Parliamentary questions

Iain Gray

713 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what level of funding will be provided to the Developing the Young Workforce programme in (a) real and (b) cash terms in each year of the current parliamentary session.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Developing the Young Workforce, Scotland’s Youth Employment Strategy, published in December 2014, included a commitment to a two year early implementation budget to allow partners to build capacity and test out new approaches in the development phase of the p…

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what level of funding will be provided to the Commissioner for Fair Access in (a) real and (b) cash terms in each year of the current parliamentary session.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Commission on Widening Access recommended that the Commissioner should be allocated a budget to support the commissioning and publication of independent research to expand the evidence base on access. The specific requirements for this will be discussed a…

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when a Commissioner for Fair Access will be appointed and what the salary will be.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Appointment of a Commissioner for Fair Access is being taken forward as a matter of priority. Remuneration associated with the role will be determined in line with Public Sector Pay Policy for Senior Appointments.

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what level of funding it will provide for the introduction of standardised assessments for (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in (i) real and (ii) cash terms in each year of the current parliamentary session.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government will meet the full costs of the contract for the new standardised assessments for P1, P4, P7 and S3. Exact costs will depend on who is selected through the procurement exercise currently underway.

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government who will lead the review of student support in Scotland, what the terms of reference will be, and when it will (a) start and (b) report.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: As announced in the 2016 Programme for Government, the review of student support will begin in October 2016 and will report by Autumn 2017. Arrangements for conducting the review are being finalised and all key stakeholders will be involved. A finalised ter…

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it will cost to operate the International Education Advisory Panel; whether it will publish the minutes of the panel's inaugural meeting, and on what future dates it is scheduled to meet.

Answer · John Swinney: The costs associated with each meeting of the International Council of Education Advisers, together with the minutes of the meeting will be published on the Scottish Government website at the following address: http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Education/Schools/gov…

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many non-licensed weirs there are on the River Tyne in East Lothian; what action the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is taking to ensure that that these become licensed in accordance with the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011; when it…

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: SEPA is aware of six unlicensed weirs on the River Tyne catchment in East Lothian. These redundant weirs were once used to supply water to mills; the industry associated with them has long since gone and current ownership of them is unclear. SEPA is currently…

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which (a) weirs and (b) other man-made obstructions on the River Tyne in East Lothian are licensed in accordance with the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-02748 on 27 September 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusin…

14 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is taking to address the reported problem with the passage of fish at the Knowes Weir on the River Tyne in East Lothian.

12 Sep 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Justice last met the chief constable to discuss Police Scotland staffing and resources in East Lothian.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I met with the Chief Constable on 7 September, where we discussed a range of issues about policing in Scotland

30 Aug 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution has had with Colleges Scotland and Universities Scotland regarding the forthcoming spending review.

5 Aug 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the City of Edinburgh introducing a citywide 20mph speed limit and the reported support of the Minister for Transport and the Islands for a national 20mph speed limit, whether all local authorities should include consideration of such a speed limit in their road safety plans.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: In 2015 the Scottish Government published the Good Practice Guide on 20mph speed restrictions, and revised it earlier in 2016. The Guide encourages local authorities to introduce 20mph speed limits near schools, in residential areas and in other areas of town…

29 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many speech and language therapists have been trained in each year from 2011.

Answer · Shona Robison: Information on how many speech and language therapists have been trained in each year from 2011 is not centrally held. Information on the number of speech and language therapists working in NHSScotland is published by Information Services Division Scotland a…

29 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the number of speech and language therapists working on a full time equivalent basis by each local authority in each year from 2011.

Answer · Shona Robison: Information on speech and language therapists working in local authorities is not centrally held. Information on the number of speech and language therapists broken down by NHSScotland Health Board is published by Information Services Division Scotland and c…

29 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much is in its Access to Education Fund; how many schools have applied; how many awards have been made, and how many children have benefited from the fund.

Answer · John Swinney: The Access to Education Fund has been replaced in 2016 with the new Scottish Attainment Challenge Innovation Fund. The Innovation Fund received a total of 541 applications and has allocated a total of £3,611,532 to 219 projects, benefitting over 400 schools. …

21 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what research it has carried out or plans on the (a) incidence and (b) impact of term-time working by full-time students.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government has not carried out research on the incidence or impact of term-time working by full time students. The Scottish Government will always take the opportunity to further improve student support where it can. This is why the First Minist…

6 Jun 2016 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government is doing to reverse the reported fall in women studying key subjects in science and computing at Higher level since 2007.

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider making payments to the older survivors of historic child abuse prior to or following the completion of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry.

Answer · Maureen Watt: I refer the member to the answers to questions S5W-00384 and S5W-00386 on 15 June 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliam…

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to provide older survivors of historic abuse with urgent financial and practical support.

Answer · Maureen Watt: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-00384 on 15 June 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/2…

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will introduce plans to lift the time bar on the right of survivors of child abuse who were abused after 1964 to bring civil claims against their abusers.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: Scottish Government intends to introduce the Limitation (Childhood Abuse) (Scotland) Bill in the first year of the this Parliamentary session. A draft Bill was published on 14 of March 2016.The analysis of responses to the public consultation can be found her…

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it will invest in the current parliamentary session to support survivors of historic and recent child abuse.

Answer · Maureen Watt: Scotland is one of the few countries in the world that provides dedicated funding for survivors of abuse. A consortium bid had been successful in securing the tender to administer the new national survivor support fund for people who were abused while in car…

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) it and (b) the SQA is doing to ensure that there are no mistakes in future mathematics exam papers and what steps are being taken to improve marking instructions and guidance in consultation with markers.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) is responsible for the setting and marking of exam papers. It has robust processes in place to ensure that papers and marking instructions are accurate and set to the correct standard. Each year, SQA considers in d…

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the SQA regarding the 60% pass mark and the structure and content of the units in mathematics qualifications.

Answer · John Swinney: The responsibility for developing national qualifications, within current design principles, lies with Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). SQA advised the Scottish Government of its changes to mathematics qualifications, including the 60% pass threshold…

1 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when updated unit assessments for SQA mathematics qualifications are due to be introduced in schools and what discussions it have had with teaching staff about the implementation timescale.

Answer · John Swinney: This is an operational matter for the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). I have asked the Chief Executive of SQA to write to you.

14 Mar 2016 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it plans to take to alleviate overcrowding and ticketing issues on the North Berwick to Edinburgh rail service.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Our plans are to invest £475 million in train improvements: more trains, more seats and more services across Scotland. By early 2018 the new longer, greener, quicker class 385 trains will serve communities in East Lothian. On peak services, when the new six …

10 Mar 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many modern apprenticeships have started in each of the last three years in each sector, broken down by gender, and (a) at what level and (b) in what framework.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: Skills Development Scotland have published quarterly performance information on Modern Apprenticeships, including breakdowns by framework grouping gender, level and framework. The most recent statistics for quarter 3 2015-16 (to end December 2015) and those…

10 Mar 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it takes to match the modern apprenticeship framework to skills shortages.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: Every year Skills Development Scotland (SDS) produces a modern apprenticeship demand statement which summarises the annual returns that are completed by sector skills councils and sector skills bodies to indicate their expected levels of demand for modern app…

10 Mar 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much each local authority has received from the Attainment Scotland Fund.

Answer · Angela Constance: Funding from the Attainment Scotland Fund is provided to local authorities by means of specific grant, which is drawn down quarterly. The final grant claims for the seven challenge authorities are expected by the end of the financial year, and so none of the …

10 Mar 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the uptake is of free school meals for primary 1-3 pupils and how it ensures that the meals are healthy.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The latest statistics on free school meal uptake were published on 17 June 2015 in the Scottish Government statistics publication - Summary statistics for attainment, leaver destinations and healthy living, No. 5: 2015 Edition. Table 9b, which can be accessed…

10 Mar 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will allocate the additional £20 million that is being given to the Attainment Scotland Fund and whether it has any new plans for how this should be used.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Attainment Scotland Fund will continue targeting support to authorities and schools with the highest concentrations of children and young people living in areas of multiple deprivation. It will continue to support the seven challenge authorities and 57 pr…