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-20761

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 April 2014
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 30 April 2014

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason mobile homes in Scotland with permanent residents are in higher council tax bands than those in England and Wales.

Local taxation is a devolved matter and responsibility for the administration and collection of council tax in Scotland lies with Scottish local authorities. Council tax charges are derived from the levels of council tax set by local authorities and from the valuation bands in which dwellings are placed.

Responsibility for placing properties in valuation bands for the purpose of council tax rests solely with the Scottish assessor for the area. The local assessor decides which valuation band should apply to each dwelling in the area, with valuations based on the amount which a dwelling might have reasonably been expected to realise in the open market if sold on 1 April 1991. The assessor is independent of both local and central government, therefore neither ministers nor government officials are able to comment on or intervene in individual cases.

The Scottish Government has fully funded the council tax freeze in Scotland since 2008-09 and is committed to do so for the lifetime of this Parliament, helping all of Scotland’s council tax payers, including those resident in mobile homes.

Question reference: S4O-03105

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 March 2014
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 2 April 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what action the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth took to ensure that the white paper on independence contained full and transparent costings for its policy pledges.

Question reference: S4O-02990

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 March 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many bed days were lost due to delayed discharges in the NHS Borders area during the last three quarters of 2013.

Question reference: S4O-02917

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it supports the restoration of train services to the Reston and East Linton stations.

Question reference: S4O-02887

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 6 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Scottish Borders Council about the council’s proposals to withdraw the garden waste collection service.

Question reference: S4O-02852

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 January 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what its strategy is for tackling ADHD among young people.

Question reference: S4O-02770

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 December 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met representatives of Police Scotland and what issues were discussed.

Question reference: S4W-18733

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 December 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 16 December 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on whether there are interdicts in place to prevent media reporting regarding Police Scotland staff and to whom the interdicts apply.

Question reference: S4W-18734

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 December 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 16 December 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what legal costs (a) it and (b) each of the former police constabularies has incurred in applying for and enforcing interdicts to prevent media reporting about police staff in each year since 2007.

Question reference: S4W-18732

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 December 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 16 December 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what legal costs (a) it and (b) Police Scotland has incurred in applying for and enforcing interdicts to prevent media reporting about the force's staff.