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: S6O-01161

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how it is responding to the findings of the evaluation of the Small Business Bonus Scheme that it commissioned, which was carried out by the Fraser of Allander Institute.

Question reference: S6O-01099

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress with the Levenmouth Rail Link, including the planned reopening date.

Question reference: S6W-08008

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 10 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to implement the reported upcoming UK Government’s Alcohol Treatment Guidance; if it does, whether this implementation will be supported by a framework of standards, and, if so, how, and against which indicators will outcomes be monitored in order to ensure improvement.

We are committed to ensuring that alcohol treatment in Scotland is consistent and of high quality. We are supporting the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, which has been leading on the development of new UK-wide clinical guidelines for alcohol treatment.

We expect the draft guidance to be published for consultation this year. We will work with our partners to ensure that it is suitable for Scotland and how the guidance could be implemented effectively and consistently across the country.

The forthcoming UK clinical guidelines will act as a platform to develop alcohol specific treatment targets. The intention would be that these would launch in 2024.

Question reference: S6W-07987

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 3 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the career development of highly-skilled clinical researchers.

The Chief Scientist Office as part of the Scottish Government provides fellowship schemes to support the career development of health researchers within Scotland. Details are available from the CSO website. Fellowships – Chief Scientist Office (scot.nhs.uk)

Clinical Academic Fellowship Scheme

This scheme is for clinical professionals early in their career to obtain a PhD. The eligibility for this includes medics in training, GP’s, Nurses, Midwives, Allied Health Professionals and health care scientists.

Early Postdoctoral Scheme

An early postdoctoral scheme which will provide 3 years of funding to health researchers with less than 2 years postdoctoral research experience. This is open to both clinical and non-clinical researchers who are proposing projects within CSO’s overall remit of early translational (experimental medicine), clinical and applied health research and social care.

NES/CSO Lectureship Scheme

A joint scheme run with NHS Education Scotland (NES) for speciality medics in training who have completed a PhD. This scheme provides 50% research time while they complete their training.

NRS Career Researcher Fellowships

This scheme has been running for over 10 years and supports GP’s and NHS-funded clinical staff in developing a research career within their post. The award provides funding for protected time (2 sessions a week) to contribute to, conduct and lead clinical research.

Question reference: S6F-01059

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 29 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2022

To ask the First Minister whether the Medication Assisted Treatment Standards have been fully embedded across Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-01041

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting Historic Environment Scotland to deliver its inspection programme, and related remedial works, on the condition of, and impact of climate change on, heritage sites.

Question reference: S6O-00929

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 March 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how it is targeting investment to improve services for people with problem alcohol use.

Question reference: S6W-06907

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 25 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 11 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what measures it is taking to improve the prospects and resilience of Scotland’s seabird populations, in light of them reportedly being internationally important but in decline.

The Scottish Seabird Conservation Strategy aims to optimise the conservation prospects of seabirds in Scotland through effective management of existing and emerging threats. We plan to consult on the Strategy in summer 2022.

In February 2022 two new marine special protection areas (SPAs) were designated in Orkney. The sites in Scapa Flow and North Orkney have been designated to protect rare and vulnerable migratory birds.

Question reference: S6W-06604

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 11 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support increased use of online courts.

The Scottish Government has established a justice recovery fund of £53.2m in the next financial year to be allocated to recovery, renewal and transformation activity across the justice system as we emerge from the pandemic.

This includes funding of £26.5m to the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service to maintain enhanced court capacity and remote jury centres. In addition, we have allocated a further £4.2m to the SCTS resource budget, a 3.5% increase.

We have already previously committed an additional £50m in 2021-22 to support our ‘Recover, Renew, Transform’ programme for the Criminal Justice System – which has included setting up 16 additional solemn and summary courts from September.

The additional funds have and continue to be used in a variety of ways to increase capacity across the justice system, including: recruitment of additional staff; greater use of digital tools and improved support for victims and witnesses.

At present the programme includes; the operation of remote jury centres for the conduct of High Court and Sheriff and jury trials; fully virtual summary trials; virtual custody courts; changes to summary criminal process and; community justice and preventing offending.

In terms of civil business, the Scottish Civil Justice Council (SCJC) is the body that is tasked with modernising the civil justice system in Scotland. It is ultimately for the council to decide how civil court proceedings should proceed. SCJC has consulted on proposed new court rules concerning the mode of attendance in civil proceedings. These fall within the SCJC’s powers and functions under the Scottish Civil Justice Council and Criminal Legal Assistance Act 2013.

The Scottish Government is actively working with all justice partners including the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) and SCJC to review how civil business can best be conducted. We have appointed a contractor to undertake a remote hearing evaluation project to provide analysis of the changes to civil justice processes and procedures flowing from the pandemic response, with a particular focus on the adoption of ‘virtual hearings’. SCTS has fed into that process and is partly funding it. The primary aim of the research is to provide evidence to determine the value of the measures adopted by the Courts and Tribunals during the pandemic and if these measures need to be adapted or improved in any way. The research should be completed towards the end of 2022.

Within the Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Bill, the Scottish Government has brought forward proposals to enable longer extension of provisions which suspend the requirement to physically attend a court or tribunal. The provisions seek to retain the ability for any participant in either criminal or civil proceedings to take part in any proceedings by way of live visual (television) or audio (telephone) link from any location.

In addition, I would refer the member to the answer to question S6W-06603 on 28 February 2022. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Question reference: S6W-06906

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 25 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what research it has undertaken or is aware of on the likely causes of the reported increased seabird mortality recorded along the North Sea coasts in Autumn 2021.

The Scottish Government is aware of reports of unusually large numbers of emaciated and dead seabirds that were found along the North Sea costs in autumn 2021 and have been working to establish the potential causes. We have a number of dead seabird, fish, plankton and water samples undergoing analysis with the aim of identifying potential causes for the mortality event. The Scottish Government has been working closely with the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, the Sea Mammal Research Unit and the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and the findings of these investigations will be published in due course.