Parliamentary questions
Donald Cameron
1,854 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
28 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been made available for the (a) Access to Music Making and (b) Strengthening Youth Music funds for (i) 2021-22 and (ii) 2022-23.
Answer · Neil Gray: In 2021-22, £1,200,863 was made available to Access to Music Making and Strengthening Youth Music Funds. Of this, £1,116,575 funded Access to Music Making and £84,288 funded Strengthening Youth Music. In 2022-23, £574,466 has been available to both funds to …
28 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to extend investment to its Active Play programme beyond the current range of the programme.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government recognises the important role Active Play has in providing children with the opportunity to develop physical skills in their early years and to encourage a long-term relationship with physical activity. Current funding of the Active P…
28 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what additional funding has been given to Highlands and Islands Enterprise for the refurbishment of the Cairngorm funicular, and what future funding does it envisage that the funicular will need to remain in operation.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Government approved funding of £10.16m for the project to repair the funicular and to undertake associated capital works on Cairngorm Mountain when it approved the business case submitted by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) in 2020. Follo…
28 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many handheld music devices provided through Creative Scotland’s Youth Music Initiative are currently in use, and how much funding it has made available for the future use of these devices.
Answer · Neil Gray: The information requested is not centrally held. The latest Youth Music Initiative evaluation can be found here , which demonstrates the programme’s lasting impact on young people’s attainment and wellbeing.
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to renew the contract for the MS Victoria to accommodate Ukrainian refugees beyond the current contract end date, and, if so, for how long, and at what cost.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government has extended the contract for the MS Victoria in Leith by 5 months. The estimated cost of extending the contract is around £9.4 million. This will ensure those on board do not have to relocate during the festive period and will allow …
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to renew the contract for the MS Ambition to accommodate Ukrainian refugees beyond the current contract end date, and, if so, for how long, and at what cost.
Answer · Neil Gray: We do not want anyone to spend any more time in temporary accommodation than is necessary. The Scottish Government is considering all appropriate options. Updates on this situation will be communicated to Parliament and those on board the passenger ships onc…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it can confirm how many reported faults there have been on board the (a) MS Victoria and (b) MS Ambition, since being contracted to accommodate Ukrainian refugees.
Answer · Neil Gray: Faults and repairs on board the M/S Victoria and M/S Ambition are an internal matter for the ships’ contractor and operators and therefore it is not normal practice for faults and repairs to be reported to the Scottish Government. However, Corporate Travel Ma…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-10754 by Neil Gray on 8 September 2022, what the (a) total cost to date and (b) estimated cost up until the contract end date is of chartering the MS (i) Victoria and (ii) Ambition.
Answer · Neil Gray: As of 1 December 2022, the total estimated cost for the MS Victoria until the contract ends in June 2023 is £37.9 million. The total estimated costs for the MS Ambition contract until February 2023 is £26.1 million. We cannot calculate the final costs until t…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the contract to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, what the (a) total cost to date and (b) estimated cost up until the contract end date is of providing security for the MS (i) Victoria and (ii) Ambition.
Answer · Neil Gray: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12534 on 12 December 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…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the contract to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, what the (a) total cost to date and (b) estimated cost up until the contract end date is for crew staff for the MS (i) Victoria and (ii) Ambition.
Answer · Neil Gray: All costs, including those associated with crew staff, providing security, providing catering and port charges for the M/S Victoria and M/S Ambition are covered in our contract with Corporate Travel Management. The original contract notice with Corporate Tra…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the contract to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, what the (a) total cost to date and (b) estimated cost up until the contract end date is of providing catering for the MS (i) Victoria and (ii) Ambition.
Answer · Neil Gray: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12534 on 12 December 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…
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the contract to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, whether it is responsible for meeting the cost of conducting running repairs of the MS (a) Victoria and (b) Ambition for the duration of the contract, and, if so, what the total cost of any such repairs has been.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government is not responsible for meeting the cost of conducting repairs for the MS Victoria or the MS Ambition. Any faults or repairs are handled by ship staff and owners.
23 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the contract to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, what the (a) total cost to date and (b) estimated cost up until the contract end date is of port charges for the MS (i) Victoria and (ii) Ambition.
Answer · Neil Gray: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12534 on 12 December 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…
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take to ensure that the adjustable car ramp on the Uig, Lochmaddy and Tarbert ferry services returns on all sailings in the spring and summer in 2023.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The adjustable car ramp (mezzanine deck) on the MV Hebrides has not been removed and is fully operational on specified sailings.
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when the evaluation of the Scottish Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme for GPs will be completed, and when the findings will be published.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The evaluation of the Scottish Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme for GPs or GP Speciality Training bursary (GPST bursary) was led by Scottish Government Scottish Clinical Leadership Fellows in collaboration with NHS Education for Scotland (NES). The evalua…
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to reported research from the Royal College of Psychiatrists in Scotland that states that there is only one consultant psychiatrist for every 10,250 people in Scotland.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: Since 2007, the number of Psychiatric Consultants across all specialities in NHS Scotland has increased by 20.7% to 544.9 whole time equivalent posts. Despite this workforce expansion, we know that demand for psychiatric treatment continues to grow. That is w…
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to reports that more than half of people seeking psychological therapy in the NHS Highland area experience waits of more than a year.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: We have been working with NHS Highland on an improvement plan for long-term, sustainable improvement to Psychological Therapies and we appreciate the hard work that the Director of Psychology and supporting staff in NHS Highland are doing to clear backlogs. …
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many GPs have taken up the Scottish Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme in NHS (a) Grampian, (b) Highland, (c) Orkney, (d) Shetland and (e) Western Isles in each of the last five years.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Feb-17 Aug-17 Feb-18 Aug-18 Feb-19 Aug-19 Feb-20 Aug-20 Feb-21 Aug-21 Feb-22 Aug-22 Total Feb 2017 - Aug 2022 Grampian 4 5 1 3 3 5 1 5 4 31 Highland 1 13 4 10 4 16 2 18 5 11 1 14 99 Orkney 1 1 1 1 1 5 …
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the impact on tourism of the decision not to operate an adjustable car ramp on the Uig, Lochmaddy and Tarbert ferry services during the spring and summer sailings in 2022.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Transport Scotland has not carried out such an analysis. During the summer of 2022, a timetable with deployment of the mezzanine deck on specified sailings was implemented on the Uig-Tarbert/Lochmaddy route, maximising capacity within crew operating hours. …
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown by local authority of the total amount of funding allocated from the Green Growth Accelerator programme.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government has provided £120,000 to each of the six local authorities that were selected to deliver Green Growth Accelerator pathfinder projects (Aberdeen City Council, City of Edinburgh Council, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, Highland Council, North…
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has set a deadline for unlocking the reported £200 million of local authority investment in low-carbon infrastructure through its Green Growth Accelerator programme, and, if so, what that date is.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: At present, there is no deadline for unlocking the full £200 million investment ambition. However, it is anticipated that the first six Green Growth Accelerator (GGA) pathfinder projects will collectively unlock more than £50 million investment in low carbon …
22 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government by what means it decides which low-carbon infrastructure projects receive Green Growth Accelerator funding.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: In June 2021, the Scottish Government and COSLA announced an open call for proposals from local authorities for pathfinder projects to be supported through the Green Growth Accelerator (GGA) programme. The assessment of proposals was overseen jointly by Scot…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many applications it received for the (a) first and (b) second round of the Food Processing, Marketing and Cooperation (FPMC) grant scheme, broken down by local authority area.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The funding round which took place between August and September 2021 received a total of 65 applications from across the food processing sector. The breakdown of applications by local authority was as follows: Local Authority Number of Applications Aberdee…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether any funding has been allocated to mark the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, and, if so, whether it will provide details of this.
Answer · Angus Robertson: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12380 on? 2 December 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…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of primary schools are signed up to the Daily Mile scheme, broken down by (a) local authority area and (b) Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation data zones.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government does not hold data broken down by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, however, the data is set out below highlighting what percentage of primary schools are signed up to the Daily Mile initiative. Aberdeen City 38% Aberdeenshire…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government who can apply for its recently announced £5 million of loss and damage funding, and through what means applications can be made.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: Decisions on how the £5 million of loss and damage funding will be allocated are yet to be taken. Decisions will be made on the recommendation of needs assessments and undertaken in consultation with stakeholders and communities. These funds are in addition t…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to (a) monitor and (b) judge the efficacy of its recently announced £5 million of loss and damage funding.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: Decisions on how we will approach monitoring and judge the efficacy of the recently announced £5 million funding to loss and damage are yet to be taken. Decisions will be undertaken in consultation with stakeholders and communities. In line with the £2 millio…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it will monitor the (a) impact and (b) efficacy of the Food Processing, Marketing and Cooperation (FPMC) grant scheme.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The impact and efficacy of the FPMC scheme is monitored through supervision of the projects awarded funding. This is done in several key ways: Firstly all beneficiaries are required to submit progress reports with each claim for payment which set out the pro…
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has conducted an impact assessment to determine the final sum allocated to the loss and damage funding, and, if so, whether it will it publish the details of this.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: We have undertaken an external audit of the climate justice fund and an impact assessment to ensure policy coherence for sustainable development for the overall approach in order to better understand the needs for loss and damage support. As agreed following …
16 Nov 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the cytosponge diagnostic service is currently unavailable in any NHS board areas, and, if so, when the service will become available to these NHS boards.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: First introduced during the pandemic, Cytosponge is an excellent example of innovation in diagnostic services, supporting patients to access cancer checks closer to home and helping to reduce demand on health services. Cytosponge has now been implemented in …