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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: S5W-08952

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 April 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 9 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5O-00367 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 23 November 2016, when the University of the Highlands and Islands will provide an equitable funding settlement to Moray College.

Question reference: S5O-00916

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 April 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 27 April 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with the introduction of a deposit and return scheme for drinks containers.

In deciding whether such a scheme is right for Scotland, I think it is important to keep an open mind until we have considered the potential costs and benefits in partnership with all of those who would be involved.

Zero Waste Scotland - on behalf of the Scottish Government - is currently running a series of stakeholder workshops. These will help us to better understand the implications, opportunities and challenges associated with deposit return, and how these relate to our wider ambition to improve producer responsibility.

This work will identify facts, figures and potential risks in relation to key issues. Amongst those issues are the possible impact on small stores, how people behave differently where a deposit return is in place and how it might affect the local waste collection systems we already have.

I anticipate that these workshops will conclude by early summer and I will consider the next steps following that.

Question reference: S5W-08336

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 10 April 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to grow Scotland’s food and drink exports.

The Scotland Food & Drink partnership has developed an export plan which was launched in March 2014 to help the industry achieve export growth and build Scotland’s international reputation as a “Land of Food and Drink” by targeting specific market opportunities across the globe. The partnership has identified 15 priority markets for Scotland, including ‘top prospect’ markets where we have dedicated Food & Drink specialists to open doors with customers, provide market insights and make connections with Scottish suppliers and The Scottish Government is committed to contributing to funding of the £4.5m plan until March 2019.

The latest HMRC statistics show that overseas food and drink exports were worth a record £5.5bn in 2016 and the new industry led strategy, "Ambition 2030", sets out a clear structure for doubling the turnover value of the sector over the next 13 years with a key focus on growing our markets both at home and abroad.

Question reference: S5W-07903

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 16 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been given in subsidies to commercially-run local bus services by each local authority in each of the last three years.

Local authorities are funded through the block grant to support bus services that they deem socially necessary. Local Government spend on bus support over the last three years was: £59m in 2013-14, £57m in 2014-15 and £59m in 2015-16. Further detail is contained in the Scottish Transport Statistics:

Table 2.9

http://www.transport.gov.scot/report/SCT01171871341-05.htm

Table 10.3

http://www.transport.gov.scot/report/SCT01171871341-13.htm

Question reference: S5W-07905

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 16 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide details of the support provided for the provision of rural bus services.

The Scottish Government will provides bus subsidy of £53.5m/year in 2017-18. This subsidy is called the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) and is paid directly to operators and whose aim is to support the overall bus network and help passengers with the cost of fares. In 2012 the basis for paying BSOG was changed to payments based on the distance run by bus vehicles. This particularly benefitted rural areas where the bus services are longer. In addition to this, local authorities are funded through the block grant to subsidise bus services that they deem socially necessary. In 2015-16 the spend on this was £59m.

Question reference: S5W-07904

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 16 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to provide additional powers to local authorities regarding the (a) regulation and (b) provision of rural bus services.

The Transport Bill, which we want to introduce during the current Parliament, will aim to strengthen the range of options available to local authorities to improve bus services in their areas, such as through better partnership working with bus operators, setting up their own bus operations or introducing local franchises, in which operators would compete for the right to operate services under contract. These options will be sufficiently flexible to be customised to meet the needs of both rural and urban areas. We will consult on these measures.

Question reference: S5O-00769

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what treatment and support is available to chronic pain patients in the NHS Grampian area.

Question reference: S5W-07366

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 February 2017
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 8 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made or commissioned regarding the availability of raw materials for anaerobic digestion and other renewable technologies, and the impact that these additional demands will have on feed stocks for the livestock sector.

Bioenergy can bring a range of benefits as a renewable energy. In our draft Energy Strategy we commit to the development of a whole-system Bioenergy action plan, through this we will work collectively across Scottish Government to focus on the best use of our resources to decarbonise our system at least cost to everyone.

We are working with the Scottish Tenant Farmers’ Association to commission research into the use of distillery by-products use for renewable energy, and we expect a final report in the summer. Through the action plan we will assess if further research into the feedstock for biotechnologies is required in order to ensure the development of bioenergy is sustainable.

Question reference: S5W-07501

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 February 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 7 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications to the courts in relation to Section 14 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 have been (a) lodged and (b) approved.

A notice under section 14 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 may be served by an access authority on a landowner. The landowner may appeal the notice to a sheriff.

The Scottish Government is aware of seven cases in which there have been applications for judicial determination in relation to section 14 notices. These are in the following table:

Name	Location	Date	Sheriff Judgement	Appeal Judgement
Caledonian Heritable Ltd.	Haddington	April 2006	N/A. Resolved out of court	N/A
Tuley	Dingwall	July 2007	In favour of the access authority	In favour of the landowner (Court of Session)
Snowie / Ross	Stirling	April 2008	In favour of the access authority	N/A
Aviemore Highland Resort	Inverness	January 2009	In favour of the access authority	In favour of the landowner (Sheriff Principal)
Forbes	Kirkcaldy	May 2009	In favour of the access authority (with conditions)	N/A
Creelman	Dunoon	September 2009	In favour of the landowner	N/A
Anstalt	Stirling	December 2015	In favour of the landowner	Pending (Sheriff Appeal Court)

Question reference: S5W-07368

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 February 2017
Current Status: Answered by Annabelle Ewing on 7 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government when the recommendations in the Scottish Law Commission's Report on Succession will be taken forward and, further to its response of 13 July 2009 to the report, whether it will provide an update on its position on the recommendations regarding intestate succession.

The Scottish Government brought forward a number of the recommendations in the Scottish Law Commission’s Report on Succession for change to technical areas of the law in the Succession (Scotland) Act 2016 - http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2016/7/contents/enacted.

The Scottish Government also consulted on recommendations in that Report for reform of substantive succession law, including intestate succession, between June and September 2015.

The Scottish Government is considering the analysis of responses to that consultation together with the findings of a survey of public attitudes towards succession law of just over 1000 people representative of the Scottish population and a targeted Survey Monkey on disinheritance which received over 800 responses.

The analysis of, and the responses to, the consultation together with the Scottish Government’s response will be published when that consideration is concluded and will inform the way forward, including on intestate succession.