Patricia Ferguson

9 Oct 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many CashBack for Communities-funded projects provide an anti-sectarianism element in their activities.

Answer · Kenny MacAskill: We are providing all our young people, no matter what their background is, with a variety of free, readily accessible and sustainable opportunities to allow them to become all they can be and to be effective contributors and responsible citizens in Scottish s…

1 Oct 2012 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the priorities will be for the proposed employability fund in 2013-14.

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what responsibilities conveyancing solicitors have to ensure that property searches identify any disused mine workings.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Law Society of Scotland has guidance notes on coal mining searches http://www.lawscot.org.uk/rules-and-guidance/section-f/division-c-conveyancing/guidance/coal-mining-searches. Solicitors are advised to consider whether a coal mining search should be mad…

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action can be taken to assist people who discover mine workings on their properties.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Coal Authority is responsible for public safety relating to land subsidence caused by coal mining operations. The Coal Authority provides an emergency response service to incidents which pose a risk to public safety. An emergency call out service deals w…

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the £3 million set aside by Creative Scotland for strategic commissioning will be used to deliver.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: I have asked Andrew Dixon, chief executive of Creative Scotland, the public body for culture and creative industries, to write to the member. Further information about Creative Scotland’s activities is available at: http://www.creativescotland.com/.

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage Creative Scotland to be more transparent in its dealings with artists and with arts organisations.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: I have asked Creative Scotland to be more transparent in its dealings with artists and with arts organisations on the following occasions. In my Letter of Guidance of 6 July to the chair of the board of Creative Scotland I said “Creative Scotland is cruciall…

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it considers to be the correct balance between funding artists and commissioning work.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Creative Scotland’s board is considering the correct balance between funding artists and commissioning work as I asked in my letter to Sir Sandy Crombie, Chair of the board, on 12 September. A copy is available at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/20…

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has for the digital recording of Scotland’s cultural archive.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: A significant number of Scottish bodies have plans for producing digital content which will capture the national cultural record and ensure greater public access. The Scottish Library and Information Council, Museums Galleries Scotland, the Scottish Council f…

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that delaying the publication of responses to its consultations is compatible with the principles of open, transparent and democratic government.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Where possible, responses to Scottish Government consultations are made available to the public within 20 days of the closing date. However, this depends on the number of responses received and the amount of detail in the responses.

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the public should have access to responses to Scottish Government consultations within 20 working days of the closing date.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Where possible, responses to Scottish Government consultations are made available to the public within 20 days of the closing date. However, this depends on the number of responses received and the amount of detail in the responses.

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-08387 by Bruce Crawford on 1 August 2012, how many times it has (a) adhered and (b) not adhered to its consultation good practice guidance to “Make responses available to the public (in the SG library) 20 working days from the closing date” for cons…

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The suggested timescales for making responses available to the public are good practice guidelines only, and are dependent on the volume of responses to individual consultations. Therefore the Scottish Government does not gather data on whether the suggested …

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-08387 by Bruce Crawford on 1 August 2012, for what reason, in relation to the Your Scotland, Your Referendum consultation, it did not “Make responses available to the public (in the SG library) 20 working days from the closing date” as stated in its…

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-10495 on 19 November 2012. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Scottish Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parl…

27 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-08387 by Bruce Crawford on 1 August 2012, what action it has taken to monitor compliance with its good practice guidance on consultations and whether it considers that the guidance is being complied with.  

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Good practice guidance on conducting consultations is available to all Scottish Government staff. As consultations vary in nature, it is for individual Directors and line managers to ensure every effort is made to ensure compliance where possible.

25 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has taken longer to publish the responses to any consultation other than the Registration of Civil Partnerships, Same Sex Marriage consultation since May 2007.

Answer · Alex Neil: Information on the period of time between the closure of all Scottish Government consultations since May 2007 and the publication of responses to those consultations could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. This consultation received the largest numb…

25 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S4W-08383 and S4W-06278 by Bruce Crawford on 1 August 2012 and 29 March 2012 respectively, on what date it will publish the responses to the Your Scotland, Your Referendum consultation.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-10495 on 19 November 2012. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Scottish Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parl…

25 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-06278 by Bruce Crawford on 29 March 2012, what the reason is for the delay in the publication of responses to the Your Scotland, Your Referendum consultation.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-10495 on 19 November 2012. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Scottish Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parl…

25 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the First Minister's comment quoted in the Los Angeles Times of 22 September 2012 that “The SNP policy was never to adopt the euro.” is compatible with his comment reported on the BBC News on 9 June 2003 that “The SNP believes that entry into the euro - subject …

Answer · John Swinney: The full published text of the Los Angeles Times quotes the First Minister as saying any adoption of the Euro would only be ‘if economic conditions were right and subject to a referendum of the people of Scotland’. This is entirely consistent with the positi…

25 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the First Minister's reasons are for informing an American newspaper that there would be a single question referendum on independence before (a) informing people in Scotland and (b) the publication of the results of the Your Scotland, Your Referendum consultation.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: In an interview published by the LA Times on 22 September 2012, the First Minister noted the UK Government’s strongly held public position that the referendum ballot paper should only contain one question. At no point during this interview did the First Minis…

25 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what evidence the First Minister has to substantiate his statement quoted in the Los Angeles Times on 22 September 2012 that “independence regularly is the most popular option of three options that are usually offered to people”.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Amongst others, the First Minister was referring to polls by Panelbase for the Sunday Times and Real Radio.

20 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what monitoring is carried out on the long-term effects on health that might arise from living adjacent to waste transfer facilities.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government is not aware of any studies which look specifically at the health effects from living adjacent to waste transfer facilities. Monitoring of such facilities for emissions to air, water and land is routinely required by the Scottish Envir…

20 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on waste transfer facilities being located adjacent to housing.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Scottish Planning Policy states that “Planning authorities should consider the need for buffer zones between sensitive receptors (for example, houses) and some waste management facilities. A 250m buffer may be appropriate for operations such as outdoor compos…

20 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action is taken to assist communities in eradicating fly infestations.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Action would depend on the source of the infestation, but in the first instance affected communities should contact their local authority. The Scottish Government recognises that insect nuisance can sometimes be an issue and, in 2009, insect nuisance was adde…

20 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action is taken to control gull colonies in residential areas.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Where gull colonies are causing a problem in urban areas there is a range of actions open to local authorities, including modifying buildings, removing food sources, clearing nests and eggs, and lethal control. Where necessary these actions are licensed under…

17 Sep 2012 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the meeting of the Remploy stakeholder group of 19 September 2012.

14 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on legal fees relating to each freedom of information request received since 2007.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Government only incurs legal fees for external legal advice in relation to an FOI request when an appeal is made to the Court of Session against a Decision by the Scottish Information Commissioner. Apart from the ongoing appeal which is the subje…

14 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has (a) spent and (b) budgeted to spend on legal fees relating to the freedom of information request from Catherine Stihler MEP regarding the advice that it received on European Union membership.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The total legal fees to date incurred by the Scottish Government for the provision of legal advice in connection with the freedom of information request is £3,600, inclusive of VAT. Final costs will not be available until the court process is complete.

14 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-00132 by John Swinney on 2 May 2011, how much it spent on legal fees relating to the freedom of information request regarding the advice that it received on its proposed local income tax.

Answer · Derek Mackay: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-09642 on 28 September 2012. 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/parliament…

9 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that codicils to a will should be subject to scrutiny (a) in general, (b) where the witness is the main benefactor and (c) when not witnessed by a solicitor.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government is clear that all codicils to a will can be scrutinised and the subject of challenge if there are concerns that the requirements for formal validity are not met or about the intention or capacity of the person making the codicil, for i…

9 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the law relating to codicils to a will.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government’s position on the law relating to codicils to a will is that The Requirements of Writing (Scotland) Act 1995 provides clear rules for the making of formally valid wills and codicils executed from 1 August 1995.

6 Sep 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will ensure that those communities most blighted by crime benefit most from the CashBack for Communities scheme.

Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Since the inception of the highly successful CashBack for Communities programme in 2007, over £46 million recovered from the proceeds of crime has been invested throughout Scotland, directly benefitting over 600,000 young people and generating over 11,000 you…