Parliamentary questions
Liam McArthur
3,644 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
24 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the expected timetable is for updated advice from the UK Committee on Climate Change, following the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, Global Warming of 1.5 °C.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The advice was requested by the end of March 2019. This is set out in the request to Lord Deben, Chair of the Committee on Climate Change, on 15 October which can be read at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachmen…
24 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the article in The Ferret claiming that Scotland’s climate change targets are not world leading.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Bill proposes targets to reduce actual emissions of all greenhouse gases by 56% by 2020, 66% by 2030 and 78% by 2040. The Scottish Government is unaware of any other country that has statutory target…
24 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it will (a) publish and (b) respond to the results of the consultation on enhanced oversight of biometric data for justice and community safety purposes.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government has already published the responses to its consultation on enhanced oversight of biometric data for justice and community safety purposes, which can be viewed at https://consult.gov.scot/safer-communities/use-of-biometric-data/ . The…
24 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recent UK-wide survey by the NSPCC that shows that 24% of 7- to 16-year-olds have live streamed and one in eight have video chatted with someone they did not know.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that Scotland’s children and young people are protected, safe and supported in the online world whilst being able to enjoy the internet. Our National Action Plan on Internet Safety for Children and Young Peop…
24 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of UK-wide research by the NSPCC that showed that 19% of primary school children live streamed, what protections are in place to prevent children being groomed through live streaming media, and whether it will review these protections.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The wellbeing and safety of children and young people in Scotland is a key priority for the Scottish Government. Section 1 of the Protection of Children and Prevention of Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for an offence of 'meeting a child followi…
23 Oct 2018 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government how the views of local communities are taken into account by ministers during consideration of a planning appeal.
18 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that cases of drink-spiking have doubled in three years, what it is doing to tackle such activity, including what discussions it has with Police Scotland; whether it will publish details of the discussions, and what its position is on implementing a national anti-dr…
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The spiking of a drink, for whatever means, is a cowardly and dangerous act. The Scottish Government work closely with a number of key partners including Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC), Crimestoppers and Police Scotland to promote and share messa…
18 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that Orkney islanders lost £350,000 through online and phone crime in 2018, what it is doing to tackle such activity, including what discussions it has with Police Scotland, and whether it will publish details of the discussions.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government work with a range of partners, including Police Scotland, to reduce the harm caused by criminals intent on exploiting vulnerable people for financial gain. There is a range of advice to help people improve their online and telephone sa…
18 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to provide support to the tourism industry in Orkney.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government fully recognises the importance to Orkney’s economic wellbeing of sustaining a high quality tourism product. Following a report commissioned last year by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and Orkney Islands Council to examine the…
18 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on proposals for national fixed pricing on electricity distribution networks; what discussions it has had with (a) the UK Government and (b) stakeholders in the last 12 months regarding these, and whether it will publish details of the discussions.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Electricity network policy and pricing is reserved to the UK Government. While we recognise that network charges in the north of Scotland, despite being reduced as a result of the Hydro Benefit Replacement Scheme, remain higher than those in the south, we hav…
1 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-18904 by Humza Yousaf on 27 September 2018, how many of the not (a) proven and (b) guilty verdicts in each year can be attributed to cases of (i) murder and (ii) rape.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The available information is provided in the following tables by financial year, which have been produced from the Scottish Government’s criminal proceedings database . Number of people proceeded against in Scottish Solemn Courts with result 'not proven' for…
1 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what type of vehicles are included in its proposed Road Equivalent Tariff scheme for ferry routes serving Orkney and Shetland.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As previously announced by my predecessor, Humza Yousaf in this former role as Minister for Transport and The Islands, the proposed Road Equivalent Tariff scheme for the Northern Isles is for passengers and cars only.
1 Oct 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on when it expects to introduce a Road Equivalent Tariff scheme on ferry routes serving Orkney.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As the member is aware, through our precise discussions, an official complaint has been made to the European Commission. The Commission has requested further information to which we have responded to and we are fully engaging with them to establish the next s…
24 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5T-00012 by Michael Matheson on 14 June 2016 (Official Report, c. 10), on what date the police (a) began and (b) ceased operations through the Scottish Recording Centre (SRC), which used surveillance data acquired through the Milkwhite scheme; what adv…
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The management of police units and related information sharing agreements are an operational matter for the Police Service of Scotland. The role of the Scottish Ministers is provided in the Investigatory Powers Act 2016. Prior to this, Scottish Ministers’ ro…
19 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in solemn trial cases, how many (a) not proven and (b) not guilty verdicts were returned in (i) 2015, (ii) 2016 and (iii) 2017.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The available information is provided in the following tables by financial year, which have been produced from the Scottish Government’s criminal proceedings database . The Criminal Proceedings in Scotland 2017-18 will be published in late January 2019. Numb…
18 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it is giving to removing the "not proven" verdict, and what discussions it has had with the Lord Advocate regarding this.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: One of Lord Bonomy’s recommendations in the Post-Corroboration Safeguards Review was that research was required to better understand the dynamics of jury decision making in the unique Scottish jury system. The Scottish Government agreed with Lord Bonomy that …
13 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the R100 programme will be delivered by the end of the current parliamentary session or by December 2021.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government has committed to extending 100% superfast broadband access across Scotland by 31 December 2021 reflecting the complex nature of the rollout and its geographic focus. Procurement for the initial phase of the reaching 100% or R100 ,prog…
10 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Orkney regarding proposals to offer shift patterns to medical staff that involve two weeks on, two weeks off, and what assessment it has made of the potential impact of such an approach.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: All NHS Scotland health boards have fully delegated powers in relation to employment issues including staff rostering. The Scottish Government expects NHS Boards to plan their facilities and workforce to meet patient needs and maintain high standards of care …
10 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to recent data that shows that the number of NHS consultant positions vacant for more than six months has risen.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The funded establishment of consultants has increased by some 46.1% under this government (September 2006 – June 2018). The Scottish Government remains fully committed to a sustainable NHS and its workforce, which continues to deliver a consistently high qual…
3 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the use of biometric technology to pay for school lunches has been introduced without parents being consulted and, if so, whether it considers this to be acceptable.
Answer · John Swinney: The introduction of biometric technology systems in schools is a matter for education authorities and schools. The Scottish Government has published guidance on the use and implementation of biometric identification systems in schools, which aims to support t…
3 Sep 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to concerns raised by the lead researcher at the civil liberties group, Big Brother Watch, that the introduction of fingerprint scanning to pay for school lunches normalises hi-tech surveillance from a very young age.
Answer · John Swinney: The introduction of biometric identification systems is a matter for education authorities and schools. The Scottish Government published guidance to support them in their decision-making about the introduction and implementation of biometric systems in Scott…
29 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-18009 by Clare Haughey on 29 August 2018, how many of the 800 additional mental health workers will be allocated to (a) prisons and (b) the police.
Answer · Clare Haughey: We are currently working with the Chief Officers of Integration Authorities on the development of this commitment. This includes obtaining detailed workforce plans which provide information on workforce allocation, location of workforce (which will include th…
28 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) longest and (b) average time taken was to respond to a Crofting Agricultural Grant Scheme application in each of the last five years.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Please see the following table with the requested information. Please also note, the Crofting Agricultural Grants Scheme commenced 01-01-2015 and the requested information is recorded by Financial Year not by calendar year. Year Longest Processing Time Ave…
28 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) appeals and (b) complaints have been made in relation to applications to the Crofting Agricultural Grant Scheme in each of the last five years, and how many of these have been upheld.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Since the Crofting Agricultural Grants Scheme commenced 1 January 2015, Scottish Government has received, Complaints Appeals Year Received Upheld Received Upheld 2015 0 0 1 0 2016 1 0 0 0 2017 0 0 2 1 2018 1 0 1 0 Please note the …
28 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in each of the last five years, how many applications have been made under the Crofting Agricultural Grant Scheme; how many of these have been awarded, and what the (a) average and (b) largest award was.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Please see the following table with the requested information. Please also note, the Crofting Agricultural Grants Scheme commenced 01-01-2015 and the requested information is recorded by Financial Year not by calendar year. Year Applications Approved A…
20 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it will bring forward legislation based on the outcome of its consultation on crofting legislation, which concluded in 2017.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Programme for Government 2017-18 includes a commitment to consult and develop proposals to reform crofting law during this parliamentary session. A decision on the timing of a Bill will be taken by Cabinet in the context of the Scottish Government’s other leg…
14 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been released from prison in each month in the last two years.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Table 1: Number of individual prisoners liberated per month from 1 st September 2016 to 21 st August 2018. MONTH LIBERATED PRISONERS September 2016 979 October 2016 915 November 2016 893 December 2016 1026 January 2017 761 February 2017 770 Mar…
2 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether and how it plans to increase access to mental health services throughout the criminal justice process.
Answer · Clare Haughey: Action 15 within the Mental Health Strategy outlines our clear commitment to funding 800 additional mental health workers in key settings, including custody suites and prisons, ensuring that local provision and support is at the heart of our plans. Funding fo…
2 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many mental health professionals worked alongside (a) Police Scotland, (b) the Scottish Prison Service and (c) the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service in each of the last three years.
Answer · Clare Haughey: Answering the member’s question requires access to data which we do not hold centrally: a broad range of professionals work in the field of mental health, employed by a variety of organisations (Scottish Prison Service, NHS, Local Authorities, Third Sector) i…
2 Aug 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to consider an investigation into the (a) use and purpose of non-disclosure agreements by employers in Scotland and (b) control mechanisms that regulate the use of non-disclosure agreements in Scotland.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government aims to embed a culture of fair work and fair work practices within all workplaces across Scotland. Our work is underpinned by the Fair Work Framework, published by the Fair Work Convention in 2016, and promotes fair work as work that …