Ken Macintosh

15 Jan 2014 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to reduce the prison population.

13 Jan 2014 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to advice given by academics on tuition fees for students from EU countries.

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will next increase the level of vocational training allowance and by what amount.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19162 on 24 January 2014. 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…

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last increased the level of vocational training allowance.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The grant paid to vocational trainers and salary paid to vocational trainees, were last increased with effect from 1 April 2009. There is an additional vocational training practice allowance which was introduced in 2003 and remains at the level set at that ti…

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place to ensure that there are a sufficient number of vocational training places available for students graduating from dental school in 2013-14.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19158 on 24 January 2014. 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…

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that there are sufficient dental vocational trainers to meet the needs of graduates in 2013-14.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19159 on 24 January 2014. 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…

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many dental vocational trainers it has recruited in 2013-14.

Answer · Michael Matheson: It is NHS Education for Scotland (NES) which is responsible for the recruitment of dental vocational trainers in Scotland. Recruitment is an ongoing process and, as of today, 85 dental vocational trainers have been recruited. NES is operating on the basis of …

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many dental vocational training places will be made available in 2013-14.

Answer · Michael Matheson: In 2013, 173 dental vocational training (DVT) places were provided. For 2014, in accordance with our revised policy, we will match the number of DVT places to graduates who have applied for such a place, which is 179. It is NHS Education for Scotland (NES) …

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many students are expected to graduate from dental schools in 2013-14.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The expected graduate output from Scottish dental schools in 2014 is 190, subject to the outcome of final exams.

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it remains its policy to match available dental vocational training places with the number of graduates from dental schools.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Following careful assessment of a range of factors which apply to supply and demand within dental service provision within Scotland, and advice from the chief dental officer for Scotland, the Scottish Government has concluded that a revised policy should appl…

7 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what underspend there was on specific projects in 2012-13 in the (a) Education and Lifelong Learning, (b) Health and Wellbeing and (c) Infrastructure, Investment and Cities portfolio.

Answer · John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-16188 on 24 July 2013. 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/parliamentarybu…

7 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the underspends recorded in its consolidated accounts for the year ended 31 March 2013 will be retained in the same departmental expenditure limits for the year 2013-14.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government’s consolidated accounts for the year ended 31 March 2013, published on 27 September 2013, record the outturn position against the Scottish Budget as approved at the Spring Budget Revision. Paragraphs 54 to 59 of the Operating and Finan…

7 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government from which level 4 budget headings the underspend identified in its consolidated accounts for the year ended 31 March 2013 comes, broken down by directorate.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government does not hold outturn information at what is termed level 4 budget by directorate. Level 4 information, in the context of the budget, is provided as part of the Draft Budget Scrutiny Phase in accordance with the written agreement with …

6 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to enter into arrangements for the provision of children's advocacy services as set out in section 122 (5) of the Children's Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19097 on 16 January 2014. 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…

6 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to produce regulations for the provision of children's advocacy services as set out in section 122 (4) of the Children's Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19097 on 16 January 2014. 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…

6 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made in implementing section 122 (2) of the Children's Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: Section 122 of the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 (2011 Act) relates to access to advocacy services for children attending children’s hearings. To date, this section has not been commenced. Scottish Government officials have undertaken detailed disc…

18 Dec 2013 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it plans to spend the consequentials arising from the Autumn Statement on.

Answer · John Swinney: As previously announced to Parliament and re-stated in my earlier answer to Kezia Dugdale, the Scottish Government will prioritise the consequentials from the Autumn Statement on improving outcomes for our businesses and people.

13 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider asking an organisation such as the Higher Education Statistics Agency to collect and publish statistics on completion rates at universities.

Answer · Michael Russell: Although the Higher Education Statistics Agency does not publish completion rates, it does publish non-continuation rates and projected outcomes, measures which the Scottish Government has felt sufficient for its interests to date. The Scottish Government and…

13 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the non-completion rate has been for Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (primary) courses at university in each of the last five years for which information is available.

Answer · Michael Russell: Performance Indicators (PIs) for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) on behalf of the four UK higher education (HE) funding bodies. These PIs include non-continuation rates and projected outcomes…

9 Dec 2013 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will legislate to support fair trade.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government works in partnership with the Scottish Fair Trade Forum (SFTF) to drive forward policy on Fair Trade. A range of research and collaborative work will be undertaken between SFTF and the Scottish Government to develop the uptake of fair …

5 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work in addition to the review of access to medicines is being done to ensure that the new Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme works effectively for patients.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) will come into force on 1 January 2014. The scheme was agreed by the Department of Health in England and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI). Devolved Administrations requested inclus…

5 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the impact of the new Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme will be on patients' access to the latest medicines.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) will come into force on 1 January 2014. The scheme was agreed by the Department of Health in England and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI). Devolved Administrations requested inclus…

5 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether there will be savings to the NHS from the implementation of the new Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) will come into force on 1 January 2014. The scheme was agreed by the Department of Health in England and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI). Devolved Administrations requested inclus…

5 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government (a) what discussions it has had and (b) whether it has reached agreement with the Department of Health on the implementation of the new Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme for branded medicines used by the NHS in Scotland.

Answer · Alex Neil: The parts of the PPRS agreement that relate to Scotland are around pricing which is reserved to the UK Government. A large amount of the document relates to England only as the UK Government negotiate with the ABPI for matters that are reserved (pricing) but …

4 Dec 2013 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the scores for science in the 2012 OECD Programme for International Student Assessment results.

3 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will uprate the applicable amounts and premiums set out in the Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Regulations 2012 and, if so, (a) when and (b) by how much.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government laid the Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2013 and the Council Tax Reduction (State Pension Credit) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2013 in February of this year to uprate the applicable amounts and premiums set …

27 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many German-speaking foreign language assistants there have been in schools in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The number of German-speaking foreign language assistants in Scottish schools in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table. Scottish Government is encouraged to see that the overall number of Foreign Language Assistants (FLAs) has stabilised …

27 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many state schools have presented pupils for examination for a national qualification in German in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The number of local authority school centres which presented pupils for examinations for a national qualification in German in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table: Year Number of Local Authority school centres presenting pupils for n…

27 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many pupils have sat a national qualification in German in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The number of pupils who were presented for a national qualification in German in Local Authority schools in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table: Academic Year Number of Presentations for a national qualification in German in Local A…

27 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many pupils sat Higher German in each of the last 10 years for which information is available.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The number of pupils who were presented for a Higher in German in Local Authority schools in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table: Academic Year Number of Presentations for Higher German in Local Authority schools 2002-03 1,631 2003-…