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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: S4W-28658

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 10 December 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what the percentage take-up of free school meals is for pupils in primary one to three, broken down by local authority.

This government's action to provide a free school meal to every child in primary one to three has had huge take up. Our action is helping to ensure that every child in Scotland gets the best possible start while tackling inequalities and saving parents around £380 a year for each child.

The latest statistics on free school meal uptake were published on 17 June 2015 in the Scottish Government statistics publication - Summary statistics for attainment, leaver destinations and healthy living, No. 5: 2015 Edition. Table 7 in the accompanying supplementary data, provides details of the number of primary one to three pupils present and taking free school meals on the day of the survey, broken down by local authority, and can be accessed at the following address:

http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/School-Education/MealsSD/mealspesd/mealspesd2015.

Question reference: S4W-28637

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 7 December 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) whole-time equivalent and (b) headcount places were available in science, technology, engineering and maths subjects at each college in (i) 2013-14 and (ii) 2014-15.

Data on students in colleges in Scotland are collected by the Scottish Funding Council. The latest available data is for 2013-14 and I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-23591 on 19 January 2015 where this data was provided. Data for 2014-15 will be available in January 2016.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-28679

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 3 December 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that local authority planning officers are aware of Scottish Planning Policy in relation to wild land areas and how it should be (a) applied in relation to applications for wind turbine developments and (b) considered in reports to planning committees.

Scottish Planning Policy is a material consideration within the planning process. The Scottish Government refers to Scottish Planning Policy in our routine communications with planning authorities, including through the Heads of Planning Scotland network.

Communities, developers and planning authorities should be guided by the spatial frameworks for wind farm development that are guided by Scottish Planning Policy but prepared and applied by planning authorities. The approach to wild land as set out in Scottish Planning Policy should inform relevant policies contained within local development plan. Legislation requires that decisions on individual planning applications accords with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise.

It is for the planning authority to decide whether direct reference to Scottish Planning Policy is required in any decision or report to committee it makes.

Further information is available in our online advice:

http://scotgovplanningarchitecture.com/2014/12/05/onshore-wind-questions-answered/

Question reference: S4W-28636

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Aileen McLeod on 2 December 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many trees have been planted under its 2010 initiative to plant 100 million trees by 2015, broken down by (a) species and (b) acreage.

In 2010 Scottish Ministers pledged to plant 100 million trees by 2015 as part of The Climate Group’s States and Regions Alliance Billion Trees initiative. This Scottish figure of 100 million trees was based on achieving 50,000 hectares of woodland creation over that period at an average stocking of 2,000 trees per hectare.

On this basis, planting over the period 2010-15, equates to 88.6 million trees – 13,317 hectares of conifers (26.6 million trees) and 30,983 hectares of broadleaves (62.0 million trees).

Question reference: S4F-03107

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 November 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2015

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government is doing to reduce healthcare inequalities.

Question reference: S4T-01182

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 November 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 24 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many farmers will not receive the 70% emergency common agricultural policy payment in December.

Question reference: S4W-28266

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-27864 by Fergus Ewing on 2 November 2015, for what reason the answer quotes statistics that do not support the minister's statement on 17 September 2015 that the cost of providing sufficient electricity storage to deal with the intermittency issue arising from onshore wind power “will be far less than the enormous cost of the Hinkley Point nuclear power station” (Official Report c. 62), but demonstrate that the levelised cost estimates for new nuclear projects are lower than those for onshore wind (Tables 4 and 5).

The Department of Energy and Climate Change highlights that levelised costs are subject to a number of uncertainties and are not the sole basis for setting the support given to low carbon generators. The first Contract for Difference allocation round highlighted that the bulk of onshore wind projects will deliver at £82.50 per megawatt hour in 2018-19 – and some onshore wind projects will deliver at £79.23. Contrast this with the strike price being given to Hinkley C of £92.50 per megawatt hour, with a contract length of 35 years in comparison to 15 years for onshore wind.

Question reference: S4W-28267

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-27864 by Fergus Ewing on 2 November 2015, as the minister has not produced evidence to support his statement on 17 September 2015 that the cost of providing sufficient electricity storage to deal with the intermittency issue arising from onshore wind power “will be far less than the enormous cost of the Hinkley Point nuclear power station” (Official Report c. 62), whether he will seek (a) to have the record corrected or (b) time in the Chamber to apologise for providing what appears to be incorrect information.

The deployment of energy storage technologies – both established and emerging – is among the options available for delivering a more flexible and sustainable energy system. As indicated in the reply to S4W-27864, an increase in large scale hydro pumped storage is one such option, the costs of which compare favourably with those of new nuclear capacity according to the Electricity Generation Costs (2013) report from the Department of Energy and Climate Change, provided in the answer to question S4W-27627 on 1 October 2015. We therefore see no reason to either amend the Official Report or issue an apology for issuing incorrect information.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-28097

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 October 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 11 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that patients are being expected to wait 12 months for a first appointment, when it expects the Sandyford gender identity clinic to meet the referral to treatment target of 18 weeks.

Gender reassignment services are not covered by the 18 weeks referral to treatment standard. This is because patients accessing these services are likely to undertake psychological therapy and significant counselling as part of their treatment and clearly it would not be possible for all of this treatment to be completed within the 18 weeks referral to treatment standard. The gender reassignment protocol sets out the patient pathway from the patient attending their GP right through to gender reassignment genital surgery treatment a copy of which can be found at the following link: http://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/mels/CEL2012_26.pdf. We expect boards to ensure that patients accessing gender reassignment services are seen as quickly as possible. In the case of the Sandyford clinic in Glasgow they are currently recruiting an additional consultant to address capacity issues.

Question reference: S4W-28096

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 October 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 11 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide alternative support services for the reported 167 patients on the Sandyford gender identity clinic waiting list and, if so, what these will be.