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: S4O-00795

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 March 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many police support staff are employed across the country.

Question reference: S4O-00773

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 February 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many schools have indicated a wish to delay the introduction of the new national exams and how it plans to assist these schools.

Question reference: S4W-05493

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 29 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S4W-05075 by Stewart Stevenson on 27 January 2012, what the actual reduction in CO2 tonnage was by the (a) Argyll Energy and Information, (b) Castlemilk and Carmunnock Community Windpark Trust and (c) Newburgh Community Wind Power project, which received a grant from the Climate Challenge Fund in 2009.

Question reference: S4W-05488

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 29 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S4W-05075 by Stewart Stevenson on 27 January 2012, what the actual reduction in CO2 tonnage was by the (a) Going Carbon Neutral Stirling, (b) Castlemilk and Carmunnock Community Windpark Trust, (c) Decrease CO2 Footprint, Shetland, (d) Active Leith and (e) NET Your Carbons project, which received a grant from the Climate Challenge Fund in 2008.

The actual reduction in CO₂ tonnage by each of the projects listed are (a) not yet known, final report to be submitted in April 2012 including CO₂ reductions data, (b) zero, as this was a wind power feasibility study and no CO₂ would be reduced over the period of the award. The estimated CO₂ reduction provided at application referred to reductions following the installation of a turbine, (c) 1,863, (d) 263, and (e) zero, as we were unable to obtain actual CO₂ reduction information from the community group.

Question reference: S4O-00696

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by David Stewart on 22 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what advice it sought in relation to the proposal for an external security screening facility.

In 2007, the SPCB commissioned and received official security advice about the measures in place at the Parliament in relation to current risks and threats. In 2011, we asked our security adviser to review the recommendations received in 2007. We received clear advice from our adviser, other official security sources and the police that the risks and threats identified were still relevant, if anything even more so. We have also received advice from the Solicitor to the Scottish Parliament about the SPCB’s responsibility to ensure the safety of employees and visitors in relation to the known risks and threats.

Question reference: S4W-05349

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 13 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what information it records on incidences of retail crime and whether it plans to publish this.

The police recorded crime data collected centrally is based on an aggregate return from each of the eight police forces in Scotland and does not include details relating to victims or locations. The only form of retail crime that is separately identifiable is shoplifting, which is published in Table 1 of the annual Recorded Crime in Scotland statistical bulletin. This can be found on the Scottish Government website at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/09/02120241/0.

Question reference: S4W-05075

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 27 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S4W-04879 by Stewart Stevenson on 18 January 2012, on what date the application for each of the 461 projects was received.

Further to the answer provided to question S4W-04879, a table listing all 461 individual projects in receipt of an award from the Climate Challenge Fund since its launch in 2008 has been produced. This provides details of the project name, the date the project submitted an Expression of Interest to apply to the fund, and the date their final application was submitted for consideration by the Independent Grants Panel. Copies of this table are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 53620).

On providing the information above, some of the dates provided for the answer to S4W-04879 were found to be inaccurate. This has been amended with an updated copy of the table provided to the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 53591).

Question reference: S4O-00611

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 January 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on vulnerable groups, such as disabled students, of reductions to the further education budget.

Question reference: S4W-04879

Asked by: Graeme Pearson, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 18 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S4W-04180 by Stewart Stevenson on 8 December 2011, when each successful application to the climate change fund was submitted.

A table listing each of the 461 individual projects in receipt on an award from the Climate Challenge Fund in CCF1 (2008-11) and CCF2 (2011-12) has been produced. This gives, for each project, total grant awarded, the anticipated CO₂ reduction in tonnes as estimated on the original application form date of the final application was submitted. Copies of this table are available from the Scottish Parliaments Information Centre (Bib. number 53591).

Question reference: S4W-05046

Current Status: Withdrawn