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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: S5W-14827

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 26 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 12 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work on 22 February 2018 (Official Report, c. 44), how many military flights it expects at Prestwick airport in each of the next 10 years.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport is operated on a commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government in compliance with European Union state aid rules. Securing a larger share of military business is part of the 5 year Strategic Plan 2017-2022 published by Glasgow Prestwick Airport on 28 April 2017. The Scottish Government does not hold information on projected number of aircraft movements for the next 10 years.

Question reference: S5W-14076

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 February 2018
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 2 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many registered blind or partially-sighted people there have been in each local authority area in each year since 2010.

There are no national figures on the number of people registered as blind or partially sighted since 2010 as the statistics and associated data collection have been under review.

In 2010, 34,492 people were identified as being registered as blind or partially sighted. The following year, 125,660 people reported in the 2011 Census that they had ‘blindness or partial sight loss’. The information available nationally is captured in the following table.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting adults and children who have sight loss, deafness and dual sensory loss to access the services, care and support they need through its See Hear Strategy. The Strategy is jointly endorsed by COSLA and is being delivered in local areas by partnerships between statutory and third sector organisations.

Local Authority	People who are registered blind or partially sighted in 2010 ¹	Scotland’s Census people who are blind or who have partial sight loss in 2011 ²
Aberdeen City	872	4,779
Aberdeenshire	845	5,284
Angus	617	2,947
Argyll & Bute	876	2,431
Clackmannanshire	303	1,156
Dumfries & Galloway	962	4,173
Dundee City	813	3,529
East Ayrshire	704	3,061
East Dunbartonshire	428	2,149
East Lothian	750	2,512
East Renfrewshire	755	1,850
Edinburgh, City of	3,484	10,063
Eilean Siar	136	717
Falkirk	892	3,398
Fife	1,923	9,307
Glasgow City	5,743	14,797
Highland	1,240	5,347
Inverclyde	479	2,221
Midlothian	640	1,922
Moray	394	2,297
North Ayrshire	1,063	3,679
North Lanarkshire	2,842	7,827
Orkney Islands	88	538
Perth & Kinross	803	3,571
Renfrewshire	1,072	4,231
Scottish Borders	755	2,839
Shetland Islands	78	575
South Ayrshire	864	3,070
South Lanarkshire	2,195	7,573
Stirling	578	1,965
West Dunbartonshire	536	2,360
West Lothian	762	3,492
Scotland	34,492	125,660
Sources 1) Scottish Government http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Health/Data/RegisteredBPSinfo 2) Scotland's Census 2011 http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ods-web/standard-outputs.html (Table DC3106SC)

Question reference: S5O-01868

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what change it forecasts in the number of support for learning staff in schools in the next year.

Question reference: S5O-01829

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 February 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 February 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made towards ensuring that the Galloway Viking Hoard is displayed in Dumfries and Galloway.

Question reference: S5T-00944

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 February 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 February 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that ScotRail has had to pay a record amount in financial penalties in the last nine months.

Question reference: S5W-14019

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 January 2018
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 February 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its announcement on 24 November 2017, what progress has been made by the independent group for ensuring grouse moor management practices are sustainable and legally compliant; what the remit of the group is, and what timetable it is working to.

The review group has now been established and it met for the first time on 16 January 2018. The group’s remit is to examine how to ensure that grouse moor management continues to contribute to the rural economy while being environmentally sustainable and compliant with the law. The group will recommend options for regulation, which could include licensing, and other measures which could be put in place without new primary legislation. The Scottish Government may also refer specific topics to the group that might be considered by it as part of its work. The group will report to me in Spring 2019.

Question reference: S5W-14021

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 January 2018
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 February 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what efforts it has made to prevent large-scale culls of mountain hares this winter.

The Scottish Government opposes large-scale culls of mountain hares. There is no current evidence to indicate that large scale culls are taking place but if evidence emerges that points to large-scale culls taking place that could cause significant population declines, locally or nationally, the Scottish Government will consider bringing forward further measures to protect mountain hares. This could include the use of Nature Conservation Orders or giving mountain hares further protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Recent analyses of available data by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) provides no evidence of a national decline in mountain hares. Data from the North East of Scotland suggests there may be local population declines but these are not reflected at a national scale. On 26 January, SNH published a commissioned report on ‘Developing a counting methodology for mountain hares (Lepus timidus) in Scotland’. https://www.nature.scot/snh-commissioned-report-1022-developing-counting-methodology-mountain-hares-lepus-timidus-scotland . Adoption of the recommended counting methodology by land managers will help in developing a better understanding of mountain hare population cycles and trends.

Question reference: S5W-14020

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 January 2018
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 February 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its announcement on 24 November 2017, what plans are in place to engage (a) stakeholders and (b) the public in the work of the independent group for ensuring grouse moor management practices are sustainable and legally compliant.

Question reference: S5O-01726

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 February 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, whether it will provide an update on what plans it has to provide further funding for the Schools for the Future programme.

Question reference: S5W-13583

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 18 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when the new system of registration of blind and partially sighted people will come into effect, and what planning is taking place to ensure there is reliable data collection and annual reporting.

Scottish Government officials are working in collaboration with medical professionals, and local and third sector partners on the development and introduction of the new Certificate of Visual Impairment (CVI) Scotland form. This will replace the BP1 form, which is currently used by ophthalmologists to certify people as blind or partially sighted in Scotland. NHS National Services Scotland is developing a web platform to capture diagnostic data from ophthalmologists and registration data from local authorities or agents acting on their behalf. The new CVI Scotland form will be introduced in the coming weeks once appropriate local preparations are in place.