Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-26249

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many new applications to the reopened Independent Living Fund it estimates will be received.

Question reference: S6W-26246

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been committed to reopening the Independent Living Fund to new applicants in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26.

Question reference: S6W-26245

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it anticipates it will reopen the Independent Living Fund to new applicants.

Question reference: S6W-26244

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what financial modelling it has carried out to calculate its cost basis projection for reopening the Independent Living Fund (ILF) Scotland 2015 Fund.

Question reference: S6W-26247

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a detailed breakdown of the phased approach that it plans to take to reopening the Independent Living Fund.

We have committed £9m in 2024-25 to offer up to 1,000 new applicants access to the Independent Living Fund. This initial funding takes into consideration that applications will be received and assessed over the course of the year, so that new awards will phase in as the year progresses. Funding for 2025-26, and the number of further people who will be able to access the Fund, will be agreed through the annual budget process.

Question reference: S6W-26382

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 2 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the Justice Committee’s inquiry in 2013 and the Scottish Government’s response to it, for what reason it has not yet published the voluntary code of practice on dismissing and replacing land-owning maintenance companies.

The Scottish Government is preparing a Voluntary Code of Practice on dismissing and replacing land-owning land maintenance companies.

I acknowledge that there has been a considerable time elapsed since the decision to bring forward a voluntary code of practice on dismissing and replacing land-owning maintenance companies.

Unfortunately, due to other pressures, work has not progressed on the voluntary code of practice as anticipated.

Question reference: S6W-26387

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 25 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 28 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the specification that it is considering for single building assessments, in relation to cladding remediation, is limited to external cladding systems on buildings, or whether it is giving consideration to internal systems and fixtures being within scope.

The Single Building Assessment (SBA) is a risk-based approach to assess and culminate in a report on the risk to human life (directly or indirectly) created or exacerbated by the External Wall System (EWS) in multi-residential domestic buildings which may include a commercial premises, constructed or refurbished between 1 June 1992 and 1 June 2022, 11 metres and over in height and incorporating a form of external wall cladding system. The SBA includes a FRAEW (Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls) which requires that a building is assessed holistically, and for that reason, the SBA will also include a Fire Risk Assessment of the common parts of the building to the level of detail deemed required by the Fire Engineer / Assessor. The level of risk acceptance for any building in scope is tolerable risk. The recommendations identified by the Fire Engineer or Assessor within the SBA report which are deemed necessary to eliminate or mitigate risk to human life (directly or indirectly) created or exacerbated by the EWS will form the remediation scope.

Question reference: S6W-26384

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 28 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on agreeing the specification for single building assessments in relation to cladding remediation.

The Single Building Assessment (SBA) is a risk-based approach to assess and culminate in a report on the risk to human life (directly or indirectly) created or exacerbated by the External Wall System (EWS) in multi-residential domestic buildings which may include a commercial premises, constructed or refurbished between 1 June 1992 and 1 June 2022, 11 metres and over in height and incorporating a form of external wall cladding system. The SBA includes a FRAEW (Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls) which requires that a building is assessed holistically, and for that reason, the SBA will also include a Fire Risk Assessment of the common parts of the building to the level of detail deemed required by the Fire Engineer / Assessor. The level of risk acceptance for any building in scope is tolerable risk. The recommendations identified by the Fire Engineer or Assessor within the SBA report which are deemed necessary to eliminate or mitigate risk to human life (directly or indirectly) created or exacerbated by the EWS will form the remediation scope.

Question reference: S6W-26385

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 27 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to finalise the specification for single building assessments in relation to cladding remediation before the Housing (Cladding Remediation) (Scotland) Bill is debated at stage 3.

Question reference: S6O-03233

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the development of an accredited qualification and registration programme for Additional Support Needs assistants.

Chamber and committees