Lewis Macdonald

17 Mar 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it will provide for the regeneration of the city centre and beachfront in Aberdeen.

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the upgrading of the East Coast Main Line between Aberdeen and Dundee.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The upgrading of the East Coast Main Line between Aberdeen and Dundee is currently at the option selection stage and will deliver £200m of enhancements by 2026, in line with the Ministerial commitment. In addition decarbonisation of this route is at an early…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to testing school pupils without COVID-19 symptoms, and what its reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · John Swinney: We introduced an enhanced asymptomatic testing programme for school and early learning and childcare staff and senior phase pupils in line with the first phase of a return to in-school learning on 22 February. Voluntary twice-weekly at-home testing, using Lat…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether guidance on flying flags from its buildings changed in 2021; what any such changes were, and what the reasons were for any changes made. 

Answer · Michael Russell: It is normal practice for the Scottish Government to publish updated flag flying guidance at the beginning of each year. The main changes to the guidance in 2021 were:Confirming specific flag flying dates;The removal of the birthday of HRH The Duke of York as…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-34146 by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 January 2021, by what date it expects the remodelling work will be finalised.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As was the case with the South and Central R100 contracts, the Scottish Government is providing BT with an updated intervention area (the list of addresses eligible for public sector subsidy) for the North which we have recently consulted upon. We have commi…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-34146 by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 January 2021, what plans it has to improve support for Community Fibre Partnerships in areas that have been excluded from the R100 programme or might have to wait a number of years to benefit from programme.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme main voucher – worth up to £5,000 – has been specifically designed to allow vouchers in a community to be combined to extend available funding, ensuring co-ordinated, comprehensive areas of superfast coverage where possib…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to replace Huawei equipment from the Scottish 5G network in line with the UK Government mandate that was published in July 2020.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Policy relating to cyber-security, like telecommunications more broadly, remains reserved to the UK Government. The removal of Huawei equipment from commercial mobile networks is the responsibility of mobile network operators and the Scottish Government is no…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-34146 by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 January 2021, whether it has asked OpenReach to re-evaluate flipping the premises that are due to be connected via Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) to Fibre to the Premises (FTTP).

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: When bidding for the R100 contracts, suppliers submitted bids that maximised coverage with the funding available. Through the remodelling exercise, we have again asked BT to maximise coverage but are separately exploring the possibility of securing further fu…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-34146 by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 January 2021, what the incremental cost would be of flipping the premises that are due to be connected via Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) to Fibre to the Premises (FTTP).

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government does not hold information on the incremental costs associated with flipping premises from FTTC to FTTP. This is because these costs are derived from commercial delivery models which vary by supplier and between premises.

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce a COVID-19 vaccine certificate system and, if so, how it will ensure that such a scheme does not discriminate against people who are unable to receive the vaccine for health reasons.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government is currently considering the role that a vaccination certificate/passport may have. However, this work is still ongoing and a final decision has not been reached on whether this will be introduced. A key factor in the Scottish Governm…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the availability and capacity of (a) the ophthalmic surgeon workforce and (b) the facilities required to carry out cataract surgery.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The ophthalmic surgeon workforce capacity has been largely unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In line with guidance issued by the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, a risk stratification process has been introduced to ensure that patients at most risk of p…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the risk posed to patients' (a) physical and (b) mental health when a patient does not receive cataract surgery within 18 weeks of referral.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: While the Scottish Government has not carried out any specific assessment on the potential risk posed to patients’ physical and mental health when they do not receive cataract surgery within 18 weeks of referral, we do fully appreciate the difficulty and anxi…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to utilise additional services to deal with any backlog of patients awaiting cataract surgery.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government is working collaboratively with NHS Scotland to identify all available additional capacity to support higher volume cataract surgery. As part of the process of remobilising NHS services, discussions are ongoing with the NHS Golden Jub…

5 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the First Minister on 17 November 2020 and subsequent announcements by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance on 7 and 9 February 2021 regarding an additional £90 million for local authorities to establish a Discretionary Fund with an increased value of £120 milli…

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government will publish details of how much each Local Authority has been allocated from the Discretionary Fund as part of a forthcoming finance circular.

5 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its announcements on 7 and 9 February 2021 regarding the allocation of an additional £90 million to local authorities for the establishment of a Discretionary Fund with an increased value of £120 million, when it will publish a breakdown by local authority of the (a) number o…

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government regularly publishes statistics and management information relating to its Covid-19 business grants on its website. The latest publication that includes details of the Discretionary Fund was published on 10 March 2021.

5 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its announcement on 17 November 2020 regarding the allocation of £30 million to local authorities for the establishment of a Discretionary Fund, when it will publish a breakdown by local authority of the (a) number of grant applications (i) made, (ii) approved and (iii) decli…

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government regularly publishes statistics and management information relating to its Covid-19 business grants on its website. The latest publication that includes details of the Discretionary Fund was published on 10 March 2021.

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consult with communities over the use of funds that were paid to Crown Estate Scotland by developers of offshore wind farms through the ScotWind Leasing process.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Scottish Ministers will consider in due course how revenues accruing to the Scottish Consolidated Fund from the ScotWind leasing round should be utilised and consult with stakeholders. Scottish Ministers have made a commitment that net revenues from Scottish …

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its estimate is of the energy generating potential at each of the fifteen plan options that are outlined in the Sectoral Marine Plan for Offshore Wind.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Sectoral Marine Plan for Offshore Wind Energy sets out the generating potential for each Plan Option. At a national level the plan has set a limit for development under this cycle of 10 GW. Table 1 in Section 3, and further detail considered in Section 4,…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the Supply Chain Development Statements that were provided by successful applicants to the ScotWind Leasing process, and whether the extension to the deadline for ScotWind applications that was announced 11 February 2021 will have an impact on the (a) content or (b) …

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Crown Estate Scotland will publish the Supply Chain Development Statement commitments made by developers at a later date to be confirmed in due course, given the extension to the application process resulting from the current review. Once the review is conclu…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with operators of oil and gas production facilities in the North Sea, ahead of potential applications through the ScotWind Leasing process.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Oil and gas operators have engaged with our offshore wind planning process and our offshore wind policy statement through their associated consultations. This has helped inform those reports. These engagements have been supplemented by regular discussions whi…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-30619 by Paul Wheelhouse on 8 October 2020, when it expects the Scottish Offshore Wind Energy Council to publish its independent review of the current status of the offshore wind supply chain.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Independently led Strategic Investment Assessment of the offshore wind sector in Scotland has not yet concluded. The assessment is now well underway and I anticipate the findings will be presented to the Scottish Offshore Wind Energy Council by the end of…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on an appropriate rate of return for shareholders in companies that are applying to lease offshore wind farm sites through the ScotWind process.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: It is not for the Scottish Government to determine an appropriate rate of return for investors in a private and competitive venture. Our objective is to see the development of viable and successful projects in Scotland to help tackle the climate emergency and…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding opportunities for (a) businesses and (b) offshore workers in light of Canadian Natural Resources (CNR) International's recent announcement of a decommissioning plan until 2025 at its (i) Banff, (ii) Kyle and (iii) other …

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The decommissioning of oil and gas infrastructure at the end of its life presents the potential for Scotland to capitalise on a market that is forecast to reach £15.2 billion over the next decade. The Scottish Government has not held specific discussions reg…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many option agreement applications Crown Estate Scotland has received since the first cycle of the ScotWind Leasing process was launched on 10 June 2020.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As this is an open and competitive process neither the Scottish Government nor Crown Estate Scotland can discuss applications, however, we can confirm that there has been a healthy level of interest in ScotWind.  

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that the ScotWind Leasing process does not allow offshore wind farm developers to drive risk and cost reduction down the supply chain.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: We are liaising closely with Crown Estate Scotland on the ScotWind review. Crown Estate Scotland are focused on supporting the development of a successful offshore wind sector, and the opportunities for the supply chain that this brings, while achieving a fai…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take to ensure that the delayed ScotWind Leasing process does not undermine the long-term employment prospects of workers in the offshore wind supply chain.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Crown Estate Scotland’s review of ScotWind aims to allow the ScotWind process to continue as swiftly as possible and thereby lay the foundations for a strong pipeline of development. The review seeks to support our long-term goals for a successful offshore wi…

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the impact of the Crown Estate round 4 leasing process on the ScotWind Leasing process.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As planning and consenting authorities we regularly engage with the UK government and The Crown Estate. We have liaised with them on various aspects of offshore wind planning and consenting, including on the impact of the Round 4 leasing process.  

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the announcement by Crown Estate Scotland on 11 February 2021 of an extension to the deadline for applications to ScotWind Leasing, when it expects the review of the options structure to be completed, and if it will outline the reforms that are under consideration.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As announced by Crown Estate Scotland on 11 February, the review is targeted for completion by 24 March 2021. Crown Estate Scotland plan to outline the conclusions of the review at that point.

3 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many jobs have been supported by the Ninian North decommissioning project, and whether it has discussed this site with Scottish Carbon Capture and Storage.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The number of jobs supported by the Ninian Northern decommissioning project would be a matter to address towards Highlands and Islands Enterprise, as the information requested is not held centrally. Scottish Carbon Capture and Storage (SCCS) are non-statutor…

3 Mar 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what criteria the tourism sector must meet to ensure that people's summer holiday bookings will be honoured.