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-15038

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 05 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 13 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the potential impact on Scotland of the proposals in the Nuclear Safeguards Bill, which has been introduced in the UK Parliament.

Nuclear safeguards are activities to verify that nuclear material and equipment are not diverted from their intended use as declared by the users and that international legal obligations to use nuclear material and equipment for peaceful purposes are honoured. The UK Government has introduced UK legislation to ensure the continuity of nuclear safeguards in the event of the UK leaving the Euratom Community, as this will be a reserved responsibility. The UK Government has kept the Scottish Government informed about its developing policy, the measures in the Bill and draft Regulations. The Scottish Government has carried out informal analysis of the proposals to ensure that we understand the effect of the measures in Scotland and that there are no difficulties over interactions with devolved responsibilities.

Question reference: S5W-14464

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-00925 by Fergus Ewing on 6 February 2018 (Official Report, c. 7), what assessment it has made of how a UK-wide ban on the export of live animals for slaughter could impact on the quality livestock sector in the (a) Northern Isles, (b) Western Isles and (c) rest of Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-14462

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-00925 by Fergus Ewing on 6 February 2018 (Official Report, c. 7), how many (a) sheep, (b) cattle and (c) poultry were exported for breeding in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017 to (A) the rest the UK and (B) other countries outside of the UK, and how much these exports were worth.

The Scottish Government has identified the following data for movements of cattle and sheep. The internal UK data are from Rapid Analysis and Detection of Animal-related Risk (RADAR)and apply to movements from Scotland to England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The non-UK exports are from the Trade Control and Export System compiled by the Animal and Plant Health Agency.

Exports

Sheep

2016

Sheep

2017

Cattle

2016

Cattle

2017

To the rest of UK for Breeding and Fattening

not available

9,174

76,200

93,300

To countries outside of UK for Breeding

not available

529

not available

1,361

Data on the numbers of poultry exported for breeding purposes is not collected.

Question reference: S5W-14461

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-00925 by Fergus Ewing on 6 February 2018 (Official Report, c. 7), what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding a ban on the export of live animals for fattening and slaughter.

Question reference: S5W-14468

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-00925 by Fergus Ewing on 6 February 2018 (Official Report, c. 7), what tonnage of (a) sheep meat and (b) beef was exported in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017 to (A) the rest of the UK and (B) other countries, and how much these exports were worth.

Quality Meat Scotland’s ‘The Scottish Red Meat Industry Profile 2017’ reports the value of sheep meat and beef trade to other countries for 2016. Data is not currently available for 2017; the tonnage of meat exported is not reported.

Beef to the value of £420 million and £36.5 million was sent to the rest of the UK and to other countries respectively in 2016. Sheep meat to the value of £75 million and £30.5 million was sent to the rest of the UK and to other countries respectively in 2016.

Question reference: S5W-14724

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 19 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 13 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-10828 by Humza Yousaf on 14 September 2017, how many incidents of stop-skipping have occurred on the ScotRail network since 20 August 2017, and what percentage of trains this represents, broken down by station affected.

Question reference: S5W-14897

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 26 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 12 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when it will launch its consultation on the introduction of compulsory video recording of slaughter at abattoirs in order to aid the enforcement of welfare requirements by abattoir management and Food Standards Scotland, as outlined in its Programme for Government 2017-18.

Question reference: S5W-14518

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 8 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many commercial livestock have been slaughtered without having been pre-stunned in each year since 2013, broken down by species.

Question reference: S5O-01889

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 March 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 14 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis the health secretary has made of the potential implications for Scotland of the findings in the recent annual report of the Chief Medical Officer for England, which addressed the impact on public health of pollution.

Question reference: S5W-14718

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 19 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Annabelle Ewing on 1 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what provisions there are to deal with disputes regarding party walls.

Disputes about party walls are private legal matters to be resolved by agreement between those involved in the dispute or, if they cannot reach agreement, by going to court or by using Alternative Dispute Resolution, such as mediation. The Scottish Mediation Network can provide information on how to find to a mediator: https://www.scottishmediation.org.uk/

Under the common law doctrine of common interest which can apply to a shared wall, work on the wall can be legally challenged (i.e. an action can be raised in court) if it endangers the stability of the wall.

In England and Wales, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 makes detailed provision on disputes in relation to party walls. The Scottish Government has no current plans to introduce legislation along the lines of the 1996 Act.

The Scottish Law Commission reviewed the law on boundary walls in 1998. The Commission took the view at the time that was not necessary to introduce legislation either to reform or restate the existing law on boundary walls. The Commission’s Report is available at http://www.scotlawcom.gov.uk/files/3012/7989/6663/rep163.pdf