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-01240

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 August 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 September 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that postgraduate students are able to access the funding necessary for their studies.

Question reference: S4W-08934

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 30 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Lesley Thomson on 27 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the recent report commissioned by the Scottish Campaign against Irresponsible Driving calling for access to investigation reports in road traffic accidents.

On 17 July 2012, the Lord Advocate received a copy of the research report commissioned by the Scottish Campaign against Irresponsible Driving (SCID) titled Access in Europe by a bereaved family to information gathered during an investigation into a fatal road collision.

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) officials are presently considering the terms of the report.

The investigation of road traffic fatalities and the provision of information to bereaved relatives is the responsibility of COPFS. Policies are in place to ensure that the appropriate information is provided to bereaved relatives as quickly as possible. COPFS recognises how important it is that they receive full and complete information, including the investigation report.

Alex Neil, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment, is meeting a representative from the SCID to discuss the report in due course.

Question reference: S4W-08795

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 20 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-02170 by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2011, what (a) meetings, (b) conferences and (c) public events the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Cities Strategy has attended since that date regarding the development or implementation of its cities strategy.

Since 5 September 2011, the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Cities Strategy has attended: (a) the following meetings [with external participants]:

20 September	Leader of Stirling Council (Councillor Graham Houston)
27 October	Leader of Dundee City Council (Councillor Ken Guild)
23 November	COSLA spokesperson for Regeneration and Sustainable Development (Councillor Alison Hay)
9 February	Ross Martin, Centre for Scottish Public Policy
21 March	Scottish Cities Alliance Leadership Group
13 June	Chairman of VisitScotland (Dr Mike Cantlay)

and (b) the following conferences:

28 September	Supporting Scotland’s Cities: Empowering People and Creating Opportunities; Glasgow
28 September	Scottish Low Carbon Investment Conference; Edinburgh
24 November	Cities and the Economy, a Fraser of Allander/Herald Group Seminar; Glasgow
16 December	COSLA Convention; Edinburgh

These engagements have had a specific focus on cities. While there have been no events targeted exclusively at a public audience, a number of the conferences have been open to the public.

In addition to these engagements, the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Cities Strategy led the debate on the Agenda for Cities on 19 January 2012.

Question reference: S4W-08615

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 17 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-07014 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 May 2012, when the information will be available.

Question reference: S4W-08941

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 15 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-08574 by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 July 2012, whether it would apply charges for raising employment tribunal claims.

Question reference: S4W-08944

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 15 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-08574 by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 July 2012, whether it would maintain a system of expenses for witnesses attending employment tribunals.

Question reference: S4W-08943

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 15 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many times since 1999 employment tribunals in Scotland have made a majority decision where the lay judges were in agreement.

Question reference: S4W-08945

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 15 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to amend the law so that a person who deliberately causes or allows serious physical harm to a child or vulnerable adult can be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.

There are a number of existing criminal laws in relation to the protection of children and vulnerable adults.

Section 12 of the Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act 1937 contains an offence which, amongst other matters, criminalises the exposing of children to harm where someone has parental responsibilities to a child or someone is in charge of a child. The definition of harm includes where the child dies as a result of the exposure to harm. The maximum custodial penalty available under this offence is up to 10 years imprisonment.

Section 83 of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 contains an offence which criminalises the ill-treating or wilful neglect of an adult with incapacity where any person is exercising welfare powers as defined within the 2000 act. The maximum custodial penalty available under this offence is up to two years imprisonment.

In addition to these specific statutory offences, any person who causes another person, including children and vulnerable adults, serious physical harm may be, depending on the circumstances, committing the common law offence of assault. The maximum custodial penalty available under this common law offence is up to life imprisonment.

The Scottish Government does keep the operation of the criminal law under review, but we do not have any current plans at this time to amend the law in these areas.

Question reference: S4W-08942

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 15 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-08574 by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 July 2012, whether it considers that the removal of lay judges from employment tribunals would make the system fairer.

Question reference: S4W-08839

Asked by: Drew Smith, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 July 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 15 August 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings the (a) First and (b) Deputy First Minister have held with the UK Government to discuss equal or same-sex marriage and which UK ministers attended.