Parliamentary questions
Liam McArthur
3,646 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
18 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it provided to women’s community justice centres in each year since 2011-12, broken down by centre.
Answer · Michael Matheson: In 2013-14 and 14-15 the Scottish Government allocated grant funding totalling £3.22 million to support the development of specific projects providing community justice services for women, in response to the recommendations of the Commission on Women Offender…
18 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it provided to projects supporting women offenders in the community, other than community justice centres, in each year since 2011-12.
Answer · Michael Matheson: In line with our commitment to improve support for women offenders, between 2013-17, the Scottish Government has provided development funding to assist local partners to enhance the delivery of community justice services for women. In 2013-14 and 2014-15, i…
18 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the construction of the new central detention unit and the regional detention units for women offenders.
Answer · Michael Matheson: In June 2015, I announced my vision for a new and innovative approach for the female custodial estate in Scotland. Since then a programme of work has been established in the Scottish Prison Service in partnership with the Scottish Government to deliver this v…
18 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made in implementing the recommendation by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and the UK Children’s Commissioners to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility.
Answer · Mark McDonald: Recommendations from the Advisory Group on Age of Criminal Responsibility informed a public consultation earlier this year. Ministers are considering all views put forward and will respond in due course.
10 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many inmates have been returned to prison by prisoner and custody escort services after "lights out" in each of the last three years, broken down by prison.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: Data is not routinely recorded regarding the time that individual prisoners return to the prison, and modern prisons do not have a “lights o…
10 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-03143 by Fergus Ewing on 5 October 2016, whether it will provide the information that was requested regarding what minimum speed of broadband will be available by 2021.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The minimum speed of broadband that will be available by 2021 will be determined following procurement of contracts relating to delivery of the 100% superfast broadband commitment.
10 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-03141 by Fergus Ewing on 5 October 2016, whether it will publish all of its correspondence with the UK Government regarding the proposed broadband universal service obligation.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The information requested can be found in SPICe. The relevant BIB number is 58279.
10 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the decision by the Scottish Police Authority to hire an interim chief financial officer via a service company; whether it is satisfied that this decision complies with the Scottish Public Finance Manual and for what reason, and whether it will publish all corresp…
Answer · Michael Matheson: This is a matter for the Scottish Police Authority and it will be for the Chief Executive in his role as Accountable Officer to satisfy the SPA's auditors that the actions taken in this case were compliant with the Scottish Public Finance Manual Scottish Mi…
4 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason its recently-launched initiative to encourage primary schoolchildren to read is called the First Minister’s Reading Challenge; what other names were considered, broken down by reason for rejection, and, when selecting the name, whether it considered any similar initiative…
Answer · John Swinney: The current First Minister's personal love of reading and her commitment to improving literacy levels for children and young people across Scotland have been key factors in driving the development and launch of this initiative. While not the only factor that …
4 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what input the First Minister had in (a) selecting the books chosen for and (b) setting the criteria of each of the seven elements of the First Minister’s Reading Challenge, and which of the books in the challenge the First Minister (i) has read and (ii) recommended personally for inclus…
Answer · John Swinney: Following discussions with the First Minister, an Advisory Group was set up to help develop the detail of the First Minister's Reading Challenge. The group includes representation from education, libraries, authors, booksellers, parents and community reading …
3 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many complaints have been made with regard to prisoner and custody escort services in the last year.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: The following table shows the number of complaints made in the past year. The total figure for each month include complaints from service u…
3 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the average time taken was for a person to be transported by prisoner and custody escort services in each of the last three years, broken down by prison establishment.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: The following table shows the average length of time from leaving the establishment to arriving at court. There is no data available for the…
3 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many hospital and court appointments have been (a) delayed and (b) cancelled in each of the last three years due to problems with the provision of prisoner and custody escort services.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: The contract contains a number of performance measures which capture instances of failure by the escort contractor. Due to the requirements …
3 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many journeys have been made by the prisoner and custody escort services in each of the last three years, broken down by prison establishment.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: The following table shows the number of journeys for core and non-core services for the period from 1 April 2013 until 30 September 2016. …
3 Oct 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how the remaining £4.9 million of Scotland’s Energy Efficiency Programme budget will be spent, in light of £9.1million having been allocated on 30 September 2016, and how the money can be applied for.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The balance of funding has been reallocated within existing funding programmes in 2016-17 for both the Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme (LCITP) and the Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland: Area Based Schemes (ABS). As part of a call t…
27 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report, Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme: An independent assessment for the Scottish Parliament, and what plans it has to implement the report's recommendations.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: I welcome the report from the Adaptation Sub-Committee of the Committee on Climate Change which we commissioned in 2015. The Government will consider the Sub-Committee's advice and recommendations for inclusion in our next Climate Change Adaptation Annual Pr…
27 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the recommendations in the report, Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme: An independent assessment for the Scottish Parliament, what plans it has to (a) address insufficient data on progress made and (b) implement an effective monitoring regime and timetable of delive…
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: We will consider the areas highlighted in the report which recommend the need for further data on progress and work with stakeholders such as the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Planning Authorities, Scottish Natural Heritage, National Health Service,…
23 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) police inspectors and (b) chief inspectors have (i) retired, (ii) resigned or (iii) left their post for other reasons at Police Scotland each year.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
23 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) police inspectors and (b) chief inspectors there have been in Police Scotland each year.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
23 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many new (a) police inspectors and (b) chief inspectors have been recruited by Police Scotland each year since.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the minimum broadband speed of 10 Mbps that has been suggested by the UK Government under the proposed universal service obligation.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government has set out a greater level of ambition than that of the UK Government by committing to extending superfast broadband access to 100% of premises across Scotland by 2021. This far surpasses the 10Mbps solution proposed by the UK Governm…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the potential impact of the proposed universal service obligation on its plans to roll out superfast broadband to 100% of premises.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The potential impact of the UK Government’s Universal Service Obligation (USO) for broadband cannot be fully assessed until there is greater clarity on how it will be delivered across the UK. Ofcom is expected to publish its initial findings by December 2016.…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding (a) the services that could be requested under, (b) the timetable for the delivery of, and (c) other matters in relation to the proposed universal service obligation.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government has responded to both the UK Government and Ofcom consultations regarding the introduction of a proposed broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO). In addition letters have been written to the UK Government and Ofcom, urging them to…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the comments by the First Minister on 25 May 2016 (Official Report, c. 9), regarding broadband access that “by 2021, we intend to reach 100 per cent of premises across the country”; what minimum speed of broadband will be available by 2021, and what plans it has to increase s…
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government is committed to extending superfast broadband access to 100 per cent of premises across Scotland by 2021. Beyond this, we are working with Scottish Futures Trust to develop our World Class Digital Infrastructure programme. This is loo…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-02404 by Michael Matheson on 22 September 2016, whether it will provide information on the input that it has had on the setting of local priorities.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-02403 on 22 September 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at:http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusine…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government further to the answer to question S5W-02405 by Michael Matheson on 22 September 2016, whether it will provide the minutes of those meetings.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not routinely release minutes of private meetings.
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of online child sexual abuse there have been in each year since 2013.
Answer · Mark McDonald: The information requested is not held centrally. The Scottish Government publishes annual National Statistics on both sexual crimes recorded by the police and convictions in court, however the data we receive is based on a simple count of all crimes and convi…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the finding in the report, HMICS Crime Audit 2016, that some crime is being displaced and is now taking place online, and how it is working with Police Scotland to improve capabilities to identify, record, and investigate cybercrime.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The increasing use of the internet offers greater opportunities for criminals to conduct their activity at a distance from their intended victims. Police Scotland is investing significant funds in developing its cybercrime infrastructure through the developme…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the findings of the report, HMICS Crime Audit 2016, and what action it will take to implement its recommendations.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government welcomes the HMICS 2016 Crime Audit and its overall finding that the quality of most incident and crime recording decisions by Police Scotland is good. This gives the public confidence in Scotland’s statistics on recorded crime. Respon…
22 Sep 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what strategy it has developed in cooperation with Police Scotland to counter cybercrime.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Police Scotland has developed its cyber strategy which encapsulates the objectives and themes set out in the Scottish Government's cyber resilience strategy, Safe, Secure and prosperous: A Cyber Resilience for Scotland.