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-31708

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 22 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how much it expects its "national network of world-class start up incubators or tech scalers", as announced in its 2020-21 Programme for Government, will cost, and when it expects funding to be delivered.

Question reference: S5W-31771

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 22 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what enforcement measures will be applied to ensure that producers that do not currently use barcodes for drinks containers adopt them for use in the deposit return scheme (DRS).

Identification and adoption of appropriate measures to identify scheme articles as part of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), which could include use of a barcode, will be a decision for the businesses with responsibility for implementation of the scheme, including any scheme administrator(s). Accordingly, the DRS Regulations do not mandate that scheme articles carry a barcode nor do they create any powers to enforce use of a barcode.

Question reference: S5W-31772

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 22 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how non-refillable drinks cans, known as crowlers, will be treated under the deposit return scheme (DRS).

Question reference: S5W-31773

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 22 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how producers will be able to register products in the deposit return scheme (DRS) that have no barcodes.

The Deposit and Return Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2020 require registered producers to submit relevant information to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to support identification of scheme articles; this could include, but is not limited to, any unique codes or marks such as a barcode. SEPA is currently working with industry to design a registration process that will ensure all relevant information is captured.

Question reference: S5W-31644

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Ash Denham on 17 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with local authorities regarding extending the period after which taxi vehicles are required to be replaced, in light of the reported increased financial impact of COVID-19 on taxi operators.

The Scottish Government would expect independent licensing authorities to take a pragmatic and sensitive approach to licence holders during the challenges of Covid-19. It is however a matter entirely for licensing authorities to decide whether to set vehicle age limit restrictions on taxis operating within their local area and if so, what those age limits should be. Where a licensing authority does consider it appropriate to adjust their policies in this area, the Scottish Government would be supportive of any such steps where that is justified through local circumstances.

Question reference: S5O-04611

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 September 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of the impact of COVID-19 on the attainment gap.

Question reference: S5W-31529

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 14 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what the most recent information it has regarding the percentage of (a) household and (b) commercial food waste that is (i) landfilled and (ii) incinerated, and what capacity there is for all waste to be recovered.

The exact percentages requested are not available.

Our Food Waste Reduction Action Plan sets out measures that will drive delivery against our target to reduce food waste by 33% by 2025. The 2013 baseline for this target is estimated to be 987,890 tonnes from all sources.

A waste composition study carried out in 2015 estimated that 23% of the residual household bin was food waste, the equivalent of 330,000 tonnes. Compared with a similar study in 2009, this represented a 21% reduction in the amount of household food waste sent for incineration or landfill.

A detailed breakdown of waste and waste destinations is not available for commercial waste. However, the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012, which came into force on 1 January 2014, mean that almost all businesses are required to have separate food waste collections and this will ensure the continued removal of food waste from the commercial residual waste stream. Since their introduction there has been a 40% increase in food waste recycling.

The two primary methods used to treat food waste are anaerobic digestion (AD) and in vessel composting (IVC), SEPA analysis of the AD and IVC sites in Scotland indicate that there is up to 200,000 tonnes of spare capacity to treat food waste at existing facilities.

Question reference: S5W-31528

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 14 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what extra weighting it will grant to Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) Administrator applicants that commit to measures that aim to ensure fairness between SMEs and larger businesses across the retail and production sectors.

Question reference: S5W-31526

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 14 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether payment of the national living wage will be a requirement of all Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) Administrator applicants.

Any scheme administrator(s) of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme will be required to comply with all relevant legal obligations, including in relation to pay and employment rights. Through our flagship Fair Work First policy, we are asking employers to go beyond their statutory duties and would strongly encourage any scheme administrator(s) to commit to Fair Work practices, including payment of the real Living Wage. The application form for a prospective scheme administrator(s), published on 22 June 2020, provides an opportunity for the applicant to do so, although the decision whether to approve or refuse an application will be based on the criteria set out in the DRS Regulations.

The application form is available here: .

Question reference: S5W-31525

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 14 September 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) Administrator will be permitted to deliver identified environmental, economic and social benefits that fall outwith the scope of DRS regulations.

The application form for a prospective scheme administrator(s) of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme, published on 22 June 2020, provides an opportunity for an applicant to demonstrate how they will deliver wider benefits through the operation of the scheme, although the decision whether to approve or refuse an application will be based on the criteria set out in the DRS Regulations.

The application form is available here: .