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-04582

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether plans for the 2014 Commonwealth Games involve constructing facilities on areas designated as sites of special scientific interest or Natura sites.

The only Commonwealth Games site which impacts upon these types of designation is the military training ground at Barry Buddon which will host the shooting events in 2014. I can confirm that the plans as currently drafted involve the construction of temporary facilities within the existing MOD live-firing range. The Games organisers are working closely with Scottish Natural Heritage to ensure that proposals are developed which are compliant with the procedural requirements of the Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 1994 (as amended).

Question reference: S4W-04585

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has advised the European Commission of any 2014 Commonwealth Games facilities to be constructed on Natura sites.

Question reference: S4W-04584

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will propose compensation measures for any short or long-term loss or damage to protected habitats or species as a result of any 2014 Commonwealth Games facilities being constructed on sites of special scientific interest or Natura sites.

Question reference: S4W-04586

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the use of lead shot in the 2014 Commonwealth Games will contravene the Environmental Protection (Restriction on Use of Lead Shot) (Scotland) (No.2) Regulations 2004.

Question reference: S4O-00487

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 December 2011
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 December 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that there is adequate winter resilience preparation across the country.

Question reference: S4W-04113

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 18 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 30 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to increase the provision of foreign language assistants in schools.

The employment of Foreign Language Assistants (FLAs) in Scottish schools is a matter for local authorities to decide. Scottish Government is working with British Council Scotland and local authorities to highlight the added value that FLAs bring to a school’s provision for language teaching and learning. The role of FLAs is also one that is being considered by the government’s Languages Working Group which will report to ministers in April 2012.

Question reference: S4W-03993

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 25 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment has been made of the additional volume of nuclear waste that will be created if a lifespan extension is granted at (a) Hunterston B and (b) Torness nuclear power stations to 2021 and 2033 respectively.

To illustrate the impact of power station lifetime changes, the 2010 UK Radioactive Waste Inventory estimates waste volumes from one year's operation of the different types of power stations. A copy of the Inventory can be found at .

The Inventory predicts that on average an Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor such as Hunterston B or Torness might generate about 21m³ofintermediate level waste (ILW) and 50m³of low level waste (LLW) per year.

Longer operating lifetimes for power stations are not expected to have a significant effect on overall waste volumes from the stations, which are dominated by wastes from decommissioning.

Question reference: S4W-03991

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 24 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what safety assessments it is aware of in relation to extending the lifespan of existing nuclear power stations, following the nuclear incident at Fukushima.

Question reference: S4W-03990

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 24 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what safety assessment it has carried out in relation to extending the lifespan of existing nuclear power stations, following the nuclear incident at Fukushima.

Question reference: S4W-03994

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 24 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on its policy in relation to nuclear power if Torness were granted a life extension similar to that proposed for Hunterston B.

The Scottish Government’s energy generation policy position was set out in its Draft Electricity Generation Policy Statement published in November 2010. The statement confirmed our opposition to new nuclear and also recognised that life extensions to existing nuclear stations may be needed in the short term to ensure security of supply.

The impact of life extensions at Hunterston B and Torness on Scotland’s future security of supply, export potential and carbon emissions targets is being considered as part of the policy statement review currently being undertaken. The revised policy statement will be subject to a Strategic environmental assessment, with both publications planned this winter.