Questions and answers

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 ��˿�� 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: S4W-19828

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 10 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what alternative funding sources it is investigating for the Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland in the event that funding from the energy company obligation declines.

The Scottish Government is currently working closely with local authorities, obligated energy companies and other delivery partners to assess the impact of the changes to the energy company obligation (ECO) on the Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland (HEEPS).

There is a fixed budget within Government and we are unable to compensate for the decline in ECO caused by Westminster policy changes. However, we will attempt to meet the challenge by exploring all possible routes of funding including Green Deal, Scottish Government funding streams for community renewables, European funding and other relevant public and private sources of finance.

Longer term, we have set out our commitment in Scotland’s Future about what we would do in an independent Scotland. We plan to remove certain obligations from energy bills and maintain current funding levels from central resources.

Question reference: S4O-02939

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 February 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Coping with the cuts? Local government and poorer communities.

Question reference: S4O-02868

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a delay in the publication of the business case for the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Programme.

Question reference: S4W-19123

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 January 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 22 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities it consulted and in what form in advance of its announcement on 7 January 2013 regarding the provision of school meals.

Extending the entitlement of free school meals to children in primary 1 to 3, has been a Scottish Government commitment since 2007 and there has been an on-going dialogue between COSLA and the Scottish Government about it.

Following the UK Government’s autumn statement on 5 December 2013, Scottish Ministers carefully considered how to use the consequential funding to the optimum benefit for children and young people. This included the consideration of the views previously expressed by COSLA and the views of the 5 local authorities that piloted free school meals for primary 1-3 pupils in 2007-08. These views are contained within the ‘Evaluation of the free school meals trial for primary 1-3 pupils’ which was published in 2008 and can be accessed on the Scottish Government website at:.

Question reference: S4F-01848

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 20 January 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 January 2014

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to strengthen the powers that local authorities and communities have to purchase land.

Question reference: S4W-19072

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 January 2014
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 14 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the need for the provision of traffic warden services and whether it considers that these should be delivered by each local authority.

Question reference: S4W-19071

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 January 2014
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 14 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-18312 by Keith Brown on 25 November 2013, what funding it will provide to local authorities to help deliver parking enforcement services.

The Scottish Government is providing local government in Scotland with over £10.3 billion in 2013-14. The vast majority of this funding is being provided by means of a block grant.

It is the responsibility of each local authority to allocate the total financial resources available to it on the basis of local needs and priorities having first fulfilled its statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities including the Scottish Government’s key strategic objectives.

Question reference: S4O-02800

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 January 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service board.

Question reference: S4W-18839

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 20 December 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) local government and (b) the UK Government regarding providing support to councils to ensure that restoration projects at opencast coal sites are taken forward.

The UK Government’s Department of Energy and Climate Change, the Coal Authority and local authorities are represented on the cross-party Scottish Coal Industry Taskforce chaired by Mr Ewing, Energy Minister. Restoration is a principle part of the discussions of this group. Scottish Government officials are in regular contact with councils through the taskforce activity.

The UK Coal Authority collects royalties of £0.17 from each tonne of coal extracted in Scotland which amounts to circa £15 million (since 1995). Mr Ewing has written to the UK Energy Minister Mr Fallon to ask that this money be used to help fund the legacy of unrestored open cast coal sites in Scotland.

Mr Ewing, Energy Minister, set up the Restoration Bonds Working Group in October 2012 which includes all relevant council planning departments to develop alternatives to restoration bonds.

Mr Ewing launched the Scottish Mines Restorations Trust in April 2013, an independent body which exists solely to help facilitate with councils, communities and other stakeholders the development of their restoration plans.

On 5 December 2013 the Scottish Government launched its consultation ‘Opencast Coal Restoration: Effective Regulation’ which is open to all for response including local authorities. The consultation period runs until February 2014.

Question reference: S4W-18840

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 20 December 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance local authorities can seek from the (a) Coal Authority and (b) Department of Energy and Climate Change when taking forward restoration projects at former opencast coal sites.

The UK Government’s Department of Energy and Climate Change and the Coal Authority and local authorities are represented on the Scottish Coal Industry Taskforce chaired by Mr Ewing, Energy Minister and local authorities are of course free to consult either of these bodies in the preparation of their restoration plans.

The UK Coal Authority collects royalties of £0.17 from each tonne of coal extracted under licence in the UK. In Scotland this has amounted to £15 million (since 1995).

Mr Ewing has written to the UK Energy Minister Mr Fallon to ask that this money be used to help fund the legacy of unrestored open cast coal sites in Scotland.