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-18239

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 19 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will make a statement on recent progress made on the pilot of the ASSIST peer-education programme as part of its tobacco control strategy.

Question reference: S4W-18191

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 19 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government on what date Professor Stiglitz made the comments on inequality in China referred to by the First Minister in his speech at Tsinghua University in China on 5 November 2013 and whether he has been asked to provide an updated analysis of inequality in China.

<>The First Minister’s speech at Tsinghua University can be read at http://news.scotland.gov.uk/Speeches-Briefings/Scotland-and-China-Wealth-and-Wellbeing-of-Nations-5dd.aspx. The reference to a statement by Professor Joseph Stiglitz is taken from Globalisation and its Discontents, published in 2002. The Scottish Government has not asked Professor Stiglitz to analyse inequality in China.

International comparisons of Gini Coefficients are available from the OECD for 2010, and show the UK as the 28th most equal country of 34.

The version of the UK Gini coefficient used by the OECD is drawn from the Department of Work and Pensions’ Family Resources Survey (FRS) 2010-11. The FRS is the most appropriate source of net disposable weekly household income given its sample size and its focus on all sources of household income.

Question reference: S4F-01688

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 18 November 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 November 2013

To ask the First Minister what issues will be discussed at the next meeting of the Cabinet.

Question reference: S4W-17875

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 October 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-13264 by Nicola Sturgeon on 13 March 2013, whether it will reconsider its decision not to release the text of the First Minister’s address to EU ambassadors on 12 February 2013.

Question reference: S4W-18231

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 15 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the requirements for, and granting of, police air operator certificates, as set out in the Air Navigation Order 2009.

Question reference: S4W-18227

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 15 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the role of the civil air patrol service in carrying out extended searches and what discussions it has had with the service regarding its future role.

The Scottish Government values the contributions of volunteers, including Civil Air Patrol members to resilience and emergency response work, and has been in discussion with Civil Air Patrol, Police Scotland and the Civil Aviation Authority on this issue. The Scottish Government and Police Scotland have asked the Civil Aviation Authority to determine what measures can be taken to remove any existing regulatory barriers to Police Scotland tasking Civil Air Patrol to assist them with search operations.

Question reference: S4W-18228

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 15 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on Police Scotland’s decision to no longer use the civil air patrol service and what discussions it has had with Police Scotland regarding this.

Question reference: S4W-17872

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 October 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 14 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what planning assumptions it has made for each year to 2017-18 for the level of (a) GDP growth, (b) revenue budget surplus or deficit using Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland (GERS) methodology, (c) fiscal surplus or deficit using GERS methodology and (d) the ratio of debt to GDP using a population share of UK debt.

Question reference: S4W-17874

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 October 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 13 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of the countries from which the (a) Deputy First Minister and (b) Minister for External Affairs and International Development has met officials or ministers in the last six months, and the dates of such meetings.

The following is a list of meetings held by the Deputy First Minister and the Minister for External Affairs and International Development over the last six months:

(a) The Deputy First Minister has met officials or ministers from:

Pakistan - 13 August 2013

The EU Commission - 4 September 2013

(b) The Minister for External Affairs and International Development has met officials or ministers from:

Philippines – 25 April 2013

South Africa – 2 May 2013

Switzerland – 10 May 2013

Pakistan – 10 May 2013, 23 July 2013, 3 October 2013, 16-18 October 2013

Syria – 16 May 2013, 9 September 2013

Slovenia – 16 May 2013

Qatar (Doha Forum): 19 – 22 May 2013

Rwanda – 30 May 2013

Kurdistan – 12 June 2013

Ireland – 18 June 2013, 18 September 2013, 9 October 2013

China - 25 – 28 June 2013

Latvia - 7-8 July 2013

Thailand - 12 July 2013

Mongolia – 18 July 2013

Kyrgyzstan – 4 September 2013

Egypt – 13 September 2013– check this with Robert Dunn

Singapore – 25 September 2013

India – 3 October 2013, 11-15 October 2013

Turkey – 31 October 2013

UK Government representatives: The Minister for External Affairs and International Development meets with UK Government representatives when he visits other countries.

Question reference: S4W-18057

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 01 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 13 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-17873 by Humza Yousaf on 29 October 2013, whether discussions were held on policies that are dependent on the outcome of the next Scottish parliamentary election.