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-30032

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Water Industry Commission for Scotland has (a) played a leadership role in developing the framework for future investment requirements for the future of the water industry within the Strategic Review of Charges 2021/27 and (b) provided analysis and papers on potential future investment requirements and targets to any working groups of stakeholders or others and, if so, whether it will publish these papers.

Question reference: S5W-30035

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of the 2020 decision paper, Prospects for Prices, by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, what the duties and powers are of the Commission to set a (a) maximum charge cap and (b) minimum charge level; for what period a charge cap or minimum charge level must be set, and where any such duties are set out in statute.

Question reference: S5W-30022

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of the 2020 decision paper, Prospects for Prices, by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, whether the average price ranges envisaged for the 2021-27 period are based on a smooth price trajectory to meet investment levels defined as necessary in 2040.

Question reference: S5W-30017

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how much capital expenditure Scottish Water plans for 2020-21.

Question reference: S5W-30024

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of the 2020 decision paper, Prospects for Prices, by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, whether it is aware of the documentary source of the references made to the work of JASPERS and UKWIR, and whether it will publish any such documentary sources.

Question reference: S5W-30029

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 July 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of the 2020 decision paper, Prospects for Prices, by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, whether the Just Transitions Commission was consulted on the possible charge increases envisaged and, if so, when.

Question reference: S5W-29773

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the COVID-19 R rate on a regional basis.

The R number is calculated for Scotland as well as for the other three countries of the United Kingdom, and we publish it on a weekly basis. The R number is not calculated for Scottish regions, because the ranges around the estimates would be very large and that would not help us to understand the differences between areas of Scotland. Instead of doing that, we are looking at other ways of monitoring and forecasting the level of COVID-19 in regions; we use data such as the number of cases and hospitalisations to track the epidemic. The most recent daily statistics for COVID-19 in Scotland are available by health board and can be found in the daily data for Scotland . We will also use the information that starts to come through the test and protect programme. More information about the modelling is available from a series of Scottish Government reports .

Question reference: S5W-29775

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the different phases of the route map out of the COVID-19 lockdown and the impact each might have on the R rate.

The roadmap document published on 21 May sets out the criteria for easing restrictions: as we move beyond the first phase, future phases will be based on meeting particular criteria, including those set by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

There have been two approaches to assessment of the impact of easing restrictions on the R value. Firstly, the Scottish Government uses the publicly available Imperial College COVID-19 model adapted to fit the situation in Scotland. This uses data for other nations to estimate the impact on R of different interventions (or groups of interventions) introduced by other nations. The second approach estimates the change in the risk of COVID-19 transmission from options for easing restrictions. This is based on how many people are involved in a particular option and the change in risk of any individual transmitting the virus based on the science available at time of assessment.

Question reference: S5W-29776

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many people who have tested positive for COVID-19 have the contact tracers been in touch with so far, and how many of their contacts have the tracers subsequently alerted.

From 28 May to 7 June, 681 index cases have been recorded in the Test and Protect system. From these, 741 contacts have been traced.

An 'index case' is a person with a positive test result recorded in the Test and Protect system. New data will be released weekly, and is available from Public Health Scotland's weekly statistical report: https://publichealthscotland.scot/news/initial-contact-tracing-figures-for-scotland/ .

Question reference: S5W-29777

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 June 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason all care home staff have not yet been tested for COVID-19.

A further expansion of testing for care home residents and workers was announced on 1 May, which again focused on social care workers and care home residents. This includes undertaking enhanced outbreak investigation in all care homes where there are cases; comprehensive surveillance testing in care homes where there are no cases; and, testing across linked or group care homes, where staff may still be moving between homes following an outbreak in one. That same day, the NHS Scotland Chief Performance Officer wrote to all health boards, requesting that they start to implement these policies from 4 May.

In a further measure to protect residents and staff, it was announced on 18 May, that all staff in care homes will be routinely offered testing regardless of whether they are symptomatic. Based on the advice from the Chief Medical Officer, this testing will be routinely carried out every 7 days, regardless of whether there has been a confirmed Covid-19 case in the care home or not. This is in addition to the current measures operating across care homes in Scotland.