Liz Smith

12 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the protection of the route of the former railway line between Inverkeithing and Perth.

Answer · Keith Brown: The responsibility for this matter lies with the relevant planning authorities, namely Fife Council and Perth and Kinross Council, rather than the Scottish Government. Scottish Planning Policy clearly states that disused railway lines with a reasonable prosp…

11 Nov 2013 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Scottish Qualifications Authority regarding the roll-out of the new national exams.

7 Nov 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that the conditions it set with regard to the removal of the temporary access tracks associated with the construction of the Beauly-Denny transmission line will be met in full; whether it will write to the local authorities affected by the line to advis…

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Beauly Denny consents state that the local authorities are responsible for monitoring the conditions relating to temporary access tracks. The local authorities are already aware of their responsibilities in this regard and there is no indication that dev…

21 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) electricity producers and (b) generators of wind power above 50 MW have been prosecuted for failing to have an Ofgem licence in each year since 1999.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: It is Ofgem who have responsibility for Electricity licensing. The information requested is not held by the Scottish Government.

17 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications for wind turbines above 50 MW were granted between 1 October 2011 and 1 October 2013 to developers who were not in possession of an Ofgem generating licence, including those who were exempt from the requirement.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The number of wind farm applications over 50MW granted consent between 1 October 2011 and 1 October 2013 is 11. Information on whether the applicants in question were in possession of an Ofgem generating licence or exempt from the requirement to hold such a …

7 Oct 2013 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what discussions the Scottish Government has had with the organisers of the 2014 Commonwealth Games regarding ticket allocations.

3 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it will provide to increase the number of British Sign Language (BSL) teachers in schools.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The Requirements for Teachers (Scotland) Regulations 2005 state that where an education authority employs a teacher wholly or mainly to teach pupils who are hearing impaired, vision impaired or both hearing and vision impaired, then that teacher must possess …

3 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has provided in each year since 1999 to support British Sign Language (BSL).

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The Scottish Government via the equality unit have allocated £1,474,000 for the period 2012-15 directly to deaf organisations and a BSL Consortium. This money was provided via the equality fund, which focused on: Hate crime Early intervention and prevention…

3 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many British Sign Language (BSL) teachers are employed in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools, broken down by local authority.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: This information is not held centrally.

3 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to train schoolteachers in British Sign Language (BSL).

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The Requirements for Teachers (Scotland) Regulations 2005 state that where an education authority employs a teacher wholly or mainly to teach pupils who are hearing impaired, visually impaired or both hearing and visually impaired, then that teacher must poss…

3 Oct 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support British Sign Language (BSL) in schools.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004, as amended, places a duty on education authorities to identify, meet and keep under review the additional support needs of all pupils for whom they are responsible and to tailor provision ac…

26 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will undertake a review of the Bellwin Scheme.

Answer · John Swinney: A consultation on the terms and conditions of the Bellwin Scheme was carried out with all 32 local authorities and other interested parties in 2005. Perth and Kinross Council were amongst those local authorities that responded. Various improvements were intro…

26 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of potential future flooding in Comrie.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009 required SEPA to undertake a national assessment of flood risk, to help identify the areas in Scotland most vulnerable to flooding. The first National Flood Risk Assessment was published in 2011 and shows that Co…

26 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it had with officials from Perth and Kinross Council prior to the council's application under the Bellwin Scheme to cover additional expenditure incurred by flooding in Comrie in 2012.

Answer · John Swinney: Following the severe flooding incident in Comrie in November 2012, Scottish Government officials provided Perth and Kinross Council officials with general advice on how to make a claim for additional expenditure under the Bellwin Scheme. This advice included …

26 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which elements of Perth and Kinross Council’s claim under the Bellwin Scheme to cover additional expenditure incurred by flooding in Comrie in 2012 were deemed ineligible for assistance because they were not (a) incurred as a result of providing relief or carrying out works to safeguard …

Answer · John Swinney: Perth and Kinross Council submitted a claim, under the Bellwin Scheme, for additional funding of £1,044,751 following the flooding in Comrie in November 2012. Approximately £855,000 of the Council’s claim was ineligible as it was expenditure on improvements t…

25 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many play parks there have been in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: This information is not held centrally. The Scottish Government launched the national Play Strategy in June 2013. The strategy recognises that play is a fundamental part of childhood, taking place within the home from birth, through formal and informal learn…

23 Sep 2013 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with local authorities about teacher employment issues.

23 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the reported concerns that the minimum height for clearance of electricity cables over arable fields can be unsafe for large-scale farm machinery.

Answer · Michael Matheson: We welcome the initiative from Scottish and Southern Energy Power Distribution in distributing stickers to the UK farming community warning of the risks from overhead power cables. Employers and operators of industrial and agricultural machinery have statuto…

19 Sep 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what projects the £23.5 million legacy funding has been allocated to, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Commonwealth Games provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make lasting improvements the whole of Scotland can benefit from. In September 2009, ‘A Games Legacy for Scotland’ outlined the Government and its partners’ ambitious programme to capitali…

19 Sep 2013 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what recent discussions the Scottish Government has had with providers of mobile phone services to improve coverage in rural areas.

16 Sep 2013 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how preparations for the 2014 Commonwealth Games are progressing.

9 Sep 2013 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that all families with children up to two years old have regular access to a health visitor.

9 Aug 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to take forward the recommendations in Adapting for Change: Final Report of the Adaptations Working Group.

Answer · Kenny MacAskill: We are aware of the importance of taking forward the recommendations from the Adaptations Working Group’s final report. The Scottish Government’s response to the Group’s report can be found on our website at:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environmen…

31 Jul 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities have had their bid for additional funds to assist with wind turbine planning applications rejected.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Every local authority that submitted a bid received funding. The bids and award amount can be seen on the Scottish Government’s website: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/planning/National-Planning-Policy/themes/renewables/windresources.

15 Jul 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities have received funding from the £300,000 announced to help deal with the increase in wind farm planning applications, broken down by amount.

Answer · Derek Mackay: 17 bids were received covering, individually or in groups, 16 planning authorities. The fund was increased from £300,000 to £725,000 in support of all the bids. The receiving authorities and funding amounts are tabulated on the Scottish Government’s website:…

3 Jul 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reasons it did not take forward the proposal to construct a railway line between Inverkeithing and Halbeath as one of the 29 transport projects and programmes identified in the Strategic Transport Projects Review Final Report, published in 2009.

Answer · Keith Brown: Despite the Scottish Government’s capital budget being cut by 26% in real terms since 2010-11, we remain committed to delivering the Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR) recommendations. The Scottish Ministers have prioritised a number of projects for …

3 Jul 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the future rail infrastructure needed to meet the projected 27% population increase in Perthshire and Kinross-shire between 2008 and 2033.

Answer · Keith Brown: In 2008, the Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR) set out the Scottish Government’s 29 transport investment priorities over the period to 2032 and considered proposals for these areas, including new rail lines from Inverkeithing to Halbeath and between …

3 Jul 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which sections of the rail network continue to use Victorian-style signalling.

Answer · Keith Brown: This is a matter for Network Rail. The information requested is not held centrally.

19 Jun 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Scottish Funding Council provided information to the college sector regarding the implications of the reclassification of colleges by the Office for National Statistics.

Answer · Michael Russell: Following ONS’ decision on the reclassification of colleges in 2010, there followed a period of extensive negotiation with HM Treasury on the basis for the decision, the timing of implementation and the scope for mitigating its implications in Scotland. Once…

19 Jun 2013 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it asked the Scottish Funding Council to consider the implications of the reclassification of colleges by the Office for National Statistics.

Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government wrote to the college sector and the Scottish Funding Council at the point it became aware of ONS’ decision in 2010, alerting them to the potential implications at that time.