Parliamentary questions
Graeme Pearson
335 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
10 Mar 2014 · First Minister's Question
To ask the First Minister what steps the Scottish Government is taking to ensure that antisocial behaviour orders are not breached.
28 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what role the subsuming of crime plays in the recording of separate crimes committed around a single location or by the same suspect at any given time; what changes in the approach to the use of subsuming took place after December 2010, and (a) when and (b) by whom the principle of subsu…
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Crime Recording Standard (SCRS) provides a more victim orientated approach to the recording of crime and ensuring uniformity in crime recording standards across Scotland. In April 2004 the SCRS was introduced throughout Scotland. The principle, w…
28 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to implement each of the recommendations in the February 2008 HM Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland’s thematic inspection report on crime recording standards.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Of the five recommendations made in the 2008 Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland (HMICS) report, only Recommendation 2: “That, in order to resolve unnecessary inconsistencies identified by force crime registrars (FCRs), the Scottish Govern…
27 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what audit process it has to verify the robustness of crime statistics.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Within the Scottish Government, Justice Analytical Services (JAS) is responsible for the collection, quality assurance and publication of police recorded crime statistics. A wide range of mechanisms are employed to ensure the robustness of police crime data. …
27 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what training is given to police officers on the recording of crime statistics.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The training of police officers is an operational matter for Police Scotland.
20 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to publish the risk assessments that it has made of the proposals to change the number of (a) police and (b) fire control rooms.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Determining the number of control rooms is a matter for the Scottish Police Authority and the Board of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. We have received their assurances that any changes to control rooms will not compromise the safety of their staff or t…
20 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Programme report, Joint Doctrine: The Interoperability Framework, and whether it has taken (a) the report into account when considering the provision of (i) police and (ii) fire control rooms and (b) steps to review ar…
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Programme (JESIP) is operational business and, as such, Scotland’s emergency services have been actively engaged in it since an early stage. However, both emergency services and Scottish Government officials have …
8 Jan 2014 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to communities in East Ayrshire.
17 Dec 2013 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase the provision and uptake of Cantonese and Mandarin in schools.
16 Dec 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is regarding the announcement of possible tougher sentencing for housebreaking over the festive period; whether it considers that the proposals will have a meaningful impact on crime levels; what performance indicators will be used to determine if the changes have been …
Answer · Lesley Thomson: On 16 December 2013 I announced the commencement of a robust prosecution policy across Scotland for the period between 16 December 2013 and 6 January 2014 to deal with housebreakers. There was a presumption that those who break into people’s houses would be p…
11 Dec 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when management staff at (a) HMP Castle Huntly, (b) Police Scotland and (c) the Scottish Government were made aware that Michael McInnes was missing; when it was decided that information regarding his disappearance would be released to the public; for what reason details of his convictio…
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The management at HMP Castle Huntly were aware of Michael McInnes failure to return when he did not appear for his pick up at lunchtime on Wednesday 4 December 2013. The police were notified later that afternoon and the Scottish Government were advised on th…
11 Dec 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it remains its position that Police Scotland should assume responsibility for British Transport Police operations and staff in Scotland and, if so, what measures it is taking to deliver this objective.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government believes that the British Transport Police’s operation in Scotland should form part of Police Scotland. All policing in Scotland is under the jurisdiction of a single Chief Constable, Sir Stephen House, and accountable to the Scottish…
20 Nov 2013 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has carried out an assessment of the impact on communities of Police Scotland’s proposals regarding public counter opening times.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: This is an operational matter for the chief constable in line with the provisions in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 Act passed by this Parliament. The Act makes it clear that the Chief Constable is responsible for the day to day administration…
18 Sep 2013 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what financial support it will provide to East Ayrshire Council to assist with the restoration of open cast mines.
17 Sep 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on (a) the relationship between Police Scotland and external media organisations, (b) Police Scotland's openness regarding the release of details of crimes and other incidents to the media and (c) the availability to the public of up-to-date information on crime.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Police Scotland recognises external media organisations are one of the main ways the public receive information on policing and other issues. Police Scotland adheres to guidelines agreed with the Crown Office which clearly set out what information it is appr…
16 Sep 2013 · First Minister's Question
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government considers the impact will be on local policing of reported plans to replace local police officers with officers from other divisions on public holidays to avoid double-time payments.
5 Sep 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce price competitive tendering in the provision of legal aid.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: We have asked the Scottish Legal Aid Board to look at options for contracting for criminal legal assistance as set out in the paper A Sustainable Future for Legal Aid. The board has been discussing this issue with the legal profession over the summer and I e…
16 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many police support staff there were in (a) each local division, (b) the Scottish Police Services Authority and (c) Police Scotland on 31 July 2013.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government does not hold data on police support staff by each local division, or hold breakdowns between police support staff employed by the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) and Police Scotland. This is matter for Police Scotland and the SPA. Th…
16 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many stop and searches were carried out by police in each of the last five years and how many recovered (a) alcohol, (b) drugs and (c) knives.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: This is a matter for the Police Service of Scotland. The information requested is not held centrally.
16 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the budget was for police forensic services in each of the last five years.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The budget from Scottish Government for police forensic services, up to and including 2012-13, was included within the overall allocation made to the Scottish Police Services Agency (SPSA). The annual expenditure by the SPSA on police forensics services for y…
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what role the so-called Star Chamber plays in Police Scotland’s analysis of the performance of divisional commands.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Star Chamber process has been introduced by Police Scotland. The Chief Constable leads this process which involves senior members of Police Scotland and its aim is to regularly review and assess where savings and efficiencies can be made. This process has…
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how often Police Scotland gathers key performance indicators (KPI) from each divisional command; what each KPI is, and how they are analysed.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Police Scotland collect and analyse a range of management information. The information requested is an operational matter for Police Scotland and is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many stop and searches were carried out by police in (a) April, (b) May, (c) June, (d) July and (e) August (i) 2012 and (ii) 2013 and how many recovered (A) alcohol, (B) drugs and (C) knives.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: This is a matter for the Police Service of Scotland. The information requested is not held centrally.
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been stopped by police for (a) driving while using a mobile phone, (b) not wearing a seatbelt, (c) dangerous driving and (d) drink driving in (i) April, (ii) May, (iii) June, (iv) July and (v) August (A) 2012 and (B) 2013, broken down by region.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Data on the number of people stopped by the police is not held centrally. Recorded crime data is based on an aggregated count of the numbers of crimes and offences recorded, and cleared up, by the police in Scotland. It is not possible to provide figures by …
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the police performance measurements were for (a) driving while on a mobile phone, (b) not wearing a seatbelt, (c) dangerous driving, (d) stop and search and (e) drink driving in each of the last five years, also broken down by region.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Performance measurements on these offences and tactics are not held centrally by the Scottish Government; such performance measurements were instead a matter for the legacy police forces and are now a matter for Police Scotland.
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the effectiveness of the Scottish Police Authority Forensic Services and what information it has on Police Scotland's view on this matter.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: Forensic services are a critical part of the fight against crime in Scotland. The Scottish Government values the hard work and dedication of the forensic service and welcomes the recent advances in technology and other innovations which enable the service to …
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Police Authority Forensic Services (a) can and (b) does carry out work that has originated from the rest of the UK.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Police Authority Forensic Services has the ability to, and where appropriate does, provide services to other agencies. However their primary focus is to provide the Police Service of Scotland, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and th…
15 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many people were employed by and (b) what the backlog of cases was for police forensic services in each of the last five years.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government does not collect this information centrally. However, the Scottish Police Authority Forensic Services has provided the following details. Year @ Forensic Services total staff in post (FTE) Forensic Services caseload March 2009 …
14 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what support it has given to (a) Narcotics and (b) Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in prisons in each of the last five years and what information it has on how many (i) meetings have been held and (ii) prisoners attended, broken down by prison.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows: The Scottish Prison Service provides facilities for prisoner meetings of both Narcotics and Alcohol Anonymous when requested by both organis…
14 Aug 2013 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the procedure is for informing next-of-kin or families regarding the granting of consent for the removal of (a) brain, (b) tissue and (c) other body parts after death.
Answer · Frank Mulholland: COPFS deals with the investigation of around 12000 deaths every year and instructs post mortem examinations in respect of some cases. Where a post mortem required in the public interest is instructed by the Procurator Fiscal and the pathologist determines th…