Parliamentary questions

Murdo Fraser

2,062 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

1 Jun 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list all operating windfarms in Scotland, showing each windfarm’s annual (a) forecast generated output and (b) actual generated output, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Jim Mather: A table of all operational windfarms by local authority area and their theoretical annual generated output is attached. Energy companies consider information on individual windfarms'' actual generated output to be commercially sensitive and do not release thi…

1 Jun 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether all telephone exchange upgrades in rural areas, as announced by it on 9 December 2009, have been met and are on target.

Answer · John Swinney: As of 8 June, BT has confirmed that 55 of the 81 exchange upgrades included in this telephone exchange upgrade programme are now complete. BT has also confirmed that the programme is on track for completion by the end of November 2010. The dates ann…

25 May 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) objections and (b) expressions of support have been received in relation to the application to construct and operate the Viking wind farm on Shetland.

Answer · Jim Mather: In relation to the application to construct and operate the Viking wind farm on Shetland, the Scottish Government have received to date: (a) 2,064 objections, and (b) 512 expressions of support.

19 May 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the improvements that have been carried out to the A9 since May 2007, showing when these improvements were first announced.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The following trunk road improvement schemes have been carried out on the A9 since May 2007: <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td width=190 valign=top > Scheme </td> <td width=253 valign=t…

19 May 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many civil service jobs it has relocated since May 2007 and how many of these were relocated to Perth and Kinross.

Answer · John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-26109 on 19 August 2009. 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/Apps2…

5 May 2010 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to the recent HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) report on Perth Prison.

Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government welcomes HMCIP''s report and is pleased with his conclusion that Perth is a very well led and managed prison that it has many examples of good practice and everyone is focused on trying to help prisoners and meet their needs.

23 Apr 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to make a decision on the proposed Logiealmond wind farm development.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I am currently carefully considering the Logiealmond wind farm proposal and will reach a decision in due course.

23 Apr 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to make a decision on the proposed Calliacher wind farm development.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I am currently carefully considering the Calliachar wind farm proposal will reach a decision in due course.

15 Apr 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to mark the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn in 2014.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Scottish ministers have recognised the need for improvements to the facilities at Bannockburn to bring them up to a standard that reflects the historic importance of the site. Historic Scotland is working with the National Trust for Scotland, which owns and m…

15 Apr 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive on what 20 roads the highest number of (a) accidents and (b) fatalities have been recorded in each of the last five years.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The following tables provide statistics requested and are ranked by estimates per km of road. <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <tr > <td nowrap colspan=6 valign=bottom > 2004 </td> </tr> <tr > <td nowrap co…

30 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much higher education colleges have been awarded by the Scottish Funding Council or its predecessor body in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Keith Brown: The award of funding to higher education colleges by the Scottish Funding Council is an operational matter for that body. I have asked the Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council to write to you providing the information you require.

30 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much further education colleges have been awarded by the Scottish Funding Council or its predecessor body in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Keith Brown: The funding of further education colleges by the Scottish Funding Council is an operational matter for that body. I have asked the Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council to write to you providing the information you require.

30 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many students at a further education institute had their course funded by the Scottish Government in each of the last 10 years, broken down by students from (a) Scotland or (b) elsewhere in the European Union.

Answer · Keith Brown: This is a matter for the Scottish Funding Council. I will ask the Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council to reply to the member.

30 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many students at a higher education institute had their course funded by the Scottish Government in each of the last 10 years, broken down by students from (a) Scotland or (b) elsewhere in the European Union.

Answer · Michael Russell: The Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) provides tuition fees for eligible full-time Scottish and EU domiciled higher education students studying in Scotland. Table 1 shows the number of students in each of the past ten academic years who attended a Sco…

26 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Scottish and Southern Energy regarding undergrounding sections of the Beauly to Denny power line upgrade in Perthshire.

Answer · Jim Mather: Discussions have been held between Scottish Government officials and Scottish and Southern Energy on the Auchilhanzie Visual Impact Mitigation Scheme. Undergrounding is one of the various options being considered in seeking to mitigate the visual impact at th…

26 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Scottish and Southern Energy regarding undergrounding sections of the Beauly to Denny power line upgrade in the Stirling area.

Answer · Jim Mather: Scottish Power Transmission Ltd (SPT) have responsibility for constructing the overhead line upgrade in the Stirling area. Discussions have been held between Scottish Government officials, SPT and Stirling Council regarding the Stirling Visual Impact…

18 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, given that, according to the proposed east coast timetable for 2011, Arriva CrossCountry will take over the operation of Glasgow to London services, whether it will make representations to Arriva regarding the lack of wi-fi provision on these services and the potential diminution in serv…

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The Arriva Cross Country services from Glasgow will not extend to London Kings Cross, but will continue to serve destinations in the North of England, including Newcastle, Durham, Darlington and York, as well as providing an increased range of direct services…

18 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will encourage care home providers to liaise with local authorities that will act as agents for people who self-fund their care home costs.

Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-32551 on 13 April 2010. 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/Apps2/…

18 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the fairness of the care home costs system for people who self-fund.

18 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to support people who self-fund their care home costs in cases where there is a disparity between their fees and those paid by local authority-funded individuals receiving the same level of care.

Answer · Shona Robison: The amount self funders pay for their care home costs is a matter between the individual and the care home provider. It is not appropriate for the Scottish Government to intervene in the contractual arrangements between self funding residents and independent …

5 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many complaints have been received regarding breaches of the Horse Identification (Scotland) Regulations 2009.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Local authorities have responsibility for enforcing the Horse Identification (Scotland) Regulations 2009 which were brought in to comply with European Commission Decision 504/208. Local authorities deal with breaches on a reactive basis. Scottish Go…

5 Mar 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure compliance with the Horse Identification (Scotland) Regulations 2009.

8 Jan 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will release all advice that it took on alternatives to the Beauly to Denny power line upgrade application, such as subsea cables, undergrounding and upgrading the east coast pylon route.

Answer · Jim Mather: All evidence submitted to the public local inquiry will be published on the Scottish Government''s website as soon as possible. This is a huge task, so the information will appear gradually over the coming weeks as it is added to the system.

7 Jan 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it and its agencies are giving to communities and farmers at risk of flooding once the snow thaws.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Although a thaw is now taking place in many parts of Scotland, there is currently no indication that the rate of thawing will result in severe flooding problems. Nevertheless, people should heed the advice on SEPA''s website and be prepared for flooding. SEPA…

7 Jan 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many tonnes of salt and grit it has in reserve to deal with the extreme weather conditions.

Answer · John Swinney: Responsibility for maintaining Scotland''s public roads and footpaths, including the purchase and use of road salt, sits with local authorities and trunk road operators. The Scottish Government does not therefore hold significant reserves of salt or grit for …

7 Jan 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the UK Government and its appropriate agencies regarding resources and supplies of grit and salt should these be required.

Answer · John Swinney: In order to provide consistent advice to the UK''s main salt suppliers, which supply to councils and trunk road operators across the UK, a UK Salt Cell has been established. The UK Salt Cell brings together the Department for Transport (Chair), the Scottish G…

7 Jan 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what contingency plans it has in place for situations where a local authority exhausts its supplies of grit and salt and is unable to replenish them.

Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government is doing everything possible to ensure that councils, trunk road operators and salt suppliers work together to ensure best use of available salt supplies in order minimise the risk to public safety. In the event of a local authority be…

17 Dec 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to support beekeeping and improve the environment for bees, such as planting bee friendly plants.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: In relation to supporting beekeeping, the Scottish Government: Provides a full time apiculture specialist at SAC (who provides comprehensive advisory, training and education programmes for beekeepers throughout Scotland. Provides a free diag…

17 Dec 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been spent on services provided by Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture in relation to varroa mites.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture (SASA) provides a free diagnostic service to beekeepers to identify and confirm the presence of Varroa and notifiable bee pests and diseases as well as technical advice. The available figures cover the totals for SA…

17 Dec 2009 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been spent on screening for varroa mites resistant to pyrethroid medication in each of the last three years.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government completed an exercise to establish if there was a resistance to pyrethroids in Scotland in 2008 at a cost of £4,252. Restrictions in place brought on by foot and mouth in 2007 meant that this exercise, originally planned for 2007, was …