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: S5O-02711

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 December 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 December 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether the case management system that was procured from IBM in 2017 will process post wave 1 benefits.

Question reference: S5O-02687

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 December 2018
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 12 December 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to the long-term reduction in services at University Hospital Ayr, including the current proposals to remove cancer and vascular services.

It is right that Health Boards keep their services under review to ensure that they remain of the highest quality, consistent with national policies and best clinical practice.

No decisions have been made in terms of the location of future services under the reviews of local cancer and vascular services. It remains the case that formal proposals for change must be informed by meaningful engagement with local stakeholders; and any proposals for major service change must be subject to full public consultation and Ministerial approval.

Question reference: S5W-19914

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many incidents in which the word "fireworks" appears were recorded on Police Scotland command and control systems in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S5W-19912

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been (a) charged with and (b) convicted of an offence under the Fireworks (Scotland) Regulations 2004 in each of the last five years.

(a) People reported to COPFS with at least one charge under the Fireworks (Scotland) Regulations 2004. 2013-14 to 2017-18.

	2013-14	2014-15		2015-16	2016-17	2017-18
Fireworks (Scotland) Regulations 2004	10	17		8	*	8

Source: Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service

(b) There was no convictions under the Fireworks (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (where main crime) between financial years 2011-12 and 2016-17.

Data for financial year 2017-18 will be available on 29-01-2019.

Question reference: S5W-19902

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been given the maximum custodial sentence of five years for carrying a knife in each of the last five years.

The available information is provided in the following tables by financial year, which have been produced from the Scottish Government’s criminal proceedings database . The Criminal Proceedings in Scotland 2017-18 will be published in late January 2019.

Number of people given the custodial sentence of five years (1826 days) for having in a public place an article with a blade or a point¹, 2015-16 to 2016-17.

	2015-16	2016-17
Having in a public place an article with a blade or point	-	1

1 - where main crime

Source: Criminal Proceedings database

Please note : The maximum penalty increased to 5 years in February 2016.

Question reference: S5O-02518

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 October 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has conducted regarding a timescale for reducing the large business supplement.

Question reference: S5O-02485

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 October 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what role local government will have in implementing the Enterprise and Skills Strategic Board's strategic plan.

Question reference: S5O-02401

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 September 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has for the funding of arts and culture to the south of the central belt.

Question reference: S5W-17111

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 June 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 21 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the third supplementary to question S5F-02418 by Nicola Sturgeon on 7 June 2018 (Official Report, c. 18), whether it will provide further details of the discussions that it has had with Heathrow Airport regarding its plans to develop a third runway and the potential for this project to base a logistics hub at Prestwick Airport.

Following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Scottish Government and Heathrow Airport Ltd in October 2016, the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work has met with Heathrow Airport's Chief Executive Officer at 6 monthly intervals. The main purpose of these meetings is to talk about progress on the individual components of the MoU including Heathrow's process for selecting a Scottish supply chain hub for the new third runway. The Scottish Government welcomes the interest that this competitive exercise has generated at sites around Scotland including a strong bid from Glasgow Prestwick Airport.

Question reference: S5O-02295

Asked by: John Scott, MSP for Ayr, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 June 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce the death rate from drug abuse in Ayrshire, in light of reports that this has more than trebled since 2010.