Parliamentary questions
Alison McInnes
1,004 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
21 Mar 2016 · Topical Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether Police Scotland’s Counter Corruption Unit is to be abolished.
14 Mar 2016 · Topical Question
To ask the Scottish Government what independent assessment has been carried out of the impact of reducing air passenger duty.
4 Mar 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many forensic (a) acute and (b) rehabilitation beds for female patients there are in (i) NHS Grampian and (ii) the rest of the country.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: This information is not held centrally or provided to the Scottish Government.
4 Mar 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the NHS Grampian briefing report of June 2015, which suggested that it was due to be completed by spring 2016, whether it will provide an update on the progress that is being made with the review and redesign of child and adolescent mental health delivery arrangements in the…
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The NHS Grampian action plan on the child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) waiting times target includes a review and redesign of CAMHS delivery arrangements to maximise capacity and enhance partnership working across education, social work, prim…
4 Mar 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the rollout of superfast broadband in the (a) north east and (b) rest of the country.
Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government’s Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband programme has delivered fibre broadband to more than 92,000 premises in the north east and to more than 500,000 premises in Scotland so far. Community Broadband Scotland is also supporting a nu…
4 Mar 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what impact the ruling by Ofcom on 25 February 2016 regarding the future of BT and Openreach will have on its superfast broadband scheme.
Answer · John Swinney: The conclusions set out by Ofcom in relation to BT and Openreach in its strategic review of digital communications will have no appreciable impact on the delivery of the Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme. The wholesale broadband platfo…
4 Mar 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take in light of the publication by the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland of the document, Report on unannounced visit to Forensic Acute and Rehabilitation wards, Royal Cornhill Hospital in Aberdeen, and what its response is to Recommendation (a) 1, regarding the…
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: This report is one of the first batch of local visit reports to be published by the Mental Welfare Commission and I welcome the commission's decision to do this. The commission requires a response to the report's recommendations within three months of the da…
3 Mar 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many chairs of regulated public bodies were appointed in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015, and how many in each year were women.
Answer · John Swinney: The number of chairs of regulated public bodies appointed by ministers in each of the years 2013, 2014 and 2015, and the gender breakdown, is as follows: Year Women Men Total 2013 3 8 11 2014 2 13 15 2015 3 10 13 The proportion of women app…
2 Mar 2016 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to make infrastructure improvements north of Aberdeen.
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the statutory basis for the creation of the National Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) Data Centre and what legislation governs the (a) retention and (b) use of ANPR records.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Ministerial responsibility for the National Automatic Number Plate Recognition Data Centre (NADC) lies with the Home Secretary. Police Scotland has access to NADC and also shares data from its own network of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras w…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what evidence it has regarding the (a) efficiency and (b) effectiveness of automatic number plate recognition cameras.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) records are input into the UK-wide National ANPR Data Centre database and for what purpose.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many automatic number plate recognition cameras there are in Scotland; how much it has cost to (a) install and (b) maintain them, and how many were paid for from public funds.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on how many occasions data from automatic number plate recognition cameras has led to someone in Scotland being charged with an offence in each year since 2011-12, broken down by offence.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held by the Scottish Government.
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many number plate records registered by automatic number plate recognition cameras are available to public bodies in Scotland.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30149 on 10 March 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.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamenta…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many number plate records have been registered by automatic number plate recognition cameras in each year since 2011-12 and how many of those are currently retained by public bodies in Scotland.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras are operated by Police Scotland to help detect, deter and disrupt criminality. Any such information relating to the police use of ANPR technology is held by Police Scotland, not the Scottish Government. ANPR t…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on reports that Police Scotland might cancel its contract with Accenture to deliver its new operational policing IT system.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The i6 programme, which will deliver significant benefits across Police Scotland is currently under review between Police Scotland, Scottish Police Authority (SPA) and Accenture. Further work has been commissioned on a range of options for reconfiguring th…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the description of the conditions at Glasgow Sheriff Court in the recent HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland report on Cornton Vale prison; whether it plans to improve conditions at the court, and how it will ensure that similar conditions are not present at o…
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that public services are high quality, continually improving, efficient and responsive to local people's needs. The maintenance of court buildings is the responsibility of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals S…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason conditions in Cornton Vale prison identified in the 2010 HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland report had not been improved prior to the inspection reported in the 2015 report.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: In the 2012 Follow Up Inspection of HMP and YOI Cornton Vale, the then inspector reported that there had been good progress in terms of ni…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-30070 by Michael Matheson on 24 February 2016, what its position is on the chief inspector’s comment in the HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland’s report on Cornton Vale prison that the issue with access to toilets "needs to be remedied immediate…
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: On 11 February 2016, the Cabinet Secretary for Justice announced plans to relocate more than half of the women from HMP and YOI Cornton Va…
25 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what role it has in relation to the UK-wide National Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) Data Centre database.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Ministerial responsibility for the National Automatic Number Plate Recognition Data Centre lies with the Home Secretary.
24 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider providing a landfill tax exemption to local authorities dealing with the consequences of the recent flooding.
Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government has provided a £16 million aid package in response to recent flooding, principally providing grants to individuals and businesses but also supporting councils with reparation costs, which may include Scottish landfill tax. The Bellwi…
24 Feb 2016 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the recent child and adolescent mental health waiting time statistics showing that around half of patients in NHS Grampian waited over 18 weeks before being seen.
23 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland’s report on Cornton Vale.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government acknowledges this report and is working with the Scottish Prison Service to build on the positive work at HMP & YOI Cornton Vale in order to take forward an action plan to implement the improvements suggested by the Chief Inspector of …
17 Feb 2016 · Topical Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland’s report on Cornton Vale.
16 Feb 2016 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider providing a landfill tax exemption to local authorities dealing with the consequences of the recent flooding.
12 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to Lord Glennie's comment in his judgement of 9 February 2016 in the judicial review of a decision of the Scottish Ministers to refuse to make a determination for legal aid under section 4(2)(c) of the Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986 that the ministers' decision was “f…
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-29935 on 16 March 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.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybu…
12 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider changes to legal aid rules in relation to pre-trial applications for medical records as a result of Lord Glennie’s judgement of 9 February 2016 in the judicial review of a decision of the Scottish Ministers to refuse to make a determination for legal aid under se…
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-29935 on 16 March 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.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybu…
12 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to Lord Glennie’s judgement of 9 February 2016 in the judicial review of a decision of the Scottish Ministers to refuse to make a determination for legal aid under section 4(2)(c) of the Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The case that Lord Glennie’s judgement refers to dealt with representation from a complainer seeking to restrict access to her medical records in connection with a criminal case. As the Cabinet Secretary set out at the Justice Committee on 1 March 2016, th…
11 Feb 2016 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many young women offenders are being moved from HMP Cornton Vale to HMP Polmont.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: “All young women will be relocated to HMYOI Polmont, recently the population has ranged between 15 and 20 young women in custody.”