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-15757

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 17 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when the findings of the review of the Scottish Business Pledge will be published, and whether they will be presented to the Parliament.

Question reference: S5W-15756

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 17 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government who will undertake the review of the Scottish Business Pledge.

Question reference: S5W-15759

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 17 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-14397 by Derek Mackay on 21 February 2018, which four bodies have advised it that they have one project for which a contract containing a project bank account will be awarded in 2018.

Question reference: S5W-15758

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 17 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-14390 by Derek Mackay on 21 February 2018, whether it will provide further details of the 11 contracts worth £354 million that will be awarded shortly.

Further details of eleven projects commissioned by public bodies to which Scottish Government’s project bank account (PBA) policy applies which will be awarded with a PBA over the next 16 months are as follows:

Transport Scotland

1. A9 Luncarty to Pass of Birnam

2. A9 Berriedale Braes Improvement

3. A77 Maybole Bypass

4. A90/A96 Haudagain Improvement

5. A737 The Den Realignment

Highland and Islands Enterprise

1. Inverness Campus Plot 8

2. Orkney Research and Innovation Campus

Scottish Prison Service

1. Women’s National Facility

2. HMP Highland

NHS Grampian

1. The Baird Family Hospital and The ANCHOR Centre Project

The State Hospitals Board for Scotland

1. Perimeter Security and Enhanced Internal Security Systems 2017 project

Further information about each project can be obtained from the relevant public body and, where the project is already advertised, the Public Contracts Scotland website.

Question reference: S5W-15512

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 29 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many water rates appeals have been (a) submitted and (b) resolved in the last year, broken down by local authority.

Household water and sewerage charges are based on Council Tax Bands.

Non-domestic water and sewerage charges are based on meter readings where meters are installed. Unmeasured charges, such as drainage, are based on Rateable Values. From 1 April 2018, the Rateable Value as shown in the current Valuation Roll, will be used.

The water industry is not responsible for determining Council Tax bands or Rateable Values. The Scottish Government does not therefore collect information about water rates appeals.

Question reference: S5W-15105

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 27 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many children are on the waiting list for surgery at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

The number of children waiting for inpatient and day case treatment in a surgical speciality at the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow on 31 December 2017 was 2,830.

I have made £50 million available to NHSScotland - with £11.2 million being made available to Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The Board have made available around £770,000 of this funding to address waiting times and waiting lists for paediatric surgical specialties such as ENT, general surgery and paediatric plastic surgery. The Boards have advised that the plan they have put in place should show significant improvements in the waits for paediatric surgical specialties by this summer.

Question reference: S5W-15104

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 27 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) median and (b) longest waiting time is for children awaiting surgery at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

The median and 90th percentile waits for inpatients and day cases in a surgical specialty at the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow in the quarter ending 31 December 2017 was 79 days and 212 days respectively.

I have made £50 million available to NHSScotland - with £11.2 million being made available to Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The Board have made available around £770,000 of this funding to address long waits for paediatric surgical specialties such as ENT, general surgery, paediatric plastic surgery. The Board have indicated that they expect to see significant improvement in paediatric waiting times by the summer of this year. Officials continue to meet with the Board regularly to support improvement in waiting time performance.

Question reference: S5W-15025

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what investment it is making in securing new gas storage.

Question reference: S5W-15179

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-14634 by Humza Yousaf on 28 February 2018, which suppliers have been appointed to undertake work on the rail contracts that were previously run by Carillion, and whether they are employing workers who are (a) self employed or (b) on zero-hours contracts.

Network Rail has advised that the transition process is underway for Carillion’s rail projects in Scotland and is expected to conclude in the forthcoming weeks. As part of this process, Network Rail has advised that the IEP Gauging Project, is now being delivered by Story Rail.

Network Rail has also advised that under the Joint Venture arrangements in place between Carillion Power Lines and SPL Power Lines, Carillion employees are in the process of moving from Carillion Power Lines to SPL Power Lines, with no impact on the delivery of the project.

Scottish Government does not hold information concerning the terms of employment used by Network Rail’s Contractors or their sub-contractors noting that Network Rail is a wholly owned subsidiary of the UK Government.

Question reference: S5W-15024

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 20 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what level of gas storage is available to mitigate exposure to international gas markets and energy price volatility.

The storage of gas in the UK is facilitated through commercially operated storage sites and is monitored by National Grid as part of its responsibility to ensure system balancing of supply and demand.

The following link to National Grid's, Gas Ten Year Statement for 2017 provides information on the availability of gas storage within the UK in Appendix 4.

https://www.nationalgrid.com/sites/default/files/documents/GTYS%202017_3.pdf

The Scottish Government works closely with National Grid – as well as with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Ofgem and Scotland’s gas distribution network operator – to ensure that the supplies of gas to Scottish consumers remain resilient, and that Scottish circumstances and priorities are taken fully into account.