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: S3F-01866

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Alex Salmond on 10 September 2009

To ask the First Minister what reduction is expected in the Scottish Government’s budget as a result of UK Government’s budget plans.

Question reference: S3W-24950

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2009
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 15 July 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions since 1999 ministers have visited Ninewells Hospital in Dundee on official business; what the nature of the business was on each occasion, and whether a parking charge was incurred, broken down by year of visit and name of minister.

For the requested information since May 2007 I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-24907 on 2 July 2009. 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

The information isn''t held prior to May 2000, and so the following table shows the information since May 2000. Please note that we hold no record of any car parking charges. However, it is normal practice that if a minister arrives by ministerial car, he/she is dropped off and then later collected at a designated meeting point.

Minister	Date	Engagement
Minister for Health and Community Care	6 October 2000	NHS Modernisation “ Public Consultation
Minister for Health and Community Care	8 February 2002	Opening of the Integrated Oral Care Department
Minister for Health and Community Care	21 February 2002	Opening of Linear Accelerator Suite
Minister for Health and Community Care	17 May 2002	Launch on NHS Education for Scotland
Minister for Health and Community Care	19 July 2002	Opening of Surgical Simulation Unit
Minister for Health and Community Care	16 September 2002	Opening of Infectious Disease Unit and Outpatient Clinic Area
First Minister	11 February 2003	Visit Accident and Emergency Dept and deliver Health speech
Minister for Health and Community Care	11 February 2003	As above
Minister for Health and Community Care	24 February 2003	Opening of Clinical Technology Centre
Minister for Health and Community Care	7 May 2004	Visit to Maggie''s Centre
Minister for Health and Community Care	17 January 2005	Opening Acute Stroke Unit
Deputy Health Minister	2 August 2005	Visit to Ninewells Hospital to view Diabetic service
Minister for Health and Community Care	20 September 2005	University of Dundee conference: Health in the Information Age
Deputy Health Minister	17 August 2006	Meeting with Senior Managers
Deputy Health Minister	2 November 2006	Meeting of East of Scotland Faculty of the Royal College of General Practitioners

Question reference: S3W-22534

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 April 2009
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 2 April 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth will provide an update on his statement of 16 December 2008 concerning the overpayment of public sector pensions.

The Scottish Public Pensions Agency (SPPA), which administers the NHS and Teachers'' Pension Schemes in Scotland, was informed by the UK National Insurance Contribution Office (NICO) on 23 January 2009 that a further tranche of erroneous pension payments had been identified. This new issue affects public service schemes across the UK and not just those administered by the SPPA.

Based on further examination of data provided by NICO, the SPPA has established that an additional 421 members of the Scottish Teachers'' Superannuation Scheme (STSS) and 287 members of the Scottish National Health Service Pension Scheme have received overpayments of their pension. The average value of these overpayments is £317, which is split £291 for NHS pensioners and £334 for STSS pensioners. The total value of these new overpayments as at the end of March 2009 is £1.17 million. The number of pensioners affected by this latest development represents around 0.5% of all the pensioners within the NHS and teachers pension schemes.

When combined with the figures announced on 16 December, a total of 6717 pensioners within these two schemes are affected. This equates to 5.2% of all pensioners within these schemes.

The SPPA will now write to those affected by this latest development informing them of the action being taken. That action, which is consistent with my statement of 16 December, is to write off all past overpayments and to ensure that the correct pension is put in place as soon as is practicable. The agency has established a helpline for those affected and also placed advice and guidance on its website.

I have also written to the UK Government expressing my serious concern at this development and about the robustness of the data provided to public pension administrators by NICO. I have requested an assurance that the independent review of the issue, announced by the UK Government in December, is extended in order to address this latest unsatisfactory development.

I can also report that following the statutory consultation on the proposed amendments to the Scottish police, fire and local government pension schemes, revised secondary legislation will be brought before the House shortly. The SPPA will at that time write to appropriate pension fund managers with the details.

Question reference: S3W-22418

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 27 March 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 30 March 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what goals it expects Registers of Scotland to achieve in 2009-10.

Scottish Ministers have set Registers of Scotland the financial goal of achieving a return of no less than -6% on net capital employed for the three-year period ending 31 March 2010.

In addition, the Keeper of the Registers will shortly publish Registers of Scotland''s (RoS) 2009-14 Corporate Plan, which sets objectives to secure continuing performance improvements. In particular, as milestones for 2009-10, the Keeper has set the following goals for the conduct of registrations and for customer service, which ministers endorse.

To limit the increase in the standard production cost index to no more than 5% for the three years ending 31 March 2010 compared with the three-year performance to 31 March 2009.

Where it is in the Keeper''s power and is legally appropriate, to complete the recording and registration of:

- 80% of Sasine writs within 20 working days, with no writ taking longer than 40 working days;

- 80% of Dealings with Whole within 30 working days, with no Dealing taking longer than 100 working days, and

- 80% of standard First Registration applications within 70 working days.

As milestones in year two of a three-year strategy to deal with older, complex casework, where it is in the Keeper''s power and is legally appropriate, to:

- complete the registration of 40,000 Transfers of Part cases, along with their consequential Dealings with Whole, and

- eliminate all pre-October 2008 First Registration casework.

To achieve a registration accuracy rate of at least 98.5% for applications despatched during the previous 12 months.

To provide a high-level of customer service by:

- achieving a 98% rating for overall customer care in the annual customer satisfaction survey, and

- processing 98% of all customer enquiries in compliance with RoS''s improved published response standards.

Question reference: S3O-06422

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 March 2009
Current Status: Answered by Frank Mulholland on 26 March 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to reform criminal law during the parliamentary session.

Question reference: S3O-06338

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 March 2009
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 19 March 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what further action ministers are taking to combat hospital-acquired infections.

Question reference: S3W-21391

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 February 2009
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 4 March 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take following the meeting between the First Minister, the Prime Minister and leaders of the devolved administrations on 25 February 2009 to discuss the current economic crisis.

Question reference: S3F-01438

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 February 2009
Current Status: Answered by Alex Salmond on 5 February 2009

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to support employment in green industries.

Question reference: S3W-19803

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 January 2009
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 23 January 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what further progress has been made in taking forward the development of the Scottish Futures Trust.

Question reference: S3W-18850

Asked by: Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 December 2008
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 December 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive when it proposes to respond to the 2008 report by the Scottish Local Authorities Remuneration Committee.