Parliamentary questions

Mairi Gougeon

52 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

19 Jun 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what progress is being made with the development of a new grade-separated junction on the A90 near Laurencekirk.

16 May 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its discussions with the UK Government in light of the Parliament's decision to not consent to the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill.

1 May 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of its mental health strategy.

30 Apr 2018 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will seek the devolution of all immigration powers.

9 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it has provided to the software and electronic publishing sector since 2008.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Scottish Enterprise can provide data for the past 5 years which shows that over that time period (to the end of the financial year 2016-2017) they have invested just under £28 million (£27.9 million) in software and electronic publishing. During this period …

9 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been employed in the software and electronic publishing sector in each year since 2008.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Table 1 shows the estimated level of total employment within Scotland’s software and electronic publishing sector from 2009 to 2017. January-December 2017 is the most recent Annual Population Survey data available. Table 1: Total employment in software and …

9 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many registered software and electronic publishing enterprises there have been in each year since 2008.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The number of VAT and/or PAYE registered software and electronic publishing enterprises, for 2008 to 2017, in Scotland are provided in the following table. Note that these figures refer to all registered enterprises operating in Scotland regardless of where t…

19 Feb 2018 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will provide an update on negotiations regarding Scotland’s place in Europe.

14 Feb 2018 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of its mental health strategy.

Answer · Maureen Watt: 6 December. The Forum is intended to track progress on the actions in the Strategy, and to help develop new actions in future years to help meet our ambitions. I spoke at the meeting in December about our achievements over the previous half year, the challeng…

16 Jan 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of its Mental Health Strategy.

10 Jan 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to improve teacher recruitment.

6 Dec 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it encourages employers to pay at least the living wage to under 25s.

27 Sep 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met Scottish Water.

4 Sep 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what role the police and the Crown Office have in dealing with wildlife crime.

20 Jun 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure the safe and timely delivery of the first payments to be made under Scotland’s new social security system.

14 Jun 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase cervical screening coverage.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: Increasing coverage in the Scottish Cervical Screening Programme is a key objective for the Scottish Government and that is why up to £5m of funding from the Cancer Strategy 'Beating Cancer: Ambition and Action' 2016 is being invested in our screening program…

14 Jun 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made by ScotRail to reduce so-called stop skipping.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: ScotRail continues to manage the reduction of skip stopping trains across the rail network and this is closely being monitored and challenged by Transport Scotland. In the last period (2), 0.75% of trains missed their stop.

22 May 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the action it is taking to tackle loneliness and social isolation.

16 May 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve access to transport for people in rural areas.

10 May 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has sought assurances from the UK Government that Scotland's fishing industry will not be used as a "bargaining chip" in the Brexit negotiations.

14 Mar 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has received assurances from the UK Government that it will not impose the changes to housing benefit for 18- to 21-year-olds in Scotland while discussions regarding a possible exemption are ongoing.

8 Mar 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what is being done to tackle mental health stigma and discrimination in the workplace.

16 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact of the Schmallenberg virus on sheep stocks, in light of reports that more than 50 flocks in England and Wales have been infected.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: On the basis of current evidence, including an assessment by the European Food Safety Authority, the long-term impact on the UK susceptible livestock from Schmallenberg virus is likely to be low. However, it can have a significant effect on a small number of …

15 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is giving to ports and harbours.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government is committed to supporting Scotland’s ports and harbours, whilst recognising that ports in Scotland operate in a commercial environment and are substantially self-funding. In certain circumstances, and in compliance with restrictions o…

15 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the economic impact on ports and harbours from the downturn in the oil and gas industry.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Our ports are forward looking and adaptable and seek to diversify in times of downturn in certain cargos/business areas. Projects such as the Aberdeen Harbour expansion, expected to start on site in April /May, will allow the port to access new markets and p…

7 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it works with (a) Europol and (b) Interpol to tackle drug-related crime.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not work directly with Europol or Interpol. Police Scotland however are fully engaged with both organisations, sharing intelligence and information to reduce drug trafficking and disrupt the organised crime groups engaged in this …

7 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it works with (a) Europol and (b) Interpol to reduce the likelihood of terrorist attacks.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not work directly with Europol or Interpol regarding reducing the likelihood of terrorist attacks. However, Police Scotland are fully engaged with both organisations, sharing intelligence and information regarding terrorism.

6 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many homes in (a) Angus North and Mearns and (b) Scotland are connected to fibre broadband, and what information it has regarding how many are connected as a result of the Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband programme.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of premises connected through commercial deployment of superfast broadband. Ofcom’s Connected Nations Report 2016 indicates that speeds of 30 Mbps or above are now available to 83% of premises in…

6 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with its plan to extend broadband to 95% of premises by the end of 2017.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme has brought fibre broadband access to over 700,000 homes and businesses so far and remains on track to deliver access to at least 95% of premises across Scotland by the end of 2017. This has been a hug…

26 Jan 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has invested in (a) buses, (b) ferries, (c) aviation, (d) active travel, (e) canals and (f) freight in each year since 2007.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government has allocated the funding shown in the following tables for buses, ferries, aviation, active travel, canals and freight in each year since 2007. The first two tables are broken down by level two budget lines and the following two show …