Parliamentary questions

Willie Rennie

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

7 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-05319 by Ivan McKee on 27 January 2022, in the case of the site of the Dalzell steelworks, whether potential contaminated land would be (a) dealt with through the development planning system and (b) subject to voluntary remediation, and whether the …

Answer · Ivan McKee: While the site continues to operate on the basis of the current operational functions there is no cause to look towards any environmental remediation. As outlined in the previous answer, any environmental remediation follows in a situation where operational l…

7 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to improve public awareness of paint recycling and reuse initiatives.

Answer · Lorna Slater: I welcome the reports from Royal Society of Chemistry on making Polymers in Liquid Formulations (PLFs) more sustainable, helping to raise awareness of the complex issues around sustainable paint, and waste management. Zero Waste Scotland provide further deta…

7 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to reduce the quantity of unused paint being sent to landfill or for incineration.

Answer · Lorna Slater: I welcome the report from Royal Society of Chemistry on making Polymers in Liquid Formulations (PLFs) more sustainable, helping to embed circular economy in to this area. The Scottish Government is committed to building a fully circular economy as part of ou…

7 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is working with local authorities to support the recycling and reuse of household paint.

Answer · Lorna Slater: A number of Scottish local authorities do offer reuse collection points at Household Waste & Recycling centres for paint. However councils are unable to accept liquid paint for disposal, as liquid wastes are banned from landfill sites in Scotland. Zero Waste …

7 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing for research into more sustainable alternatives to polymers in liquid formulations (PLFs).

Answer · Lorna Slater: I am pleased to see Royal Society of Chemistry highlighting this important issue through its recent report. The Scottish Government is committed to building a fully circular economy as part of our work to tackle the climate emergency. The shift to a circular…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, how it calculated that £150 is the cost of undercutting a door.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: This example scenario was developed with input from the Scottish Futures Trust, and drew on the costings that had already been developed for the Business Ventilation Fund with input from the expert Covid-19 Ventilation Short Life Working Group. An undercut o…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has assessed the need for the undercutting of doors in the estimated 48,000 learning, teaching and play spaces not covered by the £5 million schools/ELC ventilation fund, and what its position is on recommending this solution for those spaces.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: As was made clear in the letter to the Committee, an undercut of a door was only one element of an example set of remedial measures used to calculate the up-to-£5m fund. The Scottish Government has not issued any guidance to local authorities recommending th…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether it will publish the informal local authority feedback it referred to as being used to calculate the £5 million schools/ELC ventilat…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The informal feedback referenced in the letter related specifically to the percentage of learning, teaching and play spaces local authorities had identified as problematic at the point in time when the fund was being developed. Problematic spaces are defined …

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether it will publish a breakdown of the number of problematic spaces by (a) local authority and (b) school.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Data is currently being collected within local authorities and will be returned to the Scottish Government to provide a national perspective. We intend to provide the Committee with an update on the overall national picture early next month, subject to receip…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, what criteria and definitions were used for categorising a learning, teaching or play space as “problematic” in relation to ventilation; wh…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Our guidance on ventilation for schools, updated most recently in December 2021, indicates that problematic spaces are where readings above 1500ppm are persistent despite mitigation measures being taken. Areas of high aerosol activity may use 800ppm as the th…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether the £300,000 it assumed for the cost of undercutting doors, in calculating the £5 million schools/ELC ventilation fund, may be spen…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: My letter to the Committee stated explicitly: “In order to calculate the £5m schools/ELC ventilation fund, we have assumed an example set of remedial measures which could be taken for each problematic space although this will vary depending on local decision…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on whether it has (a) contacted and (b) been contacted by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service regarding its announcement of £300,000 for the undercutting of doors in educational spaces, and whether it will publish all associated documentation, including…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Scottish Government officials have spoken with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) regarding this matter. SFRS have close working relationships with all Local Authorities, particularly when it comes to fire safety in educational establishments. SFRS …

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comment by the First Minister on 3 February 2022 that “we are enabling local authorities, guided by health and safety considerations, to take the actions that they consider to be necessary”, what its position is on whether (a) it had a responsibility to be guided by heal…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: We have not asked local authorities to undercut doors in schools, nor was £300,000 provided to them specifically for these purposes. My letter to the Education, Children and Young People Committee setting out the example scenario was not guidance, and has no…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it first identified that it was necessary to improve ventilation in schools in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and what its position is on whether it would have been possible to make the changes proposed under the £5 million schools/ELC ventilation fund earlier in the pan…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Ventilation has been an important feature of our Reducing Risks in Schools guidance since October 2020. This guidance has been regularly updated in line with the latest expert advice. Local authorities have undertaken a range of work to improve ventilation i…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it (a) is aware and (b) was provided a copy of the report, Covid-19 Mitigation in Schools, prepared for the City of Edinburgh Council in May 2021, and whether it (i) is aware and (ii) has been provided copies of any equivalent reports by other local authorities or COSLA.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The City of Edinburgh Council shared this report with officials in the Scottish Government and Scottish Futures Trust last year. The analysis was based on a sample of 9 schools in May 2021 and showed, for example, that CO2 levels were high because windows we…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will update the Parliament on a monthly basis on how the schools/ELC ventilation fund is being (a) distributed and (b) spent, including a breakdown of the items purchased and changes made.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: As part of the funding arrangements and ongoing work with local authorities on schools/ELC ventilation, the Scottish Government has agreed updated reporting arrangements with local authorities to ensure an appropriate understanding of how and to what extent f…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, how it decided that persistent CO2 readings in excess of 1,500ppm are an indication of a persistently problematic area; what equivalent thr…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: These figures are based on the latest advice from SAGE’s Environmental Modelling Group, which monitors evidence from a wide range of authoritative sources. Our guidance is reviewed as scientific advice develops. The figures used are aligned with those used i…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, what it means when it states that 2% to 4% of learning, teaching and play spaces have “so far” fallen into the problematic category; whethe…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Local authority feedback indicates that all learning, teaching and play spaces in Scottish schools and ELC settings have received CO2 assessments and, at a point in time (in the most part before the October holidays 2021), around 2-4% (around 2,000) of those …

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, for what reason information was used from the Department for Education that covered England on the average cost of air cleaning/filtration …

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Department for Education has undertaken a review of air cleaning devices likely to be suitable for use in schools, and associated costs, to support a centralised procurement strategy. This information was therefore utilised to assist in building up our co…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, how many children and young people will be accommodated in the 2,000 learning, teaching and play spaces that fall into the “problematic cat…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The precise number of problematic spaces will be dependent on a range of factors over time, such as weather and occupancy levels, and many of the problematic spaces will already have been addressed. The Scottish Government has agreed formal reporting requirem…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether it will publish the (a) health and safety and (b) scientific advice that it (i) sought and (ii) shared with local authorities on un…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its assessment is of the impact on children’s cognitive function of learning in education environments where the CO2 readings are in excess of (a) 800, (b) 1,000, (c) 1,500 and (d) 2,000 ppm, and what studies it has taken into account on this matter.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The foremost reason for us enhancing ventilation during the COVID-19 pandemic is to ensure schools are as safe as possible for children, young people and staff. However, we are aware that good air quality should also contribute to enhancing children’s cognit…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how many CO2 monitoring sensors are currently deployed across schools; what proportion of these have a maximum operating range of 2,000ppm, and whether it has made any recommendations on the maximum operating range of such sensors.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Feedback from local authorities last term confirmed that there were around 27,000 CO2 monitors deployed across Scottish schools. We and our local authority partners recognise the importance of continuing monitoring in schools and ELC settings. Guidance has b…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, on what date it will provide details of the mechanism for private, voluntary or independent childcare providers to access funding for impro…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The eligibility criteria for the existing Business Ventilation Fund has been widened to include Day Care of children services operated by Private, Voluntary and Independent Sector Nurseries. PVI settings can claim up to £2,500 per eligible premises to support…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether it will publish all the advice that it received from Scottish Futures Trust that it used to make its “educated assumptions” on the …

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The example scenario used to generate overall costings for the up-to-£5m funding was developed with input from the Scottish Futures Trust, and drew on the costings that had already been developed for the Business Ventilation Fund with input from the expert Co…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether every school classroom has been subject to CO2 monitoring, and, if not, by what date this will be completed.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Yes, every learning, teaching and play space in Scotland was assessed by local authorities last term. However, we and our local authority partners recognise the importance of continuing this work and guidance has been updated to advise that every learning, t…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether any audit will be conducted of the “educated assumptions” that led to it calculating that £5 million was the funding necessary for …

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Up to £5m funding has been made available to local authorities on the basis that they may use it to undertake remedial action in line with guidance on ventilation, with problematic spaces prioritised for action. As part of the funding arrangements and ongoin…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, how many classes it anticipates will “relocate to alternative spaces while alternative, longer-term measures are put in place”; whether it …

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: It is the statutory responsibility of local authorities to manage their school estate. The precise details regarding the number of spaces where this approach has been used to manage specific ventilation issues is not held by the Scottish Government.

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to the Education, Children and Young People Committee on 28 January 2022, whether it will publish the feedback that it received on the proposal to undercut doors.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: There is no such proposal. As was made clear in the letter to the Committee, an undercut of a door was only one element of the example set of remedial measures used to illustrate the appropriate level of overall additional funding that might be needed to tac…

4 Feb 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the use of wireless CO2 monitoring sensors in schools, with remotely accessible data.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Our guidance asks local authorities to complete assessments of ventilation in their schools and to ensure that all day care of children services have access to CO2 monitoring, whether via mobile or fixed devices. We have empowered local authorities to make t…