Parliamentary questions
Kezia Dugdale
1,684 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
8 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of its pension funds regarding investment in payday loan companies.
Answer · John Swinney: The main Principal Civil Service Pension Schemes of which, most Scottish Government employees are members, are unfunded. There are no investments as you would find in a normal pension scheme. The only exception to this is the partnership stakeholder pension …
8 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what direction it gives to Scottish Enterprise regarding its ethical and sustainable investment policies.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Scottish Enterprise (SE) aligns its investment policies to the Government Economic Strategy and to the guidance provided through its strategic guidance letter, which is issued on an annual basis. The national performance framework highlights three key compon…
8 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it last met the Consumer Finance Association and what matters were discussed.
Answer · John Swinney: The Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism met with representatives from the Consumer Finance Association (CFA) on 15 November 2013 as part of a series of roundtable meetings with stakeholders to discuss issues associated with pay day loans. This was th…
8 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many people on debt arrangement schemes owe money to Portfolio Recovery Associates UK and what the total amount is.
Answer · John Swinney: Statistics held by the Accountant in Bankruptcy show that 72 people who have a debt payment plan under the debt arrangement scheme owe money to Portfolio Recovery Associates UK Ltd. The total debt owed is £45,901.
8 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people are on a debt arrangement scheme and what the (a) total and (b) median debt is.
Answer · John Swinney: Statistics held at 31 March 2014, show that there were 13,166 debt payment programmes under the Debt Arrangement Scheme, the total debt included is £241.3 million with a median debt of £13,076.
8 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what meetings (a) ministers and (b) officials have had with representatives of Portfolio Recovery Associates UK since 2011; who was present at each meeting, and what was discussed.
Answer · John Swinney: Portfolio Recovery Associates,Inc acquired the Kilmarnock based business of MacKenzie Hall Ltd in January 2012, accordingly no meetings took place in 2011. Scottish Development International (SDI) met with PRA UK on 6 November 2012 at the company’s offices i…
3 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what editorial control ministers will exert on the report produced by the review of the childcare workforce.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20650 on 29 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…
3 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether its review of the childcare workforce will consider the economics of childcare policy.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20644 on 2 May 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/parliamentarybusi…
3 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether its review of the childcare workforce will produce recommendations and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: The review of Early Learning and Childcare Workforce and Out of School Care Workforce is an independent review. The chair has been tasked with producing a series of recommendations. These recommendations will be considered by ministers when the review is publ…
3 Apr 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) remit and (b) timescale is for its review of the childcare workforce; who is on the review panel, and whether it plans to publish minutes of its meetings.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: A terms of reference for the Independent Review of Early Years Workforce and Out of School Care Workforce Review, setting out the remit, will be published on the Scottish Government website shortly. A Core Reference Group of stakeholders will be established …
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the statement in the Holyrood Magazine of 19 March 2014 that "hundreds more parents, concerned about the troubled implementation of new qualifications in Scotland, have turned to private tuition for their children at a cost of thousands of pounds per child".
Answer · Michael Russell: We cannot comment on the report made in Holyrood Magazine; we have no evidence in relation to the assertion made in the article. The Scottish Government and its partners have provided unprecedented support for the introduction of the new qualifications.
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it considers the reasons are for the reported rapid increase in the use of private tutors for schoolchildren.
Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government does not collect any data on the use of private tutors. The decision to use a tutor is entirely a decision for parents to make and is a private arrangement between them and the tutor.
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the use of private tutors reinforces educational inequalities.
Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government is addressing educational inequalities through a wide range of policies and programmes including working more effectively with families who can most benefit from support.
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had with representatives of (a) Kip McGrath, (b) Explore Learning, (c) Home Tuition Scotland, (d) Super Tutors Scotland and (e) First Tutors since May 2011, and what was discussed on each occasion.
Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government has not held any meetings with representatives of any of these organisations and has no plans to meet with them.
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it, or any of its agencies, encourages the use of private tutors in the school education system.
Answer · Michael Russell: The use of private tutors is a decision entirely for parents to make and is a private arrangement between them and the individual organisation or tutor.
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what data it collects on the (a) prevalence and (b) uptake of private tutors.
Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government does not collect any data on the prevalence or uptake of private tutors.
27 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it last met representatives of private tutors and what was discussed.
Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government has not met with any representatives of private tutors and has no plans to do so.
19 Mar 2014 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it supports mothers to return to education part-time.
18 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what occasions it has requested from NDPBs or arms-length organisations copies of any (a) emails and (b) written correspondence sent by MSPs.
Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government does not keep a specific record of such requests.
18 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that correspondence between heads of NDPBs and arms-length organisations and MSPs should be treated in confidence.
Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government does not have a specific policy on such correspondence. Each situation is addressed on a case by case basis.
18 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether ministers can access correspondence from MSPs to heads of NDPBs and arms-length organisations.
Answer · John Swinney: There is no specific system relating to ministerial access to correspondence from MSPs to heads of non departmental public bodies and other arms-length organisations. If a request to access correspondence is made, this would be considered on a case by case ba…
17 Mar 2014 · Topical Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the resignation of the head of the curriculum for excellence ahead of the first sitting of the new national exams.
14 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-18330 by Michael Russell on 28 November 2013, as the budget assumed that the student population would be maintained at current levels, how much the Scottish Funding Council's subsequent announcement on 24 January 2014 that there will be 3,300 more p…
Answer · Michael Russell: It is difficult to provide information on exact costs associated with providing up to 3,300 Scottish domiciled and EU students with support and free tuition in 2014-15. This is due to the variety in individual household financial circumstances; eligibility f…
14 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the information at table 12 of Higher Education Student Support in Scotland, 2012-13 for students on sub-degree courses that year.
Answer · Michael Russell: The following tables show a breakdown of the information at table 12 of Higher Education Student Support in Scotland, 2012-13 for students on sub-degree courses that year. The tables only show data on students undertaking full-time courses. This excludes a l…
12 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it considers the benefits are of online appointment booking services for (a) GP surgeries and (b) hospitals.
Answer · Alex Neil: The benefits of providing online booking of appointments include providing people with an additional service channel, both during and outside office hours; helping reduce the rate of ‘did not attends’ and reducing the number of telephone calls handled. This h…
12 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what data protection issues arise from online appointment booking services for (a) GP surgeries and (b) hospitals.
Answer · Alex Neil: GP surgeries and hospitals are bound by a legislative and regulatory framework to protect people’s information, which includes the Data Protection Act 1998, duties of care and confidentiality and guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s office and re…
12 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to implement online appointment booking services for (a) GP surgeries and (b) hospitals across the country.
Answer · Alex Neil: Online appointment booking is a feature of the Scottish Government’s eHealth strategy and, through their local eHealth delivery plans, health boards are rolling out these services at a rate that suits local business process and technical capability. Many GP p…
12 Mar 2014 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it supports the College of Piping and the wider traditional music sector.
11 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how its updated instrumental music service guidelines will ensure that traditional Scottish instruments are available in each local authority area.
Answer · Alasdair Allan: Most schools offer a range of instrumental music tuition and as with Curriculum for Excellence, the detail of which instruments are taught and how instrumental tuition is delivered is decided by local authorities and schools. These decisions are based on a ra…
11 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish its updated guidance on instrumental music services and what (a) consultation it has carried out and (b) meetings it has had with regard to this.
Answer · Alasdair Allan: The government subgroup taking forward the revision of the guidance on instrumental music services is made up of: the Heads of Instrumental Teaching Scotland (HITS), the Scottish Association for Music Education (SAME), the Educational Institute of Scotland (E…