Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-34288

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 20 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many people in each NHS board area have died since 1 December 2020 with COVID-19 recorded as the primary cause of death.

The following table has been provided by National Records of Scotland (NRS):

Deaths occurring from 1st December 2020 by underlying cause of death and Health Board of residence

Health Board of Residence	Underlying Cause of death
	other	COVID-19	Total
Ayrshire and Arran	388	74	462
Borders	90	13	103
Dumfries and Galloway	174	1	175
Fife	309	54	363
Forth Valley	246	29	275
Grampian	460	70	530
Greater Glasgow and Clyde	888	170	1058
Highland	293	5	298
Lanarkshire	526	136	662
Lothian	594	117	711
Orkney	26	0	26
Shetland	16	0	16
Tayside	380	45	425
Western Isles	30	0	30
Total	4420	714	5134

1 - For information on how underlying cause of death is determined, refer to the NRS website:

https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/deaths/deaths-background-information/death-certificates-and-coding-the-causes-of-death

2 - includes all deaths registered up to 3 January 2021 where date of death was 1 December 2020 or later.

Question reference: S5W-34289

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 20 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many daily (a) admissions to and (b) discharges from hospitals there have been in each NHS board area since 1 December 2020.

Data on admissions into acute hospitals by NHS Board are published monthly by Public Health Scotland on the ‘COVID-19 wider impacts on the health care system dashboard’. The next update will be released 13 January 2021 and will include admissions during December.

This can be accessed at https://scotland.shinyapps.io/phs-covid-wider-impact/.

Data on discharges to 31 December 2020 is scheduled to be published in May 2021 via the Acute Activity publication ( https://beta.isdscotland.org/find-publications-and-data/health-services/hospital-care/acute-hospital-activity-and-nhs-beds-information-quarterly )

Question reference: S5O-04935

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 January 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when the Edinburgh-Perth railway line will be upgraded.

Question reference: S5W-33508

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with any emerging scheme administrator on the collection methods for glass through the deposit return scheme (DRS), and how reverse vending machines will be specified to accommodate this collection.

It is for the businesses with responsibility for delivering Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), and in particular any scheme administrator(s), to determine how containers returned under Scotland’s DRS will be collected, including the operation of any reverse vending machines.

We have supported industry through our Industry Advisory Group and working groups to consider how they will manage collection of containers to ensure an effective scheme.

Question reference: S5W-33510

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on glass that is in a naturally broken state being collected through the deposit return scheme (DRS).

The Full Business Case Stage 1 for Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), published on 19 May 2019 ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/deposit-return-scheme-scotland-full-business-case-stage-1/ ), was developed on the basis of glass being collected whole under Scotland’s DRS. Any scheme administrator(s) wishing to adopt a different approach would need to ensure it complied with the duty under section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to take all reasonable steps to handle the containers in a manner that would promote high-quality recycling.

Question reference: S5W-33509

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has carried out of the collection methods for glass containers under the Deposit and Return Scheme for Scotland Regulations 2020.

It is for the businesses with responsibility for delivering Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), and in particular any scheme administrator(s), to determine how containers returned under Scotland’s DRS will be collected.

As per the answer to S5W-33510 on 2 December 2020, the DRS Full Business Case, published on 08 May 2019 ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/deposit-return-scheme-scotland-full-business-case-stage-1/ ), was developed on the basis of glass being collected whole under Scotland’s DRS.

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

Question reference: S5W-33266

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 November 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) COSLA and (b) all other public bodies on the establishment of Regional Land Use Partnerships.

The Scottish Government is committed to Regional Land Use Partnerships. Following the publication of the Scottish Land Commission recommendations report on 3 November 2020, we are undertaking preparatory work to establish Regional Land Use Partnership pilots. As part of this work, we are reviewing the Scottish Land Commission’s recommendations and pursuing options to enable pilot projects to be operational by the end of 2021, to meet the Programme for Government commitment. This work will comprise engagement with all relevant stakeholders, including COSLA and other relevant public bodies.

Question reference: S5W-33268

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 November 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) fiscal and (b) administrative support it intends to give to early adopters of Regional Land Use Partnerships, and whether this financial support will be allocated in the 2020-21 budget.

The Scottish Government is committed to Regional Land Use Partnerships. Following the publication of the Scottish Land Commission recommendations report on 3 November 2020, we are undertaking preparatory work to establish Regional Land Use Partnership pilots. As part of this work, we are reviewing the Scottish Land Commission’s recommendations and pursuing all options to enable pilot projects to be operational by the end of 2021, to meet the Programme for Government commitment. This will include evaluating any support required. We intend to announce the agreed pilot areas in the near future.

Question reference: S5W-33267

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 November 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to (a) identify and (b) notify areas as pilot regions for Regional Land Use Partnerships.

The Scottish Government is committed to Regional Land Use Partnerships. Following the publication of the Scottish Land Commission recommendations report on 3 November 2020, we are undertaking preparatory work to establish Regional Land Use Partnership pilots. As part of this work, we are reviewing the Scottish Land Commission’s recommendations and pursuing options to enable pilot projects to be operational by the end of 2021, to meet the Programme for Government commitment. We will continue to engage with stakeholders to achieve this, and we intend to announce the agreed pilot areas in the near future.

Question reference: S5W-33386

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 November 2020
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 26 November 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether the risk of peat slides is taken into consideration when planning permission is being sought for windfarm construction.

The determination of any planning application is a matter for the relevant Planning Authority based on the circumstances of the individual case, in accordance with the relevant development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. In reaching its decision, the planning authority is expected to have regard to all material factors, and this would include any Peat Landslide Hazard and Risk Assessment where appropriate. The Scottish Government’s Peat Landslide Hazard and Risk Assessments: Best Practice Guide for Proposed Electricity Generation Developments promotes best practice on this.

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