Alex Rowley

11 Sep 2017 · First Minister's Question

Question to be taken in Chamber.

31 Aug 2017 · First Minister's Question

Question to be taken in Chamber.

25 Jul 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made in implementing each of the recommendations of the report, Shifting the Curve, which was published by the First Minister’s Independent Advisor on Poverty and Inequality in January 2016.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government has made considerable progress in the implementation of the recommendations made by the Independent Advisor, Naomi Eisenstadt, in her 'Shifting the Curve' report. A report detailing progress on each of the 15 recommendations was publi…

14 Jun 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Employability Support Service will (a) collect and publish equality data and (b) monitor whether its services meet the needs of BME people who are long-term unemployed or at risk of becoming so.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government requires providers to collect equality information as part of the delivery of our employment services, Fair Start Scotland (from April 2018), Work First Scotland and, managed by SDS, Work Able Scotland. Part of the rationale for collec…

25 May 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the findings of the report that it commissioned from yellow book ltd, Barriers to community engagement in planning: a research study.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: We will consider the report and its findings carefully as we take forward our commitment to a new Planning Bill, taking account of the views of communities, professionals and other stakeholders across Scotland.

24 Apr 2017 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government will take to ensure that older people receive the free personal care payments that they are entitled to, in light of research by Age Scotland, which suggests that thousands are missing out due to delays in assessing and arranging care.

20 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether an independent Scotland in the EU would have the current VAT exemptions that the UK has negotiated.

Answer · Derek Mackay: In the event of a referendum on independence, the Scottish Government will set out how Scotland’s relationship with Europe will be secured.

15 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to (a) fill evidence gaps on (i) how and (ii) to what extent people from minority ethnic groups are accessing benefits to which they are entitled and (b) ensure that all anti-poverty policy and programme areas are fully impact-assessed for equality.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Race Equality Framework committed the Scottish Government to fill the gaps in current knowledge on how and to what extent minority ethnic people are accessing the benefits they are entitled to. The Framework covers the period 2016-2030, and we have alread…

15 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the findings in the report, Removing Barriers: race, ethnicity, and employment, that unconscious bias training is not a solution and can mask underlying negative attitudes towards people from a minority ethnic background; whether it offers any other anti-racist tr…

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government puts employee engagement and workforce development at the heart of its organisational transformation programme (SG2020) and underpinning People Strategy. We are committed to giving all our people the opportunity to shine, to nurturing …

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the impact would be on the North Sea oil and gas sector of a one-dollar (a) rise and (b) fall in the (i) oil and (ii) gas price.

Answer · Keith Brown: Activity in the North Sea oil and gas sector depends on a range of different factors, including oil and gas prices, costs, investment, demand and exploration and production efficiency.

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it based its most recent oil and gas price predictions on.

Answer · Keith Brown: Previous analysis by the Scottish Government have used a range of different price assumptions based on historic trends and a range of external analysis and forecasts.

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding the level of exploration there has been in the North Sea oil and gas sector in each of the last five years, and how successful this has been.

Answer · Keith Brown: Information on the number of exploration and appraisal wells drilled is produced by the Oil and Gas Authority. This information can be found via https://www.ogauthority.co.uk/data-centre/data-downloads-and-publications/well-data/ Oil and Gas UK also provide …

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many North Sea oil and gas fields are the subject of decommissioning proposals, and how much it would cost to decommission these over the next three years.

Answer · Keith Brown: The UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy regulates the decommissioning of offshore oil and gas installations and pipelines. A table of draft decommissioning programmes under consideration and approved decommissioning programmes can be fo…

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how much private sector investment there has been in North Sea oil and gas (a) exploration and (b) development and production in each of the last three years, and what estimate it has made for each of the next three years.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government Oil and Gas Production Statistics 2015-16 includes estimates of oil and gas production activity in Scotland (including Scottish adjacent waters). It reports production volumes, approximate sales income, operating costs and capital expe…

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many people have been (a) directly and (b) indirectly employed by the North Sea oil and gas sector in each of the last three years, and what estimate it has made for each of the next three years.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Office for National Statistics produces statistics on employment by sector and region in the Labour Force Survey and Business Register and Employment Survey. These can be found via:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentan…

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding the (a) volume and (b) value of trade of North Sea (i) oil, (ii) oil-related products, (iii) gas and (iv) petrochemicals in each of the last five years.

Answer · Keith Brown: Statistics on the estimated commodity balances for Scotland, including the North Sea, of oil, petroleum products and natural gas are published at http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Economy/oilgas. Estimates for trade in oil and gas, oil-related pr…

14 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how much has been raised by the North Sea (a) oil and (b) gas sector in each of the last three years through (i) royalties, (ii) the supplementary charge, (iii) ring-fenced corporation tax and (iv) petroleum revenue tax, and what estimate it has made for…

Answer · Keith Brown: Statistics on UK Government revenues from oil and gas production can be found via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/government-revenues-from-uk-oil-and-gas-production--2 Future tax revenues from oil and gas production depend on a r…

10 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the current oil price would have impacted on public services if the country had voted to become independent in the referendum.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Tax revenues from oil and gas production depend on a range of different factors including production, prices and profitability. Scotland’s economic fundamentals are strong. Even without oil, GDP per head in Scotland is higher than the UK average excluding Lo…

10 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether its economic case in the independence referendum was predicated on the financial contribution that it believed would have been made from oil revenues.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Tax revenues from oil and gas production depend on a range of different factors including production, prices and profitability. Scotland’s economic fundamentals are strong. Even without oil, GDP per head in Scotland is higher than the UK average excluding Lo…

10 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the future growth prospects for the North Sea oil sector.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The North Sea has a bright future, with up to 20 billion barrels of oil equivalent of known reserves remaining in the UK continental shelf. Production has increased by an estimated 16% since 2014 and is expected to continue to grow in 2017 and 2018. The oil a…

9 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many accidental electrical house fires there have been in Mid Scotland and Fife in each of the last five years.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: This information is not held centrally. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) publishes statistics on accidental dwelling fires, broken down by local authority, however this data is not broken down into specific causes. These statistics are available …

9 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service regarding collecting the data on the number of fires caused by (a) mobile telephone chargers and (b) e-cigarettes.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: Through the Fire and Rescue Framework for Scotland 2016, Scottish Ministers require SFRS to collect, produce and analyse data and other intelligence to promote the safety and well-being of communities. SFRS works with partners in communities to identify risk…

9 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average cost is to the public purse of an accidental house fire.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: This information for Scotland is not held centrally. A methodology for estimating costs for England was developed by the UK Department for Communities and Local Government. This was last updated in 2008 using data available at that time, and published in its …

9 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it had had with the UK Government regarding the fire risk from faulty white goods.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: Regulations concerning the safety of products are reserved and, while there has been no discussion between Scottish Government and UK Government on this, we welcome the UK Government’s recent action in establishing a working group to improve the safety of whi…

9 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the (a) effect and (b) cost of fires in the home caused by electricity, and whether it has discussed developing a national strategy to reduce these and, if so, with what stakeholders.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: This information for Scotland is not held centrally. A methodology for estimating costs for England was developed by the UK Department for Communities and Local Government. This was last updated in 2008 using data available at that time, and published in its …

7 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many houses for social rent in each local authority area are under construction, broken down by the expected year of completion.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: The following table is based on management information extracted from the Scottish Government Affordable Housing Supply Programme, and presents the number of social rented units under construction on site as at 30 September 2016, in line with the time period …

7 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what allocation it has agreed with each local authority regarding the number of houses for social rent that should be built in (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20 and (c) 2020-21.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: All local authorities publish a Local Housing Strategy (LHS). This is supplemented with a Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP), which sets out over a five year period, plans to prioritise delivery of the objectives set out in the LHS. The number of homes …

7 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many houses for social rent (a) were built in 2016-17, (b) have been built since April 2016 and (c) will be built in 2017-18.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: In answer to (a) and (b), the financial year 2016-17 runs from 1 April 2016 to 31 March 2017. The number of houses for social rent built over this period are published as part of our quarterly statistics. The most recent official statistics published on 13 …

2 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made toward meeting the target set in Scotland's Economic Strategy to (a) reduce youth unemployment by 40% by 2021, (b) increase the percentage of employers recruiting young people directly from education to 35% by 2018 and (c) reduce to 60% the percentage of Modern …

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The second Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) annual progress report found at: Developing the Young Workforce Scotland's Youth Employment Strategy 2nd Annual Report 2015/2016, covers academic year 2015-16, and was published on 14 December 2016. The report …

26 Jan 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last raised the issue of seafarer pay rates on the Rosyth to Zeebrugge freight route with (a) the UK Government and (b) DFDS.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government has not raised the issue of seafarer pay rates on the Rosyth to Zeebrugge freight route with the UK Government or DFDS. Scottish Ministers wrote to UK Ministers on 4 November 2016 asking the UK Government to investigate the wider issu…