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-09300

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Sam Galbraith on 14 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-7646 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 19 June 2000, what role the Minister for Children and Education played in the monitoring process.

Question reference: S1W-09306

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 11 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking or intends to take to reduce the incidence of ragwort poisoning.

The Scottish Executive investigates all reported incidents of ragwort on land where livestock are at risk, whether or not the land is in agricultural use.

The Weeds Act 1959 places the responsibility for weeds control on the occupier of the land, and where livestock may be at risk, in the first instance, the Scottish Executive advises the occupier to carry out control measures. Where necessary, powers are available under the Weeds Act to give occupiers of land formal written notice requiring them to take such measures, failing which the Act has powers to enable the Executive, as a last resort, to employ control measures themselves and thereafter charge the occupier accordingly.

Local authorities may also take action either under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 or the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 which provide powers for local authorities to serve notice on an occupier of any land which is harming the amenity of the area.

Question reference: S1W-09307

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 11 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it issues any guidelines on the management of ragwort on ground under its ownership or control or under the ownership or control of any of its agencies or local authorities.

No. But the Scottish Executive funds the Scottish Agriculture College to provide advice to farmers and horse owners on a wide variety of livestock diseases. The most recent Technical Note entitled Ragwort Poisoning in Livestock - Prevention and Control was published earlier this year. It is available free to Scottish Agriculture College subscribers and to other interested parties on request.

I shall arrange for a copy of the Technical Note to be placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre.

Question reference: S1W-09305

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 11 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it maintains records of incidents of ragwort poisoning and, if so, whether it will publish them for the last five years broken down geographically.

Ragwort poisoning is not a notifiable disease. There is therefore no statutory requirement for cases to be notified to the Scottish Executive. However, the Scottish Executive funds disease surveillance through the Scottish Agriculture College Disease Surveillance Centres (SACDSC) and records are kept of ragwort poisoning submissions. The numbers of cases recorded by SACDSC since 1995 are as follows:

	Cattle	Horses
1995	4	0
1996	10	0
1997	3	1
1998	2	1
1999	3	0
2000 (to end of July)	0	0

Other cases of ragwort poisoning will be treated by veterinary surgeons in practice, or submitted to veterinary colleges, or private laboratories, without being recorded.

Question reference: S1W-09299

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Sam Galbraith on 7 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-7646 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 19 June 2000, what form its monitoring took of the situation in relation to the marking of exam papers by the Scottish Qualifications Authority.

Question reference: S1W-09304

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Sam Galbraith on 7 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, whether it is satisfied that all persons employed by the Scottish Qualifications Authority as markers were appropriately qualified to perform that role.

Question reference: S1W-09303

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Sam Galbraith on 7 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-7646 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 19 June 2000, whether it is satisfied that all exam papers have been marked consistently to the required standard.

Question reference: S1W-09302

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Sam Galbraith on 7 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-7646 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 19 June 2000, what steps it took to verify any assurances given by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) that the marking of exam papers by the SQA would be completed on time.

Assurances on marking offered by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) were probed by my officials during their frequent discussions with senior officials at SQA. Marking of examination papers was completed in sufficient time to enable results to be issued on the due date. Any failure by the SQA to issue certificates on the due date was attributable to factors other than the timing of completion of the marking of the examination papers.

Question reference: S1W-09221

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Sam Galbraith on 6 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide full details of the computer system currently operated by the Scottish Qualifications Authority, including where the system was sourced from, what the initial cost was of the system, what the annual running cost is of the system and whether this particular system, or any other similar system, is used by any other governmental agency or public body in Scotland.

Question reference: S1W-09224

Asked by: David Mundell, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 6 September 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has issued guidance on which relatives are liable in respect of the payment for the provision of care by social services departments to an individual.