Parliamentary questions
Richard Baker
2,136 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the publication in January 2009 of Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), whether it has commissioned any further research into issues uncovered in the report.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:</p> <p >The Scottish Prison Service, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Health Scotland, is planning to commission research to guid…
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what initiatives it is running to help gang members leave gangs and where.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-22244 on 21 April 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/…
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the finding in Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), published in January 2009, that gang membership could act as a barrier to the cessation of violent offending, what its assessment is of this finding and what action it intends to take.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-22244 on 21 April 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/…
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the finding in Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), published in January 2009, that 65.7% of prisoners questioned in 2007 stated that they had been in a gang while in the community, what its assessment is of this finding and what action it …
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government is fully committed to reducing gang violence across Scotland and is taking direct action to tackle the problem. Last December, we announced a £1.6 million funding package to support the Community Initiative to Reduce Violence (CIRV) p…
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the finding in Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), published in January 2009, that 43.4% of prisoners who admitted to drinking alcohol before their current offence and could remember what they had been drinking had consumed Buckfast tonic …
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Whilst a significant number of the young offenders surveyed in the Alcohol and Violence among Young Offenders report indicated they drank Buckfast, a similar percentage reported drinking spirits (42.0%) and a significant number reported drinking beer (31.0%).…
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the finding in Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), published in January 2009, that in 2007 the drug most cited by prisoners who blamed drugs for their current offence was diazepam, what its assessment is of this trend and what action it in…
Answer · Fergus Ewing: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:</p> <p >The research does not describe a trend in the use of diazepam. The Scottish Prison Service is taking action by publishing the findings of …
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the finding in Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), published in January 2009, that the proportion of offenders blaming their current offence on alcohol had risen from 29.5% in 1979 to 56.8% in 2007, whether it intends to increase the provi…
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:</p> <p >SPS has been providing treatment, support and behavioural change programmes for alcohol and other substance misuse problems for a number …
23 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what its assessment is of Alcohol and Violence among Young Male Offenders in Scotland (1979-2009), published in January 2009 by William McKinlay, governor of HMP Barlinnie.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:</p> <p >SPS considers the report to be sound research which highlights a strong link between alcohol consumption and violent crime among y…
18 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many prosecutions there were for the (a) sale of alcohol to a person under 18, (b) purchasing of alcohol for consumption by a person under 18, (c) purchase of alcohol or its consumption on a licensed premises by a person under 18 and (d) confiscation of alcohol from a person under 18 …
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Data on criminal proceedings in Scottish courts for 2007-08 will be published on 28 April 2009. For 2006-07, the latest year for which data is currently available, prosecutions for offences related to underage alcohol consumption are contained in the followin…
18 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many offences were recorded for the (a) sale of alcohol to a person under 18, (b) purchase of alcohol for consumption by a person under 18, (c) purchase of alcohol or its consumption on a licensed premises by a person under 18 and (d) confiscation of alcohol from a person under 18 in …
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The following table shows the number of alcohol offences relating to persons under 18 recorded by the eight Scottish police forces in financial year 2007-08, broken down by police force:</p> <p >Number of Alcohol Offences Relating to Persons Under 18, by Pol…
13 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is concerned at the betting industry’s reaction to the Community trade union’s Safer Betting Shop poster campaign, which received significant cross-party support in the Parliament, and, if so, what action it intends to take to ensure that safety of betting shop staff is a prior…
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The campaign for the protection of public service workers from violence, which is continuing to be supported by the Scottish Government and is run by the Scottish Centre for Healthy Working Lives, has been positively received.</p> <p >The Community Trade Uni…
13 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what work it is undertaking with employers to ensure that their duty of care is upheld in ensuring that provisions are implemented to protect frontline betting shop workers from all forms of abuse and violence.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Acts of violence and abuse against anyone working in a public facing role are unacceptable.</p> <p >The Scottish Government is continuing to support the campaign for the protection of public service workers from violence that has been run for the last few ye…
13 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of concerns raised by the Community trade union, whether it is aware of an increased incidence of weapons being used against betting shop workers in crimes of robbery and assault with the intention to rob and, if so, what action it intends to take to protect such workers.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Justice met with Community trade union on 11 September 2008 when issues relating to incidents in betting shops were discussed. The Cabinet Secretary for Justice agreed to host a meeting of representatives from …
13 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take in light of concerns raised about the incidence of (a) verbal and (b) physical abuse against betting shop workers, as outlined in the Safer Betting Shops - Minimum Standards Report, published by the Community trade union in March 2009.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Justice met with Community trade union on 11 September 2008. The Cabinet Secretary for Justice agreed to host a meeting of representatives of betting shop owners and employees in the near future to discuss action o…
13 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what its assessment is of the 10 minimum standards outlined in the Safer Betting Shops - Minimum Standards Report, published by the Community trade union in March 2009, and whether it intends to take action to support the standards.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Acts of violence and abuse against anyone working in a public facing role are unacceptable. The Scottish Government is continuing to support the campaign for the protection of public service workers from violence that has been run for the last few years. The …
13 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the Department for Work and Pensions’ summit on tackling violence against betting shop workers convened by Pat McFadden MP, Minister for Employment Relations, with key stakeholders in November 2008, whether it intends to hold a similar summit and, if so, (a) when, (b) what st…
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Justice met with Community trade union on 11 September 2008 to discuss issues relating to betting shops.</p> <p >The Cabinet Secretary for Justice agreed to host a meeting of representatives of betting shop ow…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S3W-20948, S3W-20949 and S3W-20950 by Keith Brown on 11 March 2009, whether it (a) considers that, in order to evaluate effectively the success of such anti-knife-carrying programmes, it is vital to know how many schools are using such materials in the…
Answer · Fergus Ewing: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-21864 on 23 March 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/…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-20952 by Fergus Ewing on 11 March 2009, how its initiatives for tackling knife crime will be evaluated.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Measuring the impact of the wide range of initiatives that we are supporting is a key aspect of our efforts to prevent and reduce knife carrying in Scotland. In order to ensure that the education based initiatives have a positive impact, our education advisor…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the answers to questions S3W-20964, S3W-20965 and S3W-20967 by Fergus Ewing on 11 March 2009, on what basis the decision to target students in the most recent campaign by the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency was taken.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: SCDEA activity under the Shared Responsibility campaign is a general awareness campaign which has been, and will continue to be, promoted to varied audiences via a range of media and initiatives. The engagement with students in Scotland, which was supported b…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to questions S3W-20964, S3W-20965 and S3W-20967 by Fergus Ewing on 11 March 2009, whether it (a) considers that it would be useful to hold the information sought on drug misuse by students and (b) intends to collate this information in future.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Reliable information about the drug using population is key in the development of policy and practice. The Information Services Division of NHS Scotland collates information about individuals entering drug treatment services. Of those, it identifies people in…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-20961 by Fergus Ewing on 11 March 2009, whether it will provide further details of the (a) campaigns that have recently been run by the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency aimed at reducing demand for cocaine and (b) groups targeted by each ca…
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) recently ran a Shared Responsibility campaign aimed at changing social attitudes towards cocaine by highlighting the environmental impact that cocaine use in Scotland has on communities in Columbia. The c…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the NHS is responsible for setting quotas for the number of dietetics student placements available and, if so, (a) what the quota was and (b) how many places were taken up in each of the last two academic years.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The NHS is not responsible for setting quotas for the numbers of dietetics student placements. However, the NHS is working in partnership with higher education institutions to identify increased placement opportunities for dietetic students in training.</p> …
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students graduated from dietetics courses in each of the last two academic years, broken down by (a) institution and (b) course.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The number of dietetic students who graduated in the last two academic years are set out in the following table:</p> <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td rowspan=2 valign=top > <p align=center >Higher Education Institut…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students have enrolled on dietetics courses in each of the last two academic years, broken down by (a) institution and (b) course.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The number of dietetic students who enrolled in the last two academic year are set out in the following table:</p> <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td rowspan=2 valign=top > <p align=center >Higher Education Institutio…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students studying dietetics were (a) unable to graduate and (b) delayed in graduating due to a lack of placement opportunities in the last academic year, broken down by (i) institution and (ii) course.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: All dietetics students graduated in the last academic year (2007-08).</p> <p >However, a number of students were delayed in graduating. These included eight undergraduate students at Robert Gordon University and one undergraduate student and two postgraduate…
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students studying dietetics are undertaking placements in England and Wales in order to satisfy their degree requirements.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: One dietetic student is currently undertaking a placement in England.</p>
12 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is aware of the problems facing students studying dietetics due to the lack of placement opportunities and, if so, what action it is taking in response.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Yes, the Scottish Government is aware of a lack of available clinical placements for dietetics students. A range of actions are in hand to identify solutions to this issue.</p> <p >The Chief Health Professions Officer (CHPO) at the Scottish Government has di…
12 Mar 2009 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how it is supporting the performing arts in Aberdeen.
Answer · Michael Russell: <i > This question was answered in the Chamber. The answer can be viewed in the Official Report using the following link:</i></p> <p ><a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-09/sor0312-01.htm">http://www.scot…
11 Mar 2009 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made with the fuel poverty programme.
Answer · Alex Neil : <i >This question was answered in the Chamber. The answer can be viewed in the Official Report using the following link:</i></p> <p ><a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-09/sor0312-01.htm">http://www.scott…
6 Mar 2009 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the announcement by the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing on 5 March 2009 (Official Report c. 15439) that a police strength projection study will be undertaken, how the study will be conducted and what factors will be taken into consideration.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The police strength projection study will consider forecast recruitment, retirals and other leavers, and include other factors that influence head count.</p>