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: S4O-05190

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 December 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 December 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle poverty.

Question reference: S4O-04814

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 18 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes a healthy work-life balance.

We recognise the great importance that achieving a healthy work-life balance has for a great many people in Scotland.

Although the legal powers governing flexible working are currently reserved to Westminster, the Scottish Government recognises it has an important role to play in helping people manage the twin responsibilities of work and family.

We fund and are an active partner in the Family Friendly Working Scotland partnership. Through this partnership, established in 2014, we work with Working Families (a leading UK work-life balance organisation), Parenting Across Scotland and Fathers Network Scotland to support and promote the development of family-friendly working across Scotland.

Question reference: S4O-04736

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 October 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the rollout of superfast broadband.

Question reference: S4O-04703

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 October 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 October 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how town centres could benefit from business rates being set by local authorities.

Question reference: S4O-04688

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 September 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 October 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how its plans are progressing to build a national film studio.

Question reference: S4O-04664

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 October 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how the planned changes to subsidies for onshore windfarms will affect developments in Scotland.

Question reference: S4W-27279

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 September 2015
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many Scottish-domiciled students have been accepted by Scottish universities for 2015-16 and how many have been accepted by their (a) first and (b) second choice university and how many have been placed through clearing.

The latest data on acceptances to higher education institutions (HEIs) across the UK are Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) data as at 15 days after A-level results day 2015.

At that stage, the number of Scottish domiciled applicants accepted to HEIs in Scotland was 27,940.

Further breakdowns by choice/clearing are not published for Scottish domiciled applicants accepted to HEIs in Scotland but are published for Scottish domiciled applicants accepted to HEIs anywhere in the UK.

Table 1: Scottish domiciled students accepted to HEIs anywhere in the UK at 15 days after A-level results day: 2011 to 2015

	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
Total placed at this stage	27,500	27,660	28,090	28,890	29,610
First choice	24,050	24,180	25,020	25,860	26,270
Second choice	1,530	1,510	1,350	1,410	1,480
No preference indicated	800	630	500	510	510
‘Adjustment’*	10	20	10	10	10
Clearing (Main scheme)	980	1180	1070	960	1150
Clearing (Direct to)	130	150	150	130	190

Source: UCAS

Data rounded to nearest 10.

*A small number of applicants meet the entry conditions for their first choice but opt to accept an alternative offer.

Question reference: S4O-04590

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how the growth of Japanese knotweed is controlled.

Question reference: S4O-04532

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 August 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 September 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the recent admission by the UK Government that it used fake quotes to promote its benefit sanctions regime in Scotland and across the UK.

Question reference: S4W-27135

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 August 2015
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 19 August 2015

To ask the Scottish Government when the Registrar General will publish his annual report for 2014.

Scotland’s Population 2014: the Registrar General’s Annual Review of Demographic Trends will be published on 20 August 2015. The report contains information about births, deaths and marriages during the year, together with other demographic information. A copy of the report will be laid in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre and will be available on the Registrar General’s website at: www.nrscotland.gov.uk.