income inequality in Scotland.

Question reference: S3W-31407

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 February 2010
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 23 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps have been taken to monitor the implementation of Achieving Our Potential: A Framework to tackle poverty and income inequality in Scotland.

Question reference: S3W-31409

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 February 2010
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 23 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will produce a report on progress in implementing Achieving Our Potential: A Framework to tackle poverty and income inequality in Scotland.

Question reference: S3W-30921

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 January 2010
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 10 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive on what dates between 1 December 2009 and 8 January 2010 the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing was present at meetings in the Scottish Government Resilience Room.

Question reference: S3W-30922

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 January 2010
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 10 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive on what dates between 1 December 2009 and 8 January 2020 a substitute for the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing was present at meetings in the Scottish Government Resilience Room.

Question reference: S3W-30917

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 January 2010
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 9 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the (a) dates of and (b) ministers who attended each meeting in the Scottish Government Resilience Room between 21 December 2009 and 8 January 2010.

The Scottish Government Resilience Room (SGoRR) was activated on 22 December in relation to the severe weather being experienced across Scotland. Scottish ministers were briefed on the severe weather and its consequences every day from 22 December 2009 to 18 January 2010, including across the Christmas and New Year period when officials in Scottish Resilience were in close contact each day with the Duty Minister.

The Duty Ministers during the Christmas and New Year period were:

Ministerial Duty Rota

24 December “ Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change

25 December “ Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change

26 December “ Minister for Public Health and Sport

27 December “ Minister for Public Health and Sport

28 December “ Cabinet Secretary for Justice

29 December “ Cabinet Secretary for Justice

30 December - Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change

31 December - Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change

1 January - Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth

2 January - Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth

3 January - Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment

4 January - Minister for Environment

The remit of SGoRR when activated is to monitor on behalf of Scottish ministers potential or ongoing incidents at a Scotland-wide level, in order to set the Scottish Government''s strategic response priorities and ensure that the activity of government is best focussed to support responders and others in dealing with the event.

The Cabinet Sub-Committee on Scottish Government Resilience met in the Scottish Government Resilience Room on the following dates between 21 December 2009 and 8 January 2010:

Date	Subject of Meeting
Monday, 4 January	Severe Weather
Wednesday, 6 January	Severe Weather
Thursday, 7 January	Severe Weather
Thursday, 7 January	Influenza A(H1N1) Pandemic
Friday, 8 January	Severe Weather

Membership of the cabinet sub-committee, when convened to discuss the above-mentioned issues, is as detailed in the following table:

Severe Weather	Influenza A(H1N1) Pandemic
First Minister (Chair)	Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing (Chair)
Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing	First Minister
Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth	Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth
Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning	Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning
Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment	Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment
Cabinet Secretary for Justice	Cabinet Secretary for Justice
Minister for Environment	Lord Advocate
Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change	Minister for Public Health and Sport

In line with the practice of previous administrations, and in keeping with the principle of collective responsibility, we do not publish details of attendance at specific meetings of the Cabinet or its sub-committees.

Question reference: S3W-30950

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 January 2010
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-28310 by John Swinney on 16 November 2009, when an analysis of the reports from local authorities on the implementation of the 2008-09 single outcome agreements will be made available.

As I explained in response to Ms Lamont''s most recent question on this issue, councils and Community Planning Partnerships were asked to submit annual reports covering progress made towards 1st phase single outcome agreements in 2008-09 by end September. All 32 reports have been received and are available on the Local Government Improvement Service website at http://www.improvementservice.org.uk/library/577-single-outcome-agreements/666-phase-1-single-outcome-agreements-2008-2011/693-single-outcome-agreement-2008-09-reports/view-category/.

The Scottish Government is producing an overview commentary, which assembles some of the key messages from these annual reports. I expect that it should be published shortly.

The answer to oral parliamentary question S3O‘08884 on 17 December 2009 is available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Question reference: S3W-30861

Asked by: Johann Lamont, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 January 2010
Current Status: Answered by Adam Ingram on 1 February 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive how many primary one to three pupils in the 15% most deprived areas will be entitled to free school meals following the extension of such meals to pupils in deprived areas.