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-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.

Question reference: S4F-02949

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 September 2015

To ask the First Minister whether the timetable for the conclusion of the evidence-gathering process and public consultation regarding the moratorium on fracking and unconventional gas extraction will be published before the October recess.

Question reference: S4W-27214

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 14 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-22977 by Paul Wheelhouse on 14 November 2014, how many people had obtained an identification number by 1 August 2015.

Question reference: S4W-27215

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 14 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question SW4-25062 by Aileen McLeod on 21 April 2015, what the timeframe is for the review and how it will be carried out.

Question reference: S4W-27213

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 14 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-19275 by Paul Wheelhouse on 30 January 2014, how many people had attended the training by 1 August 2015.

Question reference: S4W-27099

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 4 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the comments by the Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform on 11 August 2015, what criteria will be applied in determining whether the licensing of shooting businesses should be introduced, and when this determination will be made.

The Scottish Government has put in place a number of measures to tackle raptor persecution, including the introduction of vicarious liability, a scheme to remove illegal pesticides from the environment, and restrictions on the use of general licences on land where wildlife crime is believed to have occurred. The report of the Wildlife Crime Penalties Review Group, which was commissioned to review the penalties for wildlife crime, will shortly be submitted to the Scottish Government.

It is important that we are able to assess the impact of the measures that have been recently implemented, or are still to be fully implemented, before consideration is given to the introduction of any further measures such as the licensing of shooting businesses.

Question reference: S4W-27098

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 3 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what the remit is of its examination of the regulation of game shooting, and when its findings will be published.

Question reference: S4W-27097

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 3 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the findings of its study of the sentences applied in wildlife crime cases.

Question reference: S4W-27152

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 1 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the announcement by the Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform on 9 June 2015 that energy efficiency will be designated as a national infrastructure priority, what new measures it will take to deliver energy efficiency improvements in the transport sector.

The Scottish Government are delivering a number of energy efficiency improvements across the Scottish transport sector. We are installing LED Road Lighting luminaires on the Scottish Trunk Road Network, which can achieve a 50% reduction in energy consumption, and have procured the world’s two first sea going roll-on/roll-off diesel/electric hybrid ferries. Energy efficiency measures have been embedded within our public contracts. The new ScotRail franchise states that the new operator must ensure that all aspects of running the new franchise consider energy efficiency including rolling stock design, timetable preparation and stabling arrangements. There are additional targets to monitor and minimise train traction energy and invest in energy efficiency at Stations and Depots.