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: S6W-04271

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many vacancies for qualified STEM teachers are unfilled in secondary schools.

Question reference: S6W-03017

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 September 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 8 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether its COVID-19 vaccine certification app will include an option for people who have certification for antibodies or previous infection.

On 30 September 2021 we launched the NHS Scotland COVID Status app which was developed for vaccination information initially. We have developed our app to meet the EU requirements so we expect this to be compatible with the IATA Travel Pass. We have and continue to engage with international stakeholders and UK Government to ensure the app is compatible with the other countries requirements of entry.

Question reference: S6O-00366

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle fly-tipping, in light of reports of there being just three prosecutions from 32 reported cases of fly-tipping in the 2019-20 financial year.

Question reference: S6O-00220

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to cultural organisations in Mid Scotland and Fife.

Question reference: S6W-02710

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 September 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 17 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-32512 by Roseanna Cunningham on 13 November 2020, how many cases of fly-tipping have been recorded in (a) 2020 and (b) 2021 to date.

There is no single dataset of all flytipping incidents in Scotland, as there is no legal requirement for duty bodies or landowners to report on flytipping externally. The figures provided below represent incidents reported via the Litter Monitoring System and FlyMapper.

It is clear that the data varies significantly from year to year but it is not possible to deduce whether this relates to variations in incidents or variations in reporting by relevant bodies.

Year	Flytipping incidents recorded by Flymapper and Litter Monitoring System
2014	3,096
2015	7,295
2016	10,447
2017	10,329
2018	6,613
2019	1,018
2020	4,272
2021*	2,534

*This relates to the number of flytipping incidents up to 8 September 2021.

Question reference: S6W-02348

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients received dental treatment under the NHS between 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021, and how this compares with the same period in each of the previous five years.

Question reference: S6W-02351

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it next plans to review its contract for the delivery of general dental services.

Question reference: S6W-02276

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 13 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take in the short-term to improve the junction of the A9 and A822, in light of residents in Strathbraan reportedly facing difficulties and dangers when crossing the A9.

The A9 in the Dunkeld area and the associated junctions are busy particularly in summer carrying the combination of strategic commercial, commuter and tourist traffic. Transport Scotland is aware that at the busiest times, which often align with periods of good weather, gaining access onto the A9 trunk road can take some time. This situation is found across the country at many locations popular with tourists.

An investigation was carried out at the A9/A822/A923 staggered junction following identification of the location through the trunk road Annual Road Safety Review. Transport Scotland is introducing a series of measures to improve safety and operation within the current physical constraints until the A9 Dualling programme significantly changes the road layout at this location. These upgrades have included traffic sign and road marking improvements, in early 2020, to enhance direction finding and to upgrade signs to current standards. We are monitoring the effects of these measures in reducing accidents.

In addition, installation of illuminated bollards to improve the visibility of the road layout in darkness and to highlight the junction to turning motorists will be carried out later this year, along with the Birnam (B867) and Dalguise junctions.

A scheme to progress resurfacing of the A9/A822/A923 junction serving both Dunkeld, Strathbraan and Inver is to take place in late Autumn/Winter of the current financial year. This will provide the road surface at this location with improved surface grip and a consistency of appearance throughout. New high performance road markings and highly reflective road studs will be installed to define turning areas. A double white line system is proposed to deter overtaking through the junction.

I have commissioned consideration of what further measures might be deployed to improve safety at the junction.

Question reference: S6W-02275

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 13 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates work will commence on the Birnam to Jubilee Bridge section of the A9 to upgrade it to a dual carriageway.

Following completion of an innovative co-creative process with the community, work to assess four route options, including the community’s preferred route option, is ongoing to identify a Preferred Route option. This is being progressed in accordance with design standards and once a Preferred Route option is announced a timetable for the statutory processes will be set. It is necessary that the correct statutory process is followed to ensure a fair and transparent assessment of options and impacts on local communities and road users.

A market consultation exercise commenced earlier this year to inform an assessment of procurement options for the remaining sections when the statutory process is complete. Determination of the optimal procurement option is a complex exercise which is considering a pipeline of work in a form that can be delivered by the industry, supports the economic recovery post COVID and minimises disruption to users of this lifeline route. It is expected this analysis will be completed in the coming weeks and will inform decision making on our procurement approach and phasing.

Question reference: S6O-00157

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the level of ambulance cover across Mid-Scotland and Fife.