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-27378

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 29 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by Fergus Ewing on 3 September 2015 (Official Report, c.52), what support it will provide to (a) Clydeport and (b) other (i) businesses, (ii) employees and (iii) communities in the supply chain affected by the closure of Longannet Power Station.

Question reference: S4W-27377

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 29 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by Fergus Ewing on 3 September 2015 (Official Report, c.52), (a) what support and (b) how much inward investment it will provide to mitigate the impact of the closure of Longannet Power Station on (i) communities, (ii) businesses and (iii) employees in (A) Kincardine and (B) other areas and manage the transitional issues arising from it; when it will announce full details of the inward investment, and how much of it will be new money.

We recognise that the impact of the closure of Longannet will be felt in Fife and across Scotland. An economic development plan will be developed by the Longannet taskforce, which was set up by the Scottish Government to support the workers, businesses and communities impacted by Scottish Power’s decision to close Longannet Power Station. The taskforce will develop an economic recovery plan to:

Help ensure individuals employed at the site are supported, maximising each individual’s opportunity to secure alternative employment;

Support the communities impacted by the closure;

Mitigate the effects on the supply chain;

Produce a masterplan for the long term future of the site, maximising the employment potential of the site; and

Consider the economic infrastructure of the local area, to identify how to create sustainable employment in the longer term.

While it is too early to say what resources might be required to support the delivery of the economic recovery plan, the taskforce will work towards identifying the various needs and requirements prior to Longannet’s closure.

Question reference: S4W-27216

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 28 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what secondary legislation under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 it plans to introduce before March 2016.

As noted in answer to question S4W-25563 on 2 June 2015, it is planned to bring the Microchipping of Dogs (Scotland) Regulations 2016 into force in January 2016, with the requirement for mandatory microchipping of all dogs coming into effect in April 2016.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

Question reference: S4W-27217

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 28 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making towards the development of an animal health and welfare strategy.

Effective animal health and welfare policies that build on Scotland’s reputation for good husbandry are essential for the future of the livestock industry. Discussions have already taken place with stakeholders and identified a number of possible initiatives. However, decisions will need to take into account the outcome of the ongoing national discussion on what the industry will be like in 2025, which followed the publication of the The Future of Scotland’s Agriculture at the 2015 Royal Highland Show.

A group of stakeholders, supported by the Scottish Government and chaired by Stuart Earley, Chief Executive of the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, is looking at the welfare of farmed animals and is currently considering a number of proposals.

Question reference: S4W-27366

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 07 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 24 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the announcement on unconventional oil and gas by Fergus Ewing on 28 January 2015 (Official Report, c. 17), what progress it has made on (a) commissioning a full public health impact assessment, (b) conducting further work into strengthening planning guidance and (c) looking at further tightening of environmental regulations.

The Scottish Government is taking time to develop an extensive and robust evidence base, and ministers have continued to meet with key stakeholders over the summer to discuss this work.

In line with our cautious evidence-based approach, we will continue to take time to consider all these matters with due care and attention. Further details of the consultation and accompanying work will be announced in due course.

Question reference: S4W-27367

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 07 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 24 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-26063 by Fergus Ewing on 22 June 2015, when it will provide a substantive update on its plans for a consultation and accompanying work on unconventional gas and fracking.

Question reference: S4O-04648

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions regarding new cultural investment it has had with the City of Edinburgh Council.

Question reference: S4W-27441

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 23 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it will publish the options paper on the introduction of an environmental court, as laid out in the 2011 SNP manifesto; what stakeholder consultation is planned, and whether it expects to reach a conclusion or publish a decision in advance of the 2016 election.

Question reference: S4W-27388

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to allocate any Barnett consequentials arising from the new vehicle excise duty.

The Barnett formula does not adjust to changes in reserved taxation but allocates to Scotland a population share of net changes in expenditure on comparable spending programmes in England. Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) is reserved and there will therefore be no Barnett consequentials flowing to Scotland in the UK spending review directly as a consequence of changes to the tax, with VED revenues continuing to flow into general public expenditure rather than to specific programmes.

The UK Government has announced that from 2020-21 revenues from VED will be hypothecated for deployment through the Strategic Roads Fund in England. The funding implications for the devolved administrations have still to be determined.

Question reference: S4W-27101

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 16 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what consultation it carried out with its scientific advisors prior to its recent decision on GM crops, and what advice they provided.

The Scottish Government made the decision to opt out of cultivating EU approved GM crops on the basis that it is not willing to risk Scotland’s multi-billion pound food and drink sector. Like Europe’s biggest country, Germany, the Scottish Government has restated its long-held policy to maintain a precautionary approach to GM.

GM crops go through scientific assessment before they are authorised by the EU, but Scotland is taking advantage of the EU’s decision to allow member states and regions to opt out for non-scientific reasons.

Both Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture and the Chief Scientific Adviser for Rural Affairs, Food and the Environment are sources of expert advice on a range of issues that help inform the government’s position.