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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: S5F-01107

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 March 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 March 2017

To ask the First Minister whether Police Scotland plans to increase the number of armed officers.

Question reference: S5W-08159

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 23 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S5W-06777 and S5W-07788 by John Swinney on 17 February and 15 March 2017 respectively, what progress it is making in drafting its written response to the Time for Inclusive Education (TIE) campaign, and on what date in spring 2017 it will publish this.

The Scottish Government is committed to working with key stakeholders to fully consider the important issues raised by the Time for Inclusive Education (TIE) campaign. A new stakeholder working group is being formed to bring together key interests to consider these important issues together. The Scottish Government will write to TIE shortly once the working group remit and membership has been agreed.

Question reference: S5W-07987

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 22 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to upgrade the transport infrastructure in Paisley.

The Scottish Government is a full partner in the Glasgow City Region Deal, now in its delivery stage, and is contributing £500 million over 20 years to the Infrastructure Investment Fund.

The Deal empowers Glasgow and its City Region partners, including Renfrewshire Council, to identify, manage and deliver a programme of investment in infrastructure underpinned by a financial agreement with both Governments and in line with the assurance framework.

Question reference: S5W-08217

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 22 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what status it takes of the impact of (a) online trading, (b) virtual businesses and (c) businesses that sell intangible products when reviewing business rates, bands and caps.

Question reference: S5W-08179

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 22 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what further steps it will take to provide relief to businesses in North Ayrshire, which will be impacted by the increase in business rates.

The Scottish Government has introduced a package of measures for 2017-18 which will benefit businesses in North Ayrshire, including a 3.7% reduction in the poundage rate; an increase in the rateable value threshold that the large business supplement becomes payable from £35,000 to £51,000; an increase in the Small Business Bonus Scheme threshold for 100% relief from £10,000 to £15,000; and a bill rise cap of 12.5% on bill rises for hotels, pubs, cafes and restaurants.

Additionally all local Councils in Scotland have powers under the Community Empowerment Act to create their own local business rates relief schemes.

Question reference: S5W-08176

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 22 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to release the 2017 update to Scotland's Digital Future: A Strategy for Scotland, which was published in 2011.

The refreshed digital strategy, “Realising Scotland’s Full Potential in A Digital World” was published on 22 March 2017. This paints a picture of our country as a vibrant, inclusive and outward looking nation with a successful digital economy, comprehensive access to connectivity, an education system focussed on digital skills and a public sector based on modern, digital ways of doing business. It provides not just a vision, but a platform where collective action from the public, private and third sector is needed to pursue our digital ambitions, ensure that nobody is left behind, and that we all remain safe, secure and confident about the future.

It also recognises the challenges that digital presents to our society, particularly changes to the nature of work and concerns about protecting our rights and privacy.

The strategy document is available at http://beta.gov.scot/policies/digital

Question reference: S5O-00811

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 22 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to empower LGBTI people.

Question reference: S5W-07825

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 21 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve quality of life for people experiencing hearing loss, including younger people who may experience stigma associated with this.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving the services, support and care available to people who are deaf. Our long-term strategy, ‘See Hear’, commits to ensuring that children, young people and adults enjoy the same access to opportunities and public services as everyone else, including health care, social care, employment, education, and leisure. The strategy was jointly endorsed by COSLA and is being implemented through local partnerships of statutory and third sector partners.

The Scottish Government’s new draft British Sign Language (BSL) National Plan includes long-term goals to improve outcomes for young people who use BSL. This covers the early years, school and post-school education.

Question reference: S5W-07784

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 21 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes the space (a) tourism sector and (b) research industries.

The Scottish Government is very proud, and very supportive of both the growing space sector, and our vitally important tourism sector.

Innovation in tourism is key to ensuring that this important sector of the economy remains relevant and competitive. The development of potential spaceports in Scotland would not only emphasise Scotland's cutting edge technological reputation, but increase the number of inbound tourists to Scotland who would subsequently embark on spare tourism flights.

Business events related to space are an excellent means to showcase Scotland as a place to invest, study, live, work and visit - and to encourage repeat visits. As well as delivering direct economic impact (through delegate and venue expenditure), business events represent exceptional opportunities to build worldwide links and networks for the key industry sectors in Scotland, including space related industries.

The Scottish Government was delighted by the decision to create the Scottish Centre of Excellence in Satellite Applications, as part of the Satellite Applications Catapult, at the Technology and Innovation Centre at Strathclyde University. We continue to give our support to other clusters of research excellence in the space sector, including STARDundee at the University of Dundee and the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Edinburgh.

As well as this, the Scottish Government, through the enterprise agencies, promotes and supports the more than 120 companies operating in the space sector in Scotland. Scotland accounts for 18% of UK employment in the space sector, in other words nearly one in five UK Space jobs are in Scotland and we have ambition to grow the sector further.

Question reference: S5W-08178

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 21 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the study commissioned of the Arran ferry service.