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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-13580

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 March 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many economic experts it is consulting on how much it would cost to provide state pensions in an independent Scotland.

The Fiscal Commission Working Group have already considered pensions as part of their detailed report on a “Macroeconomic framework for an independent Scotland”, published last month, which shows that demographic changes in Scotland are projected to be similar to those in the UK as a whole.

Detailed analysis shows that state pensions in an independent Scotland will be more affordable than they are in the UK. The official figures on spending for the last year show that only 38% of Scottish tax revenues were spent on social protection, which includes the state pension, compared with 42% for the UK as a whole.

Officials and independent advisers are assessing the operation of the state pension system in an independent Scotland and a report will be published in due course.

Question reference: S4W-13584

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 March 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government on what dates the expert group considering how much it would cost to provide state pensions in an independent Scotland has met (a) ministers and (b) officials, and what future meetings are planned.

Question reference: S4W-13261

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 12 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-12656 by Nicola Sturgeon on 20 February 2013, which member states have responded to the Deputy First Minister’s letter.

Question reference: S4W-13263

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 12 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it (a) sought and (b) received agreement from the Secretary of State for Scotland for his letter to the Deputy First Minister of 15 January 2013 to be published on its referendum blog.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland was informed that the Scottish Government intended to publish the letter before it was released. The substance of the Secretary of State's response had been made available to the media the day before the Government received his letter, and did not accurately represent the Scottish Government’s proposals for preparatory discussions, as my earlier blog post of 0010 and that of 1806 on 15 January explained.

Question reference: S4W-13264

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 12 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the First Minister’s speech to EU ambassadors on 12 February 2013.

No, as this was a private meeting between the First Minister and the EU ambassadors.

The Deputy First Minister made it clear that the Scottish Government is committed to continued membership of the European Union in her speech at a European Policy Centre Event in Brussels on 26 February 2013. The text of that speech can be found here:

http://www.scotreferendum.com/2013/02/26/speech-to-european-policy-centre-in-brussels-26-february-2013/.

Question reference: S4W-13081

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 12 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many public analysts there have been in each of the last 10 years.

There are currently seven public analysts in Scotland operating from four local authority public analyst laboratories: two each based in Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow and one based in Aberdeen. One public analyst laboratory based in England and appointed by West Lothian Council in April 2012, has seven public analysts.

The numbers for the previous nine years are as in the following table.

Year	Total PA’s	Aberdeen	Dundee	Edinburgh	Glasgow
1995	11	2	2	2	5
2003-4	9	2	2	2	3
2004-5	9	2	2	2	3
2005-6	9	2	2	2	3
2006-7	9	2	2	2	3
2007-8	8	1	2	2	3
2008-9	8	1	2	2	3
2009-10	8	1	2	2	3
2010-11	7	1	2	2	2
2011-12	7	1	2	2	2
2012-13	7	1	2	2	2

Question reference: S4W-13080

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 12 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many public analyst laboratories there are and how many there were in (a) 1999 and (b) 2007.

Question reference: S4F-01244

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 March 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 14 March 2013

To ask the First Minister what issues will be discussed at the next meeting of the Cabinet.

Question reference: S4W-13262

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it (a) sought and (b) received agreement from the European Commission for Vice-President Šefcovic's letter to the Deputy First Minister of 23 January 2013 to be published on its referendum blog.

Question reference: S4W-13398

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 01 March 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 11 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to carry out a revaluation of the council tax bands.