Richard Leonard

22 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact on (a) safety, (b) rail performance and (c) jobs of the reported reduction in the work bank and volume of work allocated to the Rail Systems Alliance Scotland for year one of control period 7.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26466 on 16 April 2024. 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-committee…

21 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the ScotRail Club 50 discount for online purchases is 20%, but only 10% for tickets purchased at a staffed ticket office.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: This is an operational matter for ScotRail. The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail directly.  

19 Mar 2024 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that rail travel is safe.

13 Mar 2024 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what action it is taking to support public interest journalism.

7 Mar 2024 · SPCB Oral Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what consideration it is giving to the establishment of a permanent memorial to Michael "Mick" McGahey in the Parliament.

7 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the finding in the report, Women's and girls' views and experiences of personal safety when using public transport, that passengers feel safer when staff are present at stations, and the recommendation for the Scottish Government to explore the feasibility of increasing staf…

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Staffing levels are an operational matter for Scotrail, however the Scottish Government appreciates the importance of staff being visibly deployed appropriately in stations and across the network to enhance the passengers experience, including safety and cont…

7 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason ScotRail has scored one out of five for the (a) "station staff" and (b) "station ticket offices" service schedule in each Service Quality Inspection Regime (SQUIRE) inspection since March 2023.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Under the SQUIRe regime, Transport Scotland audits and scores ScotRail under set Service Schedules which include station staff and station tickets offices along with other important aspects like cleanliness and CCTV. In each Service Schedule there are many a…

7 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what improvements it is seeking from ScotRail as a result of it scoring one out of five for the (a) "station staff" and (b) "station ticket offices" service schedule in each Service Quality Inspection Regime (SQUIRE) inspection since March 2023.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: As noted in S6W-26045 on 18 March 2024, the SQUIRe regime is one of the toughest performance regimes in the UK. It is an operational matter for ScotRail to investigate and rectify areas where performance has not met the standards expected by the Scottish Gove…

7 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with ScotRail regarding it scoring one out of five for the (a) "station staff" and (b) "station ticket offices" service schedule in each Service Quality Inspection Regime (SQUIRE) inspection since March 2023.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Transport Scotland officials discuss all aspects of the SQUIRe regime with ScotRail including performance and on-going issues.  

7 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the ScotRail framework agreement specifies that it should give "particular attention" to "identifying efficiencies in staffing levels" at railway stations.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Framework Agreement between Scottish Ministers and Scottish Rail Holdings confirms under the Stations, Operational Plan section that “particular attention should be given to identifying efficiencies in staffing levels as well as focus on elements which wi…

4 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans for a revaluation of domestic properties in 2024 for the purposes of setting council tax rates.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The Scottish Government has no plan for a revaluation of domestic properties in 2024.

4 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it or its agencies have done on modelling for a tax based on carbon emissions on landholdings in Scotland, and whether it will make the outcomes of any such work publicly available.

Answer · Tom Arthur: At the 2024-25 Scottish Budget, the Scottish Government announced that it will work with our partners in COSLA and local government, and other stakeholders, during 2024-25 to examine how further policy measures – regulatory and fiscal – can support existing p…

4 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what research it or its agencies have undertaken regarding the current rates of the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT), including the Additional Dwelling Supplement, and whether it will make the findings of any such research publicly available.

Answer · Tom Arthur: Revenue Scotland publish monthly data for Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) which sets out the number and value of transactions for residential LBTT, the Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) and non-residential leases and conveyances. These publicatio…

4 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it or its agencies have done on modelling for a tax based on land value in Scotland, and whether it will make the outcomes of any such work publicly available.

Answer · Tom Arthur: In 2017, the Scottish Government asked the Scottish Land Commission to look at the potential for introducing a form of land value based tax in Scotland. One of their key findings was that, although the theoretical case for the introduction of a land value tax…

4 Mar 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it or its agencies have done on modelling for a tax on wealth in Scotland, and whether it will make the outcomes of any such work publicly available.

Answer · Shona Robison: We believe that the power to tax wealth should be devolved to this Parliament, so that it can be designed to work fairly and effectively in a Scottish-specific context. Any analysis of wealth taxes, therefore, must consider the limits of powers currently devo…

27 Feb 2024 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to next meet with the sole director of the GFG Alliance.

14 Feb 2024 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its plan to diversify land ownership in Scotland.

7 Feb 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the inpatient bed capacity of the Monklands Replacement Project was, as submitted in the outline business case.

Answer · Maree Todd: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-25428 on 4 March 2024. 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-committees…

7 Feb 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what lessons have been learned from the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to hospital size and design, and how any such findings have impacted on the consideration of the Monklands Replacement Project.

Answer · Maree Todd: The OBC from NHS Lanarkshire considered in great detail the impact of the pandemic within their design. The new facility has considered best use of space and layout alongside ventilation to ensure consideration has been given to any future pandemic so that ar…

7 Feb 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what contingencies it has put in place to ensure that NHS Lanarkshire has sufficient capital funding for the completion of the replacement for University Hospital Monklands.

Answer · Maree Todd: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-25429 on 4 March 2024.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-committees/…

7 Feb 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates that it will receive the full business case for the Monklands Replacement Project from NHS Lanarkshire.

Answer · Maree Todd: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-25429 on 4 March 2024. 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-committees…

7 Feb 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that there will be no further delay to the replacement for University Hospital Monklands.

Answer · Maree Todd: The UK Government did not inflation-proof its capital budget which has resulted in nearly a 10% real-terms cut in the Scottish Government’s capital funding over the medium-term between 2023-24 and 2027-28. The result of this cut is that new health capital pr…

7 Feb 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many inpatient beds are planned for the replacement for University Hospital Monklands, broken down by speciality.

Answer · Neil Gray: The OBC indicates a total of 472 total beds. In addition to 92 assessment and observation beds the breakdown is as follows: Future Modelled Bed Provision No. ITU (Level 3 & Surg/Med Level 2) - Includes Medical HDU beds - Includes Renal HDU beds 20 Bed …

31 Jan 2024 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to encourage a modal shift to public transport.

23 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many and (b) what proportion of all train delay minutes were attributed to rail infrastructure problems, in the period of April to December 2023, broken down by (i) drainage issues, (ii) track faults, including broken rails, (iii) overhead line failures and (iv) signalling failur…

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Network Rail has an overall responsibility of the Scottish rail network infrastructure and Office of Rail and Road (ORR) holds Network Rail to account for the delivery of its obligations. ORR publishes its quarterly and periodic (4-weekly) statistics on punc…

15 Jan 2024 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the current salary and any other remuneration is for each of the directors of Caledonian Sleeper Ltd.  

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: In line with the Scottish Government guidelines to disclose the names, job titles and salary details of senior management within Non-Departmental Public Bodies, the requested information is published online and can be found here: Statutory-Director-Salaries.…

22 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it takes to measure unrecorded passenger journeys on the ScotRail network.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: This is an operational matter for ScotRail. The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

22 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many ScotRail staff have (a) ticket examination and (b) revenue protection responsibilities, and, of these, how many are (a) full-time and (b) part-time staff.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: This is an operational matter for ScotRail. The member may wish to contact ScotRail directly for this information.

22 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what evaluation it has made to date of the trial of an all-day, off-peak fare on ScotRail services.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: I refer the Member to the answer to question S6W-21967 on 18 October 2023. An interim value for money assessment, which includes cross-modal impacts, using a multimodal evaluation of current travel patterns and impact to date in line with His Majesty’s Treas…

22 Dec 2023 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the savings that ScotRail passengers will make from the extension of the trial of the all-day, off-peak fare to June 2024.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The purpose of the ScotRail Peak Fares is broader, to find out whether such a measure helps move people from car to rail use, but also to help passengers facing cost of living pressures. We know that price and simplicity is crucial for people when choosing ho…