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-18199

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Frank Mulholland on 22 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of (a) full-time and (b) ad hoc Advocate Deputes was (i) employed as members of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, (ii) advocates and (iii) solicitor advocates immediately prior to their appointment, in each year from 2007-08 to 2012-13.

The percentages of those appointment to the position in each year who were employed as members of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, Advocates and Solicitor Advocates immediately prior to appointment each year were as indicated in the following tables.

Table 1 – (a) Full Time Advocate Deputes

Year	% Employed by COPFS	% Advocates	% Solicitor Advocates
2007-08	0	83	17
2008-09	44	56	0
2009-10	0	89	11
2010-11	17	83	0
2011-12	29	43	29
2012-13	25	50	25
2013-14	17	17	67

Table 2- (b) Ad Hoc Advocate Deputes*

Year	% Employed by COPFS	% Advocates	% Solicitor Advocates
2007-08	27	73	0
2008-09	22	78	0
2009-10	0	100	0
2010-11	8	92	0
2011-12	100	0	0
2012-13	0	100	0

Note: *This information has been collated on the basis of recruitment records as it is not held electronically.

Question reference: S4W-18198

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Frank Mulholland on 22 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) full-time and (b) ad hoc Advocate Deputes were engaged by the Lord Advocate in each year from 2007-08 to 2012-13.

The information requested is provided in the following table.

Financial Year	Number of Advocate Deputes engaged by the Lord Advocate in each year from 2007-08 to 2012-13
2007-2008	32
2008-2009	35
2009-2010	44
2010-2011	35
2011-2012	38
2012-2013	37
2013-2014	39

	For Ad Hoc Advocate Deputes, the information was not centrally held prior to 2012.
Financial Year	Individual Ad Hoc Advocate Deputes engaged
2012-2013	25
2013-2014	33

Question reference: S4W-18200

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Frank Mulholland on 22 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government under what arrangements members of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) appointed as Advocate Deputes can return to their previous duties in COPFS on completion of their service in the Crown Office and whether their return is conditional on an assessment of their performance as an Advocate Depute.

Advocate Deputes are appointed by the Lord Advocate and hold his commission. They are holders of an office and are independent of Procurators Fiscal. Members of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) are appointed as Advocate Deputes on a secondment basis. Their employment rights as COPFS employees and the right to return to COPFS when the secondment has been completed are retained. Their return is not conditional on an assessment of their performance as an Advocate Depute.

Question reference: S4W-18212

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Lesley Thomson on 22 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service ensures that fixed penalty notices in terms of section 302 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 are not issued to (a) persistent offenders or (b) people who have not paid previous fixed penalty notices.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service has provided Procurators Fiscal with detailed instructions on when a fixed penalty notice should be issued and at what level under section 302 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995. They include the instruction that a fiscal fine should not be issued to persistent offenders.

The guidance also requires prosecutors to take into account any previous fixed penalty notice that has been offered. Responsibility for enforcement of fixed penalties rests with the Scottish Courts Service.

Question reference: S4W-18206

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 18 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that fixed penalty notices in terms of Part 11 of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 are not issued to (a) persistent offenders or (b) people who have not paid previous fixed penalty notices.

Where a police officer has reason to believe that a person aged 16 or over has committed an offence, they have a range of options and guidance available to help them determine the most appropriate action to take.

Where the offence is one as described in Part 11 of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 and the offender is known to be a persistent offender or has a record for defaulting in payment, the officer is guided to not offer a fixed penalty notice and instead submit a police report to the procurator fiscal who can take action up to and including court proceedings.

Question reference: S4W-18209

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government in relation to what percentage of fixed penalty notices the recipient has sent a notice to the clerk of court as provided for in section 302(2)(ca) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 in each year since May 2007.

Question reference: S4W-18211

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many fixed penalty notices issued under section 302 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 since May 2007 remain unpaid.

Question reference: S4W-18208

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many fixed penalty notices have been challenged by the recipient under section 302(2)(ca) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 in each year since May 2007.

Question reference: S4W-18207

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many fixed penalty notices have been issued under section 302 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 in each year since May 2007.

Question reference: S4W-18203

Asked by: Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 November 2013
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of fixed penalty notices has been paid before the 28-day period specified in the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 in each year since May 2007.