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: S5W-23051

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many (a) complaints, (b) compliments and (c) suggestions have been received by Social Security Scotland, broken down by the main themes of this feedback.

Question reference: S5W-22854

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether entitlement for short-term assistance will exist for the period immediately after a new social security determination is made and up to the request for a redetermination or an appeal is made, and, if entitlement will exist for this period, whether the assistance will only be made available or payable after the request for a redetermination or an appeal is made.

Question reference: S5W-23031

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will list the reserved case law on disability benefits that it considers relevant to disability assistance as currently proposed.

Question reference: S5W-23030

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis of reserved disability benefit (a) legislation, (b) regulations, (c) guidance and (d) case law Parliamentary Counsel has conducted for the purposes of incorporating those rules into Scots law.

Question reference: S5W-22960

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is anticipates that the social security programme will require an in-year budget revision and, if so, for what reason.

Sufficient financial resource has been allocated through the budget process to fund the Social Security programme’s delivery plans. The original estimate for spend in 2019-20 was based on an initial set of assumptions in summer 2018. These were reviewed through the autumn in the Scottish Government’s budget-setting process, and we will continue to refine the programme’s budgetary requirements for the year in line with the refresh of the Programme Business Case supporting Wave 2. If any changes are required this would be actioned through the Spring Budget Revision.

Question reference: S5W-22852

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what the anticipated points of contact are in the process of requesting a social security redetermination, and whether it will publish a flowchart of these.

Social Security Scotland (the Agency) currently provide re-determination rights for all appealable benefits under the Social Security Act 2018. Clients can request this either by phone or completion of the re-determination form provided with first determination letters. There are at least four contact points between the client and the agency during this process.

The process is described on the mygov website: https://www.mygov.scot/if-you-do-not-agree-with-a-benefit-decision/ .

Question reference: S5O-03257

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 May 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 22 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will integrate the principle of non-regression into provisions on keeping pace with EU laws to ensure that no new measures inadvertently lead to a lowering of consumer and environmental standards.

Question reference: S5W-23069

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 15 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how many Best Start Grant applications in the initial phase up to 28 February 2019 were from people with non-Scottish postcodes; what proportion of these were processed; for what reason they were processed, and how many staffing hours were spent carrying out this task.

Official statistics on the number of Best Start Grant applications received from people with non-Scottish postcodes to 28 February 2019, and the number of these applications that were processed, are available at: https://www2.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Social-Welfare/SocialSecurityforScotland/BSGFeb2019 . All applications received by Social Security Scotland are processed, to determine whether they will be authorised or denied. We do not hold information on the number of staffing hours spent processing applications with non-Scottish postcodes.

Question reference: S5W-22915

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 April 2019
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 14 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how much it will cost the Department of Health and Social Care to deliver welfare foods under agency arrangements in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-22957

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 14 May 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how many social security programme staff have recorded (a) short- and (b) long-term absences in the last year.