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: S5W-13524

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many hectares of private forestry land is owned in holdings of (a) 0-10ha, (b) 11-50ha, (c) 51-200ha, (d) 201-1,000ha and (e) greater than 1,000ha.

Forest Research, through the National Forest Inventory, publishes data on the number of hectares of forests, including in Scotland, in the following size classes (hectares): <2, 2-10; 10-20; 20-50; 50-100; 100-500; 500 and above.

Summary data on the proportion of privately and publically owned forestry is also published.

This and other data on Scotland’s forests and woodlands can be found at: https://www.forestry.gov.uk/pdf/NFI_SCOTLAND-REPORT_010813.pdf/$FILE/NFI_SCOTLAND-REPORT_010813.pdf

Question reference: S5W-13301

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 16 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish details of the (a) discussions, (b) meetings and (c) correspondence it has had with the Chief Scientific Adviser to Wildcat Haven CIC since 2007.

Details of (a) discussions, (b) meetings, and (c) correspondence the Scottish Government has had with the Chief Scientific Adviser to Wildcat Haven CIC since 2007 are as follows.

Dr Paul O’Donoghue, Chief Scientific Adviser to Wildcat Haven, met with Paul Wheelhouse, the then Minister for Environment and Climate Change, on 19 March 2014 to discuss the Wildcat Haven project, including a wildcat education programme.

Dr O’Donoghue, wrote to Paul Wheelhouse, on 29 August 2014 seeking funding for the Wildcat Haven project. The Scottish Government responded on 10 September 2014 that it was unable to provide funding towards the Wildcat Haven Project as all of the funding resources for wildcats were already committed to the Scottish Natural Heritage Wildcat Conservation Action Plan.

In addition, Wildcat Haven, through their lawyers Clifford Chance, also wrote to Roseanna Cunningham Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, in May 2016 requesting a meeting to outline their concerns regarding the Scottish Wildcat Conservation Action Plan. The request for a meeting with the Cabinet Secretary was declined but an offer was made to Wildcat Haven to meet with officials instead. This offer was not taken up.

Question reference: S5O-01676

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 January 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides for instrumental music education in primary and secondary schools.

Question reference: S5O-01575

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 December 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 14 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve the energy efficiency of existing homes.

Question reference: S5W-12465

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its duty under the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 to further the conservation of biodiversity, how it is protecting the wrasse fisheries.

Question reference: S5W-12467

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what statistics are collected by Marine Scotland regarding wrasse mortality in transit.

Marine Scotland does not routinely collect statistics on wrasse mortality in transport. However, as part of the Aquaculture Production Business (APB) authorisation conditions, an APB is required to record mortalities during transport and these records must be made available to the Fish Health Inspectorate when requested. It is an offence under The Aquatic Animal Health (Scotland) Regulations 2009 for a person who transports any aquaculture animal to fail to keep a record of the number of animals that die in the course of transport.

Question reference: S5W-12470

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to ensure that otters are not endangered by the use of wrasse traps.

Question reference: S5W-12466

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether precautionary management measures similar to that introduced in England will be implemented for the wrasse fisheries.

Question reference: S5W-12468

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what measures have been implemented to ensure that wrasse that are caught conform to the minimum conservation reference sizes, and how those sizes have been set with regard to the wrasse life-cycle.

Question reference: S5W-12471

Asked by: Andy Wightman, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 16 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that the management of wrasse populations is conducted in line with General Policy 9 of the 2015 Scottish National Marine Plan.