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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-00351

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Wendy Alexander on 14 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make representations to Her Majesty's Government regarding reform of the housing benefit system in Scotland and, if so, what these representations will be.

A number of options are being considered by Her Majesty's Government for improvements to the way in which Housing Benefit is provided. We will continue to liaise closely with the relevant Whitehall departments to ensure that Scottish interests are taken into account as policy in this area is developed. We also expect Housing Benefit issues to be included in a Green Paper to be published by the UK Government later in the year, which will provide a further opportunity for all interested parties, including the Scottish Parliament and Executive, to express their views.

Question reference: S1W-00201

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Andrew Hardie on 13 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to increase staffing levels of the Procurator Fiscal service in order to reduce the amount of time spent by police officers waiting to appear as witnesses in criminal trials.

There are no current plans to increase staffing levels of the Procurator Fiscal Service specifically for this purpose.

Scottish Office commissioned research published in August 1998 has shown a substantial reduction in the amount of time spent by police officers in court. The research also recognised that a significant contribution to this reduction was due to the efforts made by members of the Procurator Fiscal Service to implement the legislative changes introduced by the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995. Other practical and innovative measures such as 'on-call' services were introduced, following consultation in order to make more efficient use of police witness waiting time. Over the last 3 years there has been a steady increase in the number of legal staff employed by the Procurator Fiscal Service. In addition as a result of a recent recruitment drive 22 further legal appointments have been made.As with other witnesses cited to attend court, Procurators Fiscal continue to make every effort to ensure that evidence is agreed where possible and that attendance at court is restricted to those whose evidence is essential.

Question reference: S1W-00200

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 13 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to introduce measures to reduce the amount of police time spent waiting to appear as witnesses in criminal trials.

The research report "From Citation to Witness Stand: A Study of Police Witness Duty at Court" published last September revealed that since 1991, through the introduction of mandatory intermediate diets and other measures, there has been a 40% reduction in the number of police officers having to be available for court on any given day. We will continue our efforts to improve the way in which witnesses, whether police officers or others, are dealt with by the criminal justice system.

Question reference: S1W-00280

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 13 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to provide an assessment of the impact on employment in Scotland of the ending of duty free sales within the European Union and whether it intends to seek details of any financial assistance being provided to French companies affected by the abolition of such duty free sales by the French government.

Question reference: S1W-00242

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 13 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in the light of its policy on freedom of information, it intends to make representations to Her Majesty's Government to publish all of those Cabinet papers which, under the 30 year rule, have not yet been published and which relate to matters which would now be devolved under the Scotland Act 1998.

Question reference: S1W-00210

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jack McConnell on 12 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to provide a list of the members of the Scottish Valuation and Rating Council, and whether it intends to appoint a representative from the Federation of Small Businesses, the Forum of Private Business, and the Chambers of Commerce to the Committee.

Question reference: S1W-00214

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Sarah Boyack on 12 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to introduce road tolls for the Fort William to Mallaig road, and if so, at what point or points would the toll booth or booths be placed.

Question reference: S1W-00213

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Sarah Boyack on 12 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to place a toll booth on any single track road, and if it does, whether it will be able to ensure that this will not breach health and safety standards or road traffic regulations.

Question reference: S1W-00120

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by John Home Robertson on 12 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to publish the distribution list used to circulate Scottish Office News Release 0553/99.

Question reference: S1W-00346

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 June 1999
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 12 July 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to introduce a ban on tobacco advertising and sponsorship.

The Scottish Executive will lay regulations before the Scottish Parliament introducing a ban on tobacco advertising and sponsorship. The terms of the draft regulations are currently subject to UK-wide consultations. Under these proposals, the ban on tobacco advertising would come into force on 10 December this year and tobacco sponsorship in line with EU deadlines outlined in the EU Directive 98/43/EC dated 6 July 1998 The consultation period comes to an end on 13 August and Scottish regulations will be tabled shortly thereafter. A parallel set of regulations covering the rest of the UK will be laid at Westminster on a similar timescale.