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-06118

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 23 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how the ecological coherence of the network of marine protected areas under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 is assessed.

Guidance has been developed under the Oslo-Paris Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR) to support the agreement on development of a network of Marine Protected Areas. The guidance outlines key design features associated with ecological coherence. The Key elements are:

Representation – To support the sustainable use, protection and conservation of marine biological diversity and ecosystems, areas which best represent the range of species, habitats and ecological processes (for which MPAs are a suitable measure) should be considered for inclusion.

Replication – Replication of features in separate MPAs in each biogeographic area is desirable where it is possible in order to contribute to resilience and the aims of the network.

Size of site – The appropriate size of a site should be determined by the purpose of the site and be sufficiently large to maintain the integrity of the feature for which it is selected.

Adequacy – the MPA network should be of adequate size to deliver its ecological objectives.

Connectivity – the MPA network should take into account the linkages between marine ecosystems and the dependence of species and habitats on processes that occur outside the MPA concerned.

Management – MPAs should be managed to ensure the protection of the features for which they were selected and to support the functioning of an ecologically coherent network.

The guidance is being used to develop the MPA network in Scottish waters. When finalising advice based on the MPA guidelines, SNH and JNCC will consider the extent to which proposals for inclusion in the network will contribute to an ecologically coherent network and ministers will report progress on contributing to a network of MPAs in accordance with sections 79 (2) and 103(3) of the Marine (Scotland) Act.

A report on the status of the OSPAR network of MPAs is prepared on an annual basis. The reports summarise the number and locations of MPAs included in the network and assesses whether the network is coherent based on assessment of the spatial distribution of the network and coverage of OSPAR threatened and/or declining habitats and species. Further details can be found in the latest 2010 Status Report on the OSPAR Network of Marine Protected Areas:

Question reference: S4W-06119

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 23 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how the contribution of Scotland's marine protected areas (MPA) to the ecological coherence of the MPA network across the Oslo-Paris Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR) area will be assessed.

Question reference: S4O-00821

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 March 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 22 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to address female unemployment in Fife.

Question reference: S4O-00803

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 March 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether an industrial operation may operate outwith the permitted hours specified in its planning permission.

Question reference: S4W-05853

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive��how many pre-registration student nurse and midwifery intake training places there will be at each higher education institution in 2012-13, also broken down by (a) adult nursing, (b) mental health nursing, (c) learning disability nursing, (d) children’s nursing and (e) midwifery.

The 2012-13 intake for pre-registration nursing and midwifery students broken down by branch and university is as detailed in the following table:-

2012-13	Dundee Uni	GCU	Edinburgh Napier	RGU	Stirling Uni	UWS	Open Uni
Adult	266	261	299	142	220	469	10
Child	35	62	70	36	0	0	0
Mental Health	51	54	54	27	65	109	10
Learning Disability	0	45	45	0	0	0	0
Midwifery	0	0	30	30	0	40	0
Total	352	422	498	235	285	618	20

Question reference: S4W-05854

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many pre-registration student nurse and midwifery intake training places there will be at each higher education institution campus in 2012-13.

It is for the individual Universities to decide how best to deliver the education programmes they provide to students and this includes allocating places at particular campuses. The 2012-13 intake for pre-registration nursing and midwifery students broken down by University is detailed in the following table:-

Dundee Uni

GCU

Edinburgh Napier Uni

RGU

Stirling

Uni

UWS

Open Uni

��

352

��

422

��

498

��

235

��

285

��

618

��

Question reference: S4W-05417

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 03 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it will spend in (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13 and (c) 2013-14 on promoting sustainable and active travel and how much of the money will arise from the Barnett consequentials received as a result of UK Government spending decisions on road transport.

The following table provides a breakdown of the levels of funding which directly support the promotion of sustainable and active travel, including a note of the contribution made by Barnett Consequentials funding.

£��	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14
Sustainable and Active Travel	25.1	16.0	25.0
Barnett Consequentials	-	4.0	5.0
Future Transport Fund: Low carbon vehicles Cycling infrastructure	�� - -	�� 1.0 1.5	�� 1.75 1.25
Total	25.1	22.5	33.0

Question reference: S4O-00634

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what the impact of the proposed reductions in the agri-environment budget will be.

Question reference: S4O-00605

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 January 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions it has had with the Scottish Court Service in relation to plans to consult on the closure of courts.

Question reference: S4W-04655

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 12 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to review the neighbour notification scheme.