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-19131

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 01 October 2018
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 19 October 2018

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities are using or are seeking to use their powers under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to reduce business rates in 2018-19.

While Scottish Ministers strongly encourage local councils to consider the use of the powers available to them under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to support local businesses, it is for councils as independent bodies, democratically elected and accountable to their local electorate, to determine how they prioritise their resources and when to use the powers available to them.

I would refer the member to the answer to question S5W-17597 on 20 July 2018, which presents data from our most recent returns on the amount of local discretionary rates relief Local Authorities have, or plan to, award under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Question reference: S5O-02472

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 October 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 24 October 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of hip operations have been carried out within the 12-week treatment time guarantee in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde in 2018.

Question reference: S5W-18854

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 27 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-18385 by Kate Forbes on 6 September 2018, how it defines “modest” in its reference to a business rates supplement.

The Barclay consultation which closed on 17 September sought views on a range of appropriate safeguards for a pilot scheme which would allow local councils in up to three towns to charge businesses based predominantly online or out-of-town to implement a modest business rates supplement.

This power would be discretionary and it would be for councils to decide on the level of the supplement in consultation with local stakeholders. The Barclay consultation sought views on whether there should be a cap on the level of supplement set in legislation determined by Scottish Ministers.

We are currently considering and analysing the consultation responses which will be published in due course in line with good practice.

Question reference: S5W-18514

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 31 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 19 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how much in VAT receipts it expects to be assigned in the 2019-20 financial year, and what its strategy will be for maximising income from these assigned revenues.

The Scottish Fiscal Commission is responsible for producing a forecast of assigned Scottish VAT receipts. Their first forecast of Scottish VAT receipts will be published in their Economic and Fiscal Forecasts, supporting the Scottish Government budget later this year.

Investing in future economic growth is central to the Scottish Government's Programme for Government. Our focus on building a sustainable economy is ensuring that Scotland is going in the right direction, with our economy growing twice as fast as the UK’s at the beginning of the year. Our Programme for Government continues to build on this success, setting out the most ambitious long-term level of infrastructure spend ever in Scotland to support jobs across the country as we transition to a low carbon economy.

Question reference: S5O-02372

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 September 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to an independent review of football policing.

Question reference: S5W-18385

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 6 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the new supplementary business rates levy pilots are likely to have on continued support for Business Improvement Districts in these areas.

The Scottish Government is currently consulting on a number of Barclay recommendations. This includes the proposal to introduce pilot schemes in up to three towns to be run by local councils in which businesses based predominantly online or out-of-town might be charged a modest business rates supplement.

The Barclay Review suggested that local authorities could use the proceeds to support businesses in town centres. The Scottish Government have not yet taken any final decisions on how the levy would be applied nor on how the proceeds should be spent. We are consulting on a range of appropriate safeguards for the pilot schemes. We will reflect on the responses from the consultation when it closes and consider any interactions any levy may have with other existing government policies.

Question reference: S5W-18387

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 6 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what the receipts from the proposed new supplementary business rates levy pilots on out-of-town and online businesses will be used for, and how much is expected to be generated by each pilot.

Question reference: S5W-18386

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 6 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage more local authorities to consider and utilise their existing powers under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 to set non-domestic rates fairly.

The Scottish Government continues to encourage all local authorities, most recently at the Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation conference, to use their new powers under the Community Empowerment Act 2015. This power grants them the wide ranging flexibility to offer bespoke local business rate relief schemes. The administering of reliefs under these new powers is a matter for local authorities

Question reference: S5O-02329

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 September 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what initiatives it plans to improve the environment in South Lanarkshire.

Question reference: S5W-17605

Asked by: James Kelly, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 July 2018
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 20 July 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how much revenue raised by the business rates incentivisation scheme was retained by each local authority in each of the last four financial years.

The additional non-domestic rates raised and retained by individual local authorities in the last four financial years, as a result of the business rates incentivisation scheme are set out in the following table. Following a review no revised scheme was agreed in time for operation in 2013-14 but was subsequently introduced from 1 April 2014. The 2012-13 sums from the original business rates incentivisation scheme were retained for 2012-13 only. The figures for 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 were retained each year until the next non-domestic rates revaluation on 1 April 2017.

Local Authority	2012-13 (£M)	2014-15 (£M)	2015-16 (£)	2016-17 (£M)
Aberdeen City Council		0.533	3.371
Aberdeenshire Council	0.189	0.471	0.932	0.079
Angus Council			0.071
Argyll and Bute Council				0.039
Clackmannanshire Council	1.232
East Lothian Council	0.544
East Renfrewshire Council	0.173	0.188		0.125
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	0.057		0.072
Falkirk Council				0.272
Fife Council	2.484	0.892
Glasgow City Council			1.514
Highland Council	1.296	0.214	0.371
Inverclyde Council				0.059
Midlothian Council	0.366			0.111
Moray Council	1.267	0.137	0.016	0.299
North Ayrshire Council	0.861			0.240
Perth and Kinross Council	0.148			0.042
Renfrewshire Council		0.068
Scottish Borders Council	0.385
South Ayrshire Council			0.030
Stirling Council				0.119