Foysol Choudhury

6 Apr 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its commitment to hold a public inquiry into the malicious prosecutions concerning Rangers FC.

Answer · Dorothy Bain: The Scottish Government has committed to a process of a judge-led inquiry once all legal proceedings relating to the malicious prosecutions are at an end. The exact form of inquiry will be determined at the point once all legal proceedings are concluded. The …

27 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to ensure that only accredited contractors carry out masonry repairs.

Answer · Patrick Harvie: The Building (Scotland) Act 2003 gives powers to local authorities to take enforcement action where the building is defective or dangerous. When a local authority considers a building to be dangerous it has a duty to act and it is expected that it will respon…

27 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take to mitigate the dangers of falling masonry, in light of recent occurrences of high winds.

Answer · Paul McLennan: The Building (Scotland) Act 2003 gives powers to local authorities to take enforcement action where a building is defective or dangerous. Responsibility for repair in tenement properties lies with the building owners and the Tolerable Standard requires that a…

27 Mar 2023 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to recent reported analysis by Health Equals, which shows that poverty-driven health inequalities are reducing life expectancy among people who live in the most deprived areas.

21 Mar 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it next plans to meet with all parties involved in the proposed Winchburgh train station development.

21 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of recent public protests over the closure of the Edinburgh Filmhouse, what action it can take to ensure that the Filmhouse remains a cultural resource for the city of Edinburgh.

Answer · Christina McKelvie: Following the closure of the Edinburgh Filmhouse last year, the Scottish Government continues to engage with Creative Scotland and other stakeholders to explore options for cultural cinema programme activity in Edinburgh, as well as ways to support the recent…

21 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what routes it has made available for local residents to appeal planning application decisions made by its reporters, in cases where they cannot afford the legal fees and are not entitled to legal aid.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Once planning permission has been granted for a development, whether by the relevant planning authority or, as the case may be, on appeal to the Scottish Ministers, there is no further opportunity for third parties to challenge the decision under planning leg…

7 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it decides to allocate funds for research into specific cancers.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government’s Chief Scientist Office operates open competitive funding schemes for applied health research projects and fellowships across the wide range of NHS and health challenges in Scotland. These schemes are open to consideration of applicat…

7 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on whether it will implement a phased approach to launching the Deposit Return Scheme.

Answer · Lorna Slater: Our ambitious deposit return scheme will start on 16 August and I repeat my commitment to look at proposals from small producers including a grace period.

27 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it gave to the local authority’s decision not to approve plans for a housing development on Sibbald’s Brae in Bathgate on three occasions, prior to it granting planning permission.

Answer · Tom Arthur: Independent reporters have decided three planning appeals relating to housing development on Sibbald’s Brae in Bathgate. In 2014 a reporter refused planning permission; in 2020 a reporter granted planning permission; and in 2022 a reporter amended the plannin…

27 Feb 2023 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking, in light of reports that individuals are unable to be discharged from hospital due to a lack of available spaces in care homes.

14 Feb 2023 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what additional funding it will provide to local authorities in response to reported concerns about swimming pool closures.

6 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what financial support is available for any organisations that are struggling as a result of the delay in awarding grants from the Children, Young People, Families and Adult Learning Third Sector Fund.

Answer · Clare Haughey: To support organisations currently funded through the Children, Young People and Families Early Intervention & Adult Learning & Empowering Communities (CYPFEI & ALEC) third sector fund, the Scottish Government is maintaining funding to the total value of £3.6…

6 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Children, Young People, Families and Adult Learning Third Sector Fund will allocate funds.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The Scottish Government informed all relevant applicants on 19 December 2022 that the intention is to communicate next steps in relation to the Children, Young People, Families and Adult Learning third sector fund by the end of March 2023.

6 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Children, Young People, Families and Adult Learning Third Sector Fund has delayed awarding funds to applicants.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The Children, Young People, Families and Adult Learners (CYPFAL) third sector fund received a significant number of applications from a wide range of organisations totalling £121.8 million of requested funding over the two years, far exceeding the amount of f…

26 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to ensure adequate availability of rented accommodation for students, in light of reports that a lack of available and affordable housing is having an adverse impact on students' mental health and wellbeing.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Scotland has led the way in the delivery of affordable housing across the UK with 115,558 affordable homes having been delivered since 2007, over 81,000 of which were for social rent, including 20,250 council homes. The Scottish Government's per capita spendi…

25 Jan 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to increase the recruitment of pupil support assistants, including ensuring they receive fair pay. 

12 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many NHS 24 calls have been abandoned before the caller was able to speak to an operator in the period between 1 October 2022 and 10 January 2023.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The information that has been requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

13 Dec 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what specific measures are being taken to support social care workers during the cost of living crisis.

12 Dec 2022 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government, after Scotland experienced its coldest night of the year with temperatures as low as -15.6C, what action it is taking to ensure that homeless individuals have access to safe, warm housing during this winter period.

12 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had to encourage employers to offer part-time work and flexibility to people with long COVID.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Although the legal powers governing flexible working are currently reserved to Westminster, Scottish Government is committed to working with employers directly and through their representative bodies to explore ways of promoting and encouraging flexible, agil…

12 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to assist any key workers affected by long COVID who are threatened with losing their homes due to their condition.

Answer · Shona Robison: Within the financial year 2022-23, we’ve made available an initial £3 million from our £10 million long COVID Support Fund to provide NHS boards and partners with additional resource to deliver the best local models of care for assessment, and support for the…

12 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any proposals for a compensation, settlement and pension scheme for key workers seriously impacted by long COVID as a result of their work.

Answer · Ben Macpherson: Adult Disability Payment provides financial assistance for the additional costs experienced by disabled people and people with long term health conditions. Individuals with ongoing daily living or mobility difficulties due to having had Covid-19 can apply for…

6 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that Scotland’s richest areas have nearly 10 times as many public defibrillators as the most deprived areas.

Answer · Maree Todd: Scottish Government is a key partner in the Save a Life for Scotland partnership which is delivering the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Strategy 2021 to 2026 . The strategy includes an aim of increasing the percentage of Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OH…

30 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of a scarlet fever outbreak on MS Ambition, how it will ensure that young people and their families are given adequate mental health support to deal with the challenges of becoming infectious whilst living in temporary accommodation as refugees.

Answer · Neil Gray: The health and wellbeing of displaced people from Ukraine is our priority. There has been no outbreak of Strep A on the M/S Ambition, with infections having been restricted to isolated cases. On the M/S Ambition, should quarantine measures be required, ther…

29 Nov 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any progress that has been made in finding a solution to save the Belmont in Aberdeen and the Edinburgh Filmhouse and International Film Festival from permanent closure.

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: As committed to in Programme for Government 2021-22, work is underway to develop a new earlier cancer diagnosis vision for Scotland which will form part of the new cancer strategy, due to publish Spring 2023. This will outline the future direction of our Dete…

10 Nov 2022 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether provision can be made for access to the Room for Contemplation for evening events held during recess.

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what action it is taking to ensure that students from Scotland who wish to study at Scottish universities are able to do so.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of higher education and this is why we have protected free tuition for Scottish-domiciled students. International students and those from other parts of the UK are not eligible to access the funded places whi…

8 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered allocating more funding to Scottish Water so that projects to prevent and tackle flooding and heavy rainfall can be prioritised.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Scottish Water is subject to a statutory charge-setting environment for each regulatory period under which the industry’s independent economic regulator, the Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS) determines the overarching financial limits for Scottis…