- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 28 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Alasdair Allan on 18 April 2013
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to persuade children to choose nutritious foods during school lunch breaks.
Answer
The “Nutritional Requirements for Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2008” (the Regs) set high standards that all food and drink provided in schools must meet. This ensures that pupils are offered healthy, balanced and nutritious food during lunch break and at other times of the school day, allowing them to try new foods and develop healthy eating habits from a young age.
The Health and Wellbeing experiences and outcomes within Curriculum for Excellence are part of a package of measures aimed at educating children and young people about health and wellbeing in its widest sense. This helps to ensure that our children and young people are equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to make better food choices both at school and home.
We are also taking action to further encourage and support children and young people to make healthier choices when they choose to buy their lunch outwith school. The Scottish Government has set up a working group to develop a new Beyond the School Gate toolkit by the end of the summer to give local authorities and other key stakeholders guidance on what they can do to promote a healthier food environment around schools.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 28 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Matheson on 18 April 2013
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) manufacturers and (b) retailers about the potential impact on child health of caffeinated energy drinks.
Answer
As the Food Standards Agency (FSA) is not aware of a direct, long term link between caffeine consumption and altered behaviour in children or adverse long term effects, it has not specifically engaged with manufacturers or retailers on this topic. However, the FSA has discussed changes in food labelling requirements for caffeinated products with manufacturers and retailers.
The British Soft Drinks Association Code of Practice on High Caffeine Content Soft Drink recommends additional labelling on high caffeine energy drinks and recommends that such drinks should not be advertised, marketed or promoted to those under the age of 16.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 21 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 April 2013
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to meet the guiding principle, Respect for Human Rights and the Rule of Law, set out in its document, Working with China.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to engaging with the Chinese Government on the issue of human rights as part of our overall engagement. Throughout the course of bilateral contact, Ministers and officials take the opportunity to raise human rights issues, where appropriate.
The Scottish Government will continue to share our experiences and values in our dealings with China across a number of sectors including business, education, culture and research. For example, there are opportunities to work together on climate change and its environmental, social and economic consequences.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 2 April 2013
To ask the Scottish Government how much has been awarded to the University of St Andrews to develop a cetacean-friendly seal scarer and when the scarer will be commercially available.
Answer
The Scottish Government provided £94,000 to the Sea Mammal Research Unit at University of St. Andrews to support initial research into a range of possible new options for seal deterrence using sound. The research project yielded some promising results amidst a number of failures, as might be expected with experimental designs of this nature. It did not itself produce an effective deterrent.
The University subsequently developed a single prototype device using a sound that produced a “startle” response in seals. This prototype proved effective in initial limited captive trials and initial field tests, which were supported by Scottish Government funding of £110,000.
The final prototype device is the intellectual property of the University and it is for them to explore potential options for commercial development. The Scottish Government is not permitted to directly fund the commercial development of such a device. The University advises us that the device is expected to continue development and field testing for another 12 to 18 months before reaching the stage of commercial development.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 2 April 2013
To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the second tranche of regulations implementing Council Regulation (EC) No 1099/2009 on the protection of animals at the time of killing.
Answer
The Scottish Government put in place new domestic legislation, the Welfare of Animals at time of killing (Scotland) Regulation 2012, to implement and enforce 1099/2009 from 1 January 2013, when the EU legislation came into effect.
The domestic legislation currently maintains existing national rules that go beyond the EU regulation in terms of protection of animal welfare at slaughter. However, we have previously stated that an amendment may be necessary in 2013 in light of consultation responses.
Analysis of the responses received to the consultation on the implementation of 1099/2009 in Scotland is underway. Until this process is complete, it would be premature to confirm if or when an amendment might be laid before Parliament.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 28 March 2013
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-13368 by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 March 2013, when it will award the procurement contracts relating to its Step Change 2015 programme.
Answer
The Scottish Government’s Step Change 2015 Programme is being taken forward through two procurement exercises, one covering the Highlands and Islands, which is led by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), and the other covering the rest of Scotland, led by Scottish Government.
HIE awarded the contract for the Highlands and Islands procurement to BT on 26 March 2013. The Scottish Government remains on schedule to award the rest of Scotland contract, as planned, by the end of June 2013.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 March 2013
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 27 March 2013
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to promote film making in Scotland.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 27 March 2013
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 20 March 2013
To ask the Scottish Government (a) where and (b) when trials of fungicide application to combat dothistroma needle blight will be held.
Answer
Seven potential sites for the aerial application of fungicide on the national forest estate have been identified, three in the North Highland Forest District and four in the Moray and Aberdeenshire Forest District. Approvals for the aerial application are currently being sought. Subject to the necessary experimental licenses being issued and subject to their conditions, either one or two of the seven potential sites (each of 5-20 hectares in extent) will be selected after further discussions with the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage. The spraying operation is planned to take place this summer.
We will keep stakeholders informed of our plans, through the Scottish Tree Health Advisory Group, given their role in aiding our understanding of the challenges presented by Dothistroma needle blight and to assess potential risks to the wider ecosystems of any treatments used to control the spread of Dothistroma.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 20 March 2013
To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish action plans for dealing with (a) chalara ash dieback, (b) dothistroma needle blight and (c) larch ramorum.
Answer
The Scottish Government will publish its own, finalised Chalara action plan once the GB Chalara management plan is confirmed; this is expected at the end of March 2013.
Finalised action plans for Dothistroma Needle Blight and Phytophthora ramorum on larch will be published by 31 March 2013.
Draft action plans developed by the Scottish Tree Health Advisory Group, for Chalara fraxinea (ash dieback), dothistroma needle blight and Phytophthora ramourum in larch were presented at the Scottish Government Tree Health Stakeholder Summit held on 6 March 2013.
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 March 2013
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Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 20 March 2013
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that small and medium-sized enterprises benefit from public spending at (a) national and (b) local level.
Answer
We are working with the Scottish business community to standardise the public procurement process and reduce bureaucracy to make it easier for Small and Medium Enterprises to access public sector contracts.
At a local level the Scottish Government has issued guidance on the use of community benefit clauses further information on how this is helping locally is available in the response to S4W-13509 on 18 March 2013. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.
