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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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

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Question reference: S4W-22050

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 07 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 July 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the European Commission regarding the restoration of the open cast coal mines in the Muirkirk and North Lowther Uplands Special Protection Area.

Question reference: S4W-22048

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 07 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 July 2014

To ask the Scottish Government who has liability for controlled activities regulations licences at Powharnal and Grievehill open cast coal sites; whether it considers that the liquidators of Scottish Coal are in compliance with these licences at the Powharnal site in East Ayrshire, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Question reference: S4W-22052

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 07 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 July 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what implications the failure to restore opencast coal mines in the Muirkirk and North Lowther Uplands Special Protection Area could have for an independent Scotland becoming a member of the EU.

Question reference: S4W-22051

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 07 July 2014
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 July 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how it will consider in-combination impacts of proposed developments on the Muirkirk and North Lowther Uplands Special Protection Area in light of the current impact of opencast coal mines in the area.

Question reference: S4W-21551

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of an independent Scotland’s total budget it estimates would be needed to invest in systems, processes and institutions required ahead of independence.

Question reference: S4W-21549

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has asked Audit Scotland to consider modelling the costs of transition to independence using the Scottish Government’s preferred model for institutions and staff.

Question reference: S4W-21550

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what the basis is for the assertion in the white paper on independence that “the investment in systems and processes will be a small proportion of an independent Scotland’s total budget”.

Question reference: S4W-21546

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to commission work on the costs of a transition to independence.

Question reference: S4W-21545

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2014

To ask the Scottish Government who took the decision not to publish an estimate of the transition costs to independence in the white paper on independence.

Question reference: S4W-21543

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2014
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many officials in the finance directorates and the office of the Chief Economic Adviser worked on the paper on the institutions, costs and staff numbers required for the transition to independence referred to in paragraph 49 of the cabinet paper by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth that has appeared in the media.

The work that has been undertaken by Scottish Government officials on the transition to independence is reflected in chapter 10 of Scotland’s Future. Officials from across the Scottish Government have contributed to the Scottish Government's policy on independence as they would any other Scottish Government policy. The amount of time officials spent contributing in some way to this policy is not routinely recorded as there is no business need for it.