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-22158

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 13 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what the reasons are for the reported increasing level of student debt.

Question reference: S4W-22152

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 13 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many students at Scotland’s ancient universities are from the most deprived areas of Scotland.

Figures from the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) indicate that in 2012-13, the most recent year for which information is available; there were 4,904 students at Scotland’s four ancient universities from the 40% most deprived data zones in Scotland, as ranked in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation. Of these, 1,962 were from the 20% most deprived data zones.

Under this government we have seen growth in the number of students from deprived data zones to ancient universities since 2006-07.

The Post-16 Education (Scotland) Act 2013 introduced statutory widening access agreements as part of the wider outcome agreement dialogue between the SFC and each higher education institution in Scotland. Progress is monitored by the SFC and reported annually through their Learning for All publication.

Question reference: S4W-22153

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 13 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of the students from the most deprived areas in the country at Scotland’s ancient universities has dropped out of higher education in the last five years.

Figures from the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) show that the proportions of Scottish domiciled, full time undergraduate first degree students from the 40% most deprived data zones, as ranked by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, who did not continue into the next year of study at one of Scotland’s four ancient universities were:

2008-09	12.3%
2009-10	10.4%
2010-11	8.9%
2011-12	10.4%
2012-13	10.7%

It is not possible to confirm if these students embarked on another course of higher education study after leaving their original course.

In a letter of guidance issued to the SFC on 31 July 2014, I confirmed that the Scottish Government wants to improve retention rates and the level and quality of support for students who need more assistance to successfully complete their course, particularly at those universities performing less well in this regard.

The letter of guidance 2015-16 is available at:

http://www.sfc.ac.uk/aboutus/letterofguidance/letterofguidance.aspx

Question reference: S4W-22162

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 13 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what the reasons are for the lower percentage of positive destinations for looked-after children compared with all school leavers.

Question reference: S4W-22161

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 13 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what the reasons are for the lower average tariff scores for looked-after children compared with all school leavers.

The reasons for looked after children and young people experiencing poorer educational outcomes, lower levels of educational attainment and positive destinations are multiple and various.

The 2007 report We Can and Must Do Better highlighted ‘‘continuity, stability, a sense of security and support as key to ensuring that looked after children and young people do as well as their peers in terms of achievement and attainment at school and in positively participating in the wider school community.’’

Further, the Scottish Parliament’s Education and Culture Committee report Inquiry into the educational attainment of looked after children indicated that ‘‘Children are ready to learn when they are emotionally stable, with secure attachments to key care givers, are free of threat and risk and attend school on a regular and consistent basis, and are supported by key role models who value education and actively support learning’’.

Whilst there is still much to be done, the 2012-13 educational outcomes statistics demonstrate the progress that has been made in improving the attainment and achievement of looked after children. Since 2009 the proportion of young people in positive destinations has increased by 12 percentage points and the average tariff score has increased by 19 tariff score points. Attendance is improving and exclusions have fallen by 43%.

Question reference: S4O-03465

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 August 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recent report by Fiscal Affairs Scotland.

Question reference: S4W-22160

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 4 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has allocated to tackling the level of student debt and what percentage of the education budget this represents.

There is no specific ring fenced amount allocated to addressing debt accumulated by Scottish domiciled students.

The overall student support package offered by the Scottish Government is geared towards providing a mixture of support through free tuition, bursary and loan. Scottish domiciled students do not have to pay fees of up to £27,000 charged for tuition elsewhere in the UK. This is a real saving that does not become a debt.

Scotland continues to have the lowest level of average debt per student. The Scottish figure of £7,600 compares with £20,100 for England, £17,310 for Wales and £16,820 for Northern Ireland.

Question reference: S4W-22159

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 4 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to reduce the level of student debt.

Scotland continues to have the lowest level of average debt per student. The Scottish figure of £7,600 compares with £20,100 for England, £17,310 for Wales and £16,820 for Northern Ireland.

The Scottish Government aims to contribute to maintenance of this by continuing to provide free tuition, saving students up to £27,000 compared to their peers elsewhere in the UK. In addition, interest repayment for Scottish domiciled students is kept at a minimum level.

Question reference: S4W-22068

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 4 August 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to legislate or review the law on "in perpetuity" clauses.

We have no current intention of legislating on or reviewing the law in this area. I understand that the member is interested in “in perpetuity” clauses in timeshare contracts. Legislation on timeshare is a reserved matter (see Head C7 of Part II of Schedule 5 to the Scotland Act 1998). The subject matter of the Timeshare Act 1992 includes the right to cancel timeshare agreements. That subject matter remains reserved although the Timeshare Act 1992 has been repealed.

Question reference: S4W-22156

Asked by: Kezia Dugdale, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 29 July 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce recommends widening access for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The final report of the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce, Education Working For All! was published on 3 June 2014. The report makes a number of recommendations designed to provide earlier opportunities for young people from all backgrounds to access vocational opportunities in the senior phase of curriculum for excellence.

The report contains a chapter on advancing equalities. This chapter makes a number of specific recommendations to improve educational and labour market outcomes for groups of young people who are currently disadvantaged in the labour market.