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-04384

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the 12 new permanent Sheriffs appointed in December 1999 had been recommended for appointment by Sheriffs Principal; whether candidates more experienced for these posts than those appointed were considered and rejected and, if so, why.

Nine of those appointed were included in the list of those recommended by the Sheriffs Principal. Two of the others were serving members of the procurator fiscal service and one was Senior Counsel with considerable High Court experience who had also served as a temporary Sheriff. There were 187 applications from qualified individuals so many experienced candidates were unsuccessful. The Lord President was consulted, as required by Statute, and was content with the nominations made.

Question reference: S1W-04390

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to appoint temporary Sheriffs and temporary Judges to fill the current judicial deficit; if so, what method of appointment will be used and what terms and conditions will apply to these appointments.

Question reference: S1W-04386

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the target time period between plea and trial for summary trials in the Sheriff Court is approximately 12 weeks.

Question reference: S1W-04387

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average time period was between plea and trial in each of Linlithgow, Stirling, Falkirk, Dundee, Hamilton, Lanark, Dunfermline and Haddington Sheriff Courts (a) before the judgement and (b) since the judgement in the Starrs and Chalmers case.

The following table shows the average waiting periods between plea and trial in October 1999 (preceding the judgement in the Starrs and Chalmers case) and December 1999 for the Sheriff Courts at Linlithgow, Stirling, Falkirk, Dundee, Hamilton, Lanark, Dunfermline and Haddington.

Waiting Periods

Court	Oct-99	Dec-99
Linlithgow	19	20
Stirling	11	26
Falkirk	15	17
Dundee	18	17
Hamilton	10	11
Lanark	8	10
Dunfermline	15	16
Haddington	11	11

Question reference: S1W-04389

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive how many hearings in civil litigation have been postponed due to the unavailability of Sheriffs in each of Linlithgow, Stirling, Falkirk, Dundee, Hamilton, Lanark, Dunfermline, Haddington and Edinburgh Sheriff Courts.

The following table shows the number of civil hearings adjourned due to lack of temporary shrieval resources in the Sheriff Courts at Linlithgow, Stirling, Falkirk, Dundee, Hamilton, Lanark, Dunfermline, Haddington and Edinburgh for the period 1 November 1999 to 31 January 2000.

CIVIL CASES ADJOURNED DUE TO LACK OF TEMPORARY SHRIEVAL RESOURCES

1 Nov 1999 to 31 Jan 2000

	Ordinary		Summary Cause	Small Claim	Other
	Proof	Debate	Proofs	Full Hearings
Dundee	6	1	0	3	0
Dunfermline	1	1	0	0	0
Edinburgh	10	1	2	5	0
Falkirk	2	0	0	0	1
Haddington	0	0	0	0	0
Hamilton	5	3	0	0	0
Lanark	4	2	0	0	0
Linlithgow	1	0	0	0	0
Stirling	8	3	9	1	0
Total	37	11	11	9	1

Question reference: S1W-04388

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the instructions of Sheriffs Principal to Sheriffs to cancel leave, attendance at conferences or courses and writing days will now be withdrawn.

The Scottish Executive did not issue any instructions on these matters. Any steps taken by individual Sheriffs Principal were in accordance with their statutory duty to secure the speedy and efficient disposal of business in their Sheriffdoms. I have already acknowledged the professionalism shown by the Judiciary in responding to the extra demands on them arising from the suspension of temporary Sheriffs and temporary Judges.

Question reference: S1O-01193

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 February 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 24 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is towards NHS Trust deficits.

Question reference: S1W-02332

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 November 1999
Current Status: Answered by Sarah Boyack on 18 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is required to authorise PFI/PPP funding arrangements for upgrading the A701, and if so, whether Midlothian Council has applied for such authorisation, whether it has approved any application, and whether any proposals by Midlothian Council to upgrade the A701 have direct or indirect financial implications for the budget of the Scottish Executive and any future financial allocations made to Midlothian Council for transport projects.

Midlothian Council originally applied to the Scottish Office for the development of the A701 proposals as a PFI project and £2.5m additional capital consent was awarded from the previous Government's Transport Challenge Fund to help them develop such a specification.Subsequently the Level Playing Field Support earmarked for the A701 project, £2.016 million per annum, was transferred in agreement with the Council to help fund Midlothian's Dalkeith Schools project as part of a Public Private Partnership. The overall funding package for the A701 project is therefore now a matter for the Council but the Transport Challenge Fund award of £2.5 million continues to be advanced to the Council on the agreed phased arrangements. No additional funds will be allocated to the Council for the project.

Question reference: S1W-03999

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 January 2000
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 10 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether extra funding in respect of DNA will be made available comparable to the additional funding in England.

Question reference: S1W-03936

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2000
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 8 February 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-851 and S1W-3472 by Henry McLeish on 5 November 1999 and 11 January 2000 respectively, whether it will lay the Quigley Report before the Parliament and what plans it has for a debate on it.