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: S5O-01993

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 April 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish its proposals for agricultural support after the UK leaves the EU.

Question reference: S5W-15142

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 27 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to (a) take direct control of any of NHS Tayside’s financial operations and (b) move (i) control or (ii) management of any matter, whether financial or otherwise, that is currently controlled or managed by NHS Tayside to another body.

Question reference: S5F-02196

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 26 March 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 March 2018

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reports that more than £400,000 was spent on consultants to oversee the British Transport Police merger.

Question reference: S5O-01938

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 March 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many appeals there were in relation to the 2017 business rates revaluation, and how many have been resolved.

Question reference: S5W-15205

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 12 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on linking the Police Scotland firearms licensing system with the command and control system.

Question reference: S5W-15206

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 12 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what is position is on Police Scotland checking social media use as part of the firearms licensing process.

Question reference: S5W-15204

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 12 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address any gender inequality in policing.

Equality and Diversity within Police Scotland are matters for the Chief Constable and the Scottish Police Authority. Police Scotland's latest Equality and Diversity Mainstreaming Progress Report and Equality Outcomes can be found on their web site at: . The Scottish Government provides financial support to the Scottish Women’s Development Forum in support of Police Scotland’s gender equality agenda.

Question reference: S5W-15203

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 12 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review the impact of the police mental health triage pilot in Dumfries and Galloway, and whether it will consider rolling the initiative out across the country.

Police Scotland and NHS Dumfries and Galloway will evaluate the impact of mental health triage arrangements being piloted across Dumfries and Galloway. The Scottish Government supports initiatives that bring justice and health partners together to improve outcomes for people with mental ill health and vulnerability and is providing strategic leadership at national level through the a new Health and Justice Collaboration Improvement Board.

Question reference: S5W-15161

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide additional funding to pay for any extra criminal justice social work that is carried out if a presumption against 12-month prison sentences is introduced and, if so, how much.

This Government has already made clear its commitment by increasing ring-fenced investment in community sentences from £4 million per annum in each of the last two years to £5.5 million in the 2018-19 budget. This is to help build capacity in advance of extending the presumption against short term sentences.

Funding for community justice services across Scotland remains at record levels. We have allocated around £100m funding to local authorities who work with a range of organisations and partners to help deliver community sentences, support the rehabilitation of people with convictions and reduce re-offending.

Question reference: S5W-15159

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what impact introducing a presumption against 12-month prison sentences will have on the number of (a) fiscal work and (b) community payback orders that are issued.

This Government is committed to shifting the emphasis from ineffective short-term imprisonment to greater use of robust community sentences, with the aim of reducing reoffending. Our move towards more community sentencing, including the introduction of Community Payback Orders (CPOs), has helped bring Scotland’s reconviction rates to an 18-year low.

The presumption against short prison sentences is not a ban and sentencers retain the discretion to pass the most appropriate sentence based on the facts and circumstances of the case. Therefore it is not possible to give an exact assessment of the impact that the extended presumption will have on the numbers of CPOs, although the expectation is that numbers will increase.

Fiscal work orders are a direct measure available to procurators fiscal as opposed to a sentence passed by a court and so are not impacted by the presumption against short prison sentences.