Parliamentary questions

Kenny MacAskill

2,611 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

4 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what conventions it expects to develop in respect of consultation with the (a)First Minister, (b) Scottish Executive, (c) leaders of opposition parties in the Scottish Parliament and (d) Scottish Parliament with regard to the appointment of Supreme Court judges.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: Scottish Ministers must workwithin the statutory provisions on appointment to the Supreme Court bench whichwere set out in the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. When a vacancy falls due,the Lord Chancellor must convene a selection commission of legal and lay pe…

4 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the conventions are in respect of consultation with the (a) First Minister, (b) Scottish Executive, (c) leaders of opposition parties in the Scottish Parliament and (d) Scottish Parliament on the appointment of Civil Service Commissioners.

Answer · Tom McCabe: All Civil Service Commissionersare recruited on merit after open advertisement and appointed directly by the Crownunder Royal Prerogative. Concordat arrangementsrequire the Cabinet Office to consult the Scottish Executive and the National Assemblyfor Wales ab…

4 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what obligation there is on the Parliament to implement a framework decision of the Council of Ministers of the European Union and what action may be taken against the Parliament or the Executive in the event of failure to implement a framework decision.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: Framework Decisions fall within the Third Pillar of the European Union. They are binding on member states by virtue of Article 34(2)(b) of the EU Treaty. The UK is therefore under an international obligation to implement Framework Decisions. However, unlike F…

4 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S2W-16495 and S2W-17355 by Cathy Jamieson on 27 June and 23 May 2005 and given that there are matters in the draft Framework Decision on retention of data processed and stored in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communicat…

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I refer the member to the answers to questions S2W-16495, S2W-16497 and S2W-16498 on 23 May 2005 and S2W-17355 and S2W-17356 on 27 June 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for whi…

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many patientshave (a) been admitted to (i) accident and emergency and (ii)minor injuries departments and (b) presented themselves to other hospital departments as a result of road traffic and vehicular accidents since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Andy Kerr: NHS treatment for unintentional injuries may be provided in a number of health settings including general practice, minor injury departments, A&E departments and as an inpatient in a hospital. Data available nationally at a level of detail that would allo…

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review the level of payment for home loss set under the Home Loss Payment (Specification of Amount) (Scotland) Regulations (SI 1989/47) in respect of when an increase is anticipated and the level of such increase and what the reasons are for its positionon this matter.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive is currently considering the appropriate level of home loss payments for Scotland. Should a change in levels be required, then we will consider bringing forward proposals in due course.

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what legislation which prevents disclosure of information it has amended or repealed under section 64 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 since that section came into force.

Answer · George Lyon: None.

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to carry out a review of Scottish legislation which prevents disclosure of information in order to exercise its powers under section 64 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

Answer · George Lyon: The Scottish Executive has no plans for a specific review. The issue has been discussed with the Scottish Information Commissioner and the Scottish Freedom of Information ImplementationGroup and the Executive will consider what, if any, action is required in …

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its understanding is of item 1.3 of the Council and Commission Action Plan implementing the Hague Programme on strengthening freedom, security and justice in the European Union (Council Document 9778/2/05 REV 2) which statesProposal on means to enable the European Court of Justice to…

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I understand that this concernsa revision of the procedures of the European Court of Justice to enable it to handlerequests for preliminary rulings more speedily. However, until the proposal itselfis tabled it is not possible to know in any detail what those …

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that Scottish courts ought to be able to make applications to the European Court of Justice for preliminary rulings on the validity and interpretation of framework decisions and decisions of the Council of Ministers of the European Union relating to the European area …

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The United Kingdomhas not made a declaration under Article 35(2) of the Treaty of the European Unionand therefore Scottish courts are unable to make references to the European Courtof Justice for preliminary rulings in connection with framework decisions and …

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that civil partners brought together under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 might suffer any disadvantages on moving to another EU member state where their status is not recognised.

Answer · Hugh Henry: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-17648, on 6 July 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/w…

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that civil partners brought together under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 ought to have their status recognised in other EU member states for the purposes of rules on (a) ownership of property, (b) inheritance, (c) actions in delict, (d) parental responsibility, (e) f…

Answer · Hugh Henry: On implementation from 5 December, the Civil Partnership Act 2004 will allow same-sex couples to register their partnerships. Registration will bring a package of responsibilities and rights similar to those which opposite-sex couples acquire through marriage…

24 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what level of support it provides, and plans to provide, for flood prevention schemes in the Lothians region.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: All flood prevention schemes confirmed by the Scottish ministers will benefit from the increased grant rate of 80% of eligible costs, announced by the Executive in September 2004. This, coupled with the increase in the funds available to local authorities for…

24 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what flood prevention schemes it is considering for operation in the Lothians region and when it expects each scheme to begin.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: At present, the Executive is considering only Edinburgh City Council’s proposed Water of Leith flood prevention scheme, in particular the report of the public local inquiry into the scheme. A start date for the scheme is dependent on when the statutory confir…