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-14400

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 8 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes investment in the private rented sector.

The Scottish Government plans to publish a new Strategy for the private rented sector on 30 May 2013. Our key aims for the sector include improving quality and encouraging sustainable growth.

Implementation of the strategy will build on our work over the past five years to create a more effective regulatory format for the sector and engage with potential investors to encourage new investment in housing supply across all tenures, including the private rented sector.

Question reference: S4W-14404

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 8 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how it will promote the debt guarantee scheme for the private rented sector.

The guarantee scheme for the private rented sector is administered by the UK Government. Initial scheme rules have been published and the Scottish Government has drawn these to the attention of various parties, including private landlords and the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations.

Once further detail is provided by the UK Government on how and when individual landlords can apply to the scheme, the Scottish Government will notify landlords and other relevant bodies in Scotland.

Question reference: S4W-14401

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 8 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to implement any of the recommendations set out in the report, Review of the barriers to institutional investment in private rented homes, and, if so, which.

Question reference: S4W-14147

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 2 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many people were (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted in cases involving domestic violence in 2011-12, broken down by manner of disposal.

The data held on the Scottish Government Court Proceedings Database shows that 10,499 people were prosecuted where the main offence had a domestic abuse aggravator recorded in the financial year 2011-12. Of these 8,869 were convicted which consisted of the following disposal types: 1,104 Custody; 2,253 Community Sentence; 2,683 Monetary; 2,739 Admonished; 77 Absolute discharge; 13 Other disposal types.

Recording of offence aggravators has been improving over time and it is deemed that recording has only reached a sufficient level of consistency in the past three years from 2009-10. Any comparison of trends of aggravator information made over time should be made with caution.

Question reference: S4W-14146

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 2 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many people given a custodial sentence in cases involving domestic violence received a sentence of (a) up to three and (b) between three and six months in 2011-12.

The data held on the Scottish Government Court Proceedings Database shows that there were 382 people given a custodial sentence of up to three months and 490 with a sentence of over three months to six months for cases where the main charge had a domestic abuse aggravator recorded in the financial year 2011-12.

Question reference: S4W-14164

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 1 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether all police officers had Police Service of Scotland warrant cards on 1 April 2013 and, if not, how many and what percentage of officers did not and what the implications are for these officers.

Question reference: S4W-14196

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 1 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether section 120 of the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 has been commenced and, if not, when it plans to lay an order to commence the section.

Question reference: S4W-14168

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 1 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether all authorised firearms officers had Police Service of Scotland authorisation cards to carry firearms on 1 April 2013 and, if not, how many and what percentage of officers did not and what the implications are for these officers.

Question reference: S4W-14170

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 1 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Police Service of Scotland warrant cards contain images such as a security hologram to prevent forgeries and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Question reference: S4W-14166

Asked by: John Lamont, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 April 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 1 May 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether all police officers had Police Service of Scotland authorisation cards to carry CS incapacitant spray on 1 April 2013 and, if not, how many and what percentage of officers did not and what the implications are for these officers.