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-04553

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the level of deficit recorded by the latest GERS figures.

Question reference: S5W-31199

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 August 2020
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 26 August 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making in meeting its child poverty reduction target, and whether it expects to achieve this in the timescale set out.

The Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017 sets out both interim and final targets across four target measures towards the eradication of child poverty in Scotland.

The latest statistics, covering the period 2018-19, were published both as part of the second annual progress report on child poverty , on 20 August 2020, and as part of a statistical child poverty update , published on 26 March 2020. The latest data show a slight reduction against three of the four target measures.

By the end of the first delivery plan period, ending March 2022, we will have delivered considerable new support to tackle child poverty, including the Scottish Child Payment - worth £10 per child per week. We will set out further action, at the scale and pace required, within our subsequent Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plans to be published in 2022 and 2026.

Question reference: S5W-31200

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 August 2020
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 26 August 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how much it is allocating to reduce child poverty in 2020-21, and how this compares with each year since 2007-08.

As outlined in the second annual progress report on child poverty, published on 20 August 2020, we estimate that over £672 million of investment was targeted specifically at children in low income households in 2019-20. This was part of over £1.96 billion targeted at low income households and does not include investment in key universal services including funded tuition, healthcare and Early Learning and Childcare.

This is an increase of £144 million from 2018-19 when the first estimates were produced. In 2018-19, £527 million was targeted specifically at children in poverty as part of over £1.4 billion of investment targeted at low income households.

Estimates for spend in 2020-21 will be published, by the end of June 2021, as part of the annual progress report for that period. Estimates are not available for the period pre-dating the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan.

Question reference: S5W-31201

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 August 2020
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 26 August 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the COVID-19 pandemic and any potential subsequent rise in unemployment is having on its measures to reduce child poverty.

Coronavirus, whilst primarily a public health emergency, has had significant impacts on our economy, our society, our communities and on the lives of every person in the country.

At the outset of the pandemic we committed £50 million, as part of our initial £350 million Communities funding package, to meet increased demand for both devolved social security entitlements and Council Tax Reduction. We also more than doubled investment in our Scottish Welfare Fund and made a further £5 million available for Discretionary Housing Payments in 2020-21 to support those in financial need.

Whilst it is too early to robustly estimate the impacts of the pandemic on measures to reduce child poverty, we have committed significant investment to protect and create jobs, including over £2.3 billion in direct support to business, £100 million in new employment support including a Youth Jobs Guarantee, and a £2.35 million increase to our Parental Employability Support Fund this year.

Question reference: S5F-04309

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 August 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 August 2020

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking in response to Police Scotland figures suggesting that reports of abuse against disabled people almost doubled during the lockdown.

Question reference: S5W-30833

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2020
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 12 August 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-29326 by Paul Wheelhouse on 12 June 2020, what the timeframe is for delivering superfast broadband to the remaining 200 premises in the South of Scotland region, and how the voucher scheme it refers to will contribute to the delivery.

Our new, nationwide voucher scheme for Scotland - launching later this summer - will ensure that any property that was unable to access superfast broadband by 31 December 2021 can do so through a voucher led solution, including in the region of 200 remaining properties not covered by the £133 million contract for the Reaching 100% (R100) South lot.

Our new online checker will provide, for each address, information on the R100 rollout and any local commercial roll-out, and signpost eligible customers to our voucher scheme, either for use in funding an interim solution for addresses where the gigabit per second speed infrastructure, in the form of the R100 full fibre rollout, is programmed after December 2021, or for a higher value voucher for providing a long term solution, i.e. where the specific address is known not to be receiving investment through either a commercial programme or our own R100 South Lot.

Question reference: S5W-30711

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 July 2020
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 22 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission plans to engage the expertise of the livestock sector in its consideration of abattoir provision and mobile slaughterhouses.

The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission will be setting up working groups to consider the welfare issues identified in its work plan, including abattoir provision and mobile slaughterhouses. If appropriate the Commission will seek to co-opt in to these groups relevant industry representatives and experts so that they may contribute to the work of the Commission and ensure that the views of industry are fully considered.

Question reference: S5W-30709

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 July 2020
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 22 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what the remit is of the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission, and for what reason it does not include representation from the agriculture sector.

The remit of the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission (the Commission) is primarily to provide expert, independent advice on wild and companion animal welfare. It will also provide scientific and ethical advice to government on related matters. The provision of advice to Ministers on livestock welfare generally falls to the UK AWC. Where however there are specific issues of relevance to Scotland and the Scottish livestock sector, the Commission may be asked to consider them and provide advice to the Scottish Ministers.

The Commission will specifically look at:

how the welfare needs of sentient animals are being met by devolved policy
possible legislative and non-legislative routes to further protect the welfare of sentient animals
research requirements to provide an evidence base for future policy development

The recruitment of the Members appointed to serve on the Commission was conducted in accordance with the principles of merit, integrity, diversity and equality set out in the Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments. Applications were welcomed from anyone with the appropriate mix of experience and expertise and from all sectors. Those appointed to serve on the Commission comprise of a range of experts from different disciplines relevant to animal welfare, including some with farm livestock knowledge and experience.

Question reference: S5W-30712

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 July 2020
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 22 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission plans to engage the expertise of the agriculture sector, including in its consideration of animal sentience and the welfare of (a) deer and (b) wildlife.

The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission will be setting up smaller working groups to consider the welfare issues identified in its work plan, including animal sentience and the welfare of deer and wildlife. If appropriate the Commission will seek to co-opt in to these groups relevant industry representatives and experts so that they may contribute to the work of the Commission and ensure that the views of industry are fully considered.

Question reference: S5W-30044

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 19 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 8 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what impact EU state aid rules no longer applying to Scotland following Brexit has had on its Air Departure Tax policy.

The introduction of Air Departure Tax (ADT) in Scotland has been deferred to allow for issues raised in relation to the Highlands and Islands exemption to be resolved. As such, the current UK Air Passenger Duty (APD) rates and bands continue to apply in Scotland.

EU State Aid rules remain in force during the transition period. The ongoing uncertainty regarding level playing field negotiations between the UK and EU is such that the likelihood of any future alignment with State Aid rules, and consequently the implications for future policy decisions, is unknown.