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: S5W-01329

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 08 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 27 July 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what its timetable is for completing Scotland’s marine protected area network.

Scottish Ministers must report to Parliament on the status of the marine protected area network by the end of 2018. This will report on progress on the work programme to complete designation of required sites, as well work to deliver requisite management measures. Details of action being undertaken by Marine Scotland can be found on the Scottish Government website at www.gov.scot/Topics/marine/marine-environment/mpanetwork

Question reference: S5F-00091

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 13 June 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2016

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government plans to restrict the amount of alcohol that can be sold in pubs and supermarkets.

Question reference: S5O-00039

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 June 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government to what extent it considers that adverse intergenerational socioeconomic factors impact on educational attainment and what steps it will take to mitigate these over the next five years.

Question reference: S5O-00016

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 8 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the new baby boxes that it plans to distribute will have on infant health.

The boxes will be based on the successful Finnish model which has a proven record in tackling deprivation, improving health and supporting parents.

The boxes will provide a range of essential baby supplies, equipment and simple, consistent information for new parents, and will help to ease the financial burden of providing for a new born child. We are still at the very early stages of engagement and design of the baby boxes and plan to hold discussions with education and health partners, parents and carers to discuss content and other aspects of the box.

Question reference: S5F-00023

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 May 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 June 2016

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's plans are for local government reform.

Question reference: S4W-30625

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 14 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government when it will announce the outcome of the invitation to tender, carried out between 1 October and 6 November 2015, for service providers to administer the dedicated Survivor Support Fund for adults who were abused as children while in care.

A consortium bid consisting of three organisations: Penumbra; Health in Mind; and the Mental Health Foundation, supported by a further 26 organisations that provide services for survivors across Scotland, has been successful in securing the tender to administer the Survivor Support Fund with a total budget of £13.5 million over the next five years. Survivors have told us that they need services that are designed around their own individual needs, including: specialised counselling; physical healthcare; and support in terms of education, employment, benefits, legal advice, housing and practical matters. It is also important that, in moving forward, survivors will continue to have their needs met through existing services and that services are developed and enhanced to meet these needs.

The Survivor Support Fund will work with survivors and the services that support them to expand and enhance existing survivor support. It will offer survivors personalised care and treatment based on their individual needs, aspirations and personal goals, and provide a full range of services across Scotland, including rural areas.

The core components for the support fund have already been developed through the consortium proposal and are in place. Essential work will now focus on engagement, agreement and partnership working to deliver the support fund. During this time survivors will continue to have their needs met with no breaks in service.

The 26 support organisations referred to above are:

Action in Mind

Argyle and Bute Rape Crisis

Break the Silence

Birchwood Highland

Dundee Women's Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre

Fife Rape Crisis and Sexual Abuse Centre

Gay Men's Health, Edinburgh

Hear Me Counselling

Kingdom Abuse Survivors Project

LGBT Centre, Edinburgh

Moira Anderson Foundation

Moving On, Ayrshire

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Psychological Trauma Services

Partners in Advocacy

Pilton Community Health Project

Rape and Abuse Resource Centre

Rape and Abuse Service, Inverness

Rape and Abuse Support, Aberdeen

Rape Crisis Centre, Edinburgh

Rape Crisis Centre, Forth Valley

Rape Crisis Centre, Glasgow

Rape Crisis Centre, Lanarkshire

Rape Crisis Centre, Western Isles

Scottish Borders Rape Crisis Centre

South West Rape Crisis Centre

Talk Now Counselling

Question reference: S4O-05537

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 February 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 February 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what the impact on Scotland’s future budgets would be of not adopting the indexed deduction per capita method as the block grant adjustment mechanism in the fiscal framework.

Question reference: S4W-29449

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 January 2016
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 2 February 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce an awareness campaign among all age groups to improve the uptake of cervical screening by highlighting the importance of screening in identifying and treating cervical cancer.

Question reference: S4W-29448

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 January 2016
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 2 February 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address the reported fall in cervical screening rates among 25 to 29 and 55 to 59-year-olds.

We fully support the objective of increasing uptake in the Scottish Cervical Screening Programme and work is already taking place to help address the fall in cervical screening uptake rates.

Scottish Government officials meet cervical screening coordinators from all NHS boards on a quarterly basis to discuss a range of issues relating to the national screening programme, including increasing uptake of screening. NHS boards have responsibility for publicising screening within their local area and for working closely with their communities to increase screening uptake. Work of this nature is already taking place within NHS boards. Recent local initiatives have included out of hours clinics and sessions specifically designed for regular defaulters.

Our on-going Detect Cancer Early social marketing campaigns aim to raise awareness and encourage participation in the national cancer screening programmes and help people become more confident about recognising and reporting changes in their body.

Question reference: S4W-29451

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 January 2016
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 2 February 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions its officials have had about introducing human papillomavirus (HPV) primary screening.