Parliamentary questions

Sarah Boyack

2,373 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

28 Jan 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has commissioned of (a) changes in the number of planning staff employed by local authorities and (b) what skills shortages exist.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The new Planning Performance Frameworks have been designed to give local authorities the opportunity to provide information on their organisational structure and the level of staff within that structure. As these were the first ever Planning Performance Frame…

28 Jan 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish information on public sector bodies' performance against planning targets.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government will be publishing a Scotland-wide report that will provide a summary of information collated from the annual performance reports by each planning authority and key agency. It is expected that each organisation will make their own annu…

24 Jan 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will reconvene the expert panel that it set up in 2007 to recommend measures to improve the energy performance of houses and buildings and what its (a) remit and (b) timetable will be.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The intention is to reconvene the Expert Panel around the middle of 2013 and officials are currently discussing the remit of the Panel with Lynne Sullivan. It is anticipated that the Panel will report back in autumn 2013.

22 Jan 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will produce advice for local authorities and other public sector bodies on incorporating a living wage requirement into procurement contracts.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Government issued a Scottish Procurement Policy Note in August 2012 which provided advice to Scottish local authorities and other public sector bodies on the potential to encourage contractors to pay their employees a living wage through procurem…

21 Jan 2013 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will decide on how much support it will provide for the concessionary travel scheme.

18 Jan 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether any criminal liability will automatically pass from the existing boards to the new Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Provision to this effect has been included in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2013, which was laid in draft in the UK Parliament on 22 January 2013 by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State…

14 Jan 2013 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to tackle unemployment in Lothian.

17 Dec 2012 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what cultural legacy the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs expects for the Lothians following the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

7 Dec 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the tenant information pack required under the Private Rented Housing (Scotland) Act 2011 will include certification of the last electrical inspection of the property and details of any residual-current device installed.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: There is no legal requirement for a landlord to provide such information. However, a private landlord will have the ability to include an electrical safety certificate or details of any residual-current device within the tenant information pack. The tenant i…

3 Dec 2012 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will meet the remaining annual emissions targets set out in the Climate Change (Annual Targets) (Scotland) Order 2010.

3 Dec 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will address the change from disability living allowance to personal independence payments for holders of concessionary bus passes.

Answer · Keith Brown: We are working with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to ensure that appropriate passporting links between Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and eligibility for concessionary travel, under the national concessionary travel scheme for older and disa…

28 Nov 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to John Swinney's statement on 28 November 2012 (Official Report, c. 14011), what assessment the cabinet secretary has made of the impact of early retirement, particularly among those on higher salaries, on the sustainability of public sector pension funds.

Answer · John Swinney: Early retirement for most of the main schemes for which Scottish Ministers have a responsibility is cost neutral, with the cost being met by either individual scheme members through an actuarial reduced pension, or by scheme employers who pay the difference b…

14 Nov 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how marine (a) planning and (b) licensing decisions will manage competing demands for the use of the sea while protecting the marine environment until the National Marine Plan and its strategic environment assessment process are in place.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-11182 on 27 November 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/parliamentar…

13 Nov 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what status draft marine sectoral plans will have in guiding development.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Draft sectoral marine plans and the related reports and documents issued to build the plans are non statutory. The published sectoral marine plans will be a statement of ministers policy, including ministers spatial policies for the sector being covered. Sect…

13 Nov 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what planning and policy framework will be in place until the first National Marine Plan is introduced in 2014.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Until the National Marine Plan is adopted, decisions regarding marine activities and developments will continue to be made under existing frameworks which include: Scotland’s marine licensing regime and terrestrial planning policy, in addition to sectoral pla…

29 Oct 2012 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it will publish its National Marine Plan.

22 Oct 2012 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will set the non-domestic rates poundage for 2013-14.

4 Oct 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding allocations it has made to local authorities to improve the cycle route (a) along the A90 between Edinburgh and Fife and (b) from the Barnton roundabout to the Forth Road Bridge.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has allocated a total of £600,000 for the City of Edinburgh Council to work in partnership with Sustrans to upgrade the A90 cycle route between Edinburgh and Fife. The council will match that amount for works to the sections of the rou…

4 Oct 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government who will be responsible for any shortfalls in funding for projects funded by tax incremental financing if anticipated additional business rates revenue is not realised.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Executive Note for the Non-Domestic Rating Contributions (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2010 (SSI 2010/391) outlines that: The local authority undertakes the borrowing and is therefore liable for the repayments. The local authority takes any risk assoc…

2 Oct 2012 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government who will be responsible for any shortfall in funding for projects funded by tax incremental financing.