Questions and answers

Question reference: S6O-00148

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the finance secretary has had with the culture secretary regarding the allocation of funding for the culture, arts and events sectors in light of the impact of COVID-19.

Question reference: S6W-01639

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 26 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to protect marine wildlife from the impact of jet skiers (a) near Wardie Bay, Edinburgh, and (b) around Scotland's coastline.

The Scottish Government is committed to protecting Scotland’s marine wildlife. The current regulatory framework provides a high level of individual and site based protection measures for our iconic marine wildlife with processes in place to ensure that action can be taken where required. It is an offence to deliberately or recklessly disturb European protected species, including whales, dolphins and porpoises. Under the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020 these offences could result on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or a fine not exceeding £40,000 (or both) or on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or a fine (or both).

The Scottish Marine Wildlife Watching Code provides advice on how to minimise disturbance to marine wildlife, when enjoying the Scottish coast. We would encourage anyone watching or encountering marine wildlife to follow its advice at all times.

There are voluntary agreements in some parts of Scotland around the use of jet skis, including duration of use and timings. We are not aware of a specific agreement covering Wardie Bay. These agreements are not a statutory requirement. If someone suspects that a wildlife crime has been committed, they should report the incident to Police Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-01640

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to assess the (a) impact on the environment and (b) noise levels of jet skiers (i) near Wardie Bay, Edinburgh, and (ii) around Scotland's coastline.

There are voluntary agreements in some parts of Scotland around the use of jet skis, including duration of use and timings. We are not aware of a specific agreement covering Wardie Bay. These agreements are not a statutory requirement.

Our natural geography brings the benefit of increased opportunity to access both freshwater and our unique coastline and we will continue to promote and ensure the safe enjoyment of Scotland’s diverse landscape.

The Scottish Government works closely with Water Safety Scotland (WSS) and other partners, including local councils, Police Scotland and Scottish Fire & Rescue Service to implement and support initiatives that can help raise awareness, this includes providing grant funding to The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents and the Scottish Community Safety Network to help promote a co-ordinated and preventative approach to water safety across the country.

WSS has produced a guide on Water Safety Policy in Scotland which is available online.

Question reference: S6W-01641

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 16 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to review the access arrangements to the Ferrymuir Gait housing development, and what its position is on the impact of the current road traffic on the (a) environment and (b) health and quality of life of residents.

Ferrymuir Gait is a ‘private’ road, as defined by the Roads (Scotland ) Act 1984 and serves land owned by Scottish Ministers and infrastructure required for the safe operation and maintenance of the Forth Bridges. Ferrymuir Gait housing development shall not be accessed from this road and shall instead takes access from the local road network, which is the responsibility of the City of Edinburgh Council.

Consequently, and as this is a planning issue, it would be for the City of Edinburgh Council as local Planning authority to consider the access arrangements to the Ferrymuir Gait housing development and resultant impact of road traffic on the environment and the health / quality of life of residents.

Question reference: S6W-01952

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what help it has made available to potential first-time home buyers since the First Home Fund closed to new applicants, and what support it provides to them when (a) the average price of a home in their area is above the maximum threshold price for the Open Market Shared Equity Scheme, (b) there are no suitable properties available under the New Shared Equity Scheme and (c) they do not have sufficient time or income to set up a lifetime individual savings account.

First-time buyers can access a variety of support to become a home owner, including the Help to Buy Smaller Developers Scheme and the Low Cost Initiative for First-Time Buyers (LIFT). In addition, the first-time buyer relief for Land and Building Transaction Tax means that an estimated 8 out of 10 first-time buyers pay no tax at all.

Despite being closed to new applications, the main Help to Buy scheme and First Home Fund continue to benefit first-time buyers across Scotland with settlements occurring throughout this financial year.

Question reference: S6W-01374

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 12 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 10 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what research has been carried out on the impact of COVID-19 vaccinations on reducing the need for international arrivals to quarantine, and what plans to remove such restrictions for people arriving who have been fully vaccinated.

Four nations discussions on policy for fully vaccinated travellers has benefited from analysis and research from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, the Joint Biosecurity Centre and other sources.

The success of the vaccination programme means we have now started to change restrictions that apply to fully vaccinated travellers from Amber list countries. Initially this applied to UK residents who have been vaccinated by the NHS.

From 2 August, fully-vaccinated passengers arriving from amber list countries in EU member states*, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries, microstates of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City, and the USA do not have to quarantine or take a day 8 test upon arrival in Scotland.

They have to carry with them a form of certification to provide details of their vaccine status. For US arrivals, this proof is a CDC card showing you are fully vaccinated, along with proof of residence in the US. All arrivals from Europe must show a record of vaccination through the European Digital COVID Certificate.

Amber arrivals who have been fully vaccinated must take a pre-departure test before arrival into Scotland, alongside a PCR test on or before day 2 after arrival.

Question reference: S6W-01372

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 12 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ash Denham on 6 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what recent (a) discussions have taken place and (b) public health guidance it has received regarding increasing the numbers of guests at weddings under the proposed easing of the COVID-19 restrictions.

The Scottish Government has been reviewing the restrictions and guidance in place regularly.

Following the most recent review, the First Minister announced on 13 July that all remaining parts of Scotland would move to protection level 0 of the updated Strategic Framework with effect from 19 July.

This decision means that under our published guidance up to 200 people can now attend a marriage ceremony or wedding reception subject to the capacity of the couple’s chosen venue with the appropriate physical distancing in place.

In addition, we have amended the Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Local Levels) (Restrictions and Requirements) Regulations 2020 to reduce the required physical distance between households indoors to 1 metre in all public venues.

The First Minister’s statement summarises the evidence and data supporting these decisions. Information about strategy and evidence is published at Coronavirus in Scotland (see Scottish Government strategy and evidence). We have also published a report on the outcomes of the recent physical distancing review and information about the current state of the epidemic .

Question reference: S6W-01324

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 5 August 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how it will address the concerns raised in the 2020 Insights report, Spoken Language Interpreters in Social Work, in particular those regarding (a) shortages of skilled interpreters and (b) the ad hoc nature of the service in place to support clients.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving and embedding inclusive communication within Government and across public bodies, this is a focus of one of our Equality Outcomes for the 2021-25 reporting period, as well as being a 2020 PfG commitment. The Scottish Government intends all local services to be accessible to all citizens in Scotland, regardless of circumstances of an individual service user.

We believe that as professionals, Social Workers are best placed to make a professional judgment based on their assessment of need exactly what, if any additional support is required. This assessment will include consideration of need for Spoken Language Interpreters, British Sign Language and any form of verbal/non-verbal communication requirements.

Question reference: S6W-01322

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 26 July 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what work it has done to develop a long-term strategy to meet any future need in Scotland for spoken language interpreting.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving and embedding inclusive communication within Government and across public bodies, this is a focus of one of our Equality Outcomes for the 2021-25 reporting period, as well as being a 2020 PfG commitment. The Scottish Government intends all local and national services to be accessible to all citizens in Scotland, regardless of circumstances of an individual service user.

We expect local and national bodies to consider on an ongoing basis the needs of people who do not speak or access English as their first language. In the immediate term, we are currently developing a human rights and equalities mainstreaming strategy which will explore key themes such as effective communications and we expect that spoken language interpreting will form a significant part of these considerations.

Question reference: S6W-01323

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 23 July 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what role spoken language interpreters have been required to take on in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic, and what difficulties they have experienced in providing support for those who need it.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Scottish Government has engaged with a range of race equality organisations and specifically convened the Expert Reference Group on Covid-19 and Ethnicity. Issues in relation to spoken language interpreters have not been raised as a significant issue within these discussions. However, it is for individual public bodies to arrange the provision of spoken language interpreters and as such this information is not held centrally.

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