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: S5W-26908

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 24 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many early deaths in each NHS board area have been linked to air pollution (a) in each of the last five years and (b) since April 2019.

Question reference: S5W-26989

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 24 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what actions it plans to take in response to the Clean Air for Scotland review recommendation in relation to reducing smoke pollution as a result of muirburn.

The Scottish Government is currently considering the report of the independently led review of the Cleaner Air for Scotland strategy. The conclusions and recommendations from the review will be used to develop a new air quality strategy which will be issued for consultation later this year. We are also taking account of these conclusions and recommendations as we consider the recommendations for further regulation of muirburn made by the Grouse Moor Management Review Group in its recent report to the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S5W-27006

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 24 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting people with PGCE qualifications obtained in England to access permanent teaching jobs in Scotland.

Teachers with PGCE qualifications gained in England are more than welcome to teach in Scotland, as long as they satisfy the criteria for registration set by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS). The GTCS has arrangements in place to register teachers who have qualified outside Scotland.

The University of Edinburgh’s Return to Teaching programme is aimed at professionals who have a teaching qualification and are eligible for registration by the General Teaching Council for Scotland and wish to teach in Scotland for the first time in either the primary or secondary sector. This programme has been developed with funding support from the Scottish Government and aims to support participants to both understand and engage with current national education policy and the professional teaching standards in Scotland.

Question reference: S5O-04068

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 January 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how its planning policy is guiding the siting of thermal electricity generating capacity under 50MW.

Question reference: S5W-26934

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 13 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 22 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prevent so-called ghost gear from damaging marine wildlife.

The Scottish Government’s Marine Litter Strategy promotes better fishing waste management both here and abroad to reduce fishing related marine litter, supporting KIMO and the Global Ghost Gear initiative.

In our 2018 Programme for Government we prioritised action to tackle the issue of fishing litter and lost gear. This included a session at our International Marine Conference in February 2019, and focus at the first British-Irish Council Environment Ministers Marine Litter Symposium. The British-Irish Council members are now working together to improve recycling opportunities for gear and marine litter education within the fishing industry to prevent this material becoming ghost gear.

We are also reducing this waste source by working towards implementing the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive with an Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme for fishing gear while considering how its design can be developed to improve recyclability and contribute to our circular economy. In addition we will action the Port Reception Facilities Directive, ensuring adequate waste disposal facilities at all ports, including fishing gear.

And to ensure that fishing vessels are discouraged from disposal of end of life gear at sea, we are considering the mechanisms by which we could establish littering from vessels as an offence, as per our Future of Fisheries Management in Scotland: National Discussion Paper.

To reduce the amount of gear lost accidentally as a result of being dragged to another location in situations of gear conflict, we are implementing the recommendations of the 2015 Gear Conflict Task Force with the publication of Best Practice Guidance for marking static fishing gear. Furthermore, a Scottish Statutory Instrument is being laid in Parliament in early 2020 regulating the marking of static gear.

Question reference: S5W-26933

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 22 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on working with the UK Government to explore whether an incineration tax could be a means to encourage more recycling.

We are making progress towards delivering Scotland’s ambitious recycling targets. However, we recognise there is more to do and are working with partners to identify opportunities to accelerate the pace of progress. In December 2019, we hosted a recycling summit that brought together senior public and private sector leaders to consider key issues and opportunities.

In terms of tax, Scottish Landfill Tax supports our efforts to reduce waste, increase recycling and cut waste going to landfill and consideration is being given to the role that it could play in supporting a transition away from the landfilling of biodegradable municipal waste. We are in contact with the UK Government on a range of taxation issues, but have no current plans for an incineration tax.

Question reference: S5W-26909

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 22 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many early deaths in each NHS board area have been linked to extreme temperatures (a) in each of the last five years and (b) since April 2019.

The following table presents available data for two ICD-10 codes - X30 and X31 – which represent exposure to excessive natural heat and excessive natural cold.

Deaths where the underlying cause was exposure to excessive natural heat or cold, 2014 to 2018, Scotland

Year	Deaths
2014	9
2015	17
2016	16
2017	8
2018	14

Source: National Records of Scotland
Based on ICD-10 codes X30 (excessive natural heat) and X31 (excessive natural cold).
Figures include deaths where these were the underlying cause only.

NRS also publish a Winter Mortality in Scotland report, which defines the seasonal increase in mortality in the winter as the difference between the number of deaths in the 4-month 'winter' period (December to March, inclusive) and the average number of deaths in the two 4-month periods which precede winter (August to November, inclusive) and follow winter (April to July, inclusive).

The Winter Mortality in Scotland publication is available here:

Question reference: S5W-26855

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 14 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government when planning permission appeal PPA-240-2032 will be determined.

This appeal remains on hold pending an indication from the appellant of their intentions following the statement on 3 October setting out the Scottish Government’s final policy position on onshore oil and gas. The Planning and Environmental Appeals Division (DPEA) have sought views and will shortly be contacting the appellant again to obtain their views on how they intend to proceed with this appeal.

Question reference: S5W-26824

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 January 2020
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 14 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how it assesses whether wrasse species are being harvested above or below maximum sustainable yield.

Both statutory and voluntary landings returns are helping to improve our understanding of wrasse stocks and the impact of commercial fishing activity on wrasse species.

We manage all quota stocks towards MSY where it is practically possible and in line with the current objectives of the CFP with which we are bound. There are no estimations of what MSY could be for these particular data limited, non quota stocks. However we seek to manage all commercial fisheries sustainably and currently have a suite of voluntary measures which we are reviewing that will help us establish the sustainability of current fishing activity.

Question reference: S5W-26732

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 December 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 13 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish a draft Climate Change Plan, and what time period will be allocated for parliamentary scrutiny of this.

The Government has committed to laying a draft update to the Climate Change Plan in Parliament by 30 April 2019. Updating the plan within 6 months is a fraction of the time it would take to produce a new Plan, in recognition that there is Global Climate Emergency and there should be no delay in stepping up action to respond to it. The Government has recommended that the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee take a similar approach and respond to the draft Plan within 30 days.