- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 December 2015
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Current Status:
Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 17 December 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the impact of allowing 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in the independence referendum.
Answer
The Scottish independence referendum resulted in an encouraging increase in interest in political issues among young people. Over 109,000 young people aged 16 and 17 in Scotland were registered to vote at the referendum and 75% of those surveyed after the poll said they had voted. In addition, 97% of those 16-17 year olds who reported having voted said that they would vote again in future elections and referendums.
Building on the example of the independence referendum, The Scottish Elections (Reduction of Voting Age) Bill will extend the right to vote in Scottish Parliament and local government elections to all 16 and 17 year olds. The legislation is expected to be in force in time to allow young people to register for the May 2016 Scottish election.
The Scottish Government has been following analysis conducted by a range of academics to understand the impact and experience of the extended franchise for the 2014 independence referendum. Findings to date support the view that those 16 and 17 year olds who voted in the referendum do intend to continue to exercise their right to vote in future elections. Research indicates that young people in Scotland were more politically engaged after the referendum than their counterparts in the rest of the UK. Scottish Government analysts will continue to follow and distil findings from academic research examining a range of impacts from the extended franchise, and the referendum itself.
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 November 2015
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what the uptake of grants was from the Centenary Memorials Restoration Fund in 2014-15.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2015
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 November 2015
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact on jobs and Scotland's economy of the reported Ministry of Defence plan to reduce the number of Type 26 frigates being built in order to pay for the replacement of Trident.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2015
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 November 2015
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 12 November 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the impact on employment in Glasgow of the city council's plans for its City Building subsidiary.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 12 November 2015
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 October 2015
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Current Status:
Initiated by the Scottish Government.
Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 30 October 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to extend coverage of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 to registered social landlords.
Answer
I have today (30 October 2015) laid the first report in the Scottish Parliament on the use of the powers to extend coverage of Freedom of Information (FOI) legislation to bodies carrying out public functions.
The report notes the strong opinions expressed by tenants, Registered social landlords (RSLs) and others on the issue of whether RSLs should be subject to FOI legislation. Therefore, in order to fully explore the complex issues involved, I intend to formally consult the RSL sector next year with a view to extending coverage of FOI legislation to RSLs – linked to the review of the Scottish Social Housing Charter.
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 October 2015
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the possible impact on its finances of English votes for English laws.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2015
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2015
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Current Status:
Answered by Derek Mackay on 17 September 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the impact on public transport users in Glasgow of plans by First Glasgow to reorganise its bus services.
Answer
So long as the statutory notice periods and other regulatory requirements are complied with, including those related to punctuality and passenger information, bus services such as those being changed by First Glasgow are a commercial matter between the operator and its customers. Strathclyde Partnership for Transport has powers and funding to secure additional services to meet social needs where this does not happen on a commercial basis.
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2015
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Current Status:
Initiated by the Scottish Government.
Answered by John Swinney on 17 July 2015
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-25214 by John Swinney on 2 April 2015, what changes there have been in respect of the information provided, and what the total salary cost of employing special advisers was in 2014-15.
Answer
Special advisers are appointed in accordance with Part 1 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 by the First Minister as a special adviser for the purpose of providing assistance to the Scottish Ministers.
The *total costs of the special adviser team of 14 special advisers employed during the financial year 2014-15 was £952,865.
With the appointment of Katy Bowman on 13 July 2015, there are currently 14 special advisers. The special advisers and their specific responsibilities are as follows:
| Name | Role | Appointed |
| Liz Lloyd | Chief of Staff to the First Minister including the co-ordination of the Special Adviser team Senior Special Adviser on the Constitution Responsible for the First Minister’s Strategic programme in Government Special Adviser for Culture, Europe and External Affairs (temp) | 30 January 2012 |
| Noel Dolan | Senior Special Adviser to the First Minister FMQs, Policy Advice to the First Minister | 26 May 2011 |
| Stuart Nicolson | Head of Communications Senior Political Spokesperson for the First Minister | 26 May 2011 |
| Colin McAllister | Head of Policy and Special Adviser to the Deputy First Minister Senior Special Adviser for Finance and for Local Government FMQs, Programme for Government | 3 October 2012 |
| Malcolm Fleming | Senior Special Adviser for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism and for Fair Work, Skills and Training | 25 July 2011 |
| Campbell Gunn | Deputy Spokesperson for the First Minister and Communications Adviser | 8 July 2013 |
| Ross Ingebrigtsen | Deputy Spokesperson for the First Minister and Communications Adviser Strategic communications planning | 20 January 2014 |
| Alexander Anderson | Special Adviser for Infrastructure, Investment and the Cities and for Rural Affairs, Food and Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform | 8 October 2012 |
| John MacInnes | Political and Media Research Support for First Minister’s Questions Support to Communications Special Advisers | 3 June2011 |
| Davie Hutchison | Special Adviser for Health, Wellbeing and Sport FoI Legislation lead | 8 June 2011 |
| John McFarlane | Special Adviser for Justice Parliamentary Business including liaison with the Parliamentary Group | 26 May 2011 |
| Jeanette Campbell | Special Adviser for Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners’ Rights | 1 April 2015 |
| Kate Higgins | Special Adviser for Education and Lifelong Learning | 1 April 2015 |
| Katy Bowman | Support for First Minister and First Minister’s Private Office Outreach and stakeholder engagement Policy support to Chief of Staff | 13 July 2015 |
The special adviser pay bands and ranges and the number of special advisers within each pay band currently in place are:
| Pay Band | Current Pay Range | Number of Special Advisers |
| 1 | £39,445 - £52,904 | 10 |
| 2 | £51,041 - £67,709 | 1 |
| 3 | £65,017 - £83,963 | 3 |
| 3 (premium) | £83,549 - £100,942 | 0 |
| 4 | £86,965 - £104,462 | 0 |
*Total costs include salary, Earnings-Related National Insurance Contributions and employer pension contributions.
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 June 2015
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 17 June 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the proposal that 16 and 17-year-olds and European nationals living in the UK will not be able to vote in the EU referendum.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 17 June 2015
- Asked by: Bill Kidd, MSP for Glasgow Anniesland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 May 2015
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 4 June 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what involvement it had in the BAE Systems announcement that it plans to continue work in both the Scotstoun and Govan yards on the Clyde.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 4 June 2015
