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: S4W-24389

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 18 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what impact not meeting air quality targets has on health expenditure.

The Scottish Government recognises that poor air quality can impact on health, and those with existing heart or lung conditions are more susceptible to the increased health risk associated with air pollution. However, due to the wide range of factors that can impact on the health of patients with these types of conditions, it is not possible to accurately assess the financial cost directly attributable to poor air quality.

Question reference: S4W-24315

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-23976 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2015, whether capital funding provided to the National Performing Companies is ringfenced to assets owned by those organisations, or whether it can be used for assets owned by third parties and, if so, to what extent.

Question reference: S4W-24317

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-23976 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2015, whether it will provide a breakdown of the capital allocations to the National Performing Companies by the (a) asset benefiting from the funding, (b) value of the funding and (c) year of expenditure.

From the figures set out in the answer to S4W-23976, Scottish Ballet’s expenditure was all on the Tramway building, Scottish Opera’s expenditure was all in relation to the Theatre Royal project and the Royal Scottish National Opera expenditure was all on the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.

The National Theatre’s expenditure up to 2011-12 was all on their existing building at Civic House. In 2012-13 and thereafter, capital funding was spent on the planned new headquarters at Speirs Lock.

Question reference: S4W-24318

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the Minister for Business, Energy and Tourism on 28 January 2015 (Official Report, c.17), how it will examine the climate consequences of unconventional gas production during the current moratorium.

Question reference: S4W-24394

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made toward its target to establish 100,000 hectares of new woodland by 2022.

The Scottish Government recognises that this is an ambitious target that will require efforts to address the barriers which are preventing new planting and to increase the demand for planting grants.

The Scottish Rural Development Plan 2015-2020 includes new forestry proposals, which should encourage more woodland creation applications. Programme approval from the European Commission is expected in 2015, however the new Forestry Grant Scheme will open for applications from mid-March 2015.

The following table shows the amount of new planting since 2012:

New planting (ha)	Conifer	Broadleaved	Total
2012-13	1,700	5,300	7,000
2013-14	2,000	6,300	8,300
Total	3,700	11,600	15,300

When the new scheme opens in March 2015, Forestry Commission Scotland expect to approve an additional 1,500 hectares of planting for 2015-2016 planting season giving a forecast figure of new planting in 2015-2016 of 7,000 hectares.

Question reference: S4W-24390

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the Crofting (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2013.

The Crofting (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2013 simply made it possible for owner-occupier crofters to apply to the Crofting Commission to decroft the whole or part of their crofts, and for the Crofting Commission to give directions on such applications.

The Crofting Commission will consider such applications on the merits of individual cases and decide whether the land in question should remain subject to crofting tenure or not.

Question reference: S4W-24387

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish information on the enforcement action it takes in relation to breaches of the Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010.

The Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010 transpose into domestic legislation the requirements of Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and clean air for Europe.

Although local authority action has an important contribution to make, responsibility for complying with the directive lies with EU member states. The four UK administrations have jointly produced a series of action plans outlining the national and local policies which are being implemented to ensure compliance with the directive. The UK Government is also required to submit an annual compliance report to the European Commission. The commission may take any action it deems appropriate if it considers that insufficient progress is being made.

The plans and annual reports can be viewed on the UK-Air website: http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/

Question reference: S4W-24392

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to the Forestry Commission Scotland with the preparation of its new corporate plan.

Question reference: S4W-24391

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications to decroft by owner-occupier crofters have been made in each year since 2007, and how many were approved.

Question reference: S4W-24399

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 February 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 17 February 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) estimated and (b) actual carbon savings have been each for projects that have received support from the Climate Challenge Fund.

The total estimated and reported actual carbon savings from projects in receipt of grant awards from the Climate Challenge Fund since 2008 are 1,080,411 tCO₂e and 281,597 tCO₂e respectively.

These figures are not directly comparable. Of the 266 projects funded since 2012 many are still underway or have not yet started. Consequently, only 34 final project reports with estimates of actual carbon savings have been received. Additionally, when the fund was first introduced there was not the same requirement, as now, to submit carbon reduction figures in final project reports and a standard methodology for doing so was not introduced until 2012.