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: S1W-33508

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2003
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 3 February 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive whether issues of equal pay for work of equal value in the NHS have been fully addressed in Agenda for Change - Modernising the NHS Pay System.

Question reference: S1W-33510

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2003
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 3 February 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what alterations were made to pay structures in the NHS as a result of its action under Agenda for Change - Modernising the NHS Pay System.

Question reference: S1W-32598

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 21 January 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Civil Service Management Code that applies to the Scottish Prison Service applies to its other agencies.

Question reference: S1W-32600

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 10 January 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) staff have been employed by the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), (b) sick days have been lost whilst sick pay is paid to SPS employees and (c) SPS staff have been in receipt of sick pay in each month since January 2001.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

Month/Year	No of Staff Employed	Staff in Receipt of Sick Pay	Sick Days Lost
January 2001	4,554	511	5,868
February 2001	4,530	439	5,264
March 2001	4,519	475	6,214
April 2001	4,520	522	6,111
May 2001	4,577	486	6,480
June 2001	4,538	479	6,394
July 2001	4,528	490	6,773
August 2001	4,522	463	6,822
September 2001	4,484	517	6,865
October 2001	4,510	533	7,270
November 2001	4,548	519	7,073
December 2001	4,541	535	7,365
January 2002	4,582	615	7,386
February 2002	4,616	538	6,590
March 2002	4,591	522	7,098
April 2002	4,583	499	7,220
May 2002	4,619	529	7,455
June 2002	4,615	546	8,099
July 2002	4,598	520	8,143
August 2002	4,597	486	7,558
September 2002	4,627	511	6,995
October 2002	4,609	501	6,992
November 2002	4,656	453	6,543

Question reference: S1W-32602

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 10 January 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive how many Scottish Prison Service (SPS) staff have initiated grievance procedures in each year since 1997 and how many such procedures were (a) concluded to the SPS's satisfaction and (b) referred for external arbitration.

Question reference: S1W-32601

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 10 January 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive how many Scottish Prison Service staff retired due to ill health in each year from 1997 to 2001.

Question reference: S1W-32599

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 10 January 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what entitlements Scottish Prison Service employees have to sick pay and sick leave.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:Established employees receive 182 days full-paid sickness and 183 days half-paid sickness entitlement, irrespective of service. This should not exceed 365 days, in total, in any four-year period.Where an employee has exhausted their entitlement to full and half pay, a further 12 months can be paid at Sick Pay at Pension Rate (SPPR). This is at the discretion of management and only applies where, following medical advice, there is a reasonable prospect of the employee returning to work.

Question reference: S1O-06205

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 January 2003
Current Status: Answered by Des McNulty on 9 January 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it is giving to the environmental impact on the area in and around Fauldhouse in West Lothian of the number of opencast coal mining and landfill planning applications in the area.

Decisions on planning applications are for local councils in the first instance. Intervention by the Scottish ministers generally occurs only where a proposed development raises an issue of national importance, or where proposals represent a significant departure from the approved structure plan for the area and/or national planning guidance. Where the Scottish ministers decide to call in a planning application, all relevant issues are considered, including the environmental impacts of the proposal.

Question reference: S1W-32302

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 16 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it will issue to the justiciary concerning the correct identification of a suspect to be arrested under a European arrest warrant and whether corroboration of identity will be required before the warrant can be executed.

On the issue of guidance, the independence of the judiciary is a fundamental principle of the Scottish legal system. It would be constitutionally improper for the Executive to issue guidance to the judiciary on any question relating to the interpretation of the law and the discretion of the sheriff.The Framework Decision on the European arrest warrant does not require the corroboration of the identity of the requested person prior to arrest. This is reflected in the procedures contained in Part 1 of the Extradition Bill.A person who is arrested under a European arrest warrant is brought before the sheriff. The sheriff must be satisfied that the person is the person referred to in the warrant. For the avoidance of doubt, the bill makes it clear that for this purpose, one source of evidence is sufficient to enable the sheriff to make this decision and proceed. In the event of a dispute about identity, the sheriff would require to reach a decision on the basis of the evidence available.

Question reference: S1W-32300

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 December 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 16 December 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what it understands to be a system of surrender between judicial authorities, as referred to in the European Union Council Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA on the European arrest warrant.

Year	Staff Medically Retired
01-04-96 to 31-03-97	0
01-04-97 to 31-03-98	6
01-04-98 to 31-03-99	23
01-04-99 to 31-03-00	25
01-04-00 to 31-03-01	15