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: S5O-03627

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 September 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 October 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress with personnel recruitment and facilities in Aberdeenshire for the expansion of funded childcare to 1,140 hours.

Question reference: S5W-25443

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 September 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 24 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will confirm if the forthcoming update to the Climate Change Plan will (a) incorporate future changes to the greenhouse gas inventory for peatlands, and (b) make up for the extra emissions arising from the missed 2017 annual target.

The Scottish Government can confirm that this will be case. The update to the Climate Change Plan will be based on the best available evidence on current and future Scottish emissions. This includes future technical changes to the greenhouse gas inventory in areas such as peatlands where the UK Government has committed to implementing updated international guidelines. The updated Plan will also, in line with section 36 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009, include a package of policies and proposals that is sufficient to not only meet the future targets but also to compensate for the excess emissions from the missed annual target for 2017.

Question reference: S5W-25442

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 September 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 24 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government when the Second Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme will be launched.

The Programme was launched yesterday. Climate Ready Scotland: Second Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme marks a new way of working on climate change adaptation for Scotland. The Programme, which builds on the work of the first Programme published in 2014, adopts a new cross-sectoral outcomes-based approach to embed work on climate change adaptation both across government and across Scotland.

The new, statutory, five year Climate Change Adaptation Programme sets out 170 policies and proposals from all sectors across government centred around our communities, climate justice, the economy, Scotland’s infrastructure and supporting systems, our natural, coastal and marine environments and our international partnerships. The Programme will address priority risks as advised by the Adaptation Committee of the Committee on Climate Change. It also includes a number of research projects which will help us to better understand and improve the action we will need to take.

Question reference: S5T-01782

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 September 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the newly-released Universities UK survey, which claims that Scotland's universities will lose staff and students in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

Question reference: S5W-23741

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 13 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government when the Scottish Land Commission will lay its refreshed Programme of Work in the Parliament, as required by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016.

The Scottish Land Commission’s Programme of Work was first published in September 2017. It sets out the work being delivered against the Commission’s Strategic Plan and Business Plan.

The Commission has now produced a refreshed Programme of Work to reflect emerging thinking and developments on the basis of its work to date. This also ensures consistency with the Strategic Plan and Business Plan.

The Commission is required, under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016, to lay a copy of any revised Programme of Work before the Scottish Parliament. This was done today and is available at:

https://landcommission.gov.scot/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Programme-of-Work-June-2019-FINAL.pdf

Question reference: S5O-03425

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to protect marine mammals from entanglement.

Question reference: S5W-23669

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 June 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 7 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government when the annual progress report on the Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme 2014 will be published.

The Scottish Government published its fifth Annual Progress Report on the Climate Change Adaptation Programme on 31 May 2019.

The Report sets out that the Scottish Government has recognised the global climate emergency and acted immediately to propose a net zero emissions target for 2045.

Scotland is already experiencing climate change. The Report sets out the strong progress we have made in preparing Scotland for climate impacts.

We have built on early awareness-raising and knowledge-sharing and have a well-informed Scottish public, and a strong and enthusiastic community of climate adaptation experts and champions across the public sector. We have a unique Scottish model of place-based adaptation partnerships including Climate Ready Clyde, Edinburgh Adapts, Aberdeen Adapts and Levenmouth Adapts. We have guidance for the business sector, and new public sector guidance along with a major projects toolkit were published on 21 May. The most recent comprehensive risk assessments include the National Coastal Change Assessment, updated National Flood Risk Assessment, and Climate Ready Clyde’s Risk and Opportunity Assessment.

We are delivering strong progress across a wide range of policy areas, including £42 million annual funding to local authorities for new flood protection schemes, operating flood warning systems, and working on the resilience of our water supply, transport, health services, natural environment, forestry, peatlands and agriculture. New approaches and actions to meet the urgent challenge are being brought forward. Programme for Government 2018 and the Climate Change Plan 2018 contained new policies that will strengthen our response to climate impacts, including a new approach to managing surface water flooding in line with the international trend of blue-green cities. In May 2019, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service announced a new approach to preventing wildfires and Scottish Natural Heritage published Looking ahead – planning for coastal change .

In 2019, we will launch our second statutory five-year Adaptation Programme to build on the strong progress made over the last decade.

Copies of the Annual Progress Report have been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre, laying number SG/2019/69

Question reference: S5O-03386

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how it is ensuring that there is the skills base to deliver the transformational change required to address the climate emergency.

Question reference: S5O-03333

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how it will assist people in remote and rural areas in dealing with the climate emergency.

Question reference: S5O-03323

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 May 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to increase low-carbon travel opportunities in the north east.