Alison McInnes

21 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that more people are required to represent themselves in court as they are unable to secure legal aid.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Legal Aid Board data show that the percentage of applications for criminal legal aid that are granted has remained steady over the past three years at around 93% for summary proceedings and 96% for solemn proceedings. Therefore, evidence shows th…

21 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact it considers that reductions in its legal aid budget will have on fair access to justice.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: In Scotland, we were able to increase the legal aid budget by £3.6 million (2.5%) in 2015-16 but that has proved unsustainable in the face of the Westminster settlement this year. The stark financial reality is that we must manage expenditure on legal aid thr…

20 Jan 2016 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on updating the Gender Recognition Act 2004 to bring it into line with international best practice, as called for in the Council of Europe Resolution 2048 (2015).

19 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether and, if so, when it will update its sector specific guidance in light of the findings in the Building Research Establishment (BRE) briefing paper, Live investigations of false fire alarms.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Regulatory Review Group’s report Review of Part 3 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 makes the recommendation that the sector specific guidance, which is published by the Scottish Government on its Firelaw webpages, be reviewed. The Scottish Government was p…

19 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether and, if so, when it plans to introduce a requirement for fire risk assessors to be certified or registered by third parties to ensure competency, as recommended in the Regulatory Review Group's 2015 report, Review of Part 3 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government specifically asked the Regulatory Review Group to consider this issue in its review and will consider this recommendation, along with the report’s other recommendations. This will include exploring the options for introducing such a re…

19 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to lead or facilitate a fire safety awareness campaign.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Statutory responsibility for fire safety awareness lies with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), which must use its resources to ensure that campaigns are targeted where they are needed most. The Scottish Government is very supportive of the excelle…

19 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will issue guidance to public sector bodies and make resources available to reduce false fire alarms from manual call points, as recommended in the Building Research Establishment (BRE) briefing paper, Live investigations of false fire alarms.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: This is not a recommendation of the BRE briefing paper. The guidance referred to in the paper is the sector specific guidance which is published by the Scottish Government on its FireLaw webpages and is intended to assist those who have responsibility for ens…

7 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the physical punishment of children (a) represents a violation of their human rights, (b) damages their wellbeing, (c) risks escalating into physical abuse and other forms of maltreatment and (d) can lead to the development of (i) aggression, (ii) antisoci…

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government agrees that the physical punishment of children in any form can damage their wellbeing and is likely to be detrimental either physically or emotionally. The Scottish Government has noted that the Equally Protected? report says that “a …

7 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on removing the defence of reasonable chastisement and prohibiting the physical punishment of children.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government recognises that there are differing views on whether to change the law on physical punishment of children. As we would do with any proposal to change the law, we would want to consult widely. The Scottish Government continues to work w…

7 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether children should have the same level of legal protection from violence as adults, and whether it considers that this is the case.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government considers that in many cases it is necessary to have specific provision to protect children from violence. For example, section 12 of the Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act 1937 contains a specific criminal offence in relation t…

7 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report, Equally Protected? A Review of the evidence on the physical punishment of children, which was commissioned by Barnardo’s Scotland, Children 1st, the Children and Young People’s Commissioner and NSPCC Scotland.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government welcomes the publication of this report. The Scottish Government does not support the physical punishment of children and does not consider that physical punishment of children is effective. The Scottish Government has noted that the r…

7 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what sex and relationship education is provided in (a) schools for (i) disabled children and (ii) children with additional support needs and (b) young offender institutions, and whether this includes information on how to access (A) confidential and sexual and reproductive healthcare ser…

Answer · Alasdair Allan: All schools under local authority control are expected to teach the experiences and outcomes for relationships, sexual health and parenthood (RSHP) education in Curriculum for Excellence. The statutory responsibility for delivering the curriculum rests with l…

5 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the recommendation made by the Independent Commission on Religion and Belief in British Public Life in its report, Living with Difference: Community, Diversity and the Common Good, that "the legal requirement for schools to hold acts of collective worship should b…

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The report of the Independent Commission on Religion and Belief in British Public Life, Living with Difference: Community, Diversity and the Common Good, contains 12 recommendations about the place of religion in public life. These include the recommendation …

5 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on each of the Scotland-specific recommendations made by the Arts and Humanities Research Council on Collective Worship in its report, Collective Worship and Religious Observance in Schools: An Evaluation of Law and Policy in the UK.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: The Arts and Humanities Research Council published in November 2015 its report Collective Worship and Religious Observance in Schools: An Evaluation of Law and Policy in the UK. The Scotland-specific recommendations in the report are as follows: “(a) It is r…

5 Jan 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the ruling by the UK Supreme Court in the case of Shahid v Scottish Ministers of 14 October 2015 and whether it considers that it has implications for how segregation is applied across the prison estate.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows: “Following receipt of the judgments from the inner and outer houses of the Court of Session in November 2011 and January 2014 respecti…

16 Dec 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the Scottish Prison Service regarding improvements to the provision of meaningful activity in prisons.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) published a review of purposeful activity in prisons on 4 August 2014. I discussed progress on this with Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the SPS at meetings of the Ministerial Group for Offender Reintegration throughout …

15 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what (a) maximum and (b) average number of hours per week epilepsy specialist nurses have undertaken clinical ward duties in each month of 2015, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: This information is not held centrally.

15 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the reported growing practice of deploying epilepsy nurse specialists to clinical shifts on wards.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: While policies, frameworks and resources are provided by the Scottish Government, individual NHS boards are responsible for planning and funding services in their area and for securing the staff to deliver them. It is for NHS boards to determine their workfor…

15 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many NHS epilepsy nurse specialists have been required to undertake clinical shifts on wards instead of supporting epilepsy patient care in each month of 2015, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: This information is not held centrally.

15 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to increase the number of epilepsy specialist nurses from 34 to over 60, as recommended by the Joint Epilepsy Council.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-28971 on 6 January 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/parliamentaryb…

9 Dec 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish Women's Development Forum report, A study of the perceptions and experience of Police Officers and Staff during pregnancy and maternity.

7 Dec 2015 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the findings of the fatal accident inquiry into the Glasgow bin lorry crash.

2 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of what cost savings could be made from shifting the balance of care for people who are drunk and incapable in public from the emergency services to alcohol and drug detox facilities that are designated as places of safety.

Answer · Maureen Watt: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W- 28807 on 16 December 2015. 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…

2 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the comment in the HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland report, Thematic Inspection of Police Custody Arrangements in Scotland, that the Albyn House facility in Aberdeen “provides a unique secure unit for those found drunk and incapable in a public place by…

Answer · Maureen Watt: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W- 28807 on 16 December 2015. 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…

2 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the effectiveness of (a) Albyn House in Aberdeen and (b) other alcohol and drug detox facilities and whether these designated places of safety relieve pressure on (i) Police Scotland and (ii) (A) the Scottish Ambulance Service and (B) other NHS boards …

Answer · Maureen Watt: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W- 28807 on 16 December 2015. 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…

2 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to expand the provision of alcohol and drug detox facilities that are designated as places of safety, and what its position is on accommodating people in such premises rather than (a) police custody and (b) hospital.

Answer · Maureen Watt: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W- 28807 on 16 December 2015. 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…

2 Dec 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has allocated to (a) Albyn House in Aberdeen, (b) Beechwood House in Inverness and (c) other alcohol and drug detox facilities that have been designated as places of safety in each year since 2008, and what support it can provide if an alcohol and drug partnership withdraws i…

Answer · Maureen Watt: Alcohol and drug partnerships (ADPs) and local partners, taking account of local needs and priorities, allocate funding locally. There is no single best practice model for services for drunk and incapable people. Services should be developed directly in resp…

2 Dec 2015 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to support the Aberdeen city region deal bid since it received the statement of intent.

23 Nov 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-24995 by Michael Matheson on 13 April 2015, what percentage of (a) new and (b) renewal applications for firearm certificates is processed within 12 weeks, broken down by applications received in each month since November 2014, and whether this is th…

Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held centrally. As the response to S4W-24995 made clear, Police Scotland introduced a national firearms licensing database (Shogun) from October 2014. Responsibility for the operation of the firearms licensing system and for reporting …

23 Nov 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-24995 by Michael Matheson on 13 April 2015, how many days on average it has taken to process and confirm the outcome of (a) new and (b) renewal applications for firearm certificates in each month since November 2014.

Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held centrally. As the response to S4W-24995 made clear, Police Scotland introduced a national firearms licensing database (Shogun) from October 2014. Responsibility for the operation of the firearms licensing system and for reporting …