Parliamentary questions
Tavish Scott
2,683 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
17 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how the recently-agreed discard ban will apply to fishing vessels using gillnets in Scottish coastal waters.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: The details of the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), including the discard ban, have not been agreed between the European Council and the European Parliament. However, the clear intention of both the Council and the Parliament is that a discard ban…
17 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many UK-registered gillnet vessels fishing in Scottish coastal waters since 2012 have been boarded by Marine Scotland officers.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: Since 2012 Marine Scotland Officers have boarded UK-registered gillnet vessels fishing within the 200 mile fisheries limit around Scotland on 10 occasions. One of these boarding took place within the 12 mile limit, at the time the vessel concerned was on pass…
17 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what enforcement action has been taken against UK-registered gillnet vessels fishing in Scottish coastal waters since 2012.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: There have been no Marine Scotland prosecutions raised against this fleet segment since 2012. However, there have been five advisory letters issued and one verbal rebrief issued from the start of 2012 to date for infringements detected on board UK gillnetters…
16 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4O-02111 by Humza Yousaf on 15 May 2013 (Official Report, c.19791), whether it had considered the (a) reported approaches of the (i) Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to the US Secretary of State, (ii) Under Secretary of State for…
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government fully supports any attempts that the UK Government makes to end the continued detention of Shaker Aamer. However, he continues to be detained at Guantanamo Bay, 11 years after detention and six years after being cleared. As I have prev…
16 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4O-02111 by Humza Yousaf on 15 May 2013 (Official Report, c.19791), whether the minister’s comment that “there has barely been a peep from successive UK governments” regarding the detention of Shaker Aamer reflects the Scottish Government’s position on…
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Shaker Aamer continues to be detained in Guantanamo Bay. As I have previously stated, it is vital that we learn from the lessons of the past and that, in the present, we are guided by international human rights standards. This is an approach to which the Scot…
16 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many times ministers have met officials from the government of Iraqi Kurdistan in the last 12 months; where the meetings took place, and what was discussed.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: No meetings with ministers and officials from the Kurdistan Regional Government took place over the last 12 months. I had a courtesy meeting with Mr Zaid Izzadin Mohammed Noori, Consul General for Iraq and Dr Alawi, First Consul for Iraq who are based in Man…
16 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its policy objectives are for its engagement with the government of (a) Iraqi Kurdistan, (b) Iraq and (c) Turkey.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government’s international priorities are set out in Scotland’s International Framework which can be found at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/0040/00405438.pdf.
16 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with government officials from (a) Iraqi Kurdistan, (b) Iraq and (c) Turkey in the last six months.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Information on engagement the Scottish Government has had with government officials from (a) Iraqi Kurdistan, (b) Iraq and (c) Turkey in the last 6 months could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. This is due to the high number of potential communicati…
15 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the supplementary to question S4O-01961 by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 March 2013 (Official Report, c. 18322), when the cabinet secretary will provide the information.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I wrote to the member on 18 May 2013 providing the information requested.
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14021 by Humza Yousaf on 25 April 2013, whether it will consider new guidance for officials dealing with the Government of Qatar to encourage discussion of the imprisonment of the poet, Mohammed al-Ajami.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: We have no plans to issue new guidance at this stage for officials dealing with the Government of Qatar to encourage discussion of the imprisonment of the poet, Mohammed al-Ajami. The Scottish Government’s International Framework recognises that, as a good g…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14019 by Humza Yousaf on 25 April 2013, whether the imprisonment of the poet, Mohammed al-Ajami, has arisen in dialogue with the Government of Qatar.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Further to the answer to S4W-14019 I can confirm that the imprisonment of the poet, Mohammed al-Ajami has not arisen in dialogue with the Government of Qatar.
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14018 by Humza Yousaf on 25 April 2013, whether ministers have been updated on dialogue between Scottish Government officials and officials and ministers from the Government of Qatar in the last six months and, if so, whether such updates have inclu…
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Officials from the Scottish Government were in contact with officials and ministers from the Government of Qatar in November and December 2012 to make the necessary logistical arrangements for the Minister’s meeting with His Excellency Mr Khalid Rashid Al-Man…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14020 by Humza Yousaf on 25 April 2013, whether ministers have set out parameters to officials on discussion of the imprisonment of the poet, Mohammed al-Ajami, with ministers and officials from the Government of Qatar.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: No parameters have been set out by Ministers for officials regarding their discussion of the imprisonment of the poet, Mohammed al-Ajami with ministers and officials from the Government of Qatar. The Scottish Government’s International Framework recognises th…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14017 by Humza Yousaf on 25 April 2013, whether ministers have provided specific guidance to officials on dealing with ministers and officials from the Government of Qatar in addition to the Civil Service Code and, if so, whether such guidance inclu…
Answer · Humza Yousaf: I refer back to my answer to question S4W-14017. Officials adhere to the Civil Service Code when engaging with government officials from other countries. No specific guidance to officials on dealing with ministers and officials from the Government of Qatar an…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many road equivalent tariff fares have been collected on each ferry route in each year since the scheme began.
Answer · Keith Brown: Road Equivalent Tariff (RET) for all carrying types was introduced as a pilot on routes to the Western Isles, Coll and Tiree on 19 October 2008. RET for larger commercial vehicles was however, withdrawn from April 2012. RET was continued for passengers, cars,…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors the (a) fairness, (b) usage and (c) success of the road equivalent tariff scheme and how regularly.
Answer · Keith Brown: Substantial monitoring and evaluation was carried out by independent consultants Halcrow Group Limited during the period of the Road Equivalent Tariff pilot in the Western Isles, Coll and Tiree. Halcrow produced their ‘Assessment of the Impacts of the Road Eq…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what independent advisors have been involved in the (a) creation and (b) calculation of the road equivalent tariff scheme.
Answer · Keith Brown: Halcrow Group Ltd and MVA Consultancy Ltd have been involved in providing independent advice to the Scottish Government in the creation and calculation of the RET scheme. Halcrow Group Ltd were commissioned by the Scottish Government and prepared the follow…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the prices calculated for the road equivalent tariff are equivalent to driving the same distance by road and, if not, whether it will rename the road equivalent tariff accordingly.
Answer · Keith Brown: RET is a distance based fares structure, which underpins the Scottish Government’s commitment to providing one single overarching fares policy across ferry services subsidised by the Scottish Government. Fares are set using a fixed element, reflecting the fi…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Advertising Standards Authority regarding its findings in relation to Calmac Ferries Ltd.
Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-14939 on 31 May 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/parliamentarybus…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it calculates the drivers' fare element of the road equivalent tariff that is based on "other public transport modes in Scotland", given that individual bus and train fares can vary considerably.
Answer · Keith Brown: Halcrow Group Limited’s “Phase 1 Stage 2 Report” published in February 2008, calculated the average cost per mile of travelling by rail and bus on different routes across Scotland. A copy of the report can be accessed through the following link http://www.sco…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much the fixed element of the road equivalent tariff formula costs each driver on each crossing and how much the annual fixed costs are that this element is aimed at offsetting.
Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-14936 on 31 May 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/parliamentarybus…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it received the Advertising Standards Authority findings relating to the road equivalent tariff (RET) and when CalMac Ferries Ltd's additional clarifying information about RET was or will be made publically available in CalMac Ferries Ltd's advertising.
Answer · Keith Brown: Transport Scotland and CalMac Ferries Limited corresponded with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) regarding CalMac’s advertising of RET between March and May 2013. ASA wrote to CalMac on the 15 March 2013. The case was transferred to Transport Scotla…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the equivalent road distance is, expressed in miles, for each ferry crossing used in road equivalent tariff calculations.
Answer · Keith Brown: The information requested is set out in the following table. Routes Miles Tayinloan - Gigha 2.5 Uig (Skye) - Tarbert (Harris)/Lochmaddy (North Uist) 29.2 Kennacraig - Islay 32.3 Oban - Colonsay 36.6 Ullapool - Stornoway (Lewis) 52.2 Oban - Coll/T…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on what the 10 most commonly driven cars in Scotland are, expressed as a percentage, and how much it costs per mile to drive them.
Answer · Keith Brown: No information is held by the Scottish Government on the most commonly driven cars or the associated cost per mile to drive them. Information on the 10 most popular new cars sold is available from Table 1.11 of Scottish Transport Statistics No 31: 2012 Editi…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) car, (b) passenger, (c) driver and (d) pence per mile fares it uses to calculate the road equivalent tariff.
Answer · Keith Brown: The road equivalent tariff (RET) fare for a car is calculated by a fixed element of £5.00 plus a rate per mile of £0.80. A driver and any passengers will be charged as foot passengers. For foot passengers the RET fare is a fixed element of £2.00 plus £0.13 p…
14 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what numerical formula it uses to calculate the road equivalent tariff and when it was first used.
Answer · Keith Brown: The road equivalent tariff (RET) formula for a car is a fixed element of £5.00 plus a rate of £0.80 per mile. For foot passengers the RET fare is a fixed element of £2.00 plus £0.13 per mile. This current formula was first used for the roll out of RET to Is…
9 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S4W-14329 and S4W-14332 by Paul Wheelhouse on 1 May 2013, how many of the applications were accepted after being refused at the initial stage and, of these, on how many occasions the acceptance followed a change being made to the original application.…
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The purpose of the Croft House Grant Scheme is to facilitate the productive use of croft land through improving and maintaining the standards of crofter housing with the aim of attracting and retaining people in the more remote areas of the Highlands and Isla…
8 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the longest scheduled journey time on ScotRail services between (a) Glasgow and Aberdeen, (b) Edinburgh and Aberdeen, (c) Aberdeen and Inverness, (d) Glasgow and Edinburgh via Falkirk, (e) Glasgow and Inverness and (f) Edinburgh and Inverness (i) was in 2007 and (ii) is in 2013.
Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-14774 on 22 May 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/parliamentarybus…
8 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the shortest scheduled journey time on ScotRail services between (a) Glasgow and Aberdeen, (b) Edinburgh and Aberdeen, (c) Aberdeen and Inverness, (d) Glasgow and Edinburgh via Falkirk, (e) Glasgow and Inverness and (f) Edinburgh and Inverness (i) was in 2007 and (ii) is in 2013.
Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-14774 on 22 May 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/parliamentarybus…
8 May 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the average scheduled journey time on ScotRail services between (a) Glasgow and Aberdeen, (b) Edinburgh and Aberdeen, (c) Aberdeen and Inverness, (d) Glasgow and Edinburgh via Falkirk, (e) Glasgow and Inverness and (f) Edinburgh and Inverness (i) was in 2007 and (ii) is in 2013.
Answer · Keith Brown: The attached table provides comparison data for journey times across the Scottish rail network: Route Average Journey Time (S4W-14774) Shortest Journey Time (S4W-14775) Longest Journey Time (S4W-14776) 2007 2013 Mon-Sat Sunday Mon-Sat Sunday 2007 …