Parliamentary questions
Daniel Johnson
1,103 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
21 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many of the 8,500 jobs created in Scotland through inward investment in the 2022-23 financial year were connected to UK projects.
Answer · Tom Arthur: Responsibility for measuring Scotland’s annual inward investment performance rests with Scottish Development International (SDI) on behalf of the Enterprise Agencies. SDI reports for the financial year 2022-23, of the 8,533 jobs generated in Scotland, 2,629 w…
14 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on a multi-year funding settlement for No One Left Behind.
Answer · Tom Arthur: The Scottish Government recognises that certainty of funding is critical to allow Local Employability Partnerships to plan provision effectively and to provide security for the people accessing services through No One Left Behind. That is why the Scottish Bud…
14 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-27019 by Gillian Martin on 3 May 2024, when a decision on No One Left Behind funding for the remaining three quarters will be made.
Answer · Tom Arthur: The Scottish Government fully appreciates the hard work and dedication of partners in Scotland around delivering employability services which support a reduction in child poverty levels and support those facing structural barriers to enter into and sustain em…
13 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-25868 by Mairi McAllan on 4 March 2024, whether it will provide an update on when in summer 2024 it will publish its Green Industrial Strategy.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The global transition to net zero offers enormous economic opportunities for Scotland. Our Green Industrial Strategy will set out how the Scottish Government will help businesses and investors to realise these opportunities. We will confirm when our Green Ind…
9 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on implementation of the Investor Panel's recommendation 16, and whether such a mechanism has been designed.
Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government has accepted the Panel’s recommendation and agrees it is essential that we consider the impact of policy and regulation on investment and investor sentiment. The New Deal for Business is improving how policy makers consider the regulat…
9 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on implementation of the Investor Panel's recommendation 9, and when the revised pipeline will be published.
Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government accepted the Investor Panel's recommendations and published its initial response alongside the Panel’s recommendations in November 2023. Officials have since been working with key partners to progress the development of a properly cost…
9 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on implementation of the Investor Panel's recommendation 14, and when the results of the exercise will be published.
Answer · Kate Forbes: We are working with key partners to identify and quantify the resources currently focused on attracting mobile capital investment at scale. As part of a wider update on the implementation of the investor panel recommendations, we expect to be able to report i…
8 May 2024 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how it is ensuring that those awarded public sector contracts and grants meet its Fair Work First requirements, including the payment of the real Living Wage.
2 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many individual (a) employers and (b) learners used the Flexible Workforce Development Fund in each year since its inception in 2017-18.
Answer · Graeme Dey: Based on data provided by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) (academic years 2017-2023) and Skills Development Scotland (2020-2023), the number of employers supported in each year since the start of the Flexible Workforce Development Fund (FWDF) is set out be…
2 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-17778 by Graeme Dey on 23 May 2023, whether it will provide updated information on how many (a) modern, (b) foundation and (c) graduate apprenticeship learning providers there have been since 2019-20, based on the latest information available.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The number of Apprenticeship providers by year are as follows: Year Modern Apprenticeship Providers Foundation Apprenticeship Providers Graduate Apprenticeship Providers 2019-20 256 39 15 2020-21 255 39 14 2021-22 243 40 12 2022-23 228 39 …
1 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many issues NHS Lothian has reported against Consort Healthcare since it took ownership of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
Answer · Neil Gray: NHS Lothian and Consort Healthcare are in an on-going discussion on areas that have been identified where maintenance and improvement is required. This process is continuing, and NHS Lothian regularly meet and discuss all aspects of their administration with …
1 May 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much money it will have to pay Consort Healthcare when the PFI contract for the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh ends.
Answer · Neil Gray: The project agreement for the RIE was signed in 1998 between NHSL and Consort Healthcare. Consort are responsible for the provision of facilities management and lifecycle maintenance works until the end of the Primary Period in December 2027. The Secondary Pe…
30 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the Graduate Apprenticeship Enhancement Group has been created; who sits on it, and what the expected workstreams are for the group.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The Scottish Government has established the Graduate Apprenticeship Enhancement Group. It held its first meeting in April and met again in May. Membership includes Universities Scotland, Colleges Scotland, representatives from universities and colleges, Scott…
24 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact on local economies of the decision to close all VisitScotland information centres.
Answer · Kate Forbes: VisitScotland has taken the decision to close its iCentre network by March 2026 in response to reduced footfall and demand for information, with data showing that the majority of visitors to Scotland access information ahead of travelling to the country. As t…
24 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will outline any research underpinning the decision to close all VisitScotland information centres.
Answer · Kate Forbes: VisitScotland’s Strategic Change Programme seeks to ensure that they continue to make the biggest possible positive impact on the visitor economy. As part of VisitScotland's Strategic Change Programme, a detailed review has considered their role in informati…
24 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consultation took place with (a) staff and (b) trade unions before the decision was made to close all VisitScotland information centres.
Answer · Kate Forbes: a) A formal staff consultation was not triggered prior to the announcement as there are no compulsory redundancies. Staff are VisitScotland's priority, and they are engaging with them to discuss their options such as re-skilling, redeployment and voluntary r…
24 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it expects that Modern Apprenticeship contract awards for 2024-25 will take place.
Answer · Graeme Dey: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26667 on 2 May 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/q…
24 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it expects to release funding to local authorities for the delivery of No One Left Behind in 2024-25.
Answer · Gillian Martin: The Scottish Government is committed to delivering vital public services and supporting households, but to balance the budget with a focus on supporting public services, tackling child poverty, and transitioning to Net Zero, limited funding must be prioritise…
24 Apr 2024 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what discussions it has had with Petroineos and trades unions about refining capacity at Grangemouth.
24 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the minutes of the Regulatory Review Group meeting of February 2024.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: Re-instating the Regulatory Review Group (RRG) was a priority for business when developing the New Deal for Business recommendations and is pivotal in supporting Ministers understand and mitigate challenges associated with implementing regulations. Within its…
3 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of each of the 10 recommendations published as part of the Career Review.
Answer · Graeme Dey: In October 2022, the Career Review Programme Board published ' Delivering Careers By Design', including 10 recommendations co-created working with stakeholders and young people. Since then, 'Career Review Final Report' published in March 2023 set out in …
3 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason suppliers have not been appointed for 2024-25 Modern Apprenticeship contracts, in line with the procurement timeline, and what is causing any delays.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The funding for the 38,000 apprentices in training is committed. SDS commenced contracting for up to 25,500 new Modern Apprenticeship opportunities at the start of April.
3 Apr 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when Modern Apprenticeship contract awards for 2024-25 new starts and in-training will be issued.
Answer · Graeme Dey: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26667 on 2 May 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/q…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many public sector grants have been awarded since 1 July 2023 without requiring recipients to pay the real Living Wage, broken down by the value of each grant.
Answer · Gillian Martin: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26587 on 15 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…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many public sector grants have been awarded since 1 July 2023 that require recipients to both pay the real Living Wage and provide appropriate channels for effective worker voice, broken down by the value of each grant.
Answer · Gillian Martin: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26587 on 15 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…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many public sector grants have been awarded since 1 July 2023 without requiring recipients to pay the real Living Wage or provide appropriate channels for effective worker voice, broken down by the value of each grant.
Answer · Gillian Martin: Monitoring compliance with Fair Work First principles, including the requirements to pay workers at least the real Living Wage and provide appropriate channels for effective voice, is the responsibility of individual grant managers across government and of re…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much of the Scottish Industrial Energy Transformation Fund was allocated in (a) 2021, (b) 2022 and (c) 2023.
Answer · Gillian Martin: Through the Scottish Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (SIETF),we allocated £3.1 million in 2021 for Call 1, £6.8 million in 2022 for Call 2 and £6.3 million in 2023 for Call 3 to co-invest with a diverse range of Scottish manufacturers to reduce energy c…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what evaluation has been undertaken to date of the Young Person's Guarantee.
Answer · Gillian Martin: The Scottish Government published the implementation evaluation of No One Left Behind and Young Person’s Guarantee in August 2023. This evaluation considered progress in implementation and delivery, the experiences of service providers and service users, bar…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-22036 by Neil Gray on 19 October 2023, what action it has taken in relation to its commitment to improve its collection and reporting of data on how women are supported by Scotland’s business support systems and how its actions are closing the g…
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Business Support Partnership (BSP) is a commitment from Scottish Government, Scotland’s Enterprise and Skills Agencies, Business Gateway, and Local Government to develop a streamlined, efficient, and effective business support system that drives collabora…
28 Mar 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what date it plans to publish its review of employee-owned businesses.
Answer · Tom Arthur: The National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) announced a ‘.. review of how best to significantly increase the number of social enterprises, employee-owned businesses and co-operatives in Scotland, supporting regional regeneration and the wealth of…