Ruth Maguire

11 Apr 2018 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is involving stakeholders with the development and implementation of its Planning Bill.

20 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent each year on measures to mitigate the impact on Scotland of the UK Government's welfare reforms.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government continues to protect the most vulnerable and those on low incomes by mitigating the worst impacts of the UK Government’s welfare cuts. We have increased our spending on welfare mitigation measures by over £20 million in each of the la…

7 Mar 2018 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports social landlords in providing affordable housing that is allocated according to need.

27 Feb 2018 · Portfolio Question

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

23 Jan 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the Scottish social security system will allow people who have difficulty communicating to receive information and express themselves in ways that best meet their needs.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: We will achieve this by supporting the member’s amendment to the Social Security (Scotland) Bill to place a duty on Ministers to have regard to the importance of communicating in an inclusive way. The amendment goes to the heart of our ambitions to take a rig…

17 Jan 2018 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the proposals in its draft strategy to tackle loneliness and social isolation could help promote the third sector.

10 Jan 2018 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what role it considers pharmacies should play in supporting the health of the communities that they serve.

18 Dec 2017 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish its proposed consultation on possible changes to the electoral system.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: I am pleased to announce the publication today of our Consultation on Electoral Reform. The 2016-2017 Programme for Government included a commitment to take forward a consultation exercise to find out what electoral reforms Scottish citizens would like to se…

18 Dec 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the progress it has made toward the commitment to listen to 1,000 care-experienced people by the end of the parliamentary session.

Answer · Maree Todd: The First Minister made a commitment to listen to the voices of 1,000 care experienced people over the course of the Independent Care Review. To date, the First Minister has met, and listened to the views of, around 150 care experienced people. An engagement …

29 Nov 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work of the Homelessness Task Force.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: I refer the member to the answer to question S5O-01557 on 6 December 2017. The answer to the oral parliamentary question is available on the parliaments website, the Official Report can be viewed at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.asp…

29 Nov 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group.

6 Nov 2017 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recent Child Poverty Action Group report, The Austerity Generation.

1 Nov 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to mark the Scottish Witch Trials during the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology 2017.

23 Oct 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the findings of Dogs Trust’s report, Puppy Smuggling: A Tragedy Ignored, whether it will make it a requirement for animal health resources to be available at ports to record the age of dogs entering the country.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government has no plans to make it a requirement for animal health resources to be available at ports to record the age of dogs entering the country. There are no sea ports in Scotland that are approved under the Pets Travel Regulations to accept…

5 Oct 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle demand for the purchase of sexual access to women and girls, in light of the recent National Crime Agency figures suggesting that one-in-three victims are trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: The Scottish Government is committed to addressing the harm associated with prostitution and currently provides funding of £38,000 a year to SACRO to undertake work to assist those engaged in prostitution who wish to no longer be engaged in prostitution and w…

26 Sep 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what role NHS boards can play in ensuring that young people receive information at school that will reduce their risk of contracting HIV.

14 Sep 2017 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will announce the location of the new social security agency.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Today, the First Minister will announce that Scotland’s new social security agency will be configured over two locations with a headquarters located in Dundee and a second major site in Glasgow, and will be enhanced by a local presence across Scotland. I will…

14 Jul 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the impact was of the 2017 Scottish Open golf championship on the (a) Ayrshire and (b) national economy, and what (i) support and (ii) international promotion it (A) gave to the 2017 event and (B) will offer the event in future years.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Open is one of the European Tour’s flagship events and showcases Scotland, The Home of Golf at its very best. A full post-event Economic Impact report for the 2017 Scottish Open at Dundonald Links will be available in October. Pre-event estimat…

14 Jun 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take to ensure that creditors operating in Scotland are fully briefed on their legal obligations when dealing with clients on a Debt Arrangement Scheme.

7 Jun 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports the teaching and studying of science in schools.

23 May 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the role of community right to buy schemes in towns and cities.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Community Right to Buy has been in place since 2003 for rural communities. Since last year, under provisions delivered through the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015, which this Government brought forward, communities in urban Scotland have been ab…

17 May 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it took to ensure that the local government elections were open to candidates from all parts of society.

10 May 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many households in Scotland will be affected by the changes to child tax credits that were introduced on 6 April 2017.

26 Apr 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of school leavers in North Ayrshire in 2016 continued in education, went on to training or entered employment.

18 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which (a) primary, (b) secondary and (c) special schools have been built or refurbished at a cost of (i) £500,000 to £1 million and (ii) over £1 million in each year since 2010-11, broken down by local authority.

Answer · John Swinney: (a) (i) Primary schools built/refurbished at a cost of £500,000 to £1 million, 2010-11 Seedcode School Name Local Authority 5233127 Tarves School Aberdeenshire 5443024 Townhill Primary School Fife 5443725 St Patrick's R C Primary School Fi…

16 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is gaining the views of people with direct personal experience of the current social security system to help shape Scotland’s new system.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: One of the key principles of Social Security in Scotland is that the processes, procedures and systems will be designed and built with and for the people of Scotland. To do that, at least 2,000 people with direct personal experience of the current social sec…

8 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that nutritious and healthy food and drink is being served in schools.

Answer · John Swinney: The Nutritional Requirements for Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2008 set high nutritional standards that all food and drink provided in schools must meet. That includes lunches, tuck shops, breakfast clubs and vending machines. On 5 March 20…

7 Mar 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met NHS Ayrshire and Arran and what issues were discussed.

15 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on mitigating the impact in Scotland of the UK Government’s welfare reforms.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government has invested considerable resource directly mitigating the impact of the UK Government’s welfare cuts. The following table sets out the amount invested to date in a range of different mitigation activities. Welfare Reform Mitigation a…

1 Feb 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many businesses will receive support from the expansion of the small business bonus scheme.