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: S4W-02887

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 30 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 26 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to each of the recommendations in the health care needs assessment for myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) published in 2010.

Question reference: S4W-03160

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 October 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it can ensure that any management fee levied from EU students studying at Scottish institutions would be levied also from Scottish students but reimbursed by an additional maintenance grant award.

Question reference: S4W-03157

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 October 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether any management fee levied from EU students studying at Scottish institutions would be used to cover the costs of non-tuition services in a similar way to student services fees in the Republic of Ireland.

Question reference: S4W-03159

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 October 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it expects a management fee levied from EU students studying at Scottish institutions would raise and what the basis is for the calculation.

Question reference: S4W-03158

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 October 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a management fee levied from EU students studying at Scottish institutions would be universal or means-tested.

Question reference: S4O-00270

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 October 2011
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will protect and increase the number of supported workplaces across Scotland in the current economic climate.

Question reference: S4W-03014

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will "provide all public services with forward revenue and capital budget projections on the same multi-year planning cycle", as recommended by the Commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services.

Question reference: S4W-03016

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of its plans for scrutiny reform as highlighted in its response to the Commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services.

Question reference: S4W-03012

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will enhance the role of Audit Scotland in line with the recommendations of the Commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services.

We are considering recommendation 7.18 of the Christie Commission. However, I am particularly concerned that external scrutiny should be able to provide a clearer picture of how public service organisations are working together and using resources efficiently to support shared outcomes. With this in mind I have asked the Accounts Commission to lead work to test how external scrutiny can contribute to our public service reform agenda, and in particular assess how effectively local authorities and their partner bodies in community planning partnerships work together to deliver better outcomes.

Question reference: S4W-03013

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the view of the Commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services that “effective challenge and external scrutiny is frustrated by poor data” and what plans the Scottish Government has to encourage more consistent and comparable benchmarking across Scotland.

The Scottish Government agrees that there is considerable scope to improve the quality, transparency and comparability of performance data for key public services.

At a local level, I understand that the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (SOLACE) and the Improvement Service are working to improve the quality of performance information for local authorities and their community planning partners through the development of a menu of local outcome indicators for use in their single outcome agreements. They are also working to support benchmarking by local authorities, recognising that local government is responsible for its own performance management. The Scottish Government is supporting the work in a number of ways, for example, providing professional advice for the menu of local outcome indicators. Audit Scotland have also been kept advised of the work being done and have expressed their support for this initiative.