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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 1770 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S5W-12747

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 24 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how it will respond to reports that schools in rural areas are far less likely than urban schools to receive aid from the Pupil Equity Fund due to its definition of poverty.

Through the Scottish Attainment Challenge we have committed £750 million over the course of this parliament to close the poverty related attainment gap for our pupils from the most deprived areas. This funding includes £120m of Pupil Equity funding in 2017-18 which has extended the reach of the Scottish Attainment Challenge to every local authority in Scotland and provides additional resources to the majority of schools in rural communities. The funding has been allocated on the basis of pupils in P1-S3 known to be eligible for free school meals, a recognised proxy for families affected by poverty. There is a higher proportion of smaller schools in rural areas and this may impact on the amount of Pupil Equity Funding a schools receives. We would encourage local authorities and schools to ensure all those families eligible for free school meals are registered.

We are committed to developing national programmes to further extend the reach of the Scottish Attainment Challenge and are engaging with stakeholders to consider the impact of rural deprivation on attainment.

Question reference: S5W-12752

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 24 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Scotland’s shop vacancy rates reportedly being higher than the rest of the UK, and average household spending reportedly decreasing, what its position is on raising taxes, and what impact raising taxes would have on (a) household spending and (b) economic and business growth.

The Scottish Government is committed to competitive business rates and took action to reduce bills in light of the 2017 revaluation. The Scottish Government published the 'The Role of Income Tax in Scotland's Budget' report and it makes clear that any new income tax policy must support the economy. The impact of any tax change will depend on the scale of the tax change and the economic circumstances at the time.

Question reference: S5O-01531

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 November 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to recruit and retain GPs in NHS Ayrshire and Arran.

Question reference: S5W-12374

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 20 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many ferries were delayed due to (a) fog and (b) wind in winter 2016-17, and how the number of delays due to technical issues in that period compared with those arising from the weather conditions.

Our ferry Public Service Contracts recognise that there are certain events which are not within the control of the operator, where it would be unreasonable to apply performance deductions to the operator. This is termed a “Relief Event”, and includes sailings cancelled or delayed due to bad weather in line with safety procedures, delays due to unavailability or operational restrictions of harbour facilities. It is recorded where a sailing has been delayed due to inclement weather but the specific element(s), for example a) fog or b) wind, of inclement weather involved are not detailed.

Total weather related delays for winter 2016-17 (24 October 2016 to 30 March 2017 inclusive) are detailed below;

CalMac Ferries Ltd – 450 or 0.94% of scheduled sailings.
Serco NorthLink Ferries – 99 or 11.20% of scheduled sailings.
Argyll Ferries Ltd – 7 or 0.08% of scheduled sailings.*

Total technical delays for winter 2016/17 (24 October 2016 to 30 March 2017 inclusive) are as follows;

Calmac Ferries Ltd – 72 or 0.15% of scheduled sailings.
Serco NorthLink Ferries – 2 or 0.23% of scheduled sailings.
Argyll Ferries Ltd – 20 or 0.24% of scheduled sailings.*

*The low percentage of weather and technical delays can be attributed to the Scottish Ministers decision to deploy the MV Coruisk on the route over the winter period.

Question reference: S5W-12460

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 17 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has allocated to (a) increasing the number of and (b) maintaining electric vehicle charging points.

Question reference: S5W-12367

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how much it will cost to improve the junctions on the A90 between Dundee and Stonehaven.

Question reference: S5W-12366

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how much is expected to be collected each year in speeding fines from the A90 average speed cameras.

Question reference: S5W-12365

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many British Transport Police (BTP) staff will be affected by the merger with Police Scotland, broken down by total salary, and how many BTP staff have left because of the merger.

Question reference: S5W-12462

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has allocated to encourage electric vehicle usage.

Question reference: S5W-12458

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to increase the number of electric vehicle charging points, and where they will be located.