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: S4W-12673

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether additional funding has been set aside for local authorities to become more involved in the Year of Natural Scotland 2013.

No additional funding has been set aside by the Scottish Government specifically for local authorities to become more involved in the Year of Natural Scotland however partners across the country are being actively encouraged to join the celebration of the Year and to harness its significant potential to boost tourism and the wider economy.

I have had meetings with a number of local authorities to discuss Year of Natural Scotland and I am encouraged by their supportive approach.

Question reference: S4O-01900

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 March 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take to improve the quality and consistency of sentencing and enhance the availability of prisoner rehabilitation programmes.

Question reference: S4O-01877

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 6 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK credit rating being downgraded from AAA to AA1, whether it will continue to advocate adopting sterling in an independent Scotland.

The recent report by the Fiscal Commission Working Group highlighted that retaining Sterling would provide a strong overarching framework for Scotland and maintain the integrated market and business links between Scotland and the rest of the UK.

The decision to downgrade the UK’s credit rating confirms the failure of the UK Government’s economic strategy. This approach has only served to weaken the credibility of the UK Government, lead to even greater borrowing and a stagnant economy.

Independence would provide Scotland with the opportunity to take control of the economic levers needed to deliver a wealthier and fairer society.

Question reference: S4W-13310

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 6 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the construction costs of the Forth Replacement Crossing.

Question reference: S4W-12675

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 25 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it is providing to those affected by the recent flooding in Musselburgh.

Flood protection schemes are primarily a matter for local authorities, however the Scottish Government is committed to supporting work that helps protect the people of Scotland from the effects of flooding.

Most recently, I helped The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency launch a new coastal flood warning system for the east coast of Scotland on 28 January, covering the coast from Arbroath to Eyemouth and including a total of 28 specific potentially vulnerable areas. I welcome these new coastal flood warnings schemes in the Forth and Tay coastal areas, which will enable residents to take action and prepare for flooding in advance and I would encourage residents in these areas to register to receive free messages direct to their landline or mobile alerting them whenever a flood warning has been issued for their area.

I would recommend anyone affected by flooding to contact the Scottish Flood Forum. The Forum, which receives funding from the Scottish Government, provides an invaluable source of advice and support. I also encourage residents affected by flooding to apply for crisis loans through the Department for Work and Pensions.

I am also in discussions with the Association of British Insurers about industry proposals for continuation of flood insurance for the most vulnerable properties once the statement of principles ceases this summer.

Question reference: S4W-12674

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 22 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that its procurement contracts safeguard jobs in Scotland.

The Scottish Government uses community benefit clauses in public procurement contracts to achieve our national outcome of more and better employment opportunities for people in Scotland.

Since the Scottish Government published guidance on Community Benefits in Procurement in 2008, commitments by the Scottish public sector to employ over 3,500 new workers via targeted recruitment and training opportunities has been achieved.

We intend to use the forthcoming Procurement Reform Bill to introduce a statutory requirement that public sector bodies include community benefit clauses in all new major public contracts and that those in receipt of major public contracts publish their commitments and target updates on training, apprenticeships and performance.

Question reference: S4W-12668

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 22 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-114714 by Fergus Ewing on 6 December 2012, what progress has been made with the plans for the stakeholder event in Spring 2013.

Following my very useful meeting with stakeholders on 9 November 2012, I have arranged a further stakeholder event for 30 April 2013.

Since the meeting in November I have written to payday loan companies in the UK and I am pleased that representatives from some of the payday loan companies, including the Consumer Finance Association have expressed an interest in discussing the pressing issues we have debated in Parliament in the last couple of weeks.

I will continue to work with stakeholders to fully consider the issues and to find further solutions to the problems faced by indebted people in Scotland who have found themselves in difficulties because of payday borrowing.

Question reference: S4W-12676

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 22 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the potential benefits of wind farms outweigh those of established activities such as tourism.

It is not a question of whether the benefits of one outweigh the benefits of the other. We are committed to ensuring that the renewable energy sector and the tourism industry continue to flourish side by side. Therefore, we have already committed to examining the need for further research into the impact of wind farms on tourism.

In its report on the achievability of the Scottish Government’s renewable energy targets of 23 November 2012, the Energy, Enterprise and Tourism Committee stated that it “has seen no empirical evidence which demonstrates that the tourism industry in Scotland will be adversely affected by the wider deployment of renewable energy projects, particularly onshore and offshore wind.“ and that “no witness has provided the Committee with robust, empirical evidence, as opposed to anecdotal comment and opinion, that tourism is being negatively affected by the development of renewable projects.”

Question reference: S4W-12667

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 6 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many businesses have benefitted from the small business bonus scheme in (a) East Lothian, (b) Midlothian and (c) Scotland.

Official Statistics published on 24 October 2012 show that 89,087 business properties across Scotland are benefitting from the Small Business Bonus Scheme (SBBS) in 2012-13. This is an increase of almost 4,000 from the previous year.

In East Lothian 1,556 and in Midlothian 1,127 business properties are benefiting from the SBBS.

In 2012-13 it is estimated that the SBBS has saved small businesses in East Lothian and Midlothian £4.5 million.

The Scottish Government has committed to maintain the SBBS for the lifetime of this Parliament.

Question reference: S4W-12236

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 31 January 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has conducted of any potential water pollution as a result of unconventional gas exploration and extraction and whether it is considering commissioning further research.

Following the investigation of two seismic tremors experienced near Preese Hall, Lancashire during fracking operations in 2011, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society conducted a wide ranging and authoritative review of the scientific and technical evidence on the risks associated with hydraulic fracturing for shale gas, and published a report in June 2012. Their overall conclusion is that the risks can be managed effectively in the UK as long as operational best practices are implemented and enforced through current regulation, a position shared by The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA).

Whilst we and SEPA believe that the current regulatory tools provide a high level of protection, it should be noted that shale gas activity, including hydraulic fracturing, is only exploratory and there is no experience of production operations in the UK as yet. Therefore we will monitor any future activity to ensure that the current tools are effective in protecting the water environment and if not will look at further measures at that point.