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-24772

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 August 2019
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 2 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to open new railway stations in the North East Scotland region.

Question reference: S5W-24748

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 29 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government when it will bring forward legislation to improve forensic medical services for victims of rape and sexual assault.

Question reference: S5W-24732

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 28 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it has (a) sought and (b) received regarding the level of expansion of prisoner voting required to comply with the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Scottish Ministerial Code states that Ministers must not ordinarily divulge either the source or content of legal advice. Legal advice is confidential and it is a very long established convention that legal advice provided to the Scottish Government is not published, and that the Government does not disclose the source of advice.

I look forward to discussing my reasoning on prisoner voting at Committee and when the Parliament debates the Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Bill.

Question reference: S5W-24743

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 27 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to raise standards of online and digital safety in the private and third sectors.

The Scottish Government is delivering, as part of our Cyber Resilience Strategy, bespoke action plans for the private and third sectors which aim to develop a common, aligned approach to cyber resilience across Scotland to ensure all parts of society benefit from being digitally safe and secure.

The Scottish Government has made £500,000 available for businesses and charities to adopt accreditation which demonstrates that they have taken sufficient steps to defend themselves against the most common internet-based threats.

A cyber catalyst network has been established in both the private and third sector to provide a leadership and support model. This includes sharing knowledge and experience to influence the uptake of cyber resilient behaviours in these sectors.

Question reference: S5W-24730

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Current Status: Answer expected on 10 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been (a) charged, (b) prosecuted and (c) convicted under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 in each of the last 10 years.

Question reference: S5W-24736

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Current Status: Answer expected on 10 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase the proportion of community payback orders that include unpaid work or other activities.

Question reference: S5W-24733

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Current Status: Answer expected on 10 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to reports of an increase in the number of arson incidents in prisons.

Question reference: S5O-03446

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 26 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent of the £308 million that it plans to allocate to social security by 2022-23.

The Financial Memorandum made it clear that the £308 million was an initial estimate for a four year programme which could change materially.

The costs of implementing the Social Security programme for financial year 17-18 were published as part of the Scottish Government’s consolidated accounts on 27 September 2018, the costs were £21 million. The consolidated accounts for financial year 18-19 are still being finalised and will be published in due course.

Question reference: S5O-03397

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what consultations it has had with tourism businesses in the north east regarding factors that can impact on the effectiveness of their operation.

Question reference: S5W-23518

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2019
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 12 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23146 by Humza Yousaf on 28 May 2019, whether it was aware that the Scottish Police Authority reportedly did not meet its commitment to move 100 officers from support roles to the front line in 2018-19, and, if it is not aware of such issues, whether it can meet its commitment that "decisions to slow police officer recruitment must not be taken until there is evidence that increases in operational policing capacity have been delivered".

The Scottish Government does not collect data on the number of police officers and staff in workforce categories. The deployment of police officers and staff is a matter for the Chief Constable and it is for the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) to hold the Chief Constable to account for policing in Scotland, including the delivery of increased operational capacity.

HMICS is working with Police Scotland to provide scrutiny and assurance around the delivery of increased operational capacity and provides regular updates to the Chair of the SPA in this regard. It is important to note that Police Scotland’s plans for increasing capacity are based on improved ways of working (developing an enhanced understanding of and response to demand) and productivity gains associated with new technology, as well as adjustments in the balance of the workforce (including between officers and police staff). It is not simply a matter of moving officers around.

Police Scotland have recently developed a Framework for Strategic Workforce Planning to inform their approach. Crucially, it is for the Chief Constable to consider the right workforce mix and to continue to review Police Scotland’s capacity and capability in the context of any new and emerging threats.

The police officer quarterly strength data, as at 31 March 2019, shows there were 17,251 police officers in Scotland, an increase of 81 officers since 31 March 2018. This increase was in response to the risks associated with Brexit and shows the service's ability to respond to emerging threats, with the aim of always having the policing capacity to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our communities.