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: S2W-18944

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 05 September 2005
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 13 September 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how it is encouraging the use of solar panels in new-build properties.

Within the current Scottish building regulation energy standards, there are compliance options that take account of the positive influence of any solar panels installed in new buildings. A review of these energy standards is in progress and the options for further encouragement of building integrated renewable energy generation are under consideration. Implementation of any resulting revisions is planned for spring 2007. The Scottish Executive also currently works closely with the Department of Trade and industry to provide grants for building integrated renewable energy generation technologies.

Question reference: S2W-18602

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 August 2005
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 13 September 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how many applications were made to evict tenants of registered social landlords or local authorities under anti-social behaviour legislation during 2003-04 and how many such applications resulted in an eviction being granted.

The Scottish Executive does not hold data on the number of applications made by registered social landlords (RSLs) or local authorities during this period to evict tenants under anti-social behaviour legislation, only the number of cases which proceeded to court and the number of evictions granted. During 2003-04, RSLs raised legal actions to evict tenants on the grounds of antisocial behaviour which proceeded to court on 34 occasions. Twenty-three resulted in eviction orders being granted. Over the same period, local authorities raised such actions to evict tenants which proceeded to court on 116 occasions. Forty-six resulted in eviction orders.

Question reference: S2W-18600

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 August 2005
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 13 September 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a registered social landlord is permitted to transfer a tenant to what it considers to be more suitable accommodation, without the tenant requesting the transfer, and what legislation permits or disallows a transfer of this nature.

Question reference: S2W-18601

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 August 2005
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 13 September 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) average time and (b) cost is for a local authority or registered social landlord to evict a tenant under anti-social behaviour legislation.

Question reference: S2W-18599

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 August 2005
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 13 September 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how many homeless people received housing support through the Supporting People programme in each local authority area in 2003-04 and what percentage of the total Supporting People client group this represented in each local authority.

The percentage of people who were homeless or sleeping rough and who received housing support funded through the Supporting People programme is shown in table 4 of the Statistical Bulletin People assisted through Supporting People funding: 2003-04. The table also includes the total number of people receiving Supporting People funding by local authority. This publication is available on-line through the publication section of the housing statistics branch reference site at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/housing/hsbref (bulletin HSG/2005/2).

Question reference: S2W-18370

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 August 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 6 September 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will introduce a bowel cancer screening programme involving issuing home testing kits to people over 60.

Question reference: S2W-17934

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 July 2005
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 9 August 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how it ensures that residents in care homes are receiving the level of personal and nursing care which is appropriate to their individual needs.

Local authorities haveduties under sections 12 and 12A of the Social Work (Scotland)Act 1968 to assess the needs of adults who appear to need community care and,in the light of the assessment, to provide appropriate services. For peoplerequiring care in a care home, local authorities would either provide theservice through one of their own care homes or by contracting with anindependent sector home.

The Executive has supportedthe discharge of these duties, and the provision of quality care by:

providing guidance and fundingsupport to local authorities;

establishing single sharedassessment and care management – a more holistic, efficient and effective approach toassessing individual needs, and the provision of a care package to meet thoseneeds leading to better and faster outcomes for individuals;

establishingthe Care Commission to regulate the quality of care services; and

establishing the Social WorkInspection Agency to carry out performance inspections of social work services,including assessing local authorities’ commissioning strategies for communitycare services.

Individuals who are notsatisfied with the support provided can access the complaints procedures of thelocal authority, the care home or the Care Commission.

Question reference: S2W-17933

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 July 2005
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 9 August 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what budget has been set by each local authority for the provision of (a) free personal care in care homes (b) free nursing care in care homes and (c) free personal care at home for the current financial year.

Question reference: S2W-17935

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 July 2005
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 9 August 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what the responsibilities are of local authorities to assess whether residents in care homes are receiving the level of personal and nursing care which is appropriate to their individual needs and what sanctions the Executive can take if these responsibilities are not fulfilled.

Question reference: S2W-17670

Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 June 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 August 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average number of patients on a GP list is in each NHS board.

The average number of patients on a GP list in each NHS Board Area as at 1 April 2005 is contained in the following table.

NHS Board	Average (mean) Number of Patients
Argyll and Clyde	4,472
Ayrshire and Arran	6,338
Borders	4,666
Dumfries and Galloway	4,376
Fife	6,262
Forth Valley	5,262
Grampian	6,553
Greater Glasgow	4,491
Highland	3,182
Lanarkshire	5,837
Lothian	6,532
Orkney	1,415
Shetland	2,215
Tayside	5,671
Western Isles	2,120

Prior to the introduction of the new GMS contract a GP list comprised names of patients for each GP. Since the new contract was introduced GP patient lists are held and expressed as a practice list and not the individual GPs list.