Peter Chapman

24 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with the construction of the new Glen Sannox ferry.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The MV Glen Sannox was launched on 21 November 2017 and is currently being outfitted at Ferguson Marine Engineering Ltd Shipyard, Port Glasgow.

24 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the comment by a spokesperson from CalMac on the BBC News Scotland website on 3 April 2018 that "the working life expectancy of a ferry deployed on routes like those on Scotland's western seaboard is around 25 years, so with nearly half of the ferries working thes…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: I refer the member to the answers to questions S5T-01043 and S5W-15994 answered on 24 April 2018 and 3 May 2018 respectively. The answer to the Topical Question is available here: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.aspx?r=11481&i=104231…

24 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many appeals against sporting rates have been lodged since April 2017, and how many have been upheld.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Information on revaluation appeals lodged and disposed of is collected at local authority level, but is not available by property type. The latest information on numbers of appeals lodged against the 2017 revaluation, and numbers disposed of (as at end Decem…

24 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on adopting minimum energy efficiency targets to tackle carbon emissions from conventional heating systems.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: Minimum standards for the efficiency and control of heating systems installed in new and existing buildings are already addressed through building regulations. The First Minister, at the All-Energy conference in Glasgow on 2 May, launched Energy Efficient Sc…

24 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the spread of larch disease, and what progress it is making on (a) tackling and (b) containing this.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Government is maintaining its investment in the extensive programme of surveillance, monitoring, research, and rapid action to help minimise the spread and impact of Phytophthora Ramorum on larch. Our surveillance programme has ensured early detectio…

24 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to protect wetland wildlife.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Roseanna Cunningham : A number of measures are in place for the protection of wetland wildlife (and their habitats) in Scotland. These include: the wetland components of our extensive network of Special Protection Areas, Special Areas of Conservation, Sites o…

18 Apr 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage more tourists to visit Orkney and Shetland.

17 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much support it offers per ram to sheep farmers carrying out CT scans, and what information it has regarding how this compares with (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish government does not supply financial support for CT scans. CT scans are a commercial product available to farmers as a business choice. Scottish, English and Welsh levy bodies currently offer support to farmers for CT scans with the levy bodies t…

13 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding each GP practice will receive under new GP contracts in (a) Moray and (b) Grampian.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government has been clear that under the new GP contract every practice in Moray, Grampian and the rest of Scotland will, at minimum, continue to receive the same level of funding as they did in 2017-18. An additional £23 million is being investe…

14 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government by what date the remaining 5% of 2016 Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme (LFASS) money will be delivered to claimants.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: LFASS 2016 payments started on 21 September 2017, one month ahead of LFASS 2015 payment performance. By the end of that month around 83% had been paid, also well ahead of the previous year. We met our published target of making over 95% of the total value of …

13 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made with the implementation of the recommendations of the Review of Legislation Governing Small Landholdings in Scotland; what research has taken place since 13 September 2017, and when it will publish guidance on the legislation.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government has made progress on the recommendations of the Small Landholding Review. We have appointed Newcastle University to consider the changes to ownership of small landholdings over time and the feasibility of re-establishing an administrat…

7 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) intervention fees and (b) penalties will be for non-compliance with the new oil storage regulations.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: There are no intervention fees. The licence fee of £2040 includes any required compliance visits by SEPA. As is the case for all regulated businesses, non-compliance with authorisation conditions may lead to enforcement action, depending on the circumstances…

7 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) SEPA and (b) small oil storage and distribution businesses regarding the roll out of the new oil storage regulations.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Government and SEPA have jointly been in discussion with oil distribution sector trade associations and individual operators since regulation of the oil distribution depots was first proposed. The most recent meeting between Scottish Government, SEPA…

7 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported concerns that the new authorisation application fees from SEPA for oil distributors do not take account of business size.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Environmental Regulation (Scotland) Charging Scheme sets charges based on the activity being carried out, not on business size. The authorisation application (licence) fee which applies to oil distribution depots is the minimum fee applicable under the ch…

6 Mar 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support NHS Grampian and reduce the board's waiting times.

27 Feb 2018 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage young people into STEM apprenticeships.

22 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-14446 by Fergus Ewing on 21 February 2018, for what reason it stated that it "does not hold telephone or broadband coverage information at exchange level", in light of it providing this information for different locations in the answer to question S…

Answer · Fergus Ewing: Information provided in the Parliamentary Question of January 2016 did not purport to provide comprehensive coverage information on premises served by individual telephone exchanges. As outlined in the most recent answer, this information is not held by the S…

21 Feb 2018 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that early learning and childcare providers deliver a high-quality service.

19 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the progress that is being made with the development of the regional land use partnerships, which were recommended in Getting the best from our land, a Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016–2021.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: In the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021, policy 7 encourages the establishment of regional land use partnerships. Successful pilot projects have been carried out in Aberdeen and the Scottish Borders. We are considering further development work in this…

19 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to carry out an urban land use pilot, which was recommended in Getting the best from our land, a Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016–2021.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: In the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016 – 2021, we propose to explore the feasibility of establishing an urban land use project. This element is still under consideration, and we will set out our plans when we are in a position to do so.

19 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Norwegian Government's reported decision to ban the import of salmon eggs from Scotland.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: We understand the Norwegian Government are reviewing the decision to ban the import of salmon eggs from Scotland. We are in dialogue with the Norwegian Authorities in order to understand the outcome of this review and I will raise the issue at a scheduled mee…

7 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish fishing industry's aim for a nine-month transitional arrangement period after March 2019.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government has consistently made clear its support for a transition period, on terms as close to full EU membership as possible, to avoid damaging uncertainty for businesses and individuals after Brexit. As set out in “Scotland’s Place in Europ…

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what conservation work has been carried out on the Navity Bank in the Moray Firth in the last 10 years.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: No conservation work has been undertaken specifically on the Navity Bank in the past ten years, either by Scottish Government or by Scottish Natural Heritage.

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications there have been for razor fishing licenses in each year since 2007, and how many of these were (a) accepted and (b) rejected.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: Razor fish licences were first introduced in 2014, to combat risks of illegal electro-fishing. The application process allowed for vessels to be inspected to seek to confirm that vessels were equipped only to conduct legal methods of fishing, at the point of …

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of households in Aberdeenshire served by exchange only lines are connected to the fibre network, and how many households are not connected.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of premises served by exchange only lines in Aberdeenshire, some of which may be served commercially, or on the extent to which they are connected overall. Our records relate solely to the delive…

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of households served by the telephone exchange in (a) Auchnagatt, (b) Maud, (c) Gardenstown, (d) Memsie, (e) Eden, (f) Cornhill, (g) New Aberdour, (h) Auchleuchries, (i) Schivas and (j) King Edward in Aberdeenshire are able to connect to fibre broadband.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government does not hold telephone or broadband coverage information at exchange level. Across Aberdeenshire as a whole, however, over 84% of premises are now able to access fibre broadband through commercial deployment and the Digital Scotland …

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what projections it has made of the number of hectares of peatland that will be (a) restored and (b) extracted in each of the next 10 years.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government does not hold this information. The Climate Change Plan sets out an annual target for the restoration 20,000 hectares of degraded peatlands.  

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many tonnes of plastic waste from households has been recycled in each year since 2007.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government does not hold information specifically on tonnage of plastic waste from households within that timeframe. SEPA publishes figures on amounts of all waste recycled, including plastic waste, at: https://www.sepa.org.uk/environment/waste/w…

1 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what provisions are in place to ensure that rural areas can access ultrafast broadband speeds of 100Mbps or more.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government's commitment through the R100 programme is to extend superfast broadband access (defined at 30Mbps in line with European Commission guidelines) to 100% of premises by the end of 2021. R100 will also create a future-proofed and truly …

1 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what provisions are in place for premises that do not have access to superfast broadband speeds when the R100 contract nears completion.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: We have committed £600m to the initial Reaching 100% procurement. This will extend accessible fibre to our most remote rural areas and provide superfast broadband access to the vast majority of those premises that have not benefitted from our current programm…