Parliamentary questions
Stephen Kerr
2,595 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
24 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it takes to address police officer base operational levels when they are below what is considered safe, and how routinely each step has been deployed in the last 12 months.
Answer · Keith Brown: The information requested is not held by the Scottish Government. The operational deployment of Police Officers is a matter for the Chief Constable, with oversight by the Scottish Police Authority.
24 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many times in the last 12 months there has been a police officer base operational level in the Forth Valley region that has been below what is considered safe.
Answer · Keith Brown: The information requested is not held by the Scottish Government. The operational deployment of Police Officers is a matter for the Chief Constable, with oversight by the Scottish Police Authority.
24 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the police officer base operational level was in the Forth Valley region on 16 August 2021.
Answer · Keith Brown: The information requested is not held by the Scottish Government. The operational deployment of Police Officers is a matter for the Chief Constable, with oversight by the Scottish Police Authority.
22 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what studies it has undertaken to determine the demand for childcare.
Answer · Clare Haughey: Under the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 education authorities in Scotland have a statutory duty to consult and plan on delivery of early learning and childcare (ELC) ( part 6 section 50 ) and on the delivery of day care and out of school car…
22 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to address any shortages of childminders in Scotland.
Answer · Clare Haughey: Our Commitment to Childminding , published in January 2021, sets out how the Scottish Government will continue to work with partners to promote childminding as a positive career choice and as a choice for parents and carers when they decide the most appropri…
22 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the required childminder-to-child ratios are for childminders in Scotland; what the rationale is for these ratios, and when they were last reviewed.
Answer · Clare Haughey: The Care Inspectorate for Scotland are responsible for setting and reviewing the ratios for all childcare setting in Scotland. Usually, childminders can care for a maximum of eight children at any one time under the age of 16 years, of whom a maximum of six c…
22 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the average drop-out rate at Scottish universities has been in each of the last 10 years.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) publishes information on retention rates of Scottish-domiciled university students at Scottish Universities in their Report on Widening Access (RoWa). SFC data on retention rates go back to 2012-13 (into 2013-14). http://ww…
21 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that people with asthma will be offered a COVID-19 booster vaccination.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has provided final advice on a COVID-19 vaccination booster programme. The primary objective of the booster programme is to maintain protection against severe COVID-19 disease, specifically hospitalis…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on electric vehicle charging station maintenance in each year since 2018.
Answer · Graeme Dey: It isn’t standard practice for Scottish Government to provide specific funding for maintenance of electric vehicle charging stations, and as such we do not hold such information. Units funded through Scottish Government schemes would have a 3/5 year warranty/…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many electric vehicle charging stations have been installed in each year since 2018.
Answer · Graeme Dey: Scottish Government only holds information for chargepoint units that have been supported by funding from Scottish Government and added to the Chargepoint Scotland network or where funding has been provided from schemes managed by Energy Saving Trust on our b…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on expanding electric vehicle charging infrastructure in each year since 2018.
Answer · Graeme Dey: Since 2018 Scottish Government has invested the following amounts on expanding the public and non public electric vehicle charging infrastructure across Scotland. These figures includes support provided to electric vehicle owners to install home charging poin…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the ChargePlace Scotland Access Card is compatible with electric vehicle charging stations in England.
Answer · Graeme Dey: Currently the ChargePlace Scotland (CPS) access card only enables CPS members to use electric vehicle charging stations on the CPS network, but developing interoperability is a key priority for the Scottish Government. Officials are actively exploring how acc…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) its position is on and (b) commitments it has made regarding (i) informed external scrutiny of local authority climate change plans and (ii) regular reporting of associated route maps and reduction targets for each type of emission, broken down by (A) corporate and (B) area emis…
Answer · Ben Macpherson: New regulations require that, where applicable, from November 2022 local authorities, along with other public bodies, report a target date for achieving zero direct emissions of greenhouse gases and targets for reducing indirect emissions of greenhouse gases.…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many local authorities have paid environmentalists on their economic committees.
Answer · Ben Macpherson: The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Local authorities are independent corporate bodies with their own powers and responsibilities, separate from the Scottish Government. As long as they act lawfully, it is up to each local authority to st…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which City Region Deals were assessed for their carbon impact or contribution to net zero.
Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government is committed to minimising the carbon emissions impact of all City Region Growth Deals, including the assessment of their contribution to the achievement of the national net zero target. All City Region Growth Deal projects must follow…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what changes to the funding criteria for the Attainment Scotland Fund it is considering as a result of the Accounts Commission review of March 2021.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) is a valuable tool for identifying geographic areas where deprivation is most concentrated, and was used in identifying the Challenge Authorities as councils with high levels of deprivation to be targeted in t…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of budgeted education funding has been allocated to the Attainment Scotland Fund in 2021-22.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: In 2021 to 2022, over £215 million of targeted funding was allocated to the Attainment Scotland Fund, which will be invested to help close the poverty related attainment gap. This is at least 5.1% of total allocated funding for Education and Skills of £4,207.…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its commitment to dedicate at least 5% of community health and social care spend to family support services by 2030, how much it currently invests in community health and social care, and what level of spend it anticipates this will reach by 2030.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: NHS Boards and Integration Authorities currently spend approximately £9.6 billion across community health and social care. Future year budgets will be determined by the relevant spending reviews and budget processes. The 2021-22 Programme for Government sets…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it anticipates its proposals for Community Health and Social Care Boards as part of a National Care Service will impact on the delivery of the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund.
Answer · Clare Haughey: The National Care Service proposals are at an early stage and will be subject to consultation until the beginning of November. Following the consultation Ministers will take a view on the scope of the National Care Service and further work will be required to…
15 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £500 million for the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund announced in the Programme for Government will be allocated (a) to each local authority and (b) in each year.
Answer · Clare Haughey: The commitment to investing at least £500m over the life of this Parliament to create a Whole Family Wellbeing Fund is significant. This will enable transformational change which will enable the building of universal, holistic support services available in co…
13 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what research ministers have considered on the safety of children in relation to the wearing of face coverings.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: There is a wealth of evidence supporting the efficacy of face coverings, which includes but is not limited to the impacts on children. Our decisions on face coverings have always and continues to be based on the available scientific and medical evidence. The…
13 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which research projects have received funding through its Saltire Research Awards.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government funded Saltire Research Awards will this year support 93 research projects through the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) schemes and create around 70 exchanges through the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) scheme, across a broad range of d…
13 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many of its civil servants are currently engaged in work on Scottish independence.
Answer · Angus Robertson: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02844 on 23 September 2021. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-commi…
9 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to help prevent industrial action within ScotRail.
Answer · Graeme Dey: Negotiations are a matter for ScotRail and staff representatives through established collective bargaining arrangements. That being said, I have had discussions with Abellio ScotRail and the trade unions, and have encouraged every constructive effort to resol…
8 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many deaths in custody there have been in prisons in each of the last five years.
Answer · Keith Brown: I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows: The number of deaths in custody in prisons over the past five years is detailed in the following table: Calendar Year Total …
8 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which paedologists or specialists in children's behaviour it consulted in advance of its LGBT inclusivity guidance being provided to schools.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: A list of organisations which provided advice or information as part of the development of the guidance is contained within ‘ Supporting transgender young people in schools: guidance for Scottish schools’ . They include:Association of Directors of Education…
8 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on how many occasions it has worked with the UK Government on issues related to the price of electricity and gas in order to ensure that electric heating systems do not penalise homeowners or increase fuel poverty.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The cost of energy remains a significant issue in terms of tackling fuel poverty and can discourage switching to electric zero emissions technologies for heating. As energy pricing and obligations are reserved, we must see action by the UK Government if we ar…
8 Sep 2021 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the positive destinations of school leavers.
7 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to advise drivers of the roll-out of lower-emissions E10 petrol.
Answer · Graeme Dey: Policy on transport fuels is reserved to the UK Government and the roll-out of the E10 petrol grade is an initiative led on by the UK Department for Transport (DfT). DfT's "Know Your Fuel" campaign has run across Scotland to inform motorists of the change an…
3 Sep 2021 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether senior officers across all public bodies are mandated to take part in in-depth carbon mitigation training.
Answer · Michael Matheson: While there is no mandatory requirement for public body senior officers to take specific carbon mitigation training, in recognition of the value of climate literacy the Scottish Government has supported the Royal Scottish Geographic Society to develop a Clima…