- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 May 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Kevin Stewart on 17 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it (a) is providing in 2018-19 and (b) plans to provide in each of the next five years to support the building of council (i) houses and (ii) flats in North Ayrshire, broken down by the number of units that it expects this to help build.
Answer
The Scottish Government has Resource Planning Assumptions (RPAs) for councils across Scotland for the three years to March 2021 providing councils with the certainty they need to allow them to put future plans in place to meet the housing priorities in their areas. The following table provides details of this allocation for North Ayrshire which will help fund a range of affordable housing including council house building:
North Ayrshire RPA | £m |
2018-19 | 14.165 |
2019-20 | 15.003 |
2020-21 | 16.007 |
North Ayrshire Council uses these planning assumptions to develop its strategic priorities as set out in their Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP). It is therefore a matter for the council to determine through their own strategic processes the number and mix of house types in future years.
North Ayrshire Council’s published SHIP for 2018-2023 estimates that it will deliver 872 council homes in the period up to 2023 as illustrated in the following table. The SHIP does not detail the breakdown of flats and houses.
North Ayrshire Council | Planned Council House Unit Completions |
2018-19 | 158 |
2019-20 | 106 |
2020-21 | 437 |
2021-22 | 165 |
2022-23 | 6 |
Total | 872 |
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 May 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Kevin Stewart on 17 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it has provided in each year since 1999 to support the building of council (a) houses and (b) flats in North Ayrshire, broken down by the number of units that this has helped build.
Answer
The Scottish Government Council House Build Programme was introduced in April 2009, the aim being to incentivise local authorities to build new homes. This was the first such central government support to councils in a generation.
The following table shows the funding provided to North Ayrshire through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) for council house building, together with the number of completed council homes since 2009-10.
Please note that expenditure cannot be directly correlated to the number of completions in a particular year as expenditure can span more than one financial year.
We are not able to break down the number of completed homes by (a) houses and (b) flats as our information is not held in this way:
Financial Year | Funding provided through the AHSP £m | Number of completed council homes |
2009-10 | 0 | 0 |
2010-11 | 0.575 | 23 |
2011-12 | 1.070 | 40 |
2012-13 | 0.929 | 0 |
2013-14 | 1.827 | 12 |
2014-15 | 3.756 | 121 |
2015-16 | 1.613 | 24 |
2016-17 | 6.255 | 24 |
Total | 16.025 | 244 |
Expenditure and units in respect of 2017-18 have not been published as yet.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 May 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 16 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many hospital acquired infections of (a) MRSA and (b) C. difficile there were in Ayrshire in (i) 2006-07 and (ii) the last year for which figures are available, also broken down by the number of deaths that resulted from these infections.
Answer
Health Protection Scotland has reported data on both healthcare associated infections and community associated infections since June 2017. Data for clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and Staphylococcus aureusbacteraemia (SAB) are part of a suite of measures published on a quarterly basis. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptibleStaphylococcus aureus (MSSA) are not reported on individually, but are part of the overall SAB data.
Data published from 2006-2007 includes summary data for CDI and SAB by NHS Board and does not show if these were healthcare or community associated infections. More information is available from Health Protection Scotland on request. The most recent quarterly report, published in April 2018, can be found on the Health Protection Scotland website through the following link: .
Mortality resulting from MRSA and CDI is not reported routinely by Health Protection Scotland or individual NHS Boards.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 May 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 15 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5O-02041 by John Swinney on 2 May 2018, what its position is on whether Scotland’s contribution to intellectual thought has been fully recognised, and whether it will ensure that Arthur Herman’s How the Scots Invented the Modern World is added to the school curriculum.
Answer
Scotland’s contribution to intellectual thought, in areas such as economics, geology, science, engineering, philosophy and literature - is well recognised here and throughout the world. The Curriculum for Excellence provides opportunities for young people in Scotland to learn about Scotland’s varied contribution and Scotland’s place in the world, across all curricular themes. Scottish history is also part of Curriculum for Excellence from the early stages of primary school right into the senior phase. The Scottish Government does not prescribe which texts should be covered in schools for certain subjects. The current advice provides teachers with a broad framework which allows them to deliver learning and teaching in the best interest of individual learners. Teachers can, of course, include any texts that they feel will provide appropriate learning and there are many books available, including Arthur Heman’s, which discuss Scotland’s impressive contribution.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 May 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 10 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken a cost-benefit analysis regarding the provision of a year-round, two-ferry service between Ardrossan and Brodick.
Answer
The Scottish Government conducted high-level cost-benefit analysis of various options for the Ardrossan – Brodick ferry service, as we did for all routes, a number of years ago while developing the Ferries Plan 2013-22.
The final Ferries Plan stated that the delivery of a new vessel will provide the opportunity for a 2-vessel year-round service, with the prospect for an augmented Ardrossan – Brodick service and Campbeltown service in the winter.
The Ferries Plan noted that the correct level of frequency would require to be established. Transport Scotland and CalMac have begun initial high-level exploration of potential future service levels. Further analysis of demand, costs and benefits will be required prior any decisions.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 April 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 2 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how the education system is informed by the Scottish Enlightenment.
Answer
The concept of a broad, general education, committed to excellence and equity and founded on a core set of values are key features of Scotland’s education system today that were informed by the Scottish Enlightenment. The values of wisdom, justice, compassion and integrity, upon which the Curriculum for Excellence is based, aim to encourage all children and young people to approach their education with an open and inquiring mind, and - in keeping with the spirit of the Enlightenment - with a view to their wider contribution to society.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 April 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Derek Mackay on 1 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how much business rates relief has cumulatively saved businesses since 2007, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
Non-domestic (business) rate relief has saved ratepayers around £4.5 billion cumulatively between 2009-10 and 2015-16.
The following table sets out the cumulative amount of business rates relief awarded between 2009-10 and 2016-17 at a local authority level based on audited figures collected by local authorities.
Data on business rate relief prior to 2009-10 is not available at a local authority level, and data relating to 2017-18 will be published in February 2019 as part of the Scottish Local Government Financial Statistics 2017-18 publication.
Cumulative Non-Domestic Rates Relief Paid (2009-10 to 2016-17) by Local Authority
Local Authority | Cumulative Relief (£m) | Local Authority | Cumulative Relief (£ m) |
Aberdeen City | £198 | Highland | £225 |
Aberdeenshire | £141 | Inverclyde | £55 |
Angus | £72 | Midlothian | £61 |
Argyll & Bute | £72 | Moray | £51 |
Clackmannanshire | £26 | North Ayrshire | £94 |
Dumfries & Galloway | £90 | North Lanarkshire | £220 |
Dundee City | £165 | Orkney Islands | £23 |
East Ayrshire | £68 | Perth & Kinross | £129 |
East Dunbartonshire | £54 | Renfrewshire | £153 |
East Lothian | £66 | Scottish Borders | £88 |
East Renfrewshire | £36 | Shetland Islands | £34 |
Edinburgh, City of | £638 | South Ayrshire | £85 |
Eilean Siar | £25 | South Lanarkshire | £210 |
Falkirk | £92 | Stirling | £85 |
Fife | £271 | West Dunbartonshire | £50 |
Glasgow City | £801 | West Lothian | £135 |
| | | Total | £4,510 |
Note - Estimates include mandatory and discretionary elements of relief where applicable (funded by Scottish Government), but excludes backdated payments of relief and discretionary relief paid directly from local authorities.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 April 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Derek Mackay on 1 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what the average saving per property will be in 2018-19 as a result of its package of business rates, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
The Scottish Government offers the most competitive business rates relief package in the UK worth an estimated record £720 million in 2018-19.
As of 1 April 2018 over 251,000 properties were on the valuation roll. This means the relief package this year will deliver an average saving of around £2,860 per property.
However, as not all properties receive relief, the average saving for those properties that are in receipt of relief will be considerably higher than £2,860.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 April 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Derek Mackay on 1 May 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many businesses in each local authority area will be exempt from business rates in 2018-19.
Answer
The following table shows the number of properties on the valuation roll for the most recent year that data is held (2015-16) that paid no business rates, for example because they were in in receipt of 100% rates relief.
This figure excludes premises that may have qualified for new 100% reliefs introduced since this time, including Day Nursery Relief and the Business Growth Accelerator.
Number of properties on the valuation roll (at October 2016) that were exempt from paying business rates
Local Authority | Number of properties | Local Authority | Number of properties |
Aberdeen City | 2,684 | Highland | 11,202 |
Aberdeenshire | 7,404 | Inverclyde | 1,226 |
Angus | 3,046 | Midlothian | 1,373 |
Argyll & Bute | 5,439 | Moray | 2,857 |
Clackmannanshire | 848 | North Ayrshire | 2,917 |
Dumfries & Galloway | 6,031 | North Lanarkshire | 4,432 |
Dundee City | 2,826 | Orkney Islands | 1,553 |
East Ayrshire | 2,143 | Perth & Kinross | 4,970 |
East Dunbartonshire | 1,093 | Renfrewshire | 3,038 |
East Lothian | 2,018 | Scottish Borders | 4,787 |
East Renfrewshire | 885 | Shetland Islands | 1,292 |
Edinburgh, City of | 8,291 | South Ayrshire | 2,576 |
Eilean Siar | 1,693 | South Lanarkshire | 4,287 |
Falkirk | 2,426 | Stirling | 2,868 |
Fife | 7,078 | West Dunbartonshire | 1,277 |
Glasgow City | 12,388 | West Lothian | 2,572 |
| | | Total | 119,520 |
Note – Estimates include over 7,000 properties on the roll that did not pay rates because their rateable value was £0 at the time.
Other properties qualify through 100% relief schemes. Data is the most recent available.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 April 2018
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 25 April 2018
To ask the Scottish Government whether Police Scotland has shared its experience of tackling knife crime with the Metropolitan Police.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 25 April 2018
