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-02284

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to help people with mental health issues remain in employment.

Question reference: S4W-15234

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 7 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many care services have been closed as a result of a failure to meet required standards in each of the last five years.

The following table provides information on the number of cancellation of registration notices served by the Care Commission/Care Inspectorate to service providers in each of the last five years.

Year	Number
2008-09	7
2009-10	4
2010-11	6
2011-12	1
2012-13	1 (one further decision to cancel registration currently subject to appeal)

Notes:

The Care Inspectorate was established on 1 April 2011.

The closure of a service is a last resort and generally the Care Inspectorate tries to work with providers on required improvement actions.

Question reference: S4W-15235

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 7 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many care service registrations have been cancelled as a result of an application to a sheriff.

The number of applications made to the sheriff by the Care Commission/Care Inspectorate for cancellation of registration, and granted, in each of the last five years, is as follows.

Year	Made	Granted
2008-09	1	0
2009-10	2	1
2010-11	0	0
2011-12	1	0
2012-13	1	0

Notes:

These applications are rare as the statutory test is an onerous one - the application may not be granted unless the sheriff is satisfied that unless the order is made, there will be a serious risk to the life, health or wellbeing of persons.

It should also be noted that some care services have cancelled their registrations voluntarily when they became aware that the Care Inspectorate intended to apply to the sheriff for cancellation of their registration.

Question reference: S4W-15236

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 7 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether self-funding patients pay more for their care in publicly funded care homes than the fee paid by the local authority or NHS board for patients who do not pay for their care and, if so, for what reason.

Question reference: S4W-15233

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 7 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) improvement and (b) condition notices have been issued in each NHS board area in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S4O-02242

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the adequacy of the enforcement of requirements and implementation of recommendations by the Care Inspectorate for the care of older people.

Question reference: S4W-14801

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 30 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding and how many personnel it provides to tackle wildlife crime.

Police reform has delivered an enhanced structure for wildlife crime officers in Scotland which involves 14 Wildlife Crime Liaison Officers, a Sergeant as a National Coordinator and a Portfolio Lead at Superintendent level. This structure will deliver better coordination and communication. Ultimately however, it is a matter for the Chief Constable to allocate and prioritise resources in relation to operational policing needs.

The Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW) Scotland delivered £200,000 to wildlife crime projects, via Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), looking specifically at prevention, intelligence and enforcement. This 2 year funded project ended in 2011 but currently SNH are looking to fund further projects through their grant in aid schemes and this will also be advertised by PAW Scotland.

The Scottish Government also part-fund the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) and funding for 2013-14 in the sum of £45,000 was confirmed this year. Additionally, a Scottish Investigative Support Officer post in the NWCU has been funded by Scottish Government, SNH and Police Scotland with a key focus on both Raptor and Freshwater Pearl Mussel Persecution as key Scottish priorities.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) created a team of specialist Wildlife and Environmental prosecutors in August 2011. The benefits that this specialism has brought include improved consistency, close working relationships with specialist investigators, early intervention in complex cases, improved reporting of wildlife crime to COPFS and the improving quality of prosecutions.

In the Scottish Government the management of wildlife crime policy and PAW Scotland is dealt with by 1.5 full time equivalent (FTE) staff in the Environment and Forestry Directorate.

The Agriculture, Food and Rural Communities (AFRC) Directorate complete approximately 1200 land based and often remote, inspections each year. Inspectors are aware of wildlife legislation and suspected incidents of wildlife crime are forwarded to wildlife crime officers.

Marine Scotland has 103 Marine Enforcement Officers who have compliance monitoring and enforcement obligations and certain statutory responsibilities for marine nature conservation issues. Marine Scotland also has three patrol vessels and two fixed wing surveillance aircraft, one of which has recently been equipped to carry out bird survey work.

SNH have lead contacts in their seven operational areas within Scotland who have a coordinating role for the local involvement in combatting wildlife crime. They work closely with the police and the network of area officers whose field staff are in regular contact with land managers. Centrally there are between 1 and 2 FTE posts whose work can touch on wildlife crime.

As wildlife crime issues can surface anywhere as field staff or others go about their day-to-day activities, it is not possible to estimate the full resource in this area that may be deployed at any given time.

Question reference: S4W-15016

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 28 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-13913 by Derek Mackay on 18 April 2013, what changes have been made to (a) the issuing of planning and energy consents and (b) monitoring and enforcement to ensure that the freshwater pearl mussel is protected from the environmental impacts of development.

Scottish Government online renewables planning advice on hydro schemes (last updated in July 2012) states that:

“Planning authorities should generally encourage developers to appoint Ecological Clerks of Works to ensure that agreed designs and construction techniques are followed following planning approval.”

No other specific changes have been made to (a) planning and energy consents, or (b) monitoring or enforcement.

It is routine practice where a hydro scheme requires an environmental impact assessment, that the Environmental Statement (ES) should state whether or not appropriately qualified environmental scientists or ecologists are to be used as Clerks of Works or in other roles during construction to provide specialist advice. Details of emergency procedures to be provided could be identified in the ES.

Question reference: S4W-15018

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 28 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-13915 by Derek Mackay on 18 April 2013, what action is taken when planning authorities fail to take appropriate action to protect the freshwater pearl mussel.

The Scottish Government expects a partnership approach between planning authorities, its agencies Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and others as regulators to provide the necessary actions. The member is also referred to the answers previously given to S4W-14153 on 1 May 2013 and S4W-13923 on 17 April 2013.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-15017

Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 28 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-13914 by Derek Mackay on 18 April 2013, what action it will take with regard to planning authorities that fail to ensure that planning conditions are adequate to protect the freshwater pearl mussel.