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-19704

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 10 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications have been made to the Greener Homes Innovation Scheme and by which organisations, in each year since 2011; how many have been successful; how many homes there will be, and where they will be built.

The Greener Homes Innovation Scheme was open for applications between September 2012 and January 2013. There were 31 applications and 14 were successful in achieving funding.

The organisations who bid were: Orkney Islands Council, Partick Housing Association, Irvine Housing Association, Loretto Housing Association, Moray Council, Houses for Heroes, Strachmor Ltd, James Keillor Estates Ltd, Dumfries and Galloway Housing Partnership, Perth and Kinross Council, Clyde Valley Housing Association, CCG, Highlands Small Communities Housing Trust, North Lanarkshire Council, Tigh Grian Ltd, West Highland Housing Association, Aberdeenshire Council, Glasgow Housing Association, Cube Housing Association and South Lanarkshire Council.

We anticipate there will be 319 homes built and they will be built in the local authorities of Aberdeenshire, Argyll and Bute, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Highlands, Glasgow, North Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire.

Question reference: S4W-19695

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 10 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many new homes local authorities have completed since May 2011; how many are being built, and how many are planned to be completed by the end of the current parliamentary session.

Official statistics in respect of the Affordable Housing Supply Programme are published by quarter and financial year. A total of 2,999 homes have been completed by local authorities since 1 April 2011 to the end of December 2013. A further 1,239 local authority homes had started on site but had not yet completed by 31 December 2013. At least 5,000 homes are expected to be completed by the end of the current parliamentary session.

Question reference: S4W-19904

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what training is given to local authority staff on how to deal with homophobic and transphobic discrimination.

Question reference: S4W-19903

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether specialist information is given to LGBT people when accessing housing services.

By complying with equalities legislation and the Scottish Social Housing Charter social landlords will understand the needs of different customers including LGBT people and will deliver services and provide access to housing services that recognise those needs. Stonewall Scotland has been a recipient of Scottish Government funding for equality focussed work since 2001. Their work has included the provision of housing information and advice.

Question reference: S4W-19902

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how it is tackling the barriers faced by LGBT people when accessing public services.

Question reference: S4W-19905

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether the NHS provides training for staff on (a) specific health concerns of and (b) issues faced by LGBT people.

NHS boards have a responsibility to ensure that their staff are appropriately trained and are able to deliver person-centred care to all patients and their families.

To support NHS boards, NHS Education for Scotland has produced ‘Addressing LGBT Health Inequalities', a learning resource on health inequalities for LGBT people. The resource can be accessed at:

www.knowledge.scot.nhs.uk/making-a-difference.aspx.

NHS Education for Scotland continues to embed issues facing LGBT people in its wider educational work. Examples include its educational resources supporting the carers' strategy and the generic 10 essential shared capabilities.

Question reference: S4W-19907

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 6 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many men have undertaken a modern apprenticeship in (a) the health and caring sector, (b) tourism, (c) sport and leisure and (d) administration, business and management in each year since 2007, broken down by (i) geographical location and (ii) specific apprenticeship.

Question reference: S4W-19906

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 6 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many women have undertaken a modern apprenticeship in the (a) construction, (b) energy, (c) manufacturing and engineering, (d) transport and (e) sport and leisure industry in each year since 2007, broken down by (i) geographical location and (ii) specific apprenticeship.

Question reference: S4W-19646

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met representatives of the Russian Consulate General (RCG); what issues were discussed; when it will next meet representatives of the RCG, and what issues it will discuss.

Ministers and officials last met representatives of the Russian Consulate General at the First Minister’s annual reception for the Consular Corps on 18 February 2014, which the Russian Vice Consul attended. Officials discussed with the Vice Consul the proposed start date for the incoming Consul General later this year and the progress of the Winter Olympics in Sochi.

The last substantive meeting between ministers and the Russian Consulate General took place on 9 January 2014 when the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop and the Minister for External Affairs and International Development, Humza Yousaf, met the Consul General, Mr Sergey Krutikov. The primary purpose of the meeting was to thank the Consul General for his work in promoting links between Scotland and Russia during his posting, which finished later that month.

Issues discussed at that meeting also included Scottish involvement in the UK-Russia Year of Culture and the Russian Government’s plans for recognition of UK veterans of the Arctic convoys during the Second World War. The Consul General extended an open invitation to ministers to visit Russia.

Ministers took the opportunity to raise their concerns about recent Russian legislation regarding the promotion of LGBT relationships, encouraging the Russian government to meet international standards for the protection of human rights and civil liberties.

Ministers are next due to meet representatives of the Russian Consulate General at a dinner to be hosted by Ms Hyslop on 26 March 2014. Topics for discussion will include major events taking place in Scotland in 2014.

Question reference: S4W-19630

Asked by: Mary Fee, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what appointments the Minister for External Affairs and International Development had on 4 February 2014, broken down by (a) the time each appointment was entered into his diary, (b) location and (c) who requested each appointment, and whether the minister sought to rearrange the timings or locations to accommodate parliamentary business.

Appointment	Date entered in diary	Location	Requested by
Meeting with officials	04-02-2014	Scottish Parliament	Minister for External Affairs and International Development
Meeting with Dr Alison Strang	07-01-2014	Scottish Parliament	Dr Alison Strang, Queen Margaret University
Stage 3 proceedings: Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill	14-01-2014	Scottish Parliament	Minister for Parliamentary Business
Interview with Stewart Paterson, Evening Times	03-02-2014	Scottish Parliament	Stewart Paterson
Meeting with Pakistan Consul General	16-01-2014	Pakistan Consulate, 45 Maxwell Drive, Glasgow G41 5JF	Minister for External Affairs and International Development

None of the times/locations were re-arranged to accommodate parliamentary business.