Parliamentary questions
Alexander Burnett
1,406 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
8 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assurances it can provide that there will be an increase in childminding places by 2026.
Answer · Clare Haughey: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-13098 on 9 January 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-committe…
8 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what support is being given to private childcare providers in order to provide school wraparound childcare.
Answer · Clare Haughey: I understand the importance of school age childcare and the benefits it brings for the whole family. That is why the Scottish Government is committed to design an all-year-round system of school age childcare, which will be funded for those families on the lo…
7 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-03423 by Kevin Stewart on 25 October 2021, what the Office of the Public Guardian in Scotland (OPG) backlog is of power of attorney applications from September 2021 to date, and what support it is offering OPG to address this backlog.
Answer · Keith Brown: The latest available figure, as at 27 October 2022, there are 31,793 Power of Attorney (PoA) deeds awaiting registration. For week commencing 6 September 2021 the Office of the Public Guardian in Scotland (OPG) were processing the following Power of Attorney…
7 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to introducing a similar registration service to the “Use a lasting power of attorney” service introduced by the UK Government, in order to make it easier for attorneys and donors to share details with organisations.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: The Scottish Government has not given consideration to a registration service in Scotland as this is an operational matter for Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service (SCTS). The question relates to functions that are the responsibility of the SCTS of which the …
6 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether there has been a specific budget allocated to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to carry out fire safety checks as part of short-term let licensing applications.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government has not allocated funding to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to undertake fire safety checks, as part of the short-term let licence application process. Licensing schemes are administered by licensing authorities on a cost recove…
2 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will outline the application process for an area seeking recognition as a National Scenic Area.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: There is no application process for an area seeking recognition as a National Scenic Area (NSA). NSAs were first designated by Scottish Ministers in 1980, the areas having been identified by the Countryside Commission for Scotland (Scotland’s Scenic Heritage…
1 Dec 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what criteria it uses when deciding what landscape visual effect is deemed acceptable for onshore windfarm developments.
Answer · Tom Arthur: All planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Currently, Scottish Planning Policy (SPP) outlines that development plans should set out the criteria that will be consid…
28 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11996 by Lorna Slater on 22 November 2022, how many species control (a) agreements and (b) orders have been issued in each of the last five years.
Answer · Lorna Slater: A species control agreement (SCA) is a voluntary agreement between a relevant body and a land owner or manager. NatureScot has not issued any species control agreements within that period. Scottish Forestry has issued a single species control agreement for Rh…
28 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11996 by Lorna Slater on 22 November 2022, whether any species control agreements or species control orders have been issued in the north east of Scotland for giant hogweed, and, if not, for what reason.
Answer · Lorna Slater: NatureScot has not made any species control agreements in northeast Scotland. Species control agreements can be useful where inaction on a particular land holding is jeopardising the success of a coordinated control project. Working with landowners on a volun…
25 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its (a) targets and (b) restrictions are for tree planting on different agricultural land classes.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government does not have specific targets or restrictions for tree planting on different classes of agricultural land. In considering applications for tree planting on agricultural land Scottish Forestry takes into account the guidance produced …
25 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to reduce the planting limit of Sitka spruce in a forestry plantation to 50%.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: Scottish Forestry is leading a review of the UK Forestry Standard in partnership with the other UK administrations. Stakeholders are currently being consulted on a revised draft of the Standard which includes a proposed reduction in the maximum threshold for …
25 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how its current forestry strategy protects Scottish biodiversity and food security.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Forestry Strategy is based on the international principles of Sustainable Forest Management which require all forests and woodlands to contribute to biodiversity. Of the six Priorities for Action in the Scottish Forestry Strategy the following th…
25 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it supports the purchase of agricultural land by foreign businesses to create woodlands to offset their carbon footprint.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government has published a set of Interim Principles for Responsible Investment in Natural Capital, which set out our expectations of stakeholders in a high integrity, values-led market for responsible investment in natural capital. These princip…
25 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the reported cost overrun of the Cairngorm funicular railway repairs will have an impact on the funding available to other outdoor ski centres.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The cost of repairing the funicular has been met by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and the Scottish Government following approval of the business case by HIE’s Board and Scottish Ministers. Funding was ringfenced for this purpose and did not impact th…
25 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the cost of the Cairngorm funicular railway repairs reportedly increased from £16 million to £25 million.
Answer · Ivan McKee: Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has confirmed that the timetable for repairs to the funicular had to be extended due to unforeseeable delays caused by the weather and Covid. In addition, technical challenges resulted in additional works needing to be c…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11998 by Lorna Slater on 22 November 2022, since the announcement of the Nature Restoration Fund in September 2021, how much of the £65 million has been spent on the eradication of invasive non-native species.
Answer · Lorna Slater: Over £928,000 has been offered since Sept 2021 under the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) to six separate projects that have invasive non-native species (INNS) management and control as a central priority for action. This figure includes a Galloway Fisheries Tru…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many eligible students resident in the UK were declined a place in Scottish medical schools at the start of the current academic year, and for what reason they were declined.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: As autonomous institutions, universities are responsible for their own entry requirements and admissions policies, therefore the Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of eligible students resident in the UK that were not successful in ga…
17 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what criteria it provided to local authorities to determine the short-term let licensing scheme fees, and whether it can intervene if it considers fees are unreasonably high in particular local authority areas.
Answer · Shona Robison: Licensing fees must not be set at a level greater than the amount necessary to recover establishment and running costs. Guidance to licensing authorities on setting licence fees is contained within Chapter 3 of our short-term lets licensing guidance part 2: …
4 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government who is responsible for taking the lead on invasive species control in river catchments.
Answer · Lorna Slater: NatureScot is the lead organisation for non-native species on land including wetlands and riparian zones. They lead on riverbank vegetation and all land animals (vertebrates and invertebrates). Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) take the lead in th…
4 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the landowner responsibilities are for invasive species control, and what enforcement takes place.
Answer · Lorna Slater: Responsibility for invasive non-native plants rests with landowners and occupiers. Under common law, there is an expectation that land owners should take reasonable steps to prevent invasive non-native plants growing on their land from causing a nuisance or i…
4 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what funding is available for the control of invasive species.
Answer · Lorna Slater: There are a range of funding sources available to land managers to control invasive non-native species. These include the Agri-environment and Climate Scheme (AECS) and the Forestry Grant Scheme (FGS) under the Scottish Rural Development Programme. To date, m…
4 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any plans it has to review tree planting guidance on farmland.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government is engaging with farming interests on this topic though dialogue with NFUS and more widely through the Trees on Farms stakeholder group. We also carefully monitor tree planting funded through the Forestry Grant Scheme and this shows t…
4 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of accommodation for nursing staff across the NHS Scotland estate is currently vacant.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The information requested is not collected or held centrally by the Scottish Government and would require to be obtained from Health Boards.
4 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the total number of beds in accommodation for nursing staff across the NHS Scotland estate is.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The information requested is not collected or held centrally by the Scottish Government and would require to be obtained from Health Boards.
20 Oct 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what work is underway to develop effective non-lethal tools for application in Scottish rivers to protect declining native salmon stocks from seal predation, and what the timetable is for any development process.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government continues to work with the sector, stakeholders and the scientific community to explore practical ways to address interactions between salmon and seals in rivers. In spring 2021 Scottish Government in partnership with Crown Estate Sco…
20 Oct 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to the monitoring of seals that have been rehabilitated and then released, in order to identify any unusual behaviour that could be potentially damaging to native species.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government is not aware of any monitoring that takes place with regards to the release of rehabilitated seals from rescue centres. However, advice from the Special Committee on Seals ( 2019 Report ) is that rehabilitated seals typically behave …
20 Oct 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many water quality tests have been conducted by (a) SEPA and (b) Scottish Water in each of the last five years.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government as this is an operational matter for the independent Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and Scottish Water. I have therefore asked SEPA’s and Scottish Water’s Chief Executiv…
20 Oct 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many water bodies have been defined by SEPA for the purpose of aquatic monitoring, and of these how many are (a) monitored for water quality, and how frequently and (b) tested for pollutants, including the Water Framework Directive priority substances, and at what time intervals.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: There are 3652 waterbodies in total in Scotland, as defined by SEPA in the third River Basin Management Plan. A waterbody can relate to whole or parts of rivers, canals, lochs, estuaries, ground or coastal waters of a particular size as defined by the Water F…
20 Oct 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what changes to the funding for SEPA in relation to its role in water quality testing have there been in the last five years.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: SEPA’s grant in aid funding from Scottish Government has increased over the last five-year period from £34,936,000 to £41,406,000. SEPA determine the amount of resources allocated to water quality testing through their Annual Operating Plan in each year in ag…
20 Oct 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what water monitoring is being done for potential emerging contaminants, including pharmaceuticals, and whether there will be additional funding to support this new area of research and monitoring.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government understands the important issue of emerging contaminates of concern and has been funding research in this area since 2016 through strategic research at the James Hutton Institute, the Centre of Expertise on Water (CREW), and the Hydro …