Parliamentary questions

Elaine Murray

2,411 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is considering a revision to the provisions of the Marine (Scotland) Bill regarding the issuing of activity planning consents for aquaculture.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Marine (Scotland) Bill proposes that consenting for aquaculture should be based on impact rather than activity. This is a complex issue and we continue to listen to representations on the best regime. The aquaculture industry is vitally important to Scotl…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether, if (a) the eight existing special protection areas are annulled or (b) section 3 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 is repealed as suggested on page 75 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document, other existing legislation will protect wild birds in …

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Section 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 as amended by the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 now provides the full range of protection to all wild birds as is given by Areas of Special Protection (ASP) with the exception that an ASP Order can …

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether its proposals to replace the requirement to obtain an authorisation to drive deer with a vehicle for the purpose of culling with a new offence of driving deer, reckless as to the consequences for their welfare suggested on page 18 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consu…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The proposed new offence on driving deer recklessly referred to in the consultation on the Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill would include the use of aircraft to drive deer recklessly.

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what vehicles are included in the existing offence of driving deer with a vehicle for the purpose of culling.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The current legislation includes any vehicle in the offence of intending to drive deer on any land with the intention of taking, killing or injuring them, unless authorised to do so. However, the use of any aircraft or hovercraft is specifically excluded even…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information and advice ministers take into consideration when setting the close season for (a) male and (b) female deer.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Close seasons have been unchanged for many years, and there are no immediate intentions to vary the dates. We are consulting on how seasons might be set in future. Were the issue to arise in the meantime Scottish ministers would take advice from the Deer Comm…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what non-native species would be included in the provisions of the Destructive Imported Animals Act 1932 if its provisions were extended to mammals established in the wild before 1882.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Provisions of the Destructive Imported Animals Act 1932 only apply to a species which is included in an order made under section 10 of the 1932 act. The present obligation to determine whether additional species could be subject to such an order requires leng…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the term translocated species used on page 37 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document refers only to species physically transferred by humans outside their natural range or whether it could also include species such as urban gulls which have moved from t…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The term translocated species, used on page 37 of the Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document, refers to species whose presence beyond their natural range results from intentional or accidental human intervention and would not be applicabl…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether implementation of the proposals on page 72 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document would result in prosecution for intentionally or recklessly damaging a site of special scientific interest (SSSI) only where the person or persons committing the damage ha…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Should this proposal be progressed and receive Parliamentary approval, it is anticipated that procurators fiscal would still be able to bring prosecutions under section 19 of the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 without a restoration notice being issue…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the circumstances are in which ministers might issue a restoration notice requiring the restoration of damaged sites of special scientific interest (SSSI) natural features, as proposed on page 72 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document as opposed to the …

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: It is normal procedure for Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) to first seek a land manager''s voluntary cooperation to deliver the restoration of damaged features of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). If a land manager does not restore such f…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether section 6(c) of the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 exempts from prosecution a person who accidentally kills a badger as a result of a collision with that person’s vehicle.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Yes. Section 6(c) of the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 would exempt any person from prosecution who accidently kills a badger while carrying out a lawful action such as driving a vehicle.

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it envisages circumstances under which a person found guilty of attaching a ring, tag or other marking device to a live badger under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 could, as suggested on page 63 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document, have done so w…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document does not intend to suggest that a person found guilty of attaching a ring, tag or other marking device to a live badger could have done so unknowingly. The consultation document proposes …

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it envisages circumstances under which a person found guilty of the offence of selling or offering to sell a live badger under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 could, as suggested on page 63 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document, have done so without…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document does not intend to suggest that a person found guilty of selling or offering to sell a badger could have done so unknowingly. The consultation document proposes a new offence of knowingly…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it envisages circumstances under which a person found guilty of the offence of using badger tongs in the course of killing, taking or attempting to kill or take a badger under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 could, as suggested on page 63 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document does not intend to suggest that a person found guilty of using badger tongs to kill or take a badger could have done so unknowingly. The consultation document proposes a new offence of kn…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it envisages circumstances under which a person found guilty of cruelly ill-treating a badger under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 could, as suggested on page 63 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document, have done so without undertaking the activity k…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document does not intend to suggest that a person found guilty of cruelly ill-treating a badger could have done so unknowingly. The consultation document proposes a new offence of knowingly causin…

25 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it envisages circumstances under which a person found guilty of wilfully killing, injuring, taking or attempting to kill a badger under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 could, as suggested on page 63 of its Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document, have done s…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Consultation Document does not intend to suggest that a person found guilty of wilfully injuring, taking or attempting to kill a badger could have done so unknowingly. The consultation document proposes a new …

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make failing to check the action of a snare before setting it an offence and, if so, how the failure to check the action of a snare can be proved.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government intends to make failure to check the action of a snare before setting the snare an offence. It is intended that this new offence will assist in prosecuting the offence of setting a snare which has a self-locking action by removing the …

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make compulsory the fitting of ID tags on snares allowing the operators to be identified and, if so, how the operators of snares without ID tags will be identified and prosecuted.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government intends to make ID tags on snares compulsory. It will be the responsibility of individual police forces to determine how to investigate any contraventions of the law.

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-24398 by Roseanna Cunningham on 9 June 2009, what its most recent timescale is for laying before the Parliament secondary legislation regulating the use of snares.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: I hope to be able to lay an order amending legislative provisions on snaring before the Scottish Parliament before the end of the summer recess.

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how the compliance scheme due to be introduced in 2009 to replace the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s Operator Performance Assessment (OPA) will differ from the OPA.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Environment Protection Agency''s (SEPA''s) Compliance Assessment Scheme (CAS) improves on the Operator Performance Assessment (OPA) scheme in a number of ways. While OPA only applies to a limited number of industrial sites, CAS will cover all reg…

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is considering introducing higher levels of fines for landfill operators that contravene their licence conditions.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: No. There is no limit on the maximum fine which may be levied, in proceedings on indictment, on a landfill operator who contravenes licence conditions.

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many operators of large or complex industrial sites have been reported to the Procurator Fiscal in the last five years for lack of progress towards reaching a satisfactory Operator Performance Assessment.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Unsatisfactory performance under the Scottish Environment Protection Agency''s (SEPA''s) Operator Performance Assessment (OPA) scheme does not in itself constitute a criminal offence. During the last five years, SEPA has reported a total of 284 cases to the P…

24 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action can be taken when large or complex industrial sites repeatedly fail an Operator Performance Assessment.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Where an operator has failed to achieve a satisfactory assessment under the Scottish Environment Protection Agency''s (SEPA''s) Operator Performance Assessment (OPA) scheme, SEPA works with businesses wherever possible to achieve satisfactory compliance with …

18 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the provisions of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: A review of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 was undertaken last year and we have no plans to conduct a further review.

18 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the operation of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-24965 on 8 July 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/b…

18 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many communities have registered an interest in acquiring land under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 in each year since it was enacted.

18 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is concerned that no more than five communities have acquired land since the community right to buy provisions of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 came into force.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Forty-five community bodies have successfully registered an interest in buying land since the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 was implemented on 14 June 2004. The number of community bodies registering in each calendar year is five in 2004; eight in 2005; ni…

17 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-24239 by Richard Lochhead on 5 June 2009, whether it is considering issuing a code of practice on the welfare of racing greyhounds.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government does not intend to issue a code of practice specifically on the welfare of racing greyhounds. A code of practice on the welfare of dogs will be issued later in the year and much of the advice in that code will be appropriate for racing…

17 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it makes available to local authorities affected by coastal change to allow them to develop adaptation schemes.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government is funding several initiatives to make sure local authorities have access to the best information and tools to build their capacity to adapt, or prepare for a changing climate. These include £185,500 in 2009-10 and £200,000 in 2010-11 …

17 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it makes available to communities affected by coastal erosion.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Local authorities, any part of whose area adjoins the sea, are coast protection authorities under the Coast Protection Act 1949 which provides wide powers to protect any land in their areas from coastal erosion. The Scottish Government is providing record lev…

17 Jun 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-24585 by Richard Lochhead on 15 June 2009, what regulations cover the welfare of wild animals in travelling circuses.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: There are no regulations which specifically cover the welfare of wild animals in travelling circuses. However, section 24 of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 requires the person responsible for animals, including circus animals, to take reaso…