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-18765

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 27 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with exploring an expansion to the Borders Railway, in light of the upcoming Strategic Transport Projects Review.

The publication of the draft Borders Transport Corridor Study in April 2018 included the extension of the Borders Railway to either Berwick-Upon-Tweed or Carlisle as two of the 21 emerging options. Following a 6 week engagement period, Transport Scotland have been considering feedback from stakeholders on the report, including that from Scottish Borders Council and SEStrans (Regional Transport Partnership).

Publication of the final study report is anticipated later this year with the final outcomes forming part of the evidence base for the second Strategic Transport Projects Review. The options for extension of the Borders Railway, along the other 19 options, will then be examined further in the context of this Scotland-wide appraisal of potential transport interventions.

Question reference: S5W-18764

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 25 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that, between July and August 2018, 49% of services arrived in Tweedbank on time, and 87% within five minutes, what action it is taking to improve the performance on the Borders Railway.

Question reference: S5W-18777

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 25 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to decrease the cost of farm plastic collection and improve collection infrastructure after 1 January 2019 when farms will no longer be able to incinerate farm plastics on site, which would be allowed under the Waste Management Licensing Regulations.

In 2013 the Waste Management Licensing (Scotland) Regulations 2011 were amended to implement the requirements of the EU Industrial Emissions Directive. As a result of this change, the “paragraph 29” exemption that allows the burning of waste on farms now only applies to some types of biomass waste and, under certain conditions, animal carcasses.

A list of plastic waste service providers is available on the Zero Waste Scotland website https://www.zerowastescotland.org.uk/resource-management/farm-plastic-recycling . In addition, detailed advice for farmers is available on the SEPA website at: https://www.sepa.org.uk/regulations/waste/agricultural-waste/burning-on-farm-waste/ .

Recycling service providers already provide services to island communities, including Bute and Orkney and they have indicated that they plan to significantly extend their collection area to cover other areas as farmers and crofters move into compliance and start to demand their services. A transition period until 1 January 2019 has been agreed in order to allow this to happen. Initial feedback from providers following the recent announcement has shown a marked increase in interest in recycling services from farmers. SEPA is working closely with NFUS and local authorities to monitor the situation as the ban takes effect.

The costs payable for collection services will continue, like other commercial waste collection services, to be determined by the market.

Question reference: S5W-18627

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 20 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the estimated 1,800 children in East Lothian who have been identified by health and social care officials as living with a parent who has a drink problem.

The Scottish Government recognise that children who live with a parent who have problematic substance use are among the most vulnerable in society. It is vital they are well supported, but we also want to prevent the damage occurring in the first place. That’s why tackling problem substance and alcohol use continues to be a priority for this Government.

Funding of £600,000 per year is provided to the CORRA Foundation who support Scottish voluntary organisations to deliver vital on the ground support to children and families across Scotland affected by substance and alcohol use.

The CORRA Foundation have also received a further £160,000 for the delivery of the recommendations contained in "Everyone Has A Story", an action learning project that aims to hear the voices and experiences of children and young people whose parents are in recovery from drugs and alcohol.

Funding of £280,000 (for 2018-19) has been provided to Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs (SFAD) to support families across Scotland affected by a loved one’s substance and/or alcohol use.

Work is currently underway on the new alcohol and drug strategy which will ensure that health and social needs are taken into account as part of people’s treatment and also those more widely affected, including children and families. In addition to the investment of over £746 million since 2008 to tackle substance use, the new strategy is being backed with funding of an additional £20 million per annum.

Midlothian and East Lothian Drug and Alcohol Partnership (MELDAP) work with a number of services in the area to support children affected by parental substance use. Relevant training is provided to all services, which raises awareness of the impact substance use has on a child and also helps improved identification of, and support for, children affected by parental substance use.

Question reference: S5W-18536

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 18 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how much it spent on the event, Otherland, at the Tartan Heart Festival at Belladrum in August 2018, and how many people attended the event.

Question reference: S5O-02348

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 12 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what support it plans to put in place to assist farmers from 2019 onwards.

Given the uncertainty caused by Brexit, the Scottish Governments’ short term priority is to provide farmers and crofters with as much certainty as possible. Our recently closed Stability and Simplicity Consultation set out options that aim to do that.

However, it is essential that devolved agriculture powers and lost EU funding are returned to Scotland so we can tailor future support to Scotland’s unique needs. This includes the outstanding £160m of CAP convergence monies that is owed to Scottish farmers.

Question reference: S5W-17915

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 July 2018
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 7 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many drug-related (a) arrests and (b) deaths there have been in the Scottish Borders in each of the last five years.

(a) The Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of arrests made by the police.

National Statistics are produced on the number of drug crimes recorded by the police (mostly possession of drugs or production/supply of drugs) in the annual publication "Recorded Crime In Scotland" and a link to this is provided here: https://www.gov.scot/Publications/2017/09/3075/0

Statistics for the latest five years for both Scotland and the Scottish Borders local authority area are presented in the following table:

Number of drug crimes recorded by the police, 2012-13 to 2016-17

Council area	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16	2016-17
Scotland	34,688	35,616	36,836	35,479	32,641
Scottish Borders	386	317	332	344	335

(b) Drug Related Deaths are recorded and reported by the National Records of Scotland (NRS). The most recent data are published on the NRS website at the following link (Table C1):

https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/deaths/drug-related-deaths-in-scotland/2017/list-of-tables-and-figures

Question reference: S5W-17971

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 31 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what provision has been made by Social Security Scotland to deal with domestic abuse cases in a sensitive and fair manner.

Question reference: S5W-17939

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2018
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 30 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the creation of a national park in the Scottish Borders.

We will continue our work to protect and enhance the natural beauty of the Scottish Borders, while promoting sustainable and inclusive economic growth. The region is already home to a number of designated areas, including a National Nature Reserve, several Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Special Areas of Conservation.

There are no current plans to designate new national parks in Scotland. This would have major cost implications and present a number of complex administrative challenges for local and central government, as well as the communities the national parks would serve.

Question reference: S5O-02313

Asked by: Michelle Ballantyne, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 August 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to promote the export of goods from the South Scotland region.