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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: S5F-00558

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 28 November 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 December 2016

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

Question reference: S5F-00472

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 14 November 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 November 2016

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

Question reference: S5F-00435

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 07 November 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 November 2016

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

Question reference: S5W-03448

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 3 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many consultation events were held regarding the report, Consultation on Social Security in Scotland; how many of these events were open to the public, and how many members of the public attended each event.

Just over 120 events have been held as part of the engagement in relation to Consultation on Social Security in Scotland.

Many of the events were hosted by partner organisations with a view to ensuring those with lived experience and those who support them were able to have their say. It was important for many of the engagement activities that individuals were able to have their say in a safe space therefore these were not public facing. However, there were other events which were widely promoted and that were open to the public.

On occasions, where individuals asked to attend events, the Scottish Government worked closely with partners to ensure that appropriate events were identified where possible.

The engagement has reached thousands of people across Scotland with the Scottish Government working in partnership with key organisations to engage fully with those who receive benefits and have experience of the current system.

The events have been a mix of large events, some with over 350 attendees, and smaller focus groups where we have been able to talk in depth about people’s experiences and our plans for social security in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-03447

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 3 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government which stakeholder groups were invited to consultation events regarding the report, Consultation on Social Security in Scotland, and to which of these groups it provides funding.

We have worked in partnership with a range of organisations during the consultation on social security to ensure we reached people with lived experience and those that support them.

As part of our commitment to host an inclusive and accessible consultation, funding was provided to organisations working with individuals who will be directly impacted by the powers to come such as Inclusion Scotland, Citizens Advice Scotland, Glasgow Disability Alliance and Engender amongst others, to ensure that key people and organisations were given the opportunity to have their say and input fully into the different parts of the consultation.

Funding was primarily provided to organisations when it was a requirement in order for the event to go ahead and to ensure engagement was accessible and people had the chance to have their say.

By the consultation’s conclusion, at least 494 responses have been received and just over 120 events have been held as part of the engagement process. Part of the success of the response was down to the support of the wide range of stakeholder groups and the audiences they were able to reach.

We plan to include information about the events held in our report on responses to the consultation.

Question reference: S5W-03777

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-03362 by Keith Brown on 12 October 2016, for what reason the answer did not address the matter of similar schemes that was referred to in the question, and whether it will now provide an answer.

Question reference: S5W-03780

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-03365 by Keith Brown on 12 October 2016, for what reason the answer did not address whether it has considered the economic evaluation of the British Business Bank’s Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme that was published in February 2013, and whether it will now provide an answer.

Question reference: S5W-03779

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government further to the answer to question S5W-03364 by Keith Brown on 12 October 2016, for what reason the answer did not address the matter of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme that is operated by the British Business Bank, and whether it will now provide an answer.

Question reference: S5W-03775

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-03366 by Keith Brown on 12 October 2016, for what reason the answer did not address the matter of applications for loans instead of guarantees that was referred to in the question, and whether it will now provide an answer.

It is anticipated that major lenders to the target cohort of companies could be a conduit for the Scottish Growth Scheme. In the interest of the potential applicant businesses, we will not pre-empt the solution, all lender options will be explored in the due diligence process.

We are also keen to ensure that we maximise flexibility so that we can meet the needs of different businesses in different circumstances, helping lenders to provide the capital required by the companies concerned. The main form of support will be guarantees, although loans may be appropriate in certain circumstances in line with the specific needs of the individual company and the best funding solution. Where a loan is an option, we would expect some disbursement before 6 September 2017.

The capping of total losses paid by the guarantor to the lender is a common characteristic of similar guarantee schemes, for example the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme and most European Investment Bank products. The operational delivery approach is currently under development and will require both public and private sector input. Appropriate due diligence work will be required to be undertaken on each company to assess what type of support is appropriate. It is likely that this will be undertaken through the engagement of specialists with the appropriate skills and capacity to provide a sufficiently robust examination of the prospects and finances of each company.

The Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) Scheme can support lending up to £1.2m. The new scheme will complement EFG by providing guarantees above that threshold to a maximum of £5m by individual company. My officials have considered a range of evidence on SME access to finance, including the evaluation of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme which was published in February 2013. Officials have discussed the scheme with the British Business Bank, to learn from their experience and wider knowledge in the delivery of guarantees.

Question reference: S5W-03776

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 October 2016
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-03361 by Keith Brown on 12 October 2016, for what reason the answer did not confirm whether it expects any companies to receive loans guaranteed through the Scottish Growth Fund before 6 September 2017, and whether it will now provide an answer.