Parliamentary questions
Liz Smith
954 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
27 Sep 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much additional funding would be required to support students from the rest of the UK studying in Scotland if the country became an independent member of the EU and what discussions it has had regarding this.
Answer · Michael Russell: There are approximately 20,000 students from the rest of the UK studying for a first degree at Scottish universities. If all of these students were to qualify for regulated places as EU students then the cost of providing these places would be approximately £…
24 Sep 2012 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made to increase digital participation across Scotland.
17 Sep 2012 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of emergency surgery provision for rural communities.
28 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to introduce construction compliance plans.
Answer · Derek Mackay: Local authority verifiers will be expected to issue Construction Compliance Plans with all building warrants applied for on or after 1 October 2012.
21 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive when the review of third sector funding for children, young people and families will be (a) completed and (b) published.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: The review of the Unified Voluntary Sector and other funds is complete. The relevant documents are now available on the Scottish Government website. The report and recommendations from the expert group established to carry out the review is available at http:…
20 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what its administration costs have been for each wind farm development application that it has called in, in each year since 1999.
Answer · Derek Mackay: It is not possible to quantify administration costs as officials do not routinely record this information on an individual case basis.
20 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on the Scottish Environment Protection Agency of the costs associated with planning applications for wind farm developments.
Answer · Derek Mackay: No such assessment has been made.
20 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on Scottish Natural Heritage of the costs associated with planning applications for wind farm developments.
Answer · Stewart Stevenson: No such assessment has been made.
20 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on local authority planning department budgets of the costs associated with planning applications for wind farm developments.
Answer · Derek MacKay: No such assessment has been made, however information on the general impacts of processing planning applications is given in page 1 of Consultation on Fees for Planning Applications 2012 published by the Scottish Government in March 2012. The consultation can…
20 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many wind farm development applications it has called in in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority.
Answer · Derek Mackay: The information available is given in the following table. Year No. Called-in Per Year Local Authority 2002 1 Argyll and Bute Council 2003 1 East Ayrshire Council 2004 2 Orkney Islands Council 2006 1 Comhairle nan Eilean Siar 2007 1 Orkney …
19 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive at which events in the next four years its agencies plan to distribute free flags to the public.
Answer · Bruce Crawford: Non-departmental public bodies and government agencies are responsible for managing their own marketing budgets and are expected to deliver maximum value for the taxpayer.
19 Jun 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many free (a) Saltire and (b) Union flags were distributed to the public by its agencies at events in each of the last five years and what the cost was.
Answer · Bruce Crawford: The Scottish Government is not responsible for the distribution of materials by its agencies. We do not hold this information centrally.
11 Jun 2012 · First Minister's Question
To ask the First Minister what discussions the Scottish Government has had with the Scottish Qualifications Authority and the teaching profession regarding proposed changes to the Higher English curriculum.
24 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time has been for a cataract operation in each year since 2007, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Information on median waits for a cataract operation for the calendar year 2007 is provided in table 1. Due to the introduction of New Ways of defining Waiting Times from 1 January 2009 the data for 2007 is not directly comparable with New Ways data. Median…
24 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many cataract operations have taken place in each year since 2007, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The information requested is provided in the following table. NHSScotland: Number of Cataract Procedures Performed in Acute Hospital Board of Treatment 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11P Ayrshire and Arran 2,605 2,813 3,077 3,043 2,537 Bo…
24 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time to see an eye specialist has been in each year since 2007, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Information on median waits for a first outpatient appointment to see an eye specialist following a referral from a GP or Optometrist for the calendar year 2007 is provided in the table 1. Due to the introduction of New Ways of Defining Waiting Times from 1 J…
23 May 2012 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of how local authorities will address their pensions deficit and what discussions it has with them on the issue.
Answer · John Swinney: The local authorities in Scotland are responsible for the 11 local government pension funds. There are formal accounting regulations which govern how local governments’ pension funds are accounted for. In the Local Government in Scotland Act 2003 there are s…
16 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children have been waiting for adoption in each year since 1999.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: Information on the number of children who have been waiting for adoption is not collected centrally.
16 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children have been adopted in each year since 1999.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: Information on the number of adoptions is available from the National Records of Scotland, and can be found here: http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/theme/vital-events/general/ref-tables/2010/adoptions-re-registrations.html.
16 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children have been waiting for a foster family in each year since 1999.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: This information is not collected centrally by the Scottish Government.
16 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children have been placed in foster families in each year since 1999.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: Information on the number of children who have been placed in foster families in each year since 1999 is not collected centrally.
16 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many families have been available to foster in each year since 1999.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: This information is not collected centrally by the Scottish Government.
16 May 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children have been in the care of a local authority in each year since 1999.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: Information showing a time series for the number of children who have been looked after by local authorities in Scotland can be found on the Scottish Government’s website using the following link: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2012/02/7586/4.
9 May 2012 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will undertake an audit of rural policing resources and police stations prior to the establishment of a single police force.
2 May 2012 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the future health needs resulting from a predicted increase in population in the Perth and Kinross Council area.
18 Apr 2012 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to increase economic activity in Perth.
29 Mar 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the likely financial impact on childminders of having to meet the costs of Protecting Vulnerable Groups checks from 1 April 2012.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: The cost to childminders of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme registration is £59. The PVG scheme was introduced in February last year, at which time we agreed, for an additional 12 months, to meet the PVG scheme registration fee for new childmin…
28 Mar 2012 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to fund road safety improvements on the A85.
14 Mar 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on how many (a) grocers, (b) butchers, (c) bakers, (d) fishmongers, (e) newsagents, (f) confectioners, (g) tobacco retail outlets and (h) wholesalers there have been in each year since 2007.
Answer · John Swinney: Data on business sites by industrial sector are available from the Inter-Departmental Business Register (IDBR). The IDBR, maintained by the Office for National Statistics, is a database of all enterprises registered for VAT and/or PAYE in the UK. Those exclud…
14 Mar 2012 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the ratio is of the number of schoolchildren to school nurses, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Information on the ratio of the number of schoolchildren to school nurses, broken down by NHS board, is not held centrally.