Elaine Murray

30 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how community radio stations can advise it that they are available to carry Scottish Government advertising.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government and public bodies buy advertising through the Media Planning & Buying Framework. It is currently held by a single supplier, Carat. All media suppliers who are interested in carrying advertising for The Scottish Government should approa…

29 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether grant funding is available to enable a privately owned road to be brought up to a standard so that the local authority can adopt and maintain it.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 places the statutory responsibility for local roads with local road authorities, and this is not an issue where the Scottish Ministers or the Scottish Government would become directly involved. The Local Government Finance Set…

16 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to make young people aware of possible hearing loss arising from listening to loud music in pubs and clubs.

Answer · Maureen Watt: One of the recommendations of the Scottish Government ‘See Hear’ sensory impairment strategy, launched in 2014, was that accessible local information strategies be developed to include preventative measures and good self care in retaining sensory health, and …

6 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether attendance at a driving course can be used as an alternative to prosecution for drivers who have committed minor driving offences and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government supports the concept of offering driver education as an alternative to prosecution where appropriate and one day ‘Driver Alertness’ and ‘RIDE’ courses, tailored to car drivers and motorcyclists respectively, are currently available to …

1 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to commemorate VJ Day.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government’s support for our armed forces personnel and veterans is absolute. Scottish Ministers will attend events in both London and in Edinburgh to mark the 70th anniversary of VJ Day on 15 August 2015.

26 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the provisions of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 regarding the licensing of park home sites will come into effect.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: We plan to bring the provisions into effect in spring 2017.

25 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the audit threshold for charities in Scotland differing from that in England and Wales.

Answer · Alex Neil: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-26327 on 21 July 2015. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentaryb…

25 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to raising the audit threshold for charities in Scotland so that it is in line with the equivalent in England and Wales and, if it has decided not to introduce such an increase, when this decision was made and by whom.

Answer · Alex Neil: The legislative framework for charities operating in Scotland is different from charities operating in other parts of the United Kingdom. The legislative framework, including the income threshold for charities, is reviewed regularly as part of the Scottish G…

24 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has for the use of HMP Dumfries over the next 10 years.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows: “HMP Dumfries continues to be an integral part of the SPS estate for adult male offenders. It is expected that this position will be m…

8 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what organisations or agencies are permitted to prepare a Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) report for consideration by Transport Scotland.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Any organisation or agency, including local authorities, regional partnerships, private sector consultancies and developers, can prepare a Transport Appraisal report for consideration by Transport Scotland. The STAG guidance, which is published on Transport S…

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the maximum permitted class sizes are in secondary schools.

Answer · Angela Constance: The class size maxima in all Scottish secondary school stages are set out in the following table: Secondary Stage Class Size Maximum S1 33 S2 33 S3 30 S4 30 S5 30 S6 30 Practical classes 20

1 Jun 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration can be given to individual patient treatment requests for further or repeat courses when the initial treatment has had some success.

26 May 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recent Audit Scotland report, which estimates that there may be a £42.7 million gap in the funding of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in 2019-20.

14 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it will give to the (a) breeding, (b) advertising and (c) sale of puppies in its review of the trade and importation of exotic animals for the pet trade.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The review of the importation and trade of exotic animals for the pet trade is part of a wider review of pet welfare, which is a substantial and ongoing piece of work. This will include consideration of the breeding, advertising and sale of puppies.

20 Apr 2015 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to recent reports that police officers are manipulating the recording of crime statistics by using their discretionary powers to prevent reported incidents being recorded as crimes.

20 Apr 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that the grant application process for national awards is made as accessible as possible to local committee volunteers who do not have professional experience.

Answer · Alex Neil: Decisions about National Lottery grant applications and awards is a matter for lottery distributors. Our understanding is that all the National Lottery distributors in Scotland provide pre-application support for those interested in seeking grant funding.

10 Apr 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the University of the West of Scotland regarding the provision of additional Postgraduate Diploma of Education places at its Crichton campus to train school support staff employed by Dumfries and Galloway Council as teachers.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government has been involved in constructive discussions with Dumfries and Galloway Council and the University of the West of Scotland to explore innovative solutions to meet local needs and welcomes the commitment from Dumfries and Galloway Coun…

23 Mar 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action owner occupiers can take when they are dissatisfied by the factoring service provided by a registered social landlord that owns properties in the block or area concerned.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: The Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011 provides protections for homeowners who use the services of any property factor, including a property factor which is a registered social landlord. Homeowners who are unhappy about the service provided by their proper…

9 Mar 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what transport arrangements can be made for patients with suppressed immune systems to access treatments offered only at specialist hospitals.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Ambulance Service operates the patient transport service which is aimed at patients who require clinical support during transportation in attending healthcare appointments. The patient transport service will advise patients who do not meet their …

2 Mar 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many wind turbines have been decommissioned in each of the last two years for which figures are available, broken down by (a) location and (b) the reason for decommissioning.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government does not centrally hold information on the decommissioning of wind turbines. It is the responsibility of the relevant planning authorities to monitor conditions of a planning consent, including those relating to the decommissioning of …

2 Mar 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which minister has portfolio responsibility to grant a local community permission to sell its village hall.

Answer · Marco Biagi: Where a trust deed for a village hall requires the consent of the Secretary of State for Scotland for any changes, this responsibility has not transferred to the Scottish Ministers. The community should therefore contact the Scotland Office.

25 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce a bill to reform the law of damages for personal injury and, if so, when.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government is still considering some of the policy issues around a damages Bill, in light of stakeholder responses to Scottish Governments’ consultation, and we currently have no firm timescale for taking this legislation forward. Scottish Minist…

24 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the number of support staff in the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service changed in the year to 31 March 2014, broken down by local authority area; what the reasons are for any change, and how it affected the work of the service.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The information of changes in numbers of fire fighters and support staff in the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) broken down at local authority area level is not held centrally. Information on aggregate staff numbers employed in SFRS across Scotland ar…

24 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the number of firefighters changed in the year to 31 March 2014, broken down by local authority area; what the reasons are for any change, and how it affected the work of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The information of changes in numbers of fire fighters and support staff in the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service broken down at local authority area level is not held centrally. Information on aggregate staff numbers employed in the Scottish Fire and Rescue S…

20 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what statutory rights grandparents have to contact with their grandchildren when the parents or guardians deny contact and whether it plans to review these rights.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government values the role played by grandparents in helping to bring up children. This is reflected in Family Matters: Charter for Grandchildren: http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2006/04/21143655/0. When there is disagreement on matters such…

5 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports local authorities in tackling the sale of counterfeit electrical goods.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government supports the important role that local authorities have in protecting communities. We welcome the work of Trading Standards in protecting citizens across Scotland.

5 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact that counterfeit electrical goods have on (a) domestic electrical fires, (b) public services and (c) the economy; what information it has on seizures of counterfeit electrical goods from Scottish ports, and what discussions it has had with (i) co…

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government recognises the range of impacts that counterfeit electrical goods can have and welcomes the work that bodies such as the Scottish Anti-Illicit Trade Group, the Scottish Business Resilience Centre, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service a…

1 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action Disclosure Scotland takes to ensure that allegations made against people that have been established in court to be false are removed from its records and not provided to prospective employers.

Answer · Fiona McLeod: Information about an allegation established in court to be false would only be provided to Disclosure Scotland by a chief police officer as ‘other relevant information’ (ORI) in connection with a Police Act enhanced disclosure or a Protecting Vulnerable Group…

26 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what notification local authorities are required to give to residents prior to erecting or moving structures such as bus shelters outside their homes.

Answer · Derek Mackay: In relation to bus shelters, the Local Government (Omnibus Shelters and Barriers) (Scotland) Act 1958 provides for the erection and maintenance of omnibus shelters and queue barriers by local roads authorities in Scotland. It is for local road authorities t…

26 Jan 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will support town centre regeneration in Dumfriesshire in 2015-16.