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-16051

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 1 May 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to mitigate the cost of the immigration health surcharge for workers in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-16052

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 1 May 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the number of people in Scotland paying the immigration health surcharge each year.

As the immigration health surcharge is a requirement under UK immigration legislation and is paid as part of Home Office immigration applications, the Scottish Government does not hold this information.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-16054 on 1 May 2018. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

Question reference: S5W-16031

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 1 May 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what impact assessment it has undertaken on its commitment to phase-out the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2032, in light of its decision to end Electric Vehicle Loans after March 2019.

Question reference: S5W-16029

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 1 May 2018

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it has decided to end Electric Vehicle Loans after March 2019, and what communication it has had with those affected.

Question reference: S5W-16054

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 26 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on doubling the immigration health surcharge for non-European Economic Area visa holders to £400 a year.

The Scottish Government strongly opposed the introduction of the immigration health surcharge, which does not take account of Scotland's very different needs with regards to migration. The charge constitutes an additional financial burden on those wanting to come to live, work and study in Scotland, and is yet another measure imposed by the UK Government to try to control migration through access to healthcare.

We remain deeply concerned that doubling the cost of the surcharge will make Scotland a less attractive destination for skilled workers and international students, who generate considerable income for our higher education establishments and the economy generally. I have made this clear to the UK Government in a letter of 11 April to the Minister of State for Immigration.

Question reference: S5W-15929

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on establishing a separate public service ombudsman for canals and waterways, similar to that in England and Wales.

The Scottish Government has no plans to establish a separate public service ombudsman for canals and waterways. Scottish Canals is a public body with statutory obligations and is answerable to Scottish Ministers, rather than an independent charity as is the case in England and Wales. The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman already has powers to consider process and decisions relating to Scottish Canals.

Question reference: S5W-15654

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 16 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its answer to question S5W-13573 by John Swinney on 9 January 2018, whether it will provide the information for 2017 regarding the number of (a) teachers and (b) classroom assistants there were in each local authority.

(a) Additional Support Needs (ASN) Teachers*

(whose main subject is ASN, English as an Additional Languages or primary teaching in special schools)

Full Time Equivalents

	2017
Aberdeen City	137
Aberdeenshire	262
Angus	77
Argyll & Bute	43
Clackmannanshire	35

Dumfries & Galloway	96
Dundee City	121
East Ayrshire	130
East Dunbartonshire	77
East Lothian	37

East Renfrewshire	58
Edinburgh, City of	178
Na h-Eileanan Siar	21
Falkirk	122
Fife	205

Glasgow City	267
Highland	182
Inverclyde	57
Midlothian	59
Moray	88

North Ayrshire	123
North Lanarkshire	218
Orkney Islands	29
Perth & Kinross	93
Renfrewshire	79

Scottish Borders	74
Shetland Islands	38
South Ayrshire	91
South Lanarkshire	158
Stirling	44

West Dunbartonshire	54
West Lothian	102

All local authorities	3,358

* includes teachers in primary, secondary, special schools and centrally employed teachers, with their main subject recorded as: Learning Support Secondary; Learning Support, Primary; Special Educational Needs (SEN) (primary) non-recorded pupils; SEN (recorded pupils); SEN (Secondary) non-recorded pupils; SEN Behavioural Support; SEN Learning Difficulties; SEN Physical Disabilities; Hearing Impairment; Visual Impairment; or English as an Additional Language (EAL). It also includes teachers in special schools with their main subject recorded as primary teaching.

(b) Initial quality assurance of the data on support staff revealed some issues that have required more extensive quality assurance to be carried out in conjunction with local authorities. As a result this data is not yet ready for publication. Statistics on teachers are not affected by these issues.

Question reference: S5W-15198

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 09 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 19 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether Scotland participated in the 2015 Programme for International Student (PISA) field trials, in which pupils were randomly assigned computer- and paper-based PISA tests, and, if so, what data it holds regarding the outcome.

The field trial for PISA 2015 took place in March 2014. Scotland participated, along with all countries administering computer-based assessment in the PISA 2015 survey. The field trial involved assignment of students within participating schools to groups taking computer or paper-based assessment. The processing of raw assessment data was carried out by the PISA 2015 international consortium of contractors, appointed by the OECD, who have determined that it is not technically possible to draw conclusions about an individual country’s outcome. Consequently, the Scottish Government do not hold the results of the trial on mode effects.

Question reference: S5W-15029

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 02 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-14650 by Humza Yousaf on 28 February 2018, when the audit will be completed and when the information from it will be released.

Question reference: S5W-15018

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 8 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it has not yet published the Teacher Census Supplementary Data, which it believes is normally published each December, but which was not not published in December 2017, and when it proposes to do so.

Teacher census supplementary data provides a further breakdown of the headline statistics published in each edition of the statistics bulletin Summary Statistics for Schools in Scotland and they have previously been published at varying intervals in the months following the headline statistics.

Teacher census supplementary data based on the 2017 edition of Summary Statistics for Schools in Scotland was published on 6 March 2018. More time was required to verify data given errors that came to light in the submission of information by local authorities.