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: S5W-34628

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 28 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many staff at Ferguson Marine have their main domicile outwith the UK.

Question reference: S5W-34616

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of Financial Transactions money has been deployed to the Scottish National Investment Bank since its inception.

Initial capitalisation is through Financial Transactions, this includes budget of £490 million for precursor investment allocated between 2018-21 which includes £220m in this year’s budget. The Bank’s first investment is £12.5m in M Squared Lasers and more information is available here, https://www.thebank.scot/media-centre/first-minister-launches-scottish-national-investment-bank/ .

Decisions about the precise mix and source of capital that will deliver the full £2 billion for the Bank will be made in light of future budget settlements and other calls on the Scottish Government’s capital programme.

Question reference: S5W-34489

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action Police Scotland is taking under the most recent COVID-19 restrictions to ensure that only essential travel by car takes place.

Other than the most essential journeys, people should not be travelling by car between Scotland and other parts of the UK or between local authority areas. While operational matters are for the Chief Constable, Police Scotland have been clear that they will continue to operate under the principle of policing by consent and adopt a common sense approach to enforcing the law.

Visible police patrols will act as a deterrent and, in the event that people breach the restrictions, Police Scotland will uphold the law using the same 4E’s approach that they have adopted since the start of the pandemic whereby they will Engage, Explain, Encourage and only then Enforce to protect public health. As well as supporting people to follow the regulations, officers will encourage them to take personal responsibility.

Question reference: S5W-34351

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 26 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether people employed in (a) pharmacy and (b) grocery and food retailing will be deemed key workers, allowing them to access education and childcare services while schools are closed.

The key worker definitions agreed with local government and published on 6 January 2021 for the current, exceptional provision of in-school learning and childcare for children of key workers, includes all health and care staff and workers without whom there would be a significant impact on Scotland. This allows essential pharmacy, grocery and food retail workers to request access to such provision from their local authority or childcare provider.

It is however essential to note that, to reduce interactions and help to drive down community transmission of Covid-19, the number of key worker children presenting during the strict lockdown period must be kept to an absolute minimum and it is for authorities, schools and providers to consider and respond to individual requests. Employers are therefore asked to strictly prioritise and only request places for staff who are critical to the provision of essential services and supplies and have no alternate childcare or working options.

Question reference: S5W-34203

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to extend the compulsory wearing of face coverings to outdoor public settings.

Question reference: S5W-34463

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 11 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-32645 by Jeane Freeman on 12 November 2020, whether it will provide an update on its consultation on the implementation of proposed guidance on the provision of short-term mobility aids; when it expects this consultation to conclude, if it has not already done so; when it aims to issue final guidance on provision to partnerships, and from what date it expects this guidance to come into effect.

Question reference: S5F-04752

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 25 January 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 January 2021

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S5W-34582

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 25 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many people (a) applied for and (b) received the Self-Isolation Support Grant in October 2020, broken down by gender.

Management Information on the number of applications and awards for Self-Isolation Support Grant are available at: Scottish Welfare Fund, Self-Isolation Support Grant and Discretionary Housing Payments: monthly data - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the total number of people applying for and receiving the Self-Isolation Support Grant, broken down by gender.

Question reference: S5W-34583

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 25 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on publishing a breakdown of details of Self-Isolation Support Grant (a) applications and (b) awards by gender.

The Scottish Government does not collect information on the total number of people applying for and receiving the Self-Isolation Support Grant, broken down by gender. More information about our data collection will be published in the background information of our quarterly Scottish Welfare Fund publication, on 26 January: Scottish Government social security statistics publications - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Question reference: S5W-34413

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 11 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 20 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-32250 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 21 October 2020, how many people it estimates are eligible to receive the Self-Isolation Support Grant should they need to self-isolate.

We estimate around 44,700 people would be eligible for the Self-Isolation Support Grant, should they be asked to isolate. This estimate reflects those that are 'in work' in receipt of universal credit, adjusted for those we anticipate will not be able to work from home. This number also reflects those that would be eligible should a child be asked to isolate. This estimate of the total potential eligibility should not be interpreted as a the total number of people we expect to ask to self isolate.