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-17239

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 June 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 27 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what the unitary charge costs are for the 25-year private contract period for HM Prison Addiewell.

Question reference: S5W-17186

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 June 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 21 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting students.

In response to the recommendations made by the independent review of student support, the Scottish Government announced that over £21 million will be invested per year by the end of this parliament to improve the financial support available to students at college and university.

As part of that, in 2018-19, we will invest over £5 million to increase the bursary for care-experienced students in Further (FE) and Higher Education (HE) to £8,100. This brings care-experienced bursary support in line with the Living Wage as recommended by the independent review. The FE care-experienced bursary will increase from £4,185 to £8,100 and the HE care-experienced bursary will rise from £7,625 to £8,100 per year.

In 2019-20, we will invest £16 million to increase and expand access to FE and HE bursaries for students from the lowest income families.

This investment in student support is in addition to the Scottish Government existing policy on free tuition which benefits over 120,000 undergraduates each year studying in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-17274

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 15 June 2018
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 15 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can confirm that Scotland will be the location for the Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre.

I am delighted to confirm that Scotland will host the UK Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre (MMIC). The Centre, which has received tripartite funding from Scottish Enterprise (£15m) Innovate UK (£13m) and industry (£14m) will not only be a highly influential centre of excellence in medicines manufacturing but will also have a positive impact on the economy of both Scotland and the UK and will help to further cement Scotland’s reputation for excellence in research and development, life sciences and manufacturing.

Following detailed consideration of a range of potential sites in Scotland the operator of the Centre and industry partners chose Inchinnan in Renfrewshire as the best location for the Centre.

Whilst the Centre will be located within the Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation District in Renfrewshire, a key priority for the Scottish Government will be to ensure that the sector across the whole of Scotland is able to benefit from the project.

Question reference: S5W-17227

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 June 2018
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Michael Matheson on 13 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish its next sectoral insight intended to demonstrate the breadth of Scotland’s interests in the negotiations and future relationship with the EU.

On 14 June at 00.01, I will announce the publication of Scotland’s Place in Europe: Security, Judicial Co-operation and Law Enforcement. The Paper can be accessed at: http://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781787810068

This Paper aims to improve the understanding about why maintaining a close relationship with the EU in the area of security, judicial and law enforcement is vital for Scotland. It set outs the key benefits this arrangement brings to our law enforcement agencies in fighting crime and keeping pace with developments.

In negotiating a future security relationship, it is essential to take account of the fact that Scotland has a separate criminal justice system and that our law enforcement agencies should maintain direct links with their EU counterparts. It also explains why data sharing arrangements and the role of the Court of Justice EU are potential barriers to having a close relationship with the EU in the justice and security area.

The people of Scotland voted decisively to remain within the European Union, and it is the role of the Scottish Government to continue making sure that their safety and security are protected.

Question reference: S5W-17112

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 June 2018
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Annabelle Ewing on 8 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when statistics on hate crime are due to be published.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) is publishing official statistics “Hate Crime in Scotland” on 15 June at 09:30. This provides information on the number of charges reported to them across all hate crime categories (race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, transgender) and charges under the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Act (OBFTC Act).

At the same time, the Scottish Government is publishing “Religiously Aggravated Offending in Scotland 2017-18”. This report provides further details about religiously aggravated charges reported to the COPFS in 2017-18.

Since 2012-13, the Scottish Government had published an analysis of charges reported to the COPFS under the OBFTC Act. The OBFTC Act was repealed earlier this year. There is therefore not a complete set of charges to analyse for 2017-18 meaning that any analysis would not be comparable with previous years. Therefore, the Scottish Government will not be publishing an analysis of these charges.

The Scottish Government is also planning to publish information based on hate crime incidents recorded by Police Scotland later this year.

Question reference: S5O-02206

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 May 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what progress it is making in encouraging waste recycling.

Through Zero Waste Scotland we continue to engage with Scottish local authorities, businesses and the public, providing advice, guidance and funding to support recycling.

Data released last week by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency for 2016, clearly indicates the significant progress that is being made in Scotland. Over 61% of the total waste produced in Scotland was recycled, composted or prepared for re-use, an increase of over half a million tonnes from 2015, There was 10% less waste generated in Scotland in 2016 compared to 5 years before, indicating that our waste prevention strategy is being effective. I would also draw attention to the fact that 32.7% of all waste produced in Scotland was sent to landfill, the lowest ever figure.

These improved statistics have been driven by Scottish waste legislation which is amongst the most ambitious in Europe.

Question reference: S5O-02211

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 June 2018
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government how it encourages engagement between universities and secondary education establishments.

Question reference: S5W-17007

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 May 2018
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 5 June 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how it is helping families meet the cost of school uniforms.

I know the cost of a school uniform can be considerable for families and I am delighted that Scottish Government has now secured agreement with CoSLA and Scottish local authorities to introduce a new national minimum school clothing grant.

The minimum grant has been set at £100 and it will be made available to eligible families in time for the start of the 2018-19 academic year. To support the introduction of the national minimum the Scottish Government is contributing an additional £6 million funding to local authorities. The additional funding is intended to assist local authorities in meeting the national minimum grant level of £100. Furthermore, the minimum grant will be reviewed every two years to ensure that the amount available remains in line with the cost of living.

Question reference: S5O-02153

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 May 2018
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with the roll-out of fibre broadband, including ensuring that all new build homes have access.

Question reference: S5O-02131

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 May 2018
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of recent developments regarding the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill, what its position is on the views expressed during the independence referendum that a "yes" vote would mean Scotland would be taken out of the EU and a "no" vote would see it granted new powers as an equal part of the UK.