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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: S5O-00675

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 February 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 22 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what advice and support it offers to farmers to encourage regenerative farming.

The Scottish Government provides advice and support to farmers to encourage regenerative farming across a range of programmes and activities. I want to highlight 3 of these and I'd be happy to write to the member with a full list of direct and indirect activity.

Farming For a Better Climate is based on nine Climate Change Focus Farms around Scotland which undertake a three-year programme to implement best practice and showcase it for other farmers, with around a thousand farmers attending such events each year.

We are currently expanding the Soil Nutrient Network from 3 to 12 farms, to demonstrate the economic, biodiversity, conservation and climate change benefits of using soil analysis and nutrient management to improve soil health and condition.

Organic farming can be a means of regenerating soil, and has been supported in Scotland by £4 million on maintenance and conversion payments since 2015 through the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme under the Scottish Rural Development Plan.

Question reference: S5F-00924

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 February 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 February 2017

To ask the First Minister, in light of the verdict, whether the Scottish Government considers that it was worthwhile for it to spend £136,000 on legal fees in the recent Brexit case at the Supreme Court.

Question reference: S5W-06558

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that there is a wide representation of people with autistic spectrum disorders on (a) the Scottish Strategy for Autism Governance Group and (b) similar groups.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving services so that people with autism can live healthier lives, have choice and control over the services they use, and be active and independent citizens The Strategy’s aim is that people with autism should be afforded the same rights as all citizens to contribute to a fair, equal and prosperous Scotland.

The Scottish Government works closely with people with autism to ensure the Scottish Strategy for Autism is fully implemented. Membership of the Strategy’s Governance and Working Groups includes people with autism, and the Government will continue to ensure autistic people’s voices are heard.

The National Co-ordination Project team will continue to work with local authorities to ensure people with autism are fully engaged with, and involved in, the development and implementation of local autism strategies, ensuring the needs of autistic people are reflected in local policies and plans.

Question reference: S5W-06556

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 3 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on reviewing the penalties for offences committed under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006, including extending the term limits of bans on owning animals.

The Scottish Ministers announced, on 4 October 2016, that it would undertake a full review of penalties under existing animal health and welfare legislation. Initial communication has taken place with key stakeholders and enforcement agencies with a view to consulting in due course on proposed amendments to aid deterrence of offences, and to provide for better enforcement and prosecution of any offences committed.

Scottish Courts are empowered, under Section 40 of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006, to disqualify a convicted person from being in possession of an animal for any time period that the Court determines.

Question reference: S5W-05945

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 2 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what research has been commissioned regarding the commercialisation of hydrogen technology.

The Scottish Government, Transport Scotland and Scottish Enterprise, along with the UK Government, were among the lead organisations in a consortium which, in January 2016, commissioned an independent strategy for hydrogen and fuel cells to play a greater role in the UK’s energy mix. The report, Hydrogen and Fuel Cells: Opportunities for Growth: A Roadmap for the UK, was published in November 2016 and is available at http://www.e4tech.com/reports/hydrogen-and-fuel-cells-opportunities-for-growth-a-roadmap-for-the-uk/

The Scottish Government has supported a number of hydrogen gas and hydrogen fuel cell demonstration projects, including the Aberdeen Hydrogen Bus Project and the Levenmouth Community Energy Project and 'Surf 'n' Turf' in the Orkney Islands. These projects showcase the role hydrogen gas and hydrogen fuel cells can play in the deployment of low carbon energy systems, as well as supporting the commercialisation of the technology.

Policies for the further development and deployment of a range of energy solutions, including hydrogen, will be considered as part of the Scottish Government’s draft Energy Strategy, which was published for consultation on 24 January 2017.

Question reference: S5W-05938

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 27 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what the timescale is for the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Scottish Natural Heritage and other partners to publish a proposal to undertake a full census of breeding seabirds.

Question reference: S5W-06114

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on establishing an environmental grants initiative similar to the Highways England Environment Designated Fund scheme.

Improvements to the existing trunk road network are financed from the Motorways and Trunk Roads Budget. Environmental management can be applied on a prioritised basis during the trunk road and motorway maintenance programme, where reasonably practicable. For example, candidate noise management area locations on the M8 have been resurfaced with a low noise pavement called TS2010. The locations are shown in the following table;

Pavement

M8 locations of low noise pavement treatment

100mm of TS2010 in 2015

Junction 3 to 3A

Westbound:

Lane 1 - Length 3248 m

Lane 2 - Length 2932 m

Lane 3 - Length 571 m

Eastbound:

Lane 1 – Length 1510 m

Lane 2 – Length 1510 m

Full reconstruction of carriageway using TS2010 in 2010 followed by 100mm of TS2010 in 2014

Junction 3A to 4A

Westbound:

Lane 1 - Length 4350 m

Lane 2 - Length 4350 m

Eastbound:

Lane 1 offslip at J4 – Length 410 m

Lane 2 offslip at J4 - Length 410 m

Lane 1 - Length 2302 m

Lane 2 - 590 m

Question reference: S5W-05940

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 26 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether its circular economy strategy is on course to deliver 5,700 remanufacturing jobs by 2020, as outlined in its Making Things Last report.

‘Making Things Last’ sets out our ambition and priorities to move Scotland towards a more circular economy, where products and materials are kept in high value use for as long as possible. The strategy does not include job creation targets but identifies the potential economic and environmental opportunities underpinning the prioritisation of our actions, including those noted for remanufacturing. We would expect the employment benefits of these interventions to become clearer as implementation proceeds.

Question reference: S5W-05942

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 26 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to reduce the amount of carpet material being sent to landfill.

The Scottish Government is working to divert a wide range of materials, including carpets, from landfill through increasing the rate of recycling, and where appropriate remanufacture and re-use. These measures include supporting the Recycle for Scotland website, which has advice on recycling many materials; the Re-use Line which helps people pass products on; and Revolve accreditation which is a re-use quality standard that is held, for instance, by Spruce Carpets in Glasgow which takes unwanted carpet and prepares it for sale.

Furthermore, in 'Making Things Last - A Circular Economy Strategy for Scotland', we have committed to examining how producer responsibility can increase recycling, remanufacture and re-use for a number of materials that are difficult to deal with.

Question reference: S5W-05943

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 26 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how much carpet material has been sent to landfill in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority.

This information is not available.

Local authority waste data held by SEPA does not include specific information about how much carpet material has been sent to landfill over the last five years. It is likely that carpet material is included within the categories of ‘textile wastes’ and ‘household and similar wastes’. This information, including breakdown by local authority and waste management is available via the Discover Data tools on the SEPA website at:

https://www.sepa.org.uk/environment/waste/waste-data/waste-data-reporting/waste-data-for-scotland/