Daniel Johnson

29 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-12165 by Tom Arthur on 28 November 2022, whether it will provide a breakdown of the £191 million of "reductions to previously unfunded pressures".

Answer · Tom Arthur: A breakdown of the £191 million was provided in the Guide to the Autumn Budget Revision which is available on the Finance and Public Administration’s website here https://www.parliament.scot/~/media/committ/4489 This guide document will also be published o…

24 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether there are any backlogs within Disclosure Scotland in processing PVG checks, leaving prospective carers unable to start their job.

Answer · Clare Haughey: There are no backlogs or delays at Disclosure Scotland in processing PVG disclosure checks. During this calendar year, and on a week-by-week basis, Disclosure Scotland has completed over 95% of all types of disclosure applications in under 7.5 working days. M…

22 Nov 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has engaged in discussions or research about the feasibility of vertical farming in Scotland’s cities.

18 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many of its staff, including any indirectly employed staff, such as agency workers or contractors, are earning (a) the real Living Wage or (b) less than the real Living Wage.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: All of the employees of the Scottish Government earn above the real Living Wage, with the minimum full-time salary on our pay scales being £22,182 (£11.48 per hour). For indirectly employed staff, agency workers doing the same grade of work as Scottish Gover…

16 Nov 2022 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government to what extent any labour shortages are impacting on the provision of educational wraparound care, such as breakfast clubs and after school clubs.

15 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is its policy to exit the integrated UK electricity market, the current subsidy regime and transmission arrangements in the event of Scotland becoming independent.

Answer · Michael Matheson: We will set out our approach to the future electricity market in an Independent Scotland in the forthcoming Net Zero prospectus paper.

15 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a full list of active groups and sub-groups within the Finance and Economy portfolio.

Answer · John Swinney: The list of active groups and sub-groups within the Finance and Economy portfolio includes:Apprenticeship Approval Group (AAG)Business Support PartnershipClimate Emergency Skills Action Plan - Implementation Steering GroupClyde Mission Strategy GroupCommunity…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a full breakdown of how any Barnett consequential funding received in 2022-23 has been, or will be, spent.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The guide to the Autumn Budget Revision details how our funding received reconciles to the allocations provided in budget revisions.  

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether any Barnett consequential funding received in 2022-23 remains unspent.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The 2022-23 Autumn Budget Revision, and the associated guide, details how all Barnett Consequentials and other funding movements have been formally allocated to date. The net funds available for deployment following the conclusion of the Autumn Budget Revisi…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it anticipates additional funding will be needed for public sector pay settlements in 2022-23 beyond the £714 million that the Deputy First Minister announced as part of the Emergency Budget Review.

Answer · John Swinney: The Emergency Budget Review identified the additional costs of respective pay offers and deals for certain workforces, estimating that the total additional cost reflecting offers at the time was over £700 million. The exact costs will be finalised as pay deal…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the amount that it anticipates it will carry forward within the Scotland Reserve from 2022-23 to 2023-24.

Answer · Tom Arthur: As the Deputy First Minister made clear in parliament, given the inflationary pressure on our budget it is currently difficult to identify at this stage where underspends will emerge. Full details of all 2023-24 funding assumptions, including the Scotland Re…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it did not include a full breakdown of the destination of the £1.175 billion of in-year funding reallocations, which were announced by the Deputy First Minister in September and November 2022, in the 2022-23 Autumn Budget Revision.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The full list of the savings generated, and new commitments made, through the Emergency Budget Review was outlined in the EBR document and published on the Scottish Government website. The Deputy First Minister wrote to the Finance and Public Administration C…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish a breakdown of where the reallocated funds announced by the Deputy First Minister in the Emergency Budget Review have been, or will be, spent.

Answer · Tom Arthur: A full breakdown of the implications of the Emergency Budget Review (EBR) measures on the Scottish Budget was included within the guide to the Autumn Budget Revision (ABR) provided to the Finance and Public Administration Committee. Of the initial £560 milli…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the budget reallocations announced in the Emergency Budget Review, including the £714 million allocated to fund public sector pay settlements, on the Budget for 2023-24.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The impact of the reallocations in the Emergency Budget Review, including public sector pay, will have a significant bearing on the 2023-24 Scottish Budget. Further details of the effect of these considerations on proposed portfolio allocations will be publis…

8 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it received from the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland in relation to proposed regulations about pavement parking exemptions.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland (MACS) wrote to Transport Scotland in March 2022 expressing their desire that no Ministerial Directions be given on which type of pavement can be considered by local authorities for an Exemption Order. We sought …

8 Nov 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to prevent motorcycle thefts, in light of reports of rising motorcycle theft numbers.

31 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it can do to allow the removal of any freeze on apprenticeship places and budgets at Skills Development Scotland.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-11670 on? 9 November 2022. 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-commit…

26 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide an update on any action it has taken regarding the closure of the Edinburgh Filmhouse and the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

Answer · Neil Gray: I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-11493 and S6T-00915 answered on 26 October 2022 and 25 October 2022 respectively. The answer to Topical Question S6T-00915 can be found here: https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/official-repor…

24 Oct 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will evaluate the progress made in achieving the intended outcomes of its Covid Recovery Strategy.

24 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what steps it has taken to ensure that the Filmhouse, in Edinburgh, can reopen as soon as possible.

Answer · Neil Gray: I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-11493 on 26 October 2022 and S6T-00915 on 25 October 2022 respectively. The answer to Topical Question S6T-00915 can be found here: https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/official-report/search-w…

21 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions there have been under the Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government Criminal Proceedings database is not a live system and the latest available information is for the financial year 2020-21. Statistics are presented on the number of people dealt with by the Scottish Criminal Justice System where procee…

14 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to a higher target than 50% for conditionality of agricultural subsidies in any future Agriculture Bill.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: I refer the member to the Parliamentary Statement I made on Tues 8 November 2022, which set out the Scottish Government's pathway for the future of agricultural support including the conditionality of that support. This is in line with our Vision for Scottish…

14 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will introduce some conditional agriculture subsidies before 2025 in areas where there is widespread agreement between key stakeholders on policy.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: Agriculture support is already conditional, the current Basic Payment Scheme requires Farmers, Crofters, etc to meet Cross Compliance and Greening measures, to qualify for that payment. I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-11606 on 10 November 202…

14 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its progress in developing an Agriculture Bill, and when it expects a Bill to be introduced. 

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Scottish Government is committed to introducing a new Agriculture Bill to Parliament in 2023. The public consultation on proposals for a new Bill, “Delivering our Vision for Scottish Agriculture. Proposals for a new Agriculture Bill” was launched on 29 A…

20 Sep 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether Highlands and Islands Enterprise has formally excluded companies or organisations that have complained about the award of loans or grants from receiving them.

Answer · Ivan McKee: Questions S6W-11074 - 77 are operational matters for Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and I have asked Stuart Black, HIE’s Chief Executive to respond directly. I have also provided detail below which I hope the member will find helpful. The agency's s…

20 Sep 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether Highlands and Islands Enterprise needs to demonstrate best value when attempting to address market failure in particular companies.

Answer · Ivan McKee: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-11074 on 5 October 2022. 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-committe…

20 Sep 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how Highlands and Islands Enterprise accounts for HM Treasury’s Green Book when proposing to award a loan or grant to a company.

Answer · Ivan McKee: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-11074 on 5 October 2022. 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-committe…

20 Sep 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether Highlands and Islands Enterprise has a duty to show evidence of market failure of a company before intervening to award a loan or grant to it.

Answer · Ivan McKee: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-11074 on 5 October 2022. 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-committe…

1 Sep 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce a Primary Authority system for devolved regulation following the Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, and, if so, when this will take place.

Answer · Ivan McKee: There are no current plans to implement a Primary Authority system for devolved regulation. However, as part of the National Strategy for Economic Transformation we have set out that we are working with stakeholders to consider how regulation can be used to s…

1 Sep 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the revenue raised by the business rates incentivisation scheme has been retained by each local authority in each year since 2016-17.

Answer · Tom Arthur: The Business Rates Incentivisation Scheme (BRIS) was introduced in in 2012-13 in recognition of the fact that the Scottish Government guarantees the combined General Revenue Grant (GRG) and distributable Non-Domestic Rates Income (NDRI) funding thereby reduci…