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: S4F-02386

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 10 November 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 November 2014

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the Law Society of Scotland’s discussion paper, Legal Assistance in Scotland, which says that the current system is not fit for purpose.

Question reference: S4W-22968

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 31 October 2014
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 10 November 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many 101 non-emergency calls to the police are received on average each month.

Question reference: S4W-22970

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 31 October 2014
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 10 November 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether (a) it and (b) Police Scotland plans to make representations to the Home Office to ask for the cost of calling the 101 non-emergency number to be reviewed.

Question reference: S4W-22969

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 31 October 2014
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 10 November 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers it appropriate that a private operator should profit from calls to Police Scotland's non-emergency number.

Question reference: S4O-03681

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 November 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 November 2014

To ask the Scottish Government when it will bring forward proposals to tackle revenge pornography and what timescales will apply.

Question reference: S4W-22538

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 September 2014
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 2 October 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been raised from use of the 101 telephone number, and what plans it has to provide callers with a notice that a charge of 15p will be incurred.

The introduction of the 101 number has allowed for the cost of a non-emergency call to become standardised and transparent across the whole of the UK for the first time.

There are no plans for a national campaign about the 15p charge. Information on the 101 number and the 15p charge is already available on the Police Scotland website. Neither the Police nor the Scottish Government receive money from calls to 101. The 15p cost of the call goes to the telephony providers to cover the cost of carrying the calls. The 15p charge per call to the 101 number was set and is regulated by the Home Office.

Question reference: S4F-02309

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 September 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 October 2014

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to COSLA's agreement to oppose the policy of allowing police officers to carry guns while carrying out routine duties.

Question reference: S4O-03517

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 September 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 24 September 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what additional support it is providing to the Scottish Ambulance Service in light of it not meeting a range of targets.

Question reference: S4W-22354

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 August 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 10 September 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the taskforce for Stranraer's action plan for the regeneration of Stranraer and the south west.

In June 2014, the South of Scotland Alliance, comprising Dumfries and Galloway Council, Scottish Borders Council and Scottish Enterprise, presented ministers with a Rural Regional Economic Development Programme for the South of Scotland.

This programme of development comprises four significant projects including the regeneration of Stranraer waterfront. The report can be accessed on the Dumfries and Galloway Council website.

Question reference: S4W-22353

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 August 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 10 September 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many times its taskforce for Stranraer has met and on what dates.

The lead role in the regeneration of Stranraer Waterfront rests with Dumfries and Galloway Council.

The Scottish Government established the Stranraer taskforce to work with Dumfries and Galloway Council and a number of other local partners to explore the potential for the future of the Stranraer waterfront, following the relocation of ferry services from the town.

The taskforce was intended to be a short- life group. It met on four occasions on 16 February 2012, 28 May 2012, 27 September 2012 and 22 April 2013.