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-04341

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 31 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 8 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on inviting the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee to consider the Scottish Natural Heritage review of gamebird hunting and its implications for helping to develop more sustainable and better regulated systems of gamebird hunting and reduce wildlife crime, and to consider conducting an inquiry into how such a system might operate.

The report of the desk-based review of game bird hunting in selected other countries will be considered by the Scottish Government when it is formally submitted by Scottish Natural Heritage. Any decisions on next steps will be taken in the light of that consideration. It is a matter for the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee to decide whether to consider the report of the review as part of its programme of work.

Question reference: S5W-03834

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 8 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what direction it will issue to planning authorities in light of its recently announced position on underground coal gasification.

A Direction issued to all Heads of Planning from the Chief Planner on 8 October 2015 required planning applications for underground coal gasification (UCG) development received by planning authorities to be sent to Scottish Ministers. The covering letter explained that this was to ensure the Government’s position on UCG is reflected through the planning decision making process.

To ensure consistency across regulatory regimes, a similar Direction was issued by Scottish Ministers on the same date to SEPA regarding any relevant new Controlled Activity Regulation (CAR) licenses.

As the Directions are still in place, there is no requirement to make changes to them, or to the Scottish Planning Policy. As I made clear in my ministerial statement, I have also written to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Greg Clark, to request that the UK Government revoke existing licences for UCG activities, and undertake to not issue any further licences, to respect the decision of the Scottish Government that UCG should play no part in Scotland's future energy mix.

Question reference: S5W-03835

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 8 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what changes it will make to planning policy and guidance in light of its recently announced position on underground coal gasification.

Question reference: S5W-04346

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 31 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 4 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government on what date nature conservation marine protected areas for (a) the Sea of Hebrides, (b) North East Lewis, (c) Shiant East Bank and (d) Southern Trench will be designated, and for what reason their designation has been delayed.

Question reference: S5W-04345

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 31 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 4 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will list the 18 marine protected areas that the Programme for Government states will be designated by the end of 2017.

Three of these sites have already been designated. The Inner Hebrides and Minches Special Area of Conservation, the Iona I Historic Marine Protected Area, and the Fair Isle Demonstration and Research Marine Protected Area. The other fifteen are the proposed Special Protection Areas which are presently subject to public consultation and analysis processes. A decision on whether these sites meet the scientific criteria for designation will be taken in 2017.

Question reference: S5W-04344

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 31 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 4 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government when the process for reassessing existing data for the previous Harbour Porpoise Special Areas of Conservation in the Outer Moray Firth and Celtic Sea will be initiated and under what timeframe re-analysis and consultation will occur.

Question reference: S5W-03875

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 4 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, following the announcement by the Chancellor on 3 October 2016 regarding the continuation of European structural and investment funding beyond the 2016 Autumn Statement, whether its portion of funding for CAP Pillar 2 and other Scottish Rural Development Fund schemes will be upheld and delivered as planned up to 2020.

The Scottish Government recognises that uncertainty has been created as a result of the EU referendum outcome, not just around funding opportunities or investment decisions but also concerning people’s jobs.

The Chancellor made an announcement on 3 October confirming the UK Government’s position to guarantee funding for EU funded projects up to the point at which the UK departs the EU. This provides some certainty for the immediate future, but we still have significant concerns about the longer term funding position for projects in Scotland. The Scottish Government will continue to engage with the UK Government to obtain the additional clarity that our fishermen, farmers and communities across Scotland need.

The EU Referendum result does not reduce our ability – nor our desire – to protect the environment and rural economy. We will continue to work together to create a sustainable future for Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-03770

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 3 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether all public sector tenders that it has responsibility for must comply with the REACH (registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals) regulations where there is a need for the use of protective equipment or clothing and, if not, what its position is on introducing such a requirement.

Scottish Government’s public contracts are subject to all relevant legislation, including environmental law.

The Scottish public procurement Regulations which came into effect on 18 April 2016 contain provisions to enable the exclusion of a bidder from tendering for public contracts where it can be demonstrated it has breached social, environmental or labour laws.

The Regulations also permits a contract not to be awarded to a bidder where it can be shown that its bid does not comply with applicable obligations in the fields of social, environmental and labour law and to reject a bid that has been established as abnormally low because it does not comply with relevant social, environmental or labour law.

Furthermore, Scottish Government’s standard Terms and Conditions have been updated to allow for contract termination in the event of the contractor’s failure to comply with such laws in the performance of a contract.

Question reference: S5O-00303

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 November 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to third sector organisations that seek to build a case for the reopening of rail lines and stations.

Question reference: S5W-03694

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what support it offers to local authorities to make property-level protection products available at an affordable price to properties at risk of flooding.

On 18 July the First Minister announced the agreement with COSLA of a 10 year flood funding strategy, with the local authority capital settlement, to deliver priorities identified in the Flood Risk Strategies published in December 2015. The agreed funding will amount to a minimum of £42 million per year with any underspends in one year being re-profiled within the next years allocation. 80% of the annual funding will support delivery of the flood protection schemes identified in the Flood Risk Strategies; a full list of these can be found at http://www.sepa.org.uk/media/163528/42-flood-protection-schemes.pdf.

The allocations to individual local authorities in 2016-17 for flood protection schemes are set out in the following table; funding for future years will reflect progress with design and development of the scheme.

Flooding capital grant - Funding Allocations for Flood Protection Schemes 2016-17.

Council	Allocation for Flood Prevention Schemes
£m
Aberdeenshire	6.919
Angus	2.003
Argyll & Bute	0.080
Dumfries & Galloway	1.536
Dundee City	5.699
East Ayrshire	0.880
East Dunbartonshire	0.080
East Lothian	0.696
Eilan Siar	0.320
Falkirk	1.782
Fife	0.000
Glasgow	0.560
Highland	2.593
Inverclyde	0.372
Moray	1.480
North Ayrshire	1.680
Orkney	1.388
Perth & Kinross	0.813
Scottish Borders	1.342
Stirling	1.156
Scotland	31.379

The remaining funding is distributed amongst all Scottish local authorities based on their share of properties at risk of flooding. How this money is allocated is a matter for individual local authorities but it is expected that it would be used to support actions identified in the strategies such as property level protection and natural flood management works and studies. In addition local authorities are able to use their wider funding allocation to support flood risk management where they consider this to be a local priority.

In addition to support through the local authority settlement the Scottish Government provides support and tools to responsible authorities. For example the Scottish Government has provided funding to the Tweed Forum (working with Dundee University) to support the Eddleston Water research project which will assess the flood risk, water quality and habitat benefits of working with the natural environment across the catchment. This financial year we are committing £200,000 to the project. These funds are used to engage with land managers in the catchment, carry out natural flood management works and collect scientific evidence through an extensive monitoring programme. The Eddleston Water project is now part of the EU Interreg North Sea Region Building with Nature project and will receive funds of up to 400,000 over the next 4 years.