Parliamentary questions

Willie Rennie

1,353 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

8 Mar 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has made available to implement the Data Strategy for health and social care; for how long it plans to fund the implementation of the strategy, and by when it expects the actions in the strategy to be implemented.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Scotland's first Data Strategy for Health & Social Care brings together a range of existing activity, along with its associated funding. The Strategy provides a framework for how improvements to data will be driven forward to the benefit of the people of Scot…

7 Mar 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the recruitment of breast cancer oncologists in NHS Tayside.

21 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee's consideration, at its meeting on 7 February 2023, of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) (Amendment) Order 2023, what assessment it has made of whether the Festivals Edinburgh recommend…

Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-15120 on? 20 March 2023. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committe…

21 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to recently reported comments made by venue operators at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, concerning short-term let regulations, that “unless secondary letting is also available in all types of property, including tenement stairs, there will simply not be enough accomm…

Answer · Shona Robison: Regulation of short-term lets is vital to balance the needs and concerns communities have raised with wider economic and tourism interests. Local authorities are responsible for developing policies on short-term lets in line with the short-term let regulation…

20 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with representatives from TATA Steel regarding the sale of Dalzell and Clydebridge steelworks, and whether the minutes of the meeting will be made publicly available.

Answer · Ivan McKee: Scottish Government officials last met with representatives of Tata Steel UK on 5 December 2022. The minutes of such meetings with officials would not normally be published.

20 Feb 2023 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on pay negotiations between teaching unions and COSLA, in light of the EIS rejecting the most recent offer and reports that industrial action is set to continue.

8 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has estimated the time that it will take for (a) Marine Scotland and (b) any statutory consultees to process applications for offshore windfarms through the ScotWind process.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government target for a decision on an offshore windfarm is 9 months from the point that an application is submitted. This is what we would expect for high quality applications which are based on the scoping opinion issued by the Scottish Ministe…

8 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether any statutory consultees will have sufficient capacity to process applications for offshore windfarms through the ScotWind process.

Answer · Michael Matheson: As well as providing funding to increase resource within the Marine Scotland Directorate of Scottish Government in relation to planning and consenting for ScotWind, the Scottish Government has provided additional funding to NatureScot, a key statutory consult…

8 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether Marine Scotland will have sufficient capacity to process applications for offshore windfarms through the ScotWind process.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Over the last 12 months Marine Scotland Directorate has recruited a significant number of new staff across Marine Scotland Licensing Operations Team, Marine Scotland Planning and Policy Division and the science function within Marine Scotland to address incre…

8 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to invite nominations for the Access for All programme for the 2024-29 control period, prior to submitting nominations to the Department for Transport, and what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government in relation to the programme.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: As the member will know, rail accessibility is reserved to the UK Government. However, my officials are in regular dialogue with the Department for Transport on matters of rail accessibility. Nominations seeking Access for All funding for Control Period 7 (2…

7 Feb 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021, what (a) EU regulations, (b) pieces of EU tertiary legislation and (c) EU decisions have come into effect since the Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament, and in relation to which of those it …

Answer · Angus Robertson: Information relating to EU legislation, regulations, tertiary legislation and decisions that have come into effect since the UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity)(Scotland) Act 2021 was passed by the Scottish Parliament and the present is in the …

1 Feb 2023 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its commitment to deliver superfast broadband to 100% of premises in Scotland by 2021.

24 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) estimated cost of repairing a pothole and (b) current total estimated pothole repair bill is.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Transport Scotland, through its Trunk Road Operating Companies and Design Build Finance Operate (DBFO) Concessionaires, is responsible for the management and maintenance of the strategic trunk road network, including motorways. Repair of potholes on all other…

24 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many potholes have been repaired in each of the last five years.

24 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many potholes there are on the road network.

9 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many apprentices have been recruited in the construction industry onto schemes funded by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) in the current academic year; whether this number exceeds the number of places funded by the Scottish Government, and, if so, by how many places, and what additi…

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Skills Development Scotland (SDS) provide funding for Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) each financial year. There were 3,231 MA starts within the Construction & Related occupational grouping up to the end of quarter 2 in 2022-23, with MA year-end statistics for 2…

9 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the number of apprenticeships it has funded via Skills Development Scotland in the current academic year meets the level of demand, and, if that is not the case, how it plans to resource any shortfalls.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Skills Development Scotland (SDS) allocate Modern Apprenticeship (MA) starts every financial year in line with Ministerial priorities and industry demand. SDS were asked in their Letter of Guidance to deliver at least 25,000 new apprenticeship starts this fin…

9 Jan 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many apprenticeships it has funded via Skills Development Scotland in the current academic year.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Skills Development Scotland (SDS) provides funding each financial year rather than academic year for Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) on behalf of the Scottish Government. Official statistics published by SDS on 8 November 2022 report there were 12,593 MA starts …

20 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of recent changes to the Welsh Government's Reducing Restrictive Practices Framework, what plans it has to include (a) regulations and (b) mandatory data-gathering on the restraint of children during secure transportation within the forthcoming Children (Care and Justice) (Scot…

Answer · Clare Haughey: Following careful consideration of responses to the consultation on the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill, the Scottish Government is content that there is sufficient legislative provision to enable secure transport to be utilised when necessary, an…

19 Dec 2022 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what it is doing to support young people’s mental health services, including in colleges and universities.

19 Dec 2022 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported comments by the General Secretary of School Leaders Scotland, that a reduction in budget will lead to class sizes increasing, subjects being removed from the curriculum and a reduction in the number of teachers.

7 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the announcement on 6 December 2022 that organisations applying for public sector grants will need to pay at least the real Living Wage and provide channels for staff to have a say in the workplace from July 2023, whether this applies to grants awarded by local authorities, …

Answer · Richard Lochhead: The member is right to focus on how we are driving sustainable, inclusive economic growth in Scotland by requiring grant recipients to pay at least the real Living Wage and provide appropriate channels for effective voice. This will take further the condition…

6 Dec 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on support for Liberty Steel Dalzell.

2 Dec 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-12259 by Ivan McKee on 2 December 2022, on what specific dates repayments of the loan should have been made by Liberty Steel Dalzell Ltd; when the last repayment was made, and what its position is regarding the length of time that long debt forbeara…

Answer · Ivan McKee: The detail requested around loan repayments made by Liberty Steel Dalzell Ltd is commercially sensitive and therefore confidential. The length of the time that long debt forbearance will be tolerated varies significantly from lender to lender and from case t…

29 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average length of time for Social Security Scotland to process applications for Adult Disability Payment has been since it was introduced, and (a) how many and (b) what percentage of applications for Adult Disability Payment have taken more than 10 weeks to be processed.

Answer · Ben Macpherson: Official Statistics on Adult Disability Payment were published on 13 December 2022 and provided information on processing times up to 31 October 2022. This publication is available from: https://www.gov.scot/collections/social-security-scotland-stats-publica…

15 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6T-00960 by Lorna Slater on 15 November 2022, whether the figure in the statement that Scotland has “over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments already in the pipeline” includes (a) currently operational offshore wind developments and (b) potent…

Answer · Michael Matheson: The statement that Scotland has over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments in the pipeline, subject to planning and consenting decisions, and finding a route to market, does not include (a) currently operational offshore wind projects and does include …

15 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6T-00960 by Lorna Slater on 15 November 2022, which potential offshore wind developments were included in the figure in the statement that Scotland has “over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments already in the pipeline”.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The offshore wind developments included in the estimate of 40GW of potential offshore wind developments in the pipeline, subject to planning and consenting decisions, and finding a route to market, included: 3.8 gigawatts of projects currently under construc…

15 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6T-00960 by Lorna Slater on 15 November 2022, what figure it used for the gigawatt value of potential offshore wind developments associated with ScotWind for the purposes of producing the figure in the statement that Scotland has “over 40GW of potentia…

Answer · Michael Matheson: The figure used for the gigawatt value of ScotWind in the statement that Scotland has over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments in the pipeline, subject to planning and consenting decisions, and finding a route to market, was 27.6 gigawatts. This giga…

11 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the ministerial statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism on 24 March 2021, what the £7 million loan from the Scottish National Investment Bank to Liberty Steel Dalzell Ltd was for; what the terms of this loan were; how much of this loan has been paid b…

Answer · Ivan McKee: The £7m loan provided to Liberty Steel Dalzell Ltd in March 2017 was in fact provided by the Scottish Investment Bank. This was a Scottish Enterprise scheme that pre-dated the launch of the Scottish National Investment Bank (November 2020). I have written to …

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has met with former members of the Hong Kong community in Scotland to gain knowledge and understanding of their experiences since resettling in Scotland.

Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12089 on 21 November 2022 which is available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers