Parliamentary questions
Margaret Smith
931 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
23 Nov 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the projected average daily prison population is for (a) Scotland and (b) Saughton prison in Edinburgh in each year from 2007 to 2011.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:</p><p>(a) The information is in the<i>Prison Population Projections, </i><i>Scotland</i><i>, 2006-2007 to 2015-2016</i> News Release which …
23 Nov 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many prison officers are projected to be employed in the Scottish Prison Service in (a) Scotland and (b) Saughton prison in Edinburgh in each year from 2007 to 2011.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:</p><p>The Scottish Prison Service projectstaff numbers over a 12 month period only:</p><p>(a) No of Prison Officers projectedto be employed in th…
23 Nov 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many prison officers have been employed in the Scottish Prison Service in (a) Scotland and (b) Saughton prison in Edinburgh in each year from 1999.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:</p><p>(a) I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-23896 on 20 March 2006. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available o…
23 Nov 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to ensure staff safety in the Scottish Prison Service.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron,Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is asfollows:</p><p>The SPS aims to ensure thesafety of staff in a range of ways including:</p><p>ensuring the prison estateis fit for purpose in the 21st centur…
8 Nov 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that NHS Lothian’s performance is satisfactory in terms of waiting times and waiting list management.
Answer · Andy Kerr: NHS Lothian is continuing toprovide improvements in waiting times for patients. The board is consistently deliveringthe national maximum waiting times of six months for first out-patient appointmentsand for hospital in-patient and day case treatment, and is o…
8 Nov 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it has given, and is giving, to NHS Lothian to reduce waiting times.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The Health Department has provided,and is continuing to provide a wide range of advice, assistance and support, includingfunding where appropriate, to NHS Lothian in connection with its work to redesignservices, improve access and reduce waiting times. This i…
17 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will develop the green credit scheme to create a diverse renewables portfolio.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: We are currently consulting onproposed changes to the Renewables Obligation Scotland (ROS) in order to providea source of long-term, increased funding to wave and tidal energy generators. Thesechanges, known as the Marine Supply Obligation (MSO), will come in…
17 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many accredited installers of renewable energy technologies operate in Scotland.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: There are 116 accredited installersoperating in Scotland. 42 are based in Scotland.</p>
17 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many businesses and developers have applied for a grant under the Scottish Community and Householder Renewables Initiative in each year since 2003.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Community and HouseholderRenewables Initiative provides advice, development support and capital assistancefor householders and non-profit distributing community organisations, includinglocal authorities, housing associations, schools and voluntar…
17 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will encourage the development and protection of green spaces within urban communities.
Answer · Johann Lamont: Draft Scottish PlanningPolicy (SPP) 11: <i>Physical Activity and Open Space</i> was published in August2006. The draft policy would for the first time make it a requirement that localauthorities prepare an audit and strategy for open space.</p><p>The draft SP…
16 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to test purchase cigarettes.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Following a change to prosecutionpolicy in February 2005, test purchasing of age restricted goods, with the exceptionof alcohol, can be undertaken by local authority trading standards departments.Twenty local authorities have undertaken test purchasing of age…
16 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the results so far have been in respect of its alcohol test purchasing scheme.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Figures available for theweek beginning 23 October show that Fife Constabulary have tested over 540licensed premises out of a total of around 900 in the Fife area and that todate about 74 sales were made.</p>
16 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers have been recruited since 2003; what projections it has made in respect of such recruitment in 2007, and what the actual and projected total police numbers are for the period 2003 to 2007 for (a) Lothian and Borders and (b) Scotland.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: While recruitment of police officersis an operational requirement for chief constables, the most recent Spending Reviewin 2004 provided for sufficient resources to deliver our Partnership Agreement commitmentto increase the number of police officers in the cu…
16 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will report on the outcome of the Domestic Abuse Court pilot service at Glasgow Sheriff Court.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The evaluation report on thedomestic abuse court pilot service is due to be finalised in spring 2007 and willbe published after ministers have considered it. Executive funding for both thededicated Procurator Fiscal and the ASSIST project has been extended un…
6 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it is giving to a Forth tunnel option in the event that an additional crossing proves necessary.
Answer · Tavish Scott: A study into a possible replacementForth crossing is being fast-tracked as part of the Strategic Transport ProjectsReview. This study will consider various options for crossing the Forth, includinga tunnel.</p>
6 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the maintenance costs were for the (a) Forth Road Bridge, (b) Tay Road Bridge, (c) Erskine Bridge and (d) Clyde Tunnel in each of the last five years.
Answer · Tavish Scott: (a) Information on maintenancecosts for the Forth Road Bridge is available from the Forth Estuary Transport Authority,which owns and operates the bridge.</p><p>(b) Information on maintenancecosts for the Tay Road Bridge is available from the Tay Road Bridge J…
6 Oct 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made on the study into replacing or augmenting the main cables on the Forth Road Bridge.
Answer · Tavish Scott: After a tender competition underEuropean procurement rules, FETA appointed Fairhurst consulting engineers in Septemberto undertake the study. Fairhurst has a Danish company, Cowie Consult, and an Americancompany, Amman and Whitney, as sub-consultants to assis…
29 Sep 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to change the council tax bandings for houses built through affordable housing and shared ownership schemes.
Answer · George Lyon: We are currently awaiting thefindings of the Local Government Finance Review Committee, who are reviewing the different forms of local taxation, includingreform of the council tax. We will want tolook very carefully at those findings and it would not therefor…
30 Aug 2006 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment its Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning Department has made of the economic impact on Scotland of the Edinburgh festivals.
Answer · Allan Wilson: the Scottish Executive, Enterprise Transport and Lifelong Learning Department hasnot directly undertaken an assessment of the economic impact of the Edinburgh festivals on Scotland. An economic impact assessment intoEdinburgh’s year round festivals was carrie…
25 Aug 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will reconsider the decision to relocate the headquarters of sportscotland to Glasgow, in light of the recently published findings of PMP/Donaldsons’ 2004 review of the financial, economic and business management implications of the relocation.
Answer · Patricia Ferguson: No. The recommendation from the2004 PMP/Donaldsons Report was based on an analysis of the socio-economic benefitsto Scotland as a whole rather than on what is best value to the organisationat the current time. In the longer term, I would hope that the opportu…
29 Jun 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is concerned that the increasing number of cash machines (ATMs) charging consumers for transactions could have an impact on the progress of the Executive’s Financial Inclusion Strategy.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive considers manyfactors which could impact on progress with its Financial Inclusion ActionPlan, published in January 2005. We continue to work with a range of partners,including local authorities, banks and other financial institutions, communityg…
26 Jun 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that there are sufficient permanent posts available for new teachers at the end of their probationary year.
Answer · Robert Brown: The Scottish Executive carriesout a national workforce planning exercise to ensure that sufficient new teachersare trained to meet demand in publicly funded schools. The form of contract underwhich teachers are employed is a matter for local authorities as em…
24 May 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is content that the provisions of recent legislation which enable the proportion of income invested in pension schemes to be increased have been incorporated into the formula for calculating student awards by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Student Awards Agencyfor Scotland is aware of the changes to the amount of pensioncontributions which incur tax relief. These changes will be taken into accountfor award assessments.</p>
17 May 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to announce any further public sector job relocations in advance of the publication of Audit Scotland’s forthcoming report on the Executive’s relocation policy.
Answer · George Lyon: The date of publication of AuditScotland reports is entirely a matter for Audit Scotland. This will not be a factorin determining the timing of any future announcements of public sector job relocations.</p>
17 May 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive when it anticipates that Audit Scotland will publish its forthcoming report on the relocation of Scottish Executive departments, agencies and non-departmental public bodies.
Answer · George Lyon: The date of publication of AuditScotland reports is entirely a matter for Audit Scotland.</p>
16 Mar 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether motorists accused of speeding should be allowed automatic access to the evidence against them held by a safety camera partnership.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Since the start of operationsin October 2005 the Mental Health Tribunal has failed to fix a hearing in applicationsfor Compulsory Treatment Orders within the Statutory time limit on 18 occasions.On four occasions this was due to the Tribunal Administration an…
16 Mar 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether motorists accused of speeding should be allowed automatic access to the evidence against them held by a safety camera partnership.
Answer · Colin Boyd: In cases of speeding, theevidence held by the Safety Camera Partnership will consist of images of theoffence captured on film. The images of recorded offences are not sent out tothe motorist with the Notice of Intended Prosecution. However, all SafetyCamera P…
16 Mar 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether safety camera partnerships should be required to cross-check speed camera photographic evidence before taking action against motorcyclists suspected of speeding.
Answer · Colin Boyd: It is a legislativerequirement that cameras used to detect speeding offences receive approval fromthe Secretary of State. This approval means that the device has met thespecific technical requirements laid down by the Home Office ScientificDevelopment Branch.…
16 Mar 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that handheld radar speed guns are a fully reliable means of measuring the speed of motorcycles.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-24362 on 29 March 2006. All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facilityfor which can be found at <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.…
27 Feb 2006 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the introduction of twice-per-hour non-stop express trains from Edinburgh to Glasgow, with additional twice-per-hour trains stopping at multiple stations, including Edinburgh Park, would result in the most comprehensive and satisfactory train service between the …
Answer · Tavish Scott: Options to change the existingtimetable are constrained by the current rail infrastructure. Transport Scotland is investingto deliver a number of rail infrastructure enhancements on this route, includingthe major redevelopment of Edinburgh Waverley Station. T…