Patrick Harvie

10 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the possibility of effectively eliminating hepatitis C in Scotland.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The treatment and prevention of hepatitis C continue to be a government priority, and this is reflected in the five high-level outcomes within the Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Framework. The Scottish Government is also committed to developing innovati…

28 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether, in the event of Scotland becoming independent, it would support a process of regularisation for migrants as part of the transition to a new Scottish immigration system.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government has no plans to create a specific route for the regularisation of irregular migrants.

15 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking as a result of the UK Government's requirement on landlords to check the immigration status of prospective tenants.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: Immigration is a reserved matter. However, these provisions, through their impact on private landlords and registered social landlords (RSLs), will have a significant impact on housing policy, which is devolved. The Scottish Government has no evidence of dif…

13 May 2014 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the role of massive open online courses in improving the employment prospects of women and young people.

12 May 2014 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what steps Revenue Scotland would take to prevent tax avoidance practices in the event that Scotland had greater responsibility for taxation.

25 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the UK Government's proposed Infrastructure Bill, which is to include provision aimed at allowing companies to run shale gas pipelines under private land, will apply to Scotland and, if so, what the Scottish Government's position would be on legislative consent for devolved aspec…

Answer · Fergus Ewing: While the licensing of onshore oil and gas is generally a reserved matter for the UK Government, we understand that the Infrastructure Bill has not been yet been introduced to the UK Parliament. Therefore, the Scottish Government will not be able come to a de…

24 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds regarding the membership of the Confederation of British Industry, broken down by (a) public bodies, (b) organisations receiving public funds and (c) other bodies.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: Five Scottish public bodies were members of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI): Visit Scotland, Skills Development Scotland, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the Scottish Qualifications Authority. All resigned following the r…

1 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish a draft of the letting agent code of practice before the stage 3 debate on the Housing (Scotland) Bill.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: Subject to the Scottish Parliament passing the Housing (Scotland) Bill, the Scottish Government has committed to working with stakeholders to develop a draft letting agent code of practice, and subsequently will consult publicly on that draft. The code of pra…

28 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation includes drive time to a range of services and facilities but not walking or cycling times.

Answer · Keith Brown: This response relates to S4W-20451 and S4W-20452 as they are specifically relating to individuals who experience deprivations in ‘access to services’. Indicators included in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) must fulfil a number of criteria t…

28 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation includes drive time to primary and secondary schools but not public transport times or availability.

Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20451 on 28 April 2014. 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/parliamentaryb…

26 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the third supplementary to question S4F-00845 by Alex Salmond on 13 September 2012 (Official Report, c.11415), in which the First Minister said that it was the Scottish Government's "responsibility to put forward an estimate" of the impact on climate change of i…

Answer · Keith Brown: As part of the detailed consideration of reforms to the UK Government’s air passenger duty following independence or devolution of the tax to the Scottish Parliament, the Scottish Government will conduct analysis on the environmental impact of proposals. That…

24 Mar 2014 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what role a constitutional convention would play in developing a written constitution in an independent Scotland.

19 Mar 2014 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what consideration it has given to the future capacity needs of the Parliament in the event that it exercises significant additional powers.

13 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the third supplementary to question S4O-03007 by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2014 (Official Report, c. 28892), what the basis was for the assertion by the minister that “no contradiction exists” between the government’s climate and energy policies; whether the repo…

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish oil and gas strategy sets out the Scottish Government’s aim to maximise the recovery of oil and gas, which is responsible stewardship of a national resource. However, it is clear from our actions that we are equally committed to the transition t…

11 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how a digital bill of rights would impact on devolved areas of responsibility and what its position is on this matter.

Answer · John Swinney: A digital bill of rights is not being considered actively at the present time. Under the Scotland Act 1998, however, there is a specific duty on Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Parliament to act in accordance with the rights set out in the European Conven…

11 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many changes have been made to policy or legislation as a result of carrying out a privacy impact assessment.

Answer · John Swinney: Privacy impact assessments are used in the Scottish Government to identify and manage privacy risks of new projects and policies, often as part of the normal project and risk management process. No formal record is automatically kept linking changes to policy…

11 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many privacy impact assessments it has published since it adopted the identity management and privacy principles, and what the titles, subjects and publication dates were.

Answer · John Swinney: Five privacy impact assessments have been published on the Scottish Government website since the identity management and privacy principles were published in December 2010. Details are: Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill Subject: Rights and provision…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has achieved the 2012 greenhouse gas emissions target.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: An official statistics publication providing Scottish greenhouse gas emissions data for 2012 will be released in June 2014. These data will allow the level of the net Scottish emissions account to be calculated and determine whether the 2012 greenhouse gas em…

22 Jan 2014 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase the quality and affordability of private rented housing.

14 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is reviewing the (a) suitability and (b) effectiveness of short assured tenancies in the private rented housing sector.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: I have established a stakeholder-led review group, independently chaired by Professor Douglas Robertson, to examine the suitability and effectiveness of the current private rented sector tenancy regime and to develop recommendations to Scottish Ministers on h…

10 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S4W-18881 and S4W-18886 by Michael Matheson on 8 January 2014, whether it supports the prohibition of so-called "gay to straight conversion therapy".

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not consider homosexuality a mental illness and does not support ‘gay to straight conversion therapy’ or any such similar therapies.

7 Jan 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of private tenancy deposits has been paid into a protected deposit scheme.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

12 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it supports the objectives of the Counsellors and Psychotherapists (Regulation) Bill introduced in the UK Parliament.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government works closely with the Department of Health, other devolved administrations and the regulators in the interests of patient safety. We believe that full statutory regulation should not be the default approach and support the Accredited …

12 Dec 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Counsellors and Psychotherapists (Regulation) Bill introduced in the UK Parliament will apply to Scotland.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Counsellors and Psychotherapists (Regulation) Bill is a Private Members Bill proposed by Geraint Davies MP. Though the regulation of new groups is devolved, ministers of all four countries have committed to maintaining a consistent approach for healthcare…

12 Dec 2013 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what information it has on the proportion of its staff who are members of trades unions, also broken down by (a) office and (b) team.

Answer · David Stewart : I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-18866. 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/parliamentarybusiness/28877…

12 Dec 2013 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what information it has on what proportion of its staff were members of trades unions at the beginning of each session.

Answer · David Stewart : We do not seek to monitor the proportion of staff that are members of trade unions. Trade union membership is considered to be sensitive personal data in terms of the provisions of the Data Protection Act (1998). As such, information on trade union membersh…

12 Dec 2013 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what arrangements are in place for its staff who are not members of trades unions to raise concerns or negotiate on issues such as terms and conditions.

Answer · David Stewart: We recognise three unions PCS, Prospect and FDA, and actively encourage membership as part of our employment processes. We consult and negotiate with them jointly as the TUS (Trade Union Side) on concerns or issues such as staff terms and conditions. In add…

20 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the cost of infraction proceedings would fall to a local planning authority where these were the result of a failure to adequately implement planning controls, and what the reason is for its position on this matter.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The UK Government is responsible for responding to infringement proceedings for a breach of EU law by any public authority in the UK and for paying any financial penalties imposed in that respect. Where proceedings relate to a devolved matter, the financial p…

20 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers the use of "letters of comfort" by local planning authorities to be appropriate where they allow the continued operation of an opencast coal mine where it has become apparent that environmental restoration, required as mitigation in the environmental impact assessmen…

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government expects planning authorities to ensure that mitigation measures required by a planning permission are implemented. A planning authority may routinely discuss with operators, licensees, landowners and regulators the recommencement of o…

20 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-17672 by Fergus Ewing on 23 October 2013, when it will publish its consultation on the regulation of the coal industry.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The consultation Opencast Coal Restoration - Effective Regulation has been published on-line at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2013/12/7688