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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: S6W-09287

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ash Regan on 19 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the supplementary question by Jamie Greene to question S6O-00660, by Ash Regan on 26 January 2022, what progress has been made on addressing the backlog of repairs to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service estate; what urgent action has been taken to address the concerns raised regarding the 14 fire stations where flat roofs were identified as being at risk of collapse, and what detailed plan the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has for all the fire stations that have been identified as being in a poor, or worse, condition.

Decisions on the allocation of its capital budget including fleet, equipment and buildings is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) Board. SFRS has a 10 year capital programme based on risk and decisions on fire station investment forms part of a wider review that the SFRS is carrying out on the assets it needs to protect communities from risk.

The safety of Scottish Fire and Rescue Service staff is paramount and SFRS continues to monitor the remedial measures which were immediately put in place to rectify the potentially defective roofs found in 14 fire stations. All 14 stations have had an options appraisal to identify the best option to rebuild or refurbish.

Question reference: S6W-09408

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 14 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reported calls from COSLA, whether it will make additional funding available for local authorities to match the 5% pay offer that has reportedly been made to some other public sector workers.

The Scottish Government greatly values the hard work and dedication of the local government workforce. We also recognise the challenges across the public sector, including local government, in ensuring that pay increases are affordable to employers but are fair to employees against the backdrop of the cost of living crisis.

Local government pay negotiations are entirely the responsibility of local authorities and COSLA. However, both the Scottish Government and COSLA are working to jointly explore all of the options available to find solutions.

Question reference: S6W-09579

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 8 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6O-01292 by Patrick Harvie on 29 June 2022, whether it will publish the referenced data on heat pumps.

The answer to question S6O-01292 does not directly reference any data on heat pumps. However, the answer to the supplementary question does:

"the experience that we have and the comparable data that we have from countries that already have a long history of using heat pumps and heat networks show that they will be effective in Scotland"

The research being referenced here was commissioned by the Scottish Government through ClimateXChange and was published under the title “Heat pump use in Scotland - an evidence review” in October 2021. The paper can be found here:

https://www.climatexchange.org.uk/research/projects/heat-pump-use-in-scotland-an-evidence-review/

Question reference: S6O-01292

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 29 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what range of heating systems it anticipates will replace gas boilers in the near future.

The Heat in Buildings Strategy identifies priority technologies available for deployment in the near term. Those relevant to homes currently using gas boilers are:

Energy efficiency improvements,
Individual heat pumps in certain buildings currently using mains gas – those where assessment indicates short-term cost effectiveness, and areas least likely to convert to hydrogen in future
Heat networks in areas deemed suitable.

These are no and low-regrets as, across all plausible pathways to net zero, they are likely to be the most cost effective zero emissions options in the buildings identified.

Question reference: S6T-00828

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 27 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on reports that the Scottish Solicitors’ Bar Association say that the impasse on legal aid payments has meant that the entire criminal justice system is in “imminent danger of collapse”.

Question reference: S6W-09042

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 10 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 24 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of businesses reporting increasing overheads, what its position is on extending 50% rates relief.

Question reference: S6W-09160

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 24 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many schools the Equally Safe at School programme is currently running in.

Our Equally Safe Strategy for preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls emphasises the importance of challenging the underpinning attitudes which enable such violence to take place. Education settings have an important role in challenging these attitudes through teaching children and young adults about healthy relationships, consent and gender stereotypes which drive gender-based violence.

Our Equally Safe at School (ESAS) project, developed by Rape Crisis Scotland and Zero Tolerance, applies a whole school approach to inequality and gender-based violence in schools. Since August 2021, Rape Crisis Scotland have reported over 60 schools have registered to ESAS. This year, Rape Crisis Scotland’s ESAS coordinator has been continuing to focus on the promotion of ESAS and working both nationally and with local authorities to build ESAS implementation strategies.

The Scottish Government also funds and supports other education-based programmes aimed at preventing gender-based violence. Our Mentors in the Violence peer education programme delivered in schools throughout Scotland seeks to enable young people to recognise and speak up against gender-based violence, bullying, abusive and violent behaviour, as well as the negative societal attitudes and assumptions which underpin this behaviour.

We have also established the Gender Equality Taskforce in Education and Learning, to identify ways in which systematic gender inequality in education and learning can be eradicated. In addition, the Gender-Based Violence in Schools Working Group is developing a national framework to ensure consistent messaging on gender-based harassment for everyone working with young people.

Furthermore, we are funding Rape Crisis Scotland to help deliver programmes which aim to tackle sexual harassment and violence in our schools including their national sexual violence programme which is aimed at local secondary schools across Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-09041

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 10 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 22 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the reported shortage, what action it is taking to recruit more gastroenterology clinicians.

In March 2022 we published, in partnership with CoSLA, the National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care. The Strategy outlines our shared vision for the workforce, a sustainable, skilled workforce with attractive career choices where all are respected and valued for the work they do. This vision supports our tripartite ambition of Recovery, Growth and Transformation.

As part of this additional training places have been created in Gastroenterology through the Scottish Shape of Training Transition Group. One extra post was created in 2014, with a further 10 having been established in 2022. All additional places have filled successfully.

The Scottish Government is also investing £11 million over the next 5 years in new national and international recruitment campaigns. As part of that investment, a new national Centre for Workforce Supply has been established which will support the development and implementation of resource strategies and services across the system.

To ensure all Health Boards have sufficient capacity, planning guidance has been issued to support the production of new Three Year Workforce Plans, supported by local systems’ workforce data.

As part of this all Health Boards must consider local population health needs and projected service demand, using that information to assess current staffing capacity and any relevant staffing gaps in all specialties including gastroenterology.

At national level, we will use this intelligence to inform new staffing projections for health and social care, which will be published in the coming year as part of the National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care.

Question reference: S6O-01267

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 22 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that any real-terms cuts in its Budget may impact most on the courts and prosecution service.

Question reference: S6W-08815

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 30 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ash Regan on 10 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many domestic home fire safety visits have taken place in each of the last 10 years and, if there has been a decline, (a) for what reason the number has reduced and (b) what impact this has had on the number of households at risk of fire.