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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: S5O-02830

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 January 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to maximise the benefits of Robert Burns' legacy in the South Scotland region.

Question reference: S5W-20839

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 23 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how many people in Scotland are diagnosed with interstitial lung disease.

The information requested is not held centrally. However, the number of hospital discharges per year for the last 5 years in Scotland for interstitial lung disease is available. Note that the same person may be counted more than once in these figures and that they do not include patients with interstitial lung disease who were not admitted to hospital during this period.

Number of patients discharged from an acute hospital with a diagnosis of interstitial lung disease, by year and ICD-10 code, Scotland, 2014-18*.

Year of Discharge	J80	J81	J82	J84
2014	186	2622	44	2555
2015	202	2755	40	2750
2016	226	2961	51	2863
2017	182	2875	58	2889
2018*	115	2023	46	2298
* Please note that the data for 2018 includes patients discharged from hospital between January 1st, 2018 and September 30th, 2018.

The International Classification of Diseases codes (ICD-10) used in this analysis are as follows:

Other respiratory diseases principally affecting the interstitium

ICD-10 code

ICD-10 description

J80

J81

J82

J84

Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Pulmonary Oedema

Pulmonary Eosinophilia, not elsewhere classified

Other Interstitial Pulmonary Diseases

Source: ISD Scotland, SMR01

Question reference: S5W-20636

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 December 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 22 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government who carries out the maintenance of the ScotRail fleet, broken down by location.

The fleets which are currently leased by Abellio ScotRail from rolling stock owning companies (ROSCOs) are all maintained in Scotland at four main depots (Inverness, Haymarket, Corkerhill & Shields) with the split as follows:

	staff	apprentices
Corkerhill	82	4
Haymarket	142	5
Inverness	85	4
Shields Road	146	8
In Service Fleet Engineering	89	/

More staff have been recently recruited to maintain the HST fleet at Inverness and Haymarket. Other staff are also involved in train presentation and general fleet servicing within Scotland giving a total of 892 currently employed by Abellio ScotRail.

In addition, the new Class 385 electric trains will be maintained by Hitachi staff at Craigentinny depot plus Millerhill yard in Edinburgh. There are around 300 staff based there to maintain a range of fleets for Abellio ScotRail and other cross border operators.

Question reference: S5W-20820

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 22 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-01427 by Michael Matheson on 8 January 2019 (Official Report, c.4), whether the remedial action plan will allow ScotRail to reduce the number of (a) carriages available compared with the current franchise agreement and (b) timetabled services available compared with the current timetable.

Question reference: S5W-20818

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 22 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-01427 by Michael Matheson on 8 January 2019 (Official Report, c.4), whether it will publish the remedial action plan that it has agreed with ScotRail; how it will monitor the implementation of the plan, and by what date it will publish its assessment of its effectiveness.

Question reference: S5W-20637

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 December 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 17 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the Green Bus Loan Fund has been used; how it was used, and what the terms of the loans have been.

Question reference: S5W-20635

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 December 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 17 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason Support for Bus Services, as set out at Table 10.06 of its draft Budget, proposes a fall from £64.2 million in 2018-19 to £57.2 million in 2019-20.

The budget of £64.2 million in 2018-19 included £54.2 million, primarily for the Bus Service Operator Grant, as well as a one-off allocation of £10.0 million of financial transaction loan facilities which were not used. In respect of 2019-20, the budget maintains the same level of investment of £54.2 million, does not include any financial transaction loan facilities, and includes an additional £3.0 million of capital grant funding to support the bus industry.

Question reference: S5W-20817

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 17 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the introduction of the road equivalent tariff on the Scrabster-Stromness ferry route.

The Scottish Government is engaging with the European Commission following a complaint made on 8 June 2018 regarding our plans to reduce ferry fares to the Northern Isles.

Officials met with Commission officials in Brussels on 12 November 2018. The Scottish Government are awaiting a formal view from the Commission regarding the next steps.

The Scottish Government remains committed to pursuing all avenues to deliver reduced fares for Orkney.

Question reference: S5W-20841

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 17 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent in the current parliamentary session on raising public awareness of interstitial lung disease and its symptoms, diagnosis and treatment.

Question reference: S5W-20824

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 16 January 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what the (a) cost and (b) length of delay will be of the delivery of the contract between Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd and Fergusons Marine Engineering Ltd for two new hybrid-fuel ferries.

The two ferries were procured by Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) through open competition to a design and build specification at a fixed price of £97m.

Ferguson Marine Engineering Ltd (FMEL) has recently submitted a contractual claim to CMAL. CMAL is considering that claim in detail.

Detailed discussions relating to contract variations or any additional costs are a matter for the contracting parties to resolve .

FMEL has formally indicated that the MV Glen Sannox (801) will be delivered during summer 2019 and the second vessel (802) in spring 2020.

CMAL have questioned whether the revised delivery dates can be achieved on the basis of current build progress. We continue to work with both parties to identify and minimise any slippage, since the importance of energy both vessels enter service on the earliest possible opportunity.