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: S6W-10706

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 3 October 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had to date regarding the potential impact on (a) local newspapers and (b) fair work principles of concerns reportedly raised by the National Union of Journalists in relation to Reach PLC.

While the Scottish Government has not been made aware of fair work concerns by the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) in relation to Reach PLC, it is keen to ensure fair work practices are adopted across the news publishing industry.

The Scottish Government is pleased that the pay negotiations between the NUJ and Reach resulted in a revised pay offer being accepted by NUJ members at Reach on 26 September.

Employment legislation is reserved to the UK Government, however, the Scottish Government will continue to use its Fair Work policy to improve workers’ rights and protections.

We are clear that all employees must be paid fairly for the work they do. That is why the Scottish Government continues to support payment of, at least, the real Living Wage to build a more resilient economy, a more equal labour market, and to foster inclusive growth.

Question reference: S6W-11183

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 30 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government who is responsible for maintaining telecoms infrastructure in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-10714

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any concerns by Unison regarding reports of unsafe working practices in NHS Dumfries and Galloway.

Question reference: S6W-10713

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to reduce any reported workforce pressures and unsafe staffing levels in the NHS.

The Scottish Government is taking the necessary steps to support NHS staffing capacity. The Scottish Government is continually in contact with all NHS Health Boards to ensure that services have sufficient support to deal with COVID-19, manage other risks and resume planned services as safely and effectively as possible.

Although Staffing levels across NHS Scotland have increased for ten consecutive years, we are fully aware of the challenges that Boards and frontline staff are experiencing. That is why we announced a £1 billion-backed NHS Recovery Plan and a record £300 million of investment last winter to support Health Boards and their staff.

This includes the 1,000 Health Care Support Workers brought in over the last winter and recent successes that has saw c230 nurses from overseas taken up roles within Boards in Scotland and our commitment to invest a record £11 million in the lifetime of this parliament in further domestic and international recruitment.

We are in the final stages of agreeing a stretching target for international recruitment of nurses, midwives and Allied Health Professionals with NHS Scotland Boards for 2022-23.

Question reference: S6W-10707

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 22 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support local newspapers.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the sustainability of local news publishers as a key part of the public interest news sector in Scotland. We recognise the value that local newspapers bring to their communities, and the important role they play as part of a well-functioning democracy.

In 2021, the Scottish Government set up the Public Interest Journalism Working Group to consider the long-term sustainability of public interest journalism, including local news, in Scotland, and to recommend ways to ensure its ongoing resilience and relevance. We responded to the Group’s recommendations in June 2022. This included a commitment to facilitate a roundtable event this Autumn, to support the creation of a new Scottish Public Interest Journalism Institute.

While it is not for Scottish Government to influence the remit of the Institute, it is likely, in line with the Working Group’s recommendations, that part of its role will be to support local news.

Separately, the Scottish Government spent £258,056.00 on local newspaper advertising in the financial year 2021-22.

Question reference: S6O-01410

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what accountability mechanisms are available to communities who believe they are receiving inadequate GP services.

Question reference: S6W-10704

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 21 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Section 70 complaint procedures under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 provide an option for the complainant to consent to the publication of an unredacted version of the final decision they receive.

Section 70 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 provides that any interested party can make a complaint to the Scottish Ministers that a responsible body has failed to discharge a statutory duty relating to education.

Following investigation of the complaint, Scottish Ministers may make an order declaring the responsible body to be in default of the duty and requiring them to discharge the duty by a specified date.

The complaint procedures do not provide an option for the complainant to consent to the publication of an unredacted version of the final decision they receive.

Question reference: S6W-10517

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what recent analysis it has undertaken of local authority capacity to scrutinise and process large-scale windfarm proposals.

Scottish Ministers determine windfarm proposals exceeding 50 megawatts under the Electricity Act (1989) which is reserved to UK Government.

Local planning authorities are statutory consultees under the Electricity Act and their capacity to scrutinise large scale windfarm proposals varies across planning authorities. The Scottish Government is working with planning authorities to understand where capacity needs to be bolstered and is supporting planning authorities to increase capacity where it is needed most. As such, there has been no formal analysis of capacity across all planning authorities.

Question reference: S6W-10522

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 21 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of the standard payment to private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers of early learning and childcare, per eligible child, at each age range for each local authority.

Childcare providers in the private, third and childminding sectors who deliver funded early learning and childcare (ELC) receive a sustainable rate from their local authority for the delivery of these hours.

There is no standard payment and local authorities set sustainable rates for providers in their area in-line with the joint Scottish Government and COSLA guidance .

The Scottish Government is committed to collecting data annually on the sustainable rates set by each local authority. This includes information on any variations in the rates paid to children in different age groups.

We published data on sustainable rates for 2021-22 in ‘ Overview of local authority funding and support for early learning and childcare providers’. Data on sustainable rates for 2022-23 will be published in the Autumn.

Question reference: S6W-10499

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 August 2022
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 21 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what the final public cost has been of bringing the two giant pandas to Edinburgh Zoo.