- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 August 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Clare Haughey on 20 September 2018
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-18009 by Clare Haughey on 29 August 2018, how many of the 800 additional mental health workers will be allocated to (a) prisons and (b) the police.
Answer
We are currently working with the Chief Officers of Integration Authorities on the development of this commitment. This includes obtaining detailed workforce plans which provide information on workforce allocation, location of workforce (which will include the settings of prisons and police custody suites) for 2018-19 and details on the trajectory toward the 800 total by 2021-22. We expect to receive these plans for further analysis by the October recess.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 September 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 September 2018
To ask the Scottish Government whether the R100 programme will be delivered by the end of the current parliamentary session or by December 2021.
Answer
The Scottish Government has committed to extending 100% superfast broadband access across Scotland by 31 December 2021 reflecting the complex nature of the rollout and its geographic focus.
Procurement for the initial phase of the reaching 100% or R100 ,programme - for which we have announced the investment of £600 million - Scottish Government 96.5 % of the funding is now well underway. We will award contracts in 2019.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Monday, 03 September 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 13 September 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to concerns raised by the lead researcher at the civil liberties group, Big Brother Watch, that the introduction of fingerprint scanning to pay for school lunches normalises hi-tech surveillance from a very young age.
Answer
The introduction of biometric identification systems is a matter for education authorities and schools. The Scottish Government published guidance to support them in their decision-making about the introduction and implementation of biometric systems in Scottish schools.
The guidance makes it clear that information collected through a biometric system must, like all personal data, be processed fairly and lawfully in line with data protection laws.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Monday, 03 September 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 13 September 2018
To ask the Scottish Government whether the use of biometric technology to pay for school lunches has been introduced without parents being consulted and, if so, whether it considers this to be acceptable.
Answer
The introduction of biometric technology systems in schools is a matter for education authorities and schools. The Scottish Government has published guidance on the use and implementation of biometric identification systems in schools, which aims to support them in their decision-making about the introduction and implementation of biometric systems in Scottish schools.
This guidance is clear that the views of parents, pupils and school staff should be taken into account as part of the decision-making process to introduce and implement biometric technology systems. This guidance is available on the Scottish Government's website through the following link: https://www.gov.scot/Publications/2010/11/11112141/0 .
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 August 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 September 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been released from prison in each month in the last two years.
Answer
Table 1: Number of individual prisoners liberated per month from 1 st September 2016 to 21 st August 2018.
MONTH | LIBERATED PRISONERS |
September 2016 | 979 |
October 2016 | 915 |
November 2016 | 893 |
December 2016 | 1026 |
January 2017 | 761 |
February 2017 | 770 |
March 2017 | 993 |
April 2017 | 827 |
May 2017 | 870 |
June 2017 | 922 |
July 2017 | 845 |
August 2017 | 923 |
September 2017 | 922 |
October 2017 | 786 |
November 2017 | 877 |
December 2017 | 925 |
January 2018 | 798 |
February 2018 | 729 |
March 2018 | 893 |
April 2018 | 725 |
May 2018 | 891 |
June 2018 | 921 |
July 2018 | 872 |
August 2018* | 542 |
Source: SPS management information system
*Only includes information up to 21st August 2018
Note: Figures exclude liberations to court. Figures relate to the total number of individuals liberated per month only. During the overall two year period an individual may have received more than one custodial sentence and therefore been liberated on more than one occasion.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 August 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 4 September 2018
To ask the Scottish Government when it will bring forward legislation based on the outcome of its consultation on crofting legislation, which concluded in 2017.
Answer
Programme for Government 2017-18 includes a commitment to consult and develop proposals to reform crofting law during this parliamentary session. A decision on the timing of a Bill will be taken by Cabinet in the context of the Scottish Government’s other legislative priorities. Meantime, Scottish Government officials are working closely with stakeholders to consider the issues to be taken forward that will deliver change quickly and easily; to provide clarity in law and have a positive outcome for crofters and crofting communities, while avoiding unintended consequences.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 August 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Clare Haughey on 29 August 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many mental health professionals worked alongside (a) Police Scotland, (b) the Scottish Prison Service and (c) the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service in each of the last three years.
Answer
Answering the member’s question requires access to data which we do not hold centrally: a broad range of professionals work in the field of mental health, employed by a variety of organisations (Scottish Prison Service, NHS, Local Authorities, Third Sector) in different capacities. Many are multi-skilled, combining mental health with other kinds of expertise. They may work with more than one of the partners he identifies, and may or may not work full-time. These factors mean I cannot give him the data he requests.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 August 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Clare Haughey on 29 August 2018
To ask the Scottish Government whether and how it plans to increase access to mental health services throughout the criminal justice process.
Answer
Action 15 within the Mental Health Strategy outlines our clear commitment to funding 800 additional mental health workers in key settings, including custody suites and prisons, ensuring that local provision and support is at the heart of our plans. Funding for this commitment will reach £35 million by 2022.
It is vital that this investment has the greatest possible impact and acts as a catalyst for better joint working between Health and Justice services. Therefore, the Scottish Government has asked the Health and Justice Collaboration Improvement Board to develop advice on how to achieve this as part of the Action 15 investment following its next meeting on 11 September.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 August 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 17 August 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to consider an investigation into the (a) use and purpose of non-disclosure agreements by employers in Scotland and (b) control mechanisms that regulate the use of non-disclosure agreements in Scotland.
Answer
The Scottish Government aims to embed a culture of fair work and fair work practices within all workplaces across Scotland. Our work is underpinned by the Fair Work Framework, published by the Fair Work Convention in 2016, and promotes fair work as work that offers effective voice, opportunity, security, fulfilment and respect; that balances the rights and responsibilities of employers and workers and that can generate benefits for individuals, organisations and society.
The Scottish Government has committed to Scotland becoming a Fair Work Nation by 2025 and we will publish an Action Plan by the end of this year to drive progress on this, using the powers available to us. However, responsibility for employment law and the law relating to protected disclosures in the workplace lies with the UK Government.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 July 2018
-
Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 8 August 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) non harassment, (b) sexual harm prevention and (c) sexual risk orders have been made under the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016.
Answer
The Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 does not create a new power to impose Non-Harassment Orders. It amends provisions at section 234A of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 concerning the powers of the criminal courts to impose a non-harassment order on an offender following an application from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. These powers now extend to circumstances where an accused person is acquitted because of not being criminally responsible due to a mental disorder or where a court finds a person unfit to stand trial due to mental or physical condition, but establishes after hearing evidence that they did something that would constitute an offence involving misconduct towards another person.
The provisions concerning sexual harm prevention orders and sexual risk orders will, in due course, replace sexual offence prevention orders, foreign travel orders and risk of sexual harm orders when commenced. The UK Ministry of Justice first requires to amend reserved legislation to ensure that these orders would have effect in the other jurisdictions of the UK before they come into effect.