Parliamentary questions

Liz Smith

954 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

7 Sep 2011 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact of introducing a funding floor for local authorities.

2 Sep 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time for (a) children and (b) adults to see an orthoptist has been in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The information requested is not available centrally.

2 Sep 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many specialist orthoptists there have been in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Information about the number and whole time equivalent (full-time equivalent) of specialist orthoptists employed by NHS board is published by ISD annually at 30 September. The information requested is available as follows: Headcount, whole time equivalent an…

31 Aug 2011 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many universities plan to charge students from the rest of the UK £9,000 per year and how many students this will affect.

Answer · Michael Russell: Under our proposals, it will be up to each Scottish university to decide what to charge students from the rest of the UK.

10 Aug 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what funding it will make available to local authorities to support the development of cycle paths.

Answer · Keith Brown: In 2011-12, the Scottish Government made available £7.458 million in Cycling, Walking and Safer Streets (CWSS) grants to local authorities, who can if they wish, add to this from their own resources, if the development of cycle paths is a priority in their ar…

12 Jul 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review its estimate of the funding gap facing Scottish universities in light of the announcement from the Office for Fair Access that the average tuition fee in England will be greater than £8,000.

Answer · Michael Russell: We will continue to work with universities to maintain and enhance the excellence of Scottish higher education whilst ensuring that access remains free.

12 Jul 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much additional money it will invest in widening access initiatives in 2012-13 and each of the following three years.

Answer · Michael Russell: As outlined in my statement to Parliament on the 16 June, I will set out a wider package of reforms on post-16 education later this year. Any changes to funding for widening access initiatives would be brought forward next year as part of this exercise.

30 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether Scottish universities will keep the entire sum of tuition fees charged to students from the rest of the United Kingdom.

Answer · Michael Russell: Yes.

30 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the percentage increase in the total funding, in cash terms, available to Scottish universities will be by 2014-15.

Answer · Michael Russell: This will be determined as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.

30 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the fees charged to students from the rest of the United Kingdom studying at universities in Scotland will be indexed in line with inflation.

Answer · Michael Russell: The proposals in our consultation would allow Scottish universities to set their own fees for students who normally live in another part of the UK. We will bring forward proposals to set an upper limit of £9,000 for such students in due course.

30 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will introduce any mechanisms to widen access amongst those universities in Scotland which charge students from the rest of the United Kingdom the full £9,000 tuition fee.

Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government has committed to go further by legislating to widen access across all Scottish Universities irrespective of the fees paid by students from the rest of the United Kingdom. Our proposals will be set out in more detail in September this y…

30 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to redistribute any proportion of the monies raised by one university from students from the rest of the United Kingdom to other universities.

Answer · Michael Russell: We have asked the Scottish Funding Council to work with Universities Scotland and NUS Scotland to develop a system that ensures the sector as a whole benefits from the proposed new fee and funding arrangements for students who usually live in other parts of t…

22 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to award scholarships for children of military personnel who have been killed on active duty and what level of funding it will allocate.

Answer · Michael Russell: The First Minister announced further and higher education bursaries for the children of fallen Scottish service personnel at the Armed Forces day in Edinburgh on Saturday 25 June 2011. Bursaries between £1,500 and £8,240 a year per person are intended to hel…

22 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on how many travel concession passes have been issued to injured veterans in each year since 2007.

Answer · Keith Brown: Applications for free bus travel are categorised as over 60, disabled, disabled plus companion, visually impaired and visually impaired plus companion. The exact number of passes issued specifically to injured veterans is not recorded and cannot be reported …

22 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which hospitals have provided emergency operations on weekends in the last four years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Information on operations/interventions undertaken during emergency hospital admission episodes are recorded on central data returns. It is not possible to easily indentify those which are operative or non-operative (for example, imaging, injections and x-ray…

22 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time has been to receive a hearing aid over the last 12 months, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Audiology Services have being included in the Scottish Government’s challenging target that no patient should wait more than 18 weeks from a GP referral to start of treatment. This target is due for delivery by the end of 2011. Information on Audiology servi…

16 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how its outdoor learning policy will be delivered and what agencies will be responsible for taking it forward.

Answer · Michael Russell: Education Scotland, the new agency bringing together the work of HM Inspectorate of Education and Learning and Teaching Scotland from 1 July 2011, is responsible for leading and supporting the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence. This includes support…

2 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the level of proposed tuition fees in England being set at an approximate average of £8,500, whether it will revise its estimate of the funding gap facing universities in Scotland.

Answer · Michael Russell: The work done by joint group set up by the Scottish Government and Universities Scotland which reported before the election indicated the size of any funding gap. The Scottish Government fully intends to meet the funding commitments we made to the sector in o…

2 Jun 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the impact will be on the number of students attending universities in Scotland from the rest of the United Kingdom of its proposal to increase their tuition fees by up to 250%.

Answer · Michael Russell: We are working on proposals for tuition fees for students from other parts of the United Kingdom and will announce them in due course.

17 Mar 2011 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take following reports that cases of rickets in children and adults have increased since 2006.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Chief Medical Officer wrote to health professionals across Scotland last year publicising current advice on supplementation to address vitamin D deficiency. This is being supported by a public information leaflet being distributed through health boards th…

10 Mar 2011 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what cultural events it has planned to coincide with the 2014 Ryder Cup.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The hosting of the Ryder Cup in 2014 will deliver significant positive economic impact and a host of other benefits for Scotland. Through the staging of the Ryder Cup, the Commonwealth Games and the Edinburgh Festivals, Scotland will be centre stage in world …

1 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what estimated minimum distance is needed between a standard wind turbine and surrounding forestry, taking into account turbulence and required wind speeds.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The separation between wind turbines and trees depends on many factors, including local topography; the ambient wind regime; the size and type of turbines, and the height and species of tree - as such there is no standard distance. It has been amply demonstra…

1 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its best estimate is of the average carbon payback time for a wind farm development replacing forestry that has been clear felled.

Answer · Jim Mather: The Scottish Government strongly encourages wind farm developers to use the guidance and calculator provided by the publication <i >Calculating carbon savings from wind farms on Scottish peat lands - A New Approach</i> to estimate carbon payback time when sub…

18 Feb 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will maintain any momentum generated by implementing Curriculum for Excellence through outdoor learning in building the confidence and competence of teachers to make effective use of the outdoors to achieve Curriculum for Excellence outcomes.

Answer · Michael Russell: As noted in the answer to questions S3W-39692 and S3W-39693 on 4 March 2011, the Outdoor Learning Implementation Group and National Network will play key roles in taking outdoor learning forward. In addition, we are discussing with Learning and Teaching Scotl…