John Mason

4 Aug 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prevent the persecution of raptors.

17 Jun 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the extent will be of the remit of the Advisory Board on Social Renewal.

9 Jun 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Black Lives Matter campaign, how dealing with racism and Scotland's links with slavery are taught in schools.

3 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports from England that a woman took abortion pills at 28 weeks gestation, what assurances it can give that such practice is not possible in Scotland, as these pills can be posted out without a physical consultation with a medical professional.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: A revised approval came into force on 31 March to help abortion services to continue safely during the COVID-19 outbreak. This enables early medical abortions to proceed via telemedicine and with a home delivery or collection of the package of mifepristone an…

2 Jun 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill could impact on sectarianism, in light of this not being specifically mentioned in it as a characteristic that might attract expressions of hatred.

27 May 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the finance secretary's response is to reports that extra funding commitments pledged by the UK Government to assist with the response to the COVID-19 outbreak have not been fulfilled.

20 May 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to research by GambleAware, which suggests that 46% of people with a gambling problem are not accessing treatment and support.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The Scottish Government is already working with GambleAware and the Gambling Commission on the implementation of the Commission's National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms , which was published in 2019. It is estimated that one percent of the adult populatio…

11 Mar 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comments in its China engagement strategy regarding respect for human rights, what its position is on the recent full judgement of the China Tribunal on forced organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience.

4 Mar 2020 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that the action that it takes to restrict hate speech does not inadvertently discourage freedom of speech.

25 Feb 2020 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what requirements there are for people working in the Parliament to join the Protecting Vulnerable Groups scheme administered by Disclosure Scotland.

Answer · Liam McArthur on behalf of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body: The SPCB employs staff within the Education Team that are required to be registered with the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme. The Education Officer posts have been assessed as undertaking duties which fall within the scope of ‘regulated work’ as def…

18 Feb 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the importance of young people leaving school going onto positive destinations.

11 Feb 2020 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what treatment programmes are available to help people addicted to gambling.

6 Jan 2020 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take in response to reports that ATMs are increasingly charging for taking out cash.

17 Dec 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the timing of the UK and Scottish budgets.

26 Nov 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce the amount of time that the police spend assisting people with mental health issues on matters that should not require their presence.

20 Nov 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it can do to tackle the issue of “split ticketing” for train fares, whereby it can be cheaper to purchase tickets for component parts of a journey rather than one straight-through ticket.

13 Nov 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how minority groups within Pakistan are being helped as part of Scotland’s Pakistan Development Programme.

12 Nov 2019 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body how many Members have had their fingerprints taken for the two-factor authentication system for access to the complex.

4 Nov 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether moving towards a two-verdict justice system of "proven" and "not proven" would be an improvement on the present system.

23 Oct 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the effectiveness has been of the trialling of placing physiotherapists in the emergency department at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

9 Sep 2019 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of recent sectarian violence, what action it proposes to prevent disorder at future marches.

3 Sep 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the guidance on the Scottish Housing Quality Standard will be reviewed.

4 Jun 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent consideration it has given to the impact of Brexit on immigration.

14 May 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Alateen programmes being able to support teenage relatives and friends of people with alcohol problems, for what reason there is no such programme in Scotland.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: We provide funding of £600,000 a year to the Corra Foundation. Corra supports third sector organisations, to deliver vital, on-the-ground, local support largely to children and families across Scotland affected by alcohol and drug use. We also provide £280,…

23 Apr 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on introducing five-yearly electrical safety checks for homes in the social rented sector.

16 Apr 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether there is a need for greater accountability to reduce the risk of people abusing power of attorney status.

25 Mar 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to the introduction of a system of automatic voter registration.

Answer · Michael Russell: Automatic registration is not currently under active consideration by the Scottish Government. That said, I am always open to suggestions for practical ways of increasing the number of people who can vote in elections in Scotland.

13 Mar 2019 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it is possible to vary contracts of employment for MSP staff in order to give flexibility to suit local circumstances.

12 Mar 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it can give toward the annual running costs of the Scottish Jewish Heritage Centre in Glasgow.

19 Feb 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Interim Recommendations Report by the Working Group on Maintenance of Tenement Scheme Property.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: The Scottish Government commends the work of the Working Group on Maintenance of Tenement Scheme Property. The deadline to provide views on the group’s interim recommendations is today, and we have encouraged stakeholders to respond. I will give serious consi…