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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-01946

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 29 July 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 25 August 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish how The Bike Station spent its grant recorded in the report Section 70 Grant Payment In accordance with: Transport Scotland Act 2001 Section 70(4) Financial Year 2010-11 (SG/2011/115) and what evaluation it has made of the effectiveness of that expenditure.

The Bike Station received grant funding of £28,670 to run the Build Your Own Bike course. The grant was used to provide training to 36 young people from deprived areas or backgrounds and to build self esteem and encourage community cohesion. As part of the grant conditions, The Bike Station submits annual reports to Transport Scotland on the outcomes of the courses to evaluate their effectiveness. Data from participants completing the courses in 2010-11 showed a 100% increase in mechanical competence and an increase in cycle journeys of over 10 miles from 29% to 52%.

Question reference: S4W-00739

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 13 June 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 21 June 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to publish an updated Strategic Transport Projects Review.

Our approach to the prioritisation of the projects in the Strategic Transport Projects Review remains unchanged.

Our priority projects remain the Forth Replacement Crossing, the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Programme (EGIP), the Highland main line and the Aberdeen to Inverness line. We expect to deliver these projects by 2017.

In terms of the remaining 25 projects, we are continuing to work hard with partners and other stakeholders to take forward the development and design of these projects.

Question reference: S4W-00738

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 13 June 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 21 June 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-39332 by Keith Brown on 1 March 2011, whether it will provide an update on each project mentioned in the Strategic Transport Projects Review, showing the (a) actual expenditure to date, (b) planned or estimated future expenditure, (c) actual or planned starting date and (d) estimated completion date.

Question reference: S4W-00740

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 13 June 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 17 June 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-34691 by John Swinney on 30 June 2010, what action (a) it is and (b) local authorities are taking to promote schemes for reducing council tax where improvements are made to the energy efficiency of homes, as outlined in section 65 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009.

The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 places a duty on individual local authorities to introduce a discount scheme for council tax. The Scottish Government has no formal role in developing or delivering a discount scheme, but following joint work we undertook with COSLA, local authorities, the energy companies and some other interested parties to support implementation last year, we understand all local authorities now have a scheme in place from the start of the 2011-12 financial year.

Question reference: S4W-00741

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 13 June 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 17 June 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-34691 by John Swinney on 30 June 2010, how much has been provided in council tax discounts under the provisions for reducing council tax where improvements are made to the energy efficiency of homes, as outlined in section 65 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009, also broken down by local authority.

Question reference: S4O-00043

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 June 2011
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers constitutes a mass waste incinerator and what factors it may take into account when considering applications for these.

Question reference: S3W-39332

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made on each project mentioned in the Strategic Transport Projects Review including (a) actual or planned starting date, (b) actual or estimated completion date, (c) actual expenditure to date and (d) planned or estimated future expenditure.

Our priority projects remain the Forth Replacement Crossing, Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvements Programme, Highland Mail Line and the Aberdeen to Inverness line. We expect to deliver these projects by 2017.

We are also working with partners and stakeholders to take forward the other projects, including:

The design and development of the A9, with design work for dualling currently being undertaken between Birnam and the Jubilee Bridge;

Early design work on the A96 to identify solutions for upgrading the section between Inverness and Nairn to dual carriageway and a new Inveramsay Bridge;

Developing a long term vision for the A82 to improve its overall standard and safety;

Developing a public transport strategy for the Forth Replacement Crossing which will include funding for a Park and Ride Site and investigation of Rapid Transit on the Crossing approaches;

Developing a number of Park and Ride sites, including at Dalcross, Dyce (A96), Forgan and outside Ayr (M77);

The production of a plan for rail improvements in Glasgow and the west of Scotland through the West of Scotland Strategic Rail Enhancements Steering Group; and

Working with Network Rail to explore options to enhance the Aberdeen to central belt lines and develop phase two of the electrification of the rail network

As all these projects will require many stages to be undertaken, including detailed design and development work, a significant amount of work will have to be carried out before we are able to set out a programme and associated timescales for their delivery.

The estimated costs for these projects will emerge as the detailed design and development work moves forward.

Question reference: S3W-39333

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 24 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-32043 by Stewart Stevenson on 11 March 2010, what the most up-to-date estimate is of the (a) final cost and (b) completion date of the (i) Forth Replacement Crossing, (ii) M74 extension, (iii) M8 completion, (iv) M80 completion, (v) Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route and (vi) Borders Railway project.

The most up to date estimates are shown in the following table:

Project	(a) Estimated Final Cost	(b) Estimated Completion Date
(i) Forth Replacement Crossing	£1.7 billion to £2.3billion	2016-17
(ii) M74 Extension	£692 million	June 2011
(iii) M8/Network Improvements/ M74 Raith	£320 million	Operational by 2016-17 (detailed timetable subject to review)
(iv) M80 Completion (Stepps to Haggs)	£320 million	Autumn 2011
(v) Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route	£295 million to £395 million. To be reviewed and updated once the legal challenges submitted to the Court of Session have been resolved.	To be reviewed once the legal challenges submitted to the Court of Session have been resolved. Assuming a successful outcome to the challenges, a thorough review of the remaining stages of the project will be undertaken to produce a definitive timetable to construction.
(vi) Borders Railway (formerly known as the Waverley Railway Project)	£235 million to £295 million (at 2012 prices)	2014

Question reference: S3W-38519

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 27 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps have been taken to prevent traffic queues from forming back onto the M77 from the northbound exit at Junction 2.

Transport Scotland is aware that queues occasionally form back onto the northbound M77 at times of exceptionally high retail activity. This is due to congestion arising from insufficient capacity on the privately-owned distributor roads serving the car parking areas, during these periods of very high demand. The developer''s designers are currently in discussions with Transport Scotland to mitigate queuing at this exit. In the meantime our operating company Amey, Strathclyde Police and Traffic Scotland monitor queues implementing warning messages and other traffic management measures where necessary.

Question reference: S3W-38518

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for West of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 27 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what alterations have been made in the last 12 months and are planned for the next 12 months to improve traffic flows on the northbound exit of the M77 at Junction 2.