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: S1W-31972

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 10 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-31454 by Mr Jim Wallace on 21 November 2002, whether it will publish its (a) detailed project plan and (b) timetable for the procurement of the new private-build, private-operate prison.

Question reference: S1W-32018

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 10 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-31088 and S1W-31487 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 and 22 November 2002 respectively, whether it will show the performance points accrued by the operating company of HM Prison Kilmarnock broken down by sub-section in section 2.4(b) of Schedule F to the Minute of Agreement between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock for each quarter of operation of the contract to date and why this information was omitted from document Bib. number 25002 referred to in the answers to the questions.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:Figures relating to item 2.4(b) were given in answer to question S1W-25569 on 24 May 2002, but due to a clerical error they were omitted from the response to question S1W-31088. This information is now included in the updated table in document (Bib. number 25435), a copy of which is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre.In compiling this table, a clerical error was noted in respect of 2.4(d). This has also been corrected in the revised table. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

Question reference: S1W-30803

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 18 October 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 3 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list each parcel of land with buildings on it or consisting of part of a building owned by the Scottish Prison Service.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

Location	Number of Parcels of Land	Description
Aberdeen City	1	HM Prison, Aberdeen
Aberdeenshire	4	HM Prison PeterheadGarages, PeterheadGarages, PeterheadGarages, Peterhead
Angus	2	HM Prison NoransideDisused building, Noranside
Clackmannanshire	6	HM Prison Glenochil Licensed premises, Glenochil Terrace, GlenochilGarages, Glenochil VillageGarages, Sauchie
Dumfries and Galloway	2	HM Prison DumfriesHouse, Dumfries
East Ayrshire	1	HM Prison Kilmarnock
East Dunbartonshire	1	HM Prison Low Moss
Edinburgh	3	HM Prison EdinburghLicensed premises, EdinburghGarages, Edinburgh
Falkirk	4	HM YOI PolmontScottish Prison Service College Licensed premises, PolmontHousing, Polmont
Glasgow	3	HM Prison BarlinnieLicensed premises, GlasgowHouse, Glasgow
Highland	1	HM Prison Inverness
Inverclyde	1	HM Prison Greenock
North Lanarkshire	6	HM Prison ShottsGarages, ShottsGarages, ShottsFormer Longriggend Remand Unit, UppertonGarages, UppertonSewage Treatment Plant, Upperton
Perth and Kinross	5	HM Prison PerthHM Prison Castle HuntlyGarages, Castle HuntlyGarages, Castle Huntly
Stirling	5	HM Prison and Institution Cornton ValeHouses, Cornton Vale Garages, Cornton Vale
West Lothian	1	Central Stores, Fauldhouse

Question reference: S1W-31449

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 3 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29277 by Mr Jim Wallace on 29 October 2002, what steps it will take to ensure that there is not a two-tier workforce within prisons.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The Scottish Prison Service will follow the protocol between the Scottish Executive and STUC, and announced by the Finance and Public Services Minister on 11 November 2002, to ensure that in future Public Private Partnership in the prison sector contracts do not give rise to organisations with two-tier workforces.

Question reference: S1W-31448

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 3 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29277 by Mr Jim Wallace on 29 October 2002, why the response to a question on a matter of policy was given by the Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service and not the Deputy First Minister and Minister for Justice.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The answer to (SPS) question S1W-29277 dealt with an operational and contractual matter for SPS, based on the policy most recently set out by ministers on 11 November 2002 in the protocol referred to in the answer to S1W-31449 today. The new prison referred to in the answer to S1W-29277 will provide a new service to the SPS. It will not involve the transfer of an existing service and existing staff to a private provider, so it will not result in the creation of a two-tier workforce.

Question reference: S1W-30742

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 October 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 2 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-30175 by Mr Jim Wallace on 16 October 2002, why the residual value of HM Prison Kilmarnock is not shown in the value of tangible assets held in East Ayrshire.

I have asked Scottish Prison Service (SPS) for an explanation. I am advised that the reversionary interest value for land which is managed as part of the PFI contract is included in SPS's balance sheet under the heading tangible assets in accordance with both accounting standards and Treasury guidelines. Its omission from the table given in response to question S1W-30175 was therefore in error, for which I apologise.The location and value of the tangible land assets of SPS, including the aforementioned reversionary interest, is as listed in the following table:

	As at 31 March 2000(£000)	As at 31 March 2001(£000)	As at 31 March 2002(£000)
Aberdeen City	1,800	1,900	2,059
Aberdeenshire	1,250	1,066	1,180
Angus	272	302	308
Clackmannanshire	713	1,131	1,226
Dumfries and Galloway	641	500	522
East Ayrshire	1,111	244	259
East Dumbartonshire	169	67	72
Edinburgh	9,915	31,202	35,556
Falkirk	3,060	4,833	6,012
Glasgow	5,207	4,860	5,262
Highland	504	460	490
Inverclyde	1,238	1,050	1,161
North Lanarkshire	203	253	257
Perth and Kinross	2,658	6,122	6,571
South Lanarkshire	244	-	-
Stirling	3,633	3,819	4,139
West Lothian	141	125	136
Grand Total	32,759	57,934	65,210

Question reference: S1W-31450

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 2 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-28889 and S1W-31081 by Mr Jim Wallace on 24 October and 8 November 2002 respectively, how it was able to show a total budget and underspend for HM Prison Cornton Vale if total budgets for individual prisons do not exist.

Question reference: S1W-31662

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Allan Wilson on 27 November 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what money it has received or allocated for the implementation of Your Guide and how such money has been distributed.

The Executive received a £3.5 million consequential, based on the funding for the English-based pilot of Your Guide. This sum, as with all consequentials, went into the Scottish Block. As a substantial pilot of the Your Guide approach was being carried out in England and because we had access to its findings, no bid was made against the Scottish Block for funding to carry out a parallel exercise in Scotland.DTI Ministers' announced, in the written answer given to parliamentary question number 2001/6136 in the House of Commons on 15 October, their decision, on value for money grounds, that Your Guide should not be rolled out nationally.

Question reference: S1W-31661

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 November 2002
Current Status: Answered by Allan Wilson on 27 November 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made to Her Majesty's Government to ensure that there is no adverse economic impact on post offices as a result of the re-distribution of assigned office payments.

Question reference: S1W-29255

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 September 2002
Current Status: Answered by Elish Angiolini on 27 November 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been received by each procurator fiscal of offences in which an air firearm was alleged to have been used and (b) convictions have been obtained following such reports in each sheriff court district in each of the last five years.