Jackie Baillie

1 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which capital projects have been affected by the changes to the Eurostat designation of capital projects.

Answer · John Swinney: The Office for National Statistics has reviewed the classification of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route and the wider implications of that review are being considered by the Scottish Government and the Scottish Futures Trust.

1 Jul 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will list all capital projects that the Scottish Futures Trust (a) is currently delivering and (b) has in the pipeline.

Answer · John Swinney: Information on the infrastructure investment projects which Scottish Futures Trust is supporting is available on its website: www.scottishfuturestrust.org.uk/

19 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-25981 by Fiona McLeod on 19 June 2015, which other local authorities have negotiated payments.

Answer · Fiona McLeod: Sixty six claims were intimated, including court actions raised, in respect of former residents of Kerelaw Residential School. Glasgow City Council paid out settlement in 30 of the cases which amounted to £223,826.95 including court expenses.

15 Jun 2015 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what services the Scottish Government considers should be protected in the context of the reported local government funding crisis.

8 Jun 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many projects are now considered to be on balance sheet as a result of changes to the Eurostat designation.

5 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the comments by the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning on 28 May 2015 (Official Report, c.46), which local authorities have made payments to survivors of historical child abuse on an ex gratia basis.

Answer · Fiona McLeod: In 2009 Dumfries and Galloway awarded ex gratia payments of £20,000 each to survivors abused at Merkland school. While the Scottish Government is aware of other local authorities who negotiated payments with individual survivors, details of these payments are…

5 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the practice in other jurisdictions in relation to interim payments to survivors of historical child abuse.

Answer · Fiona McLeod: The Scottish Government has considered the inquiries in a number of other jurisdictions. While a number of these have awarded compensation only Ireland has awarded interim payments.

5 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will make interim payments to survivors of historical child abuse, similar to the system introduced in the Republic of Ireland and, if so, whether it will involve survivors in the discussion of how these should operate.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government has announced funding of £13.5 million to develop a dedicated support service for survivors of in care abuse. We are working with survivors to determine the detail of how this service will operate. It will be for the Inquiry to deci…

5 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comment by the Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs on 30 April 2014 that "the Government is still committed to scoping out a possible reparation scheme" for survivors of historical child abuse (Official Report, c.30374), what progress has been made with putti…

Answer · Fiona McLeod: The Scottish Government committed to scoping a survivor support service in its response to the Scottish Human Rights InterAction on 27 October 2014. The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning recently announced funding of £13.5 million over the…

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-25728 by John Swinney on 3 June 2015 and given that transactions may be seasonal, what the monthly breakdown is for the forecast revenue for the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government has set out its annual revenue forecast for residential transactions for 2015-16 with Revenue Scotland producing a detailed monthly report of the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax received.

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consultations it has undertaken since 2011; how many responses it received for each consultation, and when it published those responses.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: All consultations and published responses can be found on the Scottish Government website via the following link:http://www.gov.scot/Publications/.

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-25734 by John Swinney on 3 June 2015, whether the "near future" means before the summer recess.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government has not yet set a date for publication.

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-24876 by John Swinney on 23 March 2015, on what date in June 2015 will it report on any underspend arising from the 2014-15 budget.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government will make a statement on the 2014-15 provisional outturn on 18 June 2015.

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to use new borrowing powers in 2015-16.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government’s capital borrowing plans were outlined on 9 October 2014 in the Scottish Draft Budget 2015-16.

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what evaluation it has made of borrowing through (a) the National Loans Fund, (b) financial institutions and (c) issuing bonds.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government announced in the Draft Budget 2015-16 that it would be seeking to borrow up to £304 million in 2015-16 in some combination of a) the National Loans Fund b) from banks on commercial terms and c) through issuing bonds. We will continue t…

4 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to issue bonds under new borrowing powers devolved on 1 April 2015.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government will continue to evaluate each of the options for capital borrowing and will in due course take a decision on which method or methods to use based on the prevailing economic conditions. A revised fiscal framework and enhanced capital b…

2 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many jobs in Scotland it considers depend on (a) exports and (b) exports to EU member states.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Analysis published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research in March 2014 estimated that in 2011 around 336,000 jobs in Scotland were associated with exports to the EU. Estimates on the number of jobs in Scotland dependent on exports are not currentl…

2 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact it considers leaving the EU would have on Scotland's economic performance, and what analysis it plans to publish.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government firmly believes that exiting the EU would have a deeply damaging impact on Scotland’s economy. Membership provides a range of economic benefits including: access to the world’s largest single market, with over 500 million potential cu…

2 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many jobs in Scotland it considers depend on the EU single market.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Analysis published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research in March 2014 estimated that in 2011 around 336,000 jobs in Scotland were associated with exports to the EU. Foreign direct investment (FDI) to Scotland from other European Union member sta…

2 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact it considers the EU referendum will have on Scotland's (a) business confidence, (b) inward investment and (c) exports.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Membership of the EU provides the best international framework within which Scotland can make economic and social gains. The EU is the world’s largest economy and trading area, capable of competing with the most advanced economies in the world. Foreign direc…

2 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it is giving to private sector tenants affected by the so-called bedroom tax.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: The bedroom tax applies to working age households in the social rented sector. The amount of housing benefit or housing element of universal credit paid to tenants in the private sector is determined by local housing allowance rates. Private sector households…

2 Jun 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will make up the shortfall in discretionary housing payments caused by the Department for Work and Pensions' announced 25% reduction in funding for 2015-16.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: There has been a 12% reduction (£1.9 million) in the overall funding from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for discretionary housing payments (DHPs) in Scotland in 2015-16. The element of funding for the bedroom tax has not been reduced and the Scot…

28 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4F-02821 by Nicola Sturgeon on 28 May 2015 (Official Report, c. 20), what assessment has been made of the cost of forestalling in relation to the land and buildings transaction tax and the specific sum sought from the UK Government.

Answer · John Swinney: Scottish Government officials continue to work with the UK Government colleagues to estimate the likely impact of forestalling on UK Government revenues from Stamp Duty Land Tax in 2014-15 and on Scottish Government revenues from the Land and Buildings Transa…

27 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had with the oil and gas industry to discuss the publication of a new oil and gas bulletin; when those meetings took place, and who attended.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: Scottish Ministers and Scottish Government officials have on-going engagement with the North Sea oil and gas industry to discuss the outlook for the sector and the key challenges and opportunities. The Scottish Energy Minister, Fergus Ewing has also carrie…

27 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the House of Commons research paper published on 20 May 2015 that found that Scotland received almost £1,600 per head more in public spending than England in 2014-15 as a result of the Barnett formula.

Answer · John Swinney: The House of Commons research paper demonstrates the strengths of the Scottish economy. Scotland’s employment rate is higher than the other three countries of the UK, and even when North Sea revenue is excluded, Scotland’s output per head is close to the UK a…

27 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish and distribute printed copies of the recent joint statement signed by the Scottish Ministers, the Lord Advocate and Police Scotland opposing female genital mutilation as awareness-raising material.

Answer · Alex Neil: This month the Scottish Government will be printing 2000 copies of the joint female genital mutilation statement, some of which will be used for Police Scotland’s ‘Operation Atlas’ commencing 26 June 2015. Others will be distributed to service providers and c…

26 May 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will encourage Police Scotland to publish responses to the consultation on the merger of K and L Divisions.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Police Scotland has undertaken an open and transparent consultation which commenced at the earliest stage of its considerations in December 2014. This process has incorporated engagement with local communities, including local scrutiny committees, to ensure a…

25 May 2015 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister how much revenue has been raised by the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and the Landfill Tax since April 2015.

25 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-25018 by Fergus Ewing on 2 April 2015, when it will complete its analysis and publish a revised oil and gas bulletin.

Answer · John Swinney: We are analysing the fiscal changes that the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Budget, in collaboration with stakeholders in the industry, and assessing the impact that the reforms will have on future investment and production, and in turn tax reve…

25 May 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-25243 by John Swinney on 16 April 2015, on what date it plans to publish the responses to The Scottish Independence Bill: A Consultation on an Interim Constitution for Scotland.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government intends to publish them in the near future.