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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-06007

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 12 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many public libraries have been closed by each local authority in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S4W-06008

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 12 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many mobile libraries have been provided by each local authority in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S4W-06022

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 05 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 12 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how much income universities will receive from undergraduate fees from the rest of the UK in the current academic year.

Question reference: S4W-06000

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 8 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is to see a hearing specialist in the last year, broken down by NHS board.

The way audiology services are provided has continued to change over the last year with many more boards now offering a one stop clinic service. This means that some patients receive their consultation and where appropriate are fitted with a hearing aid or start any treatment in the one visit.

The following information provides the median wait for patients who received a first contact appointment with a hearing specialist for each quarter of 2011, by NHS board. Information has also been provided showing the median wait for patients who were seen by a hearing specialist at a one-stop clinic for each quarter in 2011, by NHS board.

Median Wait for Patients Seen at a First Contact Appointment for Quarters Ending March, June, September and December 2011

NHS Board	March 2011 (Weeks)	June 2011 (Weeks)	Sept 2011 (Weeks)	Dec 2011 (Weeks)
Ayrshire and Arran	x	x	x	x
Borders	9	4	6	9
Dumfries and Galloway	19	7	6	4
Fife^(a)	5	5	8	4
Forth Valley	23	12	8	12
Grampian	7	7	8	8
Greater Glasgow and Clyde^(b)	6	6	5	4
Highland	8	10	9	6
Lanarkshire	3	5	3	4
Lothian	6	9	7	6
Orkney	2	1	2	2
Shetland^(c)	7	10	7	10
Tayside	31	19	13	13
Western Isles^(c)	29	17	7	6

Median Wait for Patients Seen at a One-Stop Clinics for Quarters Ending March, June, September and December 2011

NHS Board	March 2011 (Weeks)	June 2011 (Weeks)	Sept 2011 (Weeks)	Dec 2011 (Weeks)
Ayrshire and Arran	x	x	x	x
Borders	7	5	5	6
Dumfries and Galloway	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Fife^a	13	12	12	12
Forth Valley^d	SP	SP	SP	SP
Grampian	SP	SP	SP	SP
Greater Glasgow and Clyde	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Highland	SP	SP	11	8
Lanarkshire	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Lothian^e	SP	SP	SP	7
Orkney	SP	SP	SP	SP
Shetland	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Tayside	37	21	13	13
Western Isles	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

Source: ISD Scotland.

Notes:

X Data not available.

SP Service provided but patients’ waits reported as first contact appointment.

n/a one-stop clinic service not provided.

(a) NHS Fife only record paediatric patients’ wait for a first outpatient contact appointment. All adult patients are seen at one stop clinics.

(b)Clyde data is not available for quarters March and June 2011 due to system issues.

(d) NHS Forth Valley started recording adult patients seen at a one-stop clinic in November 2011 and data is still under development.

(e) Provide a one-stop service for a small number of paediatric patients only.

Question reference: S4W-05560

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 23 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many children have been living in temporary accommodation for (a) one year, (b) two years, (c) three years, (d) four years and (e) longer than five years, broken down by local authority.

Question reference: S4W-05559

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 23 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many children are in temporary accommodation, broken down by local authority.

Information on the number of children in temporary accommodation is collected at the end of each quarter. The most recent information available is for 31 December 2011.

At 31 December 2011, there were a total of 5,259 dependent children in temporary accommodation, a decrease of 1,160 children (-18%) compared to one year ago.

Overall, the most recent statistics for 31 December 2011 show an improving picture with:

Fewer households overall in temporary accommodation. There were 10,685 households in temporary accommodation - a decrease of 410 households (-4%) compared to one year earlier.

Fewer households with children in temporary accommodation. There were 3,364 households with children in temporary accommodation - a decrease of 516 households (-13%) compared with one year earlier.

The lowest number on record of households with children or pregnant women in bed and breakfast accommodation – a total of 15.

The lowest number on record of breaches of the Unsuitable Accommodation Order - just three were reported in South Lanarkshire (1) and Fife (2).

Table 14c of Operation of the Homeless Person’s legislation gives a breakdown by local authority. The most recent publication is available at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2012/02/7556/0.

Question reference: S4O-00652

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with local authorities on introducing council counters in Post Office branches.

Question reference: S4W-04976

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 24 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent in each year since 1999 on (a) security and (b) rent for properties not in use.

The Scottish Ministers have no property not in use from 1999 to 2004. Jeanfield House, Perth was vacated by the Scottish Ministers in 2004. There have been no rental payments made on Jeanfield House. Security costs are as follows:

Year	Cost
2004	4,537.50
2005	4,262.50
2006	4,425.20
2007	3,199.65
2008	4,802.90
2009	4,999.00
2010	5,603.10
2011	5,656.90
Total	37,486.75

Question reference: S4W-04978

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many local authority properties have not been in use in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority.

Question reference: S4W-04975

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its properties have not been in use in each year since 1999.