Paul O'Kane

25 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what additional (a) advice and (b) support is available to anyone concerned that they have been the victim of a spray foam insulation scam, in light of reports from Trading Standards Scotland that it has seen a 42% rise in consumer complaints about insulation scams in the last year.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The regulation of consumer protection is reserved to the UK Government therefore the Scottish Government cannot take all the action it would like to do in this area. However, we recognise the importance of consumers being confident that any work carried out i…

22 Jan 2024 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report by Homes for Scotland highlighting that almost 700,000 households in Scotland are in housing need.

18 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide a list of voluntary sector organisations in receipt of Scottish Government funding that have received a reduction in their award, including the amount of any such reductions, in each of the last three financial years.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Information about third sector grants is not currently collated centrally. The Scottish Government provides support to voluntary sector organisations from a range of budget lines across Ministerial portfolio. This includes direct grants as well as funding di…

18 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the review of charity regulation will be conducted independently of it.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Building on the recent passage of the Charities (Regulation and Administration) (Scotland) Act 2023, the Scottish Government has committed to work with the third sector and partners to develop the scope for a wider review of charity regulation. No decisions …

18 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that public sector grants to third sector organisations are resourced to accommodate (a) payment of the Real Living Wage and (b) annual uplifts to staff, to support organisations to meet its Fair Work First criteria and to be Fair Work employers.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: I refer the member to the answer to S6W-24676 on 30 January 2024. 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-committees/writt…

18 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many public sector grants to third sector organisations are resourced to accommodate the payment of (a) at least the Real Living Wage and (b) annual uplifts to staff, to support organisations to meet its Fair Work First criteria and be Fair Work employers.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Draft Budget continues to recognise the critical role that the third sector plays in supporting the delivery of key services in Scotland’s communities. We are keenly aware of the pressures on the third sector at this time. The financial environment is ext…

18 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23223 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 12 December 2023, in light of its commitment to issue notifications of funding arrangements to third sector organisations no later than the end of March for funding beginning on 1 April, what processes it plans to…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: As I said to the Social Justice and Social Security Committee on 25 January, we are absolutely committed to pursuing our commitments to Fairer Funding for the third sector through the 2024-25 budget process. This includes providing early notification of grant…

18 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide details of the specific measures that will be included within its Fairer Funding approach to voluntary sector funding.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government is committed to adopting fairer funding principles within its management of third sector grants. This approach aims to provide security and certainty, allowing organisations to build resilience, capacity and effective relationships acr…

10 Jan 2024 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to discuss out-of-hours GP services in Inverclyde.

14 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have built up a balance of over (a) £300, (b) £400, (c) £500 and d) £600 on a Best Start Foods card since the scheme was established.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The third party provider Allpay supplies Best Start Food cards on behalf of Social Security Scotland. As of 21 December 2023, the number of clients who had balances in the specified thresholds was: Threshold Clients £300-399 1416 £400-499 907 £500-599…

14 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the longest period of time has been between a Best Start Foods card being issued and it being activated since the scheme was established.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The third party provider Allpay supplies Best Start Food cards on behalf of Social Security Scotland. Data from Allpay is only obtainable from January 2021 therefore the information required is unavailable.

14 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many people and (a) what percentage of the total number of people who have received a Best Start Foods card have not activated their card since the scheme was established to date.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Third-party provider, Allpay, supplies Best Start Food cards on behalf of Social Security Scotland. Data from Allpay is only available from January 2021. - Total quantity of live accounts: 76,071 - Total quantity of cards in the Not-Activated status: 6…

27 Nov 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the total amount allocated to the Home Heating Support Fund was for 2023-24.

Answer · Gillian Martin: As announced in March 2023, of the £30 million allocated for the Fuel Insecurity Fund this financial year, £9 million was made available to Advice Direct Scotland to administer the Home Heating Support Fund.

27 Nov 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the Home Heating Support Fund has been spent in the current year to date.

Answer · Gillian Martin: To date, Advice Direct Scotland (ADS) have claimed £5 million for the Home Heating Support Fund, from a total of £9 million allocated for this financial year, with the bulk of funding expected to be distributed across the winter months. ADS' internal control…

27 Nov 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the Home Heating Support Fund, what the total number of applications (a) made and (b) rejected has been in 2023-24 to date.

Answer · Gillian Martin: a) Since the start of the current financial year (2023-24) up to and including 3 December 2023, 10,798 applications were received for the Home Heating Support Fund. Of these: Approved - 5,255 Ongoing* – 2,741 *Ongoing applications are those that are being …

27 Nov 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the most common reasons are for applications to the Home Heating Support Fund being rejected.

Answer · Gillian Martin: As part of the £30 million investment in the Fuel Insecurity Fund for 2023/24, the Scottish Government has allocated £9 million for the Home Heating Support Fund (HHSF), administered by Advice Direct Scotland (ADS), to support households with increased energy…

27 Nov 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in each of the last five years, how much money was allocated to the Home Heating Support Fund, and how much of the fund was spent by the time the fund closed for new applications.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Since being established in the winter of 2020 as part of the wider Winter Support Fund, the Scottish Government has awarded a total of £16.9 million to Advice Direct Scotland to administer the Home Heating Support Fund (HHSF). Below is a year by year breakdo…

15 Nov 2023 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what mental health support it has in place for SPCB and MSP staff, and what work it has done to promote available resources.

Answer · Jackson Carlaw (on Behalf of the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body): The SPCB takes very seriously its responsibility for the wellbeing of its staff.  That’s why it approved a Positive About Mental Health and Wellbeing Policy which applies to MSPs, their staff and SPCB staff.  In support of this policy the SPCB has put in plac…

15 Nov 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address the reportedly stagnant level of economic growth.

2 Nov 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-06439 by Shona Robison on 10 March 2022, what the current status is of its work on adopting a formal definition of Islamophobia; whether it will commit to adopting the All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims' definition of Islamophobia, and…

Answer · Siobhian Brown: Nobody in our society should ever be subjected to Islamophobia, and we recognise we need to do more to tackle it in Scotland. We previously consulted with communities affected by Islamophobia on whether adoption of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) or…

25 Oct 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its long-term labour market strategy, what steps it is taking to address any skills shortages affecting the economy.

24 Oct 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many active working groups there currently are that fall under the remit of the Social Justice portfolio.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: A total of 9 active working groups sit under the remit of the Social Justice portfolio. This includes the following:Building Standards Futures Board Working GroupDisability Equality Immediate Priorities Plan Short Life Working GroupHousing Affordability Worki…

18 Sep 2023 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will consider writing off school meal debts, in light of reports of local authorities instructing sheriff officers to pursue families for unpaid school meal debts.

14 Sep 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to reduce child poverty rates, specifically in families with a baby under the age of one year.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Tackling poverty and protecting people from harm is one of three critical and interdependent missions for the government – alongside our focus on the economy and strengthening public services. We recognise that families with a child under the age of one are m…

13 Sep 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish updated details of its Learning Estate Investment Programme.

12 Sep 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will provide a formal response to the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland report, Out of NHS area placements.

Answer · Maree Todd: There are five recommendations for the Scottish Government in the report. These include improved data gathering, setting standards and funding for out of area placements. We will consider these recommendations in detail and provide a full response to the Ment…

12 Sep 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the recommendation in the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland report, Out of NHS area placements, that NHS Boards “develop and apply a set of discharge planning standards informed by cross agency multi-professional groups and those with experience (carers and…

Answer · Maree Todd: We have developed core standards for mental health services with a focus on adult secondary services. These include transitions and outline an expectation that people will receive help as close as possible to home. The core standards also aim to reduce unnece…

12 Sep 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the recent Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland report, Out of NHS area placements.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government welcomes the Mental Welfare Commission’s report and will carefully consider its recommendations in full. We expect each NHS Board to have a clear understanding of their patient caseload, whether they are treated locally or elsewhere.…

12 Sep 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the recommendation in Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland report, Out of NHS area placements, that there should be “standards from referral to transfer with involvement of those receiving the care and treatment, their carers/family and those most important t…

Answer · Maree Todd: We have developed core standards for mental health services with a focus on adult secondary services. These include transitions and outline an expectation that people will receive help as close as possible to home. The core standards also aim to reduce unnece…

12 Sep 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to improve data quality on out of NHS area placements, in light of the recommendation in the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland report, Out of NHS area placements.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government welcomes the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland’s report and will carefully consider its recommendations. The Scottish Government has already taken action to address the gaps in data on out-of-area placements specifically for peo…