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 MSPs 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: S4O-02470

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 3 October 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many jobs will be lost in Dumfries and Galloway if the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service transfers its call handling facility to Johnstone.

Question reference: S4O-02472

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 October 2013

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason its planned investment in 2014-15 using the non-profit distributing model has decreased by £164 million since September 2012.

Question reference: S4W-17162

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 2 October 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 it has made available to organisations that facilitate the reporting and detection of crime in each year since 2007-08.

The following amounts have been made available to organisations involved in facilitating the reporting and detection of crime:

Police

2012-13	£0.730m
2011-12	£0.250m
2010-11	£0.250m
2009-10	£0.125m
2008-09	Nil
2007-08	Nil

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service

2012-13	£0.170m
2011-12	£1.133m
2010-11	£0.400m
2009-10	£0.400m
2008-09	£0.400m
2007-08	Nil

Question reference: S4W-17161

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 26 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the shingles vaccination is being made available only to people aged between 70 and 79.

The Scottish Government and all other UK Health Departments take advice on immunisation issues from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

Prior to the introduction of the shingles vaccination programme, the JCVI considered data from GP based studies which suggested that the severity of shingles increased with age, with the majority of shingles cases occurring in people aged 70 years and above.

Based on medical, epidemiological and economic evidence and vaccine safety and efficacy data, the JCVI recommended a shingles vaccination programme for adults aged 70 years with a catch-up programme up to and including 79 years, provided that a licensed vaccine was available at a cost effective price. The efficacy of the vaccine declines with age and it is therefore not recommended for people aged 80 years and older.

Following the JCVI recommendation, Scottish Ministers agreed that a routine shingles vaccination programme should be offered to 70 year olds from 1 September 2013, with the catch up programme directed at people aged 79 years old in the first year. The rest of the catch-up programme will be rolled out over the next few years.

Question reference: S4W-17164

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 25 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government when it will bring forward regulations on the controlled substances and impairment limits for the offence in Scotland of driving under the influence of drugs and whether it plans to hold a separate consultation from the UK Government’s consultation on the issue.

The UK Government consultation on “Regulations to specify the drugs and corresponding limits for the new offence of driving with a specified controlled drug in the body above the specified limit” covers Scotland following a request made by the Scottish Government.

The GB-wide consultation closed on 17 September 2013. Following the analysis of Scottish consultation responses, it will be for the Scottish Government to consider bringing forward regulations to the Scottish Parliament for approval setting the drug driving limits that might apply in Scotland and for the UK Government to do likewise for England and Wales in the UK Parliament.

Any final policy proposals on the specific issue of drug driving in Scotland will be for the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament and will be taken within the wider context of Scotland’s national drugs strategy.

Question reference: S4W-17165

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 25 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what actions it is considering taking to ensure that people with chronic pain are not criminalised when the offence of driving under the influence of drugs is introduced.

The proposed new offence of drug driving in section 5A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 contains a medical defence. This defence applies where the specified controlled drug, which the person has taken was prescribed or supplied for medical or dental purposes; where the accused person took the drug in accordance with any directions given by the healthcare professional who prescribed it or supplied it, or with any accompanying instructions given by the manufacturer (to the extent that these were consistent with the advice of the healthcare professional); and provided that the accused person’s possession of the drug was not unlawful under section 5(1) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

The approach taken in the offence provides specific protection to those who legitimately and safely use medicines which contain controlled drugs. The proposed approach will not criminalise drivers who have taken properly prescribed or supplied medicines in accordance with the advice of a healthcare professional.

Question reference: S4W-17163

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 25 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has responded to the UK Government’s consultation on the controlled substances and impairment thresholds in relation to the offence of driving under the influence of drugs.

Question reference: S4W-16865

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 August 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 24 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether colleges may specify private sector halls of residence as required accommodation for the receipt of a college bursary.

Question reference: S4W-16864

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 August 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 24 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance is issued to individual colleges regarding eligibility criteria for college bursaries.

Question reference: S4W-17039

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 19 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is considering trials of recording sheep and goat movements by the Scottish livestock traceability research team (ScotEID) and, if so, for what reason.

It was agreed at the joint Scottish Government/Industry Group meeting on 2 July 2013 to complete the sheep and goat part of the ScotEID database system. This will involve a stepped and controlled move across from the Scottish Animal Movement System (SAMS) which was set up in 2002 to the new ScotEID database system which became operational during 2010.

It will allow all sheep and goat movement reporting to be recorded on a single system which is visible to the keeper, movements can be recorded and reported in real-time, at individual animal identity level, leading to improved traceability in the event of a disease outbreak.

The ScotEID system will enable keepers to report and record movements electronically as well as via paper, operate an online holding register, view all their movement data and if necessary refine any anomalies in their movement data.