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: S5O-03944

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Strategic Transport Projects Review 2 survey is taking place over the Christmas holiday period.

Question reference: S5W-26514

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 9 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to develop options for the disposal and recycling of bicycle tyres.

Question reference: S5W-26527

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-26389 by Michael Matheson on 22 November 2019, what proportion of the project cost it will meet.

The Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) is providing grant funding of £4.35 million to the project, which includes up to £1 million to Transport Scotland. The remainder of the direct project costs are being met by project partners Stagecoach, Alexander Dennis and Fusion Processing. The Scottish Government, through Transport Scotland, has committed to invest an additional £1 million to support bus priority measures on the project corridor.

Question reference: S5W-26519

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 5 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what the participation targets for mature students are regarding programmes for widening access to higher education.

The Scottish Government’s targets for widening access, as recommended by the Commission on Widening Access, are for all entrants from Scotland’s 20% most deprived areas - regardless of age - and mainly for those entering a full-time first degree course.

Mature learners from Scotland’s 20% most deprived areas are well represented in higher education, representing 26.4% of Scottish domiciled entrants aged 21 or over entering full-time first degree courses at Scottish universities in 2017-18. We continue to support mature students’ learning through the Scottish Funding Council-funded Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP) and our Adult Learners Strategy.

Question reference: S5W-26487

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 4 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what impact its proposed deposit return system will have on climate emissions.

Question reference: S5W-26488

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 4 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has revised the estimated £13 million in annual savings for local authorities from a deposit returns system that was set out in the 2015 paper, Review of feasibility study for a Deposit Return System for Drinks Containers, and, if so, what the latest estimate is.

The Scottish Government’s “Deposit Return Scheme: Full Business Case Stage 1”, published on 8 May 2019, estimates an overall net economic benefit of £191 million for local authorities over 25 years as a result of the scheme’s introduction. This includes £133 million in reduced disposal costs for residual waste and £27 million in savings as a result of local authorities handling less dry recyclate. Zero Waste Scotland continues to work with local government to refine these numbers further.

Question reference: S5W-26449

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 3 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-26437 by Roseanna Cunningham on 19 November 2019, what the (a) financial and (b) staff time cost was of re-branding Scottish Natural Heritage as NatureScot.

The financial cost of Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) rebranding its public-facing name to NatureScot, with effect from 1 May 2020, is projected to be £63,000 in total over a three-year period.

A breakdown of SNH staff time cost in support of the rebranding cannot be provided as the work has been undertaken as part of normal duties, including the design work which was carried out in-house. A phased approach is being adopted to minimise costs, including taking advantage of planned replacement of corporate clothing, fleet livery and marketing materials.

Question reference: S5W-26448

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 3 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the trees planted in Scotland using public funds are UK-sourced and grown.

The Scottish Government does not collect data on forestry plants grown outside of the UK and imported to Scotland and therefore these are not available.

Data on forestry plant imports are collected at the GB level for the tree species covered by The Forest Reproductive Material (Great Britain) Regulations 2002. It is not possible to disaggregate this data to a national level and to provide a figure for how many of the imported plants were used in grant funded schemes in Scotland. From the GB level data we know that the bulk of planting material used in GB is being grown by one of Scotland's four nurseries or others in GB.

Question reference: S5T-01904

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 December 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the targets set out in the Queensferry Crossing Public Transport Strategy, what its response is to reports that, in the last year, over one million extra vehicle journeys have been made over the crossing.

Question reference: S5W-26447

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 28 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to use the International Year of Plant Health to improve biosecurity measures.

I set out the Scottish Government's approach to marking the International Year of Plant Health in a statement to Parliament on 19 November. That statement can be found here

The Scottish Government is engaged continuously including by working with administrations and partners across the UK on biosecurity. More detail about activity planned activity for the International Year of Plant Health will be set out in due course.