Parliamentary questions
Alexander Burnett
1,406 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
19 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the recommended minimum distance is between onshore wind turbines greater than 150 metres tall and residential properties.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: There is no recommended minimum distance between onshore wind turbines and residential properties. Policy 11 of National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) makes clear that potential impacts on communities, nature and other receptors will be important considerations…
14 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered converting guidance on the minimum distance between onshore wind turbines into legislation.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: We have no current plans to introduce legislation on minimum distances between onshore wind turbines.
14 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it last updated guidance on the minimum separation distances between onshore wind turbines.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: A Scottish Government Planning Factsheet issued in 2014 to support the Scottish Planning Policy recognised that separation distance is a design matter dependent on a range of criteria. National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), adopted on 13th February this year,…
14 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the recommended minimum distance is between onshore wind turbines that are greater than 150 meters tall.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: There is no minimum distance as such in relation to turbines of specified sizes. Development proposals and any potential impacts are considered on a case-by-case basis. All planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan, unle…
14 Jun 2023 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill.
13 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has provided to any local authorities that are struggling to fill teacher vacancies.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Scottish government is committed to supporting the recruitment of more teachers in all local authorities. For example, we are providing £145.5 million in this year's budget to protect increased teacher numbers and support staff. Local authorities are dir…
13 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason Aberdeenshire Council reportedly received 18 out of the 66 probationary secondary teachers requested, and for what reason none of the teachers received were metalwork or woodwork teachers.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Probationary teachers are allocated places on the Teacher Induction Scheme based on their subject and their ranked preference of five local authority areas. An insufficient number of probationary teachers chose Aberdeenshire Council for their probationary yea…
13 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it is assisting any local authorities that are struggling to fill teacher vacancies.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Local authorities are directly responsible for teacher recruitment, and they have autonomy to provide incentives – as some already do - to attract teachers to their area. We are providing £145.5 million in this year's budget to protect increased teacher numb…
13 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to incentivise technical teachers, for example, for woodwork and metalwork, to teach in the north east of Scotland.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Scottish Government continues to provide teaching bursaries of £20,000 to incentivise career changers into initial teacher education for the hardest to fill subjects which includes Technical Education. Through the Teacher Induction Scheme probationary te…
13 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that secondary school pupils in Aberdeenshire receive the same variety of subject choices as elsewhere in Scotland.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, the statutory responsibility for the delivery of education sits with local authorities and schools. While the Curriculum for Excellence provides the overarching framework and sets out the eight curriculum areas, it is…
7 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many staff are currently working on the development of the proposed new energy efficiency ratings system to replace the current Energy Performance Certificate system, broken down by pay grade.
Answer · Patrick Harvie: In the 2021 Heat in Buildings Strategy, the Scottish Government committed to reforming Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to ensure they drive the energy efficiency improvements we need and to incentivise zero direct emissions heating. The need for this w…
7 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement work has taken place with industry regarding the proposed reform of the Energy Performance Certificate rating system, broken down by (a) organisations engaged with and (b) any events that have taken place.
Answer · Patrick Harvie: The Scottish Government has engaged extensively with industry regarding the proposed reform of the Energy Performance Certificate rating system. Engagement work over the past year has included, but is not limited to, the below events with the highlighted orga…
7 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress in developing a new energy efficiency ratings system to replace the current Energy Performance Certificate system, and when it will publish details of the proposed changes.
Answer · Patrick Harvie: The Scottish Government is committed to reforming Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to ensure they drive the energy efficiency improvements we need and to incentivise zero direct emissions heating. In 2021, we consulted on the introduction of a new domes…
7 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has used any private consultants in the development of the proposed new energy efficiency ratings system to replace the current Energy Performance Certificate system, and, if this is the case, whether it will provide details, broken down by the (a) name of the consultants, (b)…
Answer · Patrick Harvie: Following an open procurement exercise, in June 2022 the Building Research Establishment (BRE) was commissioned by the Scottish Government to develop potential options for new EPC metrics; model the Scottish housing stock against these new metrics, propose a …
7 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve the Energy Performance Certificate ratings of buildings that are part of the Scottish Government estate.
Answer · Shona Robison: An Estate Strategy and Carbon Management Plan for Scottish Government core buildings is under development to support our asset planning and the future investment decisions required to improve the energy performance of our buildings and deliver the Heat in Bui…
6 Jun 2023 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any increase in water quality testing that is proposed for rivers in the north east.
6 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting the recruitment of specialists in menopause.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The recruitment of specialists in menopause is a matter for individual health boards as the employer, depending on their service need. Through the Women’s Health Plan, we want all women to have timely access to menopause support and services and there is no…
6 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of how many specialists in menopause are currently working in each NHS board.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Scottish Government do not hold this information centrally. Individual Health Boards would need to be contacted to provide a breakdown of menopause specialists employed by each Health Board. There is a specialist menopause service in every mainland NHS Board,…
1 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-18028 by Kevin Stewart on 30 May 2023, how many of the 26 new buses that have space for transporting bikes, purchased with support from the Scottish Ultra Low Emission Bus Scheme and the Scottish Zero Emission Challenge Fund, will operate on routes …
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Of the 26 new buses that have space for transporting bikes there are 13 planned to operate on routes in Aberdeenshire.
1 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to introducing mandatory additional support needs training for (a) teachers, (b) visiting specialists and (c) pupil support assistants.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Additional Support for Learning Act places duties on education authorities to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils. It is for individual authorities to determine the training required for all staff to ensure pupils…
1 Jun 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has plans to introduce Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), which are currently in place in England.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: In Scotland, children and young people's needs are met by planning for their learning and support through an individualised educational programme or Additional Support Plan. These set out targets for learning and the support to be provided. For children and y…
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether prescriptions for testosterone for women going through menopause should be made available for all women in every NHS board in Scotland.
Answer · Jenni Minto: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-17049 on 10 May 2023. 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/…
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the medication, Androfeme, should be made available for treatment of menopause for women in Scotland, and what discussions it has had with the UK Government in relation to this matter.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The regulations for the licensing, safety and efficacy of medicines are currently reserved to the UK Government and are the responsibility of the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). For a medicine to be routinely prescribed, it firs…
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what reviews have been undertaken of its menopause policy.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Menopause care and support is a top priority in our Women’s Health Plan, which was published on 20 August 2021, and runs until 2024. There are no plans to review the Women’s Health Plan or the menopause ambitions within it before this time. The 10 menopause …
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the current waiting time is for routine assessments for menopause in each NHS board.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government does not hold this data. It is important that women are provided with consistent information and care when they seek help with menopause symptoms, be it through primary or specialist care. Through the delivery of the Women’s Health …
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what remit the Women's Health Champion has, and how the public can engage with her.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The remit of the Women’s Health Champion , Professor Anna Glasier, is to drive change and share best practice and innovation in the improvement of health services and health outcomes for women. Professor Glasier is working with partners in the NHS and acro…
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the current availability of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), in light of reports of supply issues.
Answer · Jenni Minto: There are over 70 HRT products available in the UK and supply issues are affecting only a small number of them. The Scottish Government are aware that there have been continuing shortages across the UK due to a number of factors. The supply of medicines, inc…
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many of the proposed 1,000 new sewage monitors will be installed along the (a) River Dee, (b) River Don and (c) north east of Scotland in total.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: I refer the member to the answer to S6W-15158 on 13 March 2023. 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/written…
22 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it can confirm how many sewage discharge points there are along the River (a) Don and (b) Dee; when these monitors were last monitored, and what assessment was made of them.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water I have asked them to respond. Their answer is: The number of sewage discharge points for each river, including its tributaries, is:River Don - 42 Wastewater Treatment Works and 99 discharge pointsRiver Dee …
19 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how often the Scottish Government-led Lyme Disease Awareness Raising Group meets; when the last meeting was held, and what minutes are available from any such meetings.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government-led Lyme Disease Awareness Raising Group has met regularly since being set up following a Ministerial round table event held in June 2021. The meetings are informal and provide members with the opportunity to share information and to …