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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: S1W-01723

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Donald Dewar on 30 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will, pending the outcome of any investigation by the Standards Committee into the reports by the Observer newspaper of 26 September 1999 regarding Beattie Media, (a) instruct the company that they may not enter any Scottish Executive office, (b) give an undertaking that it will not meet with Beattie Media and (c) request Beattie Media that it will not seek to influence the Executive on any matter.

Question reference: S1W-01732

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Donald Dewar on 30 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that public funds should be used by public bodies for which it is responsible in the engagement of the services of lobbyist organisations or companies and, if so, for what purpose or purposes and why such services cannot be carried out by others already in the employ of the public sector.

Question reference: S1W-01727

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Donald Dewar on 30 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive what contact members and staff of the Executive have had with the Observer newspaper regarding the reports of 26 September 1999 and in particular whether there was any such contact with the newspaper before 26 September and, if so, whether it will specify the dates such contact took place.

Question reference: S1W-01731

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Donald Dewar on 30 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will instruct or request that all public bodies for which it is responsible, including Executive Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies, make available to the Scottish Parliament Information Centre details of any monies which have been paid, are due, or may become due to any lobbyist organisations or company.

Question reference: S1W-01733

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Donald Dewar on 30 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that self-regulation by lobbyist organisations is adequate and if so, whether it will make a statement justifying its position.

Question reference: S1W-01537

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will amend Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information by deleting the words "including those" from the section headed "Public employment, public appointments and honours" and whether it will make a statement explaining its choice of wording.

The Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information is based closely on the UK Government's Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. The Code was introduced in this form to ensure that openness arrangements were in place from 1 July 1999. As the Code represents an interim measure pending legislation on freedom of information (the proposals for which will be the subject of wide consultation), no amendments to the Code are currently being considered. We will however be monitoring the operation of the Code and will present a report to Parliament next year.

Question reference: S1W-01534

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has communicated any general guidance on the Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information to the public bodies listed in Schedule 1 of the Code or other affected bodies; if so, whether it will place a copy of this guidance in the information centre and, if not, why not.

Question reference: S1W-01563

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will amend Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information by deleting the word "could" from paragraph (a) of the section headed "Effective management and operations of the public service" and replacing it with the word "would" or other wording which will not allow information to be kept secret where there is only a possibility that improper gain or advantage or prejudice will result and whether it will make a statement explaining its choice of wording.

Question reference: S1W-01540

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will delete the word "unwarranted" from the section headed "Privacy of an individual" in Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information and, if not, whether it will provide examples of the type of disclosures which it would regard as (a) warranted and (b) unwarranted.

Question reference: S1W-01561

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 September 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 September 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will delete the words "risk or" from the second paragraph in part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information and, if it will not, whether it will state its justification for information being kept secret where there is only a risk of harm or prejudice.