Parliamentary questions
Peter Chapman
215 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
1 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates that the 5.4% of premises that currently have broadband speeds of less than 15 Mbps will have speeds of 24Mbps or more.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Every premise that is currently unable to access superfast broadband, including those that currently receive less than 15Mbps, will have access to speeds greater than 30Mbps by the end of 2021. The Scottish Government recently announced an investment of £60…
1 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates that 95% of business and residential premises will have access to broadband speeds of 30 Mbps or more.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: February 2018. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx
1 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates that 95% of business and residential premises will have access to broadband speeds of 24 Mbps or more.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government is committed to extending superfast broadband access (defined at 30Mbps in line with European Commission guidelines) to 100% of business and residential premises across Scotland by the end of 2021. We have no specific target for delive…
24 Jan 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on ending the use of peat in horticultural products.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The use of peat in horticulture is a global issue requiring action at the international level to address sourcing and usage by the public and industry. The Scottish Government has offered its support to industry-led work to phase out such use. This issue was …
18 Jan 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many nurses have left the NHS in each year since 2008, broken down by (a) NHS board and (b) age, and how many subsequently registered as agency nurses.
Answer · Shona Robison: The statistics on joiners and leavers do not differentiate between nurses and midwives. For both staff groups combined, the numbers of joiners and leavers in each year from 2011-12 to 2016-17 (year to 31 March) are shown in the following table. Statistics pri…
17 Jan 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider phasing out helicopter-assisted deer culling by Scottish Natural Heritage.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: SNH staff, in partnership with a number of estates, use helicopters on a regular basis. These are used for counting deer populations and provide important logistical support for deer culling in remote areas where access for stalkers and carcass extraction is …
17 Jan 2018 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made to add malignant melanoma to the Detect Cancer Early programme.
10 Jan 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action is is taking to stop the spread of the Schmallenberg virus.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government provides funding to SAC Consulting Veterinary Services (part of SRUC) in support of its diagnostic service which includes examination for Schmallenberg virus in abortions and stillbirth in cattle, sheep and goats. Information about new…
19 Dec 2017 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to develop its policy for land value taxes, in light of the Scottish Land Commission's research on the use of such taxes in other countries.
Answer · Derek Mackay: As set out in our Programme for Government, we have asked the new Scottish Land Commission to research a range of land reform issues, including fiscal and tax arrangements and the potential for a land value tax.
19 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, other than the local taskforce, what action it is taking to encourage economic development in Fraserburgh, and what discussions (a) the Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy has and (b) its officials have had with stakeholders in the area about the effectiveness of this.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: 26 January 2018. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx
19 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in the SNP manifesto, what action it is taking to increase the economic position of coastal economies.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government is committed to supporting inclusive economic growth that will benefit every part of Scotland, including our coastal communities. We recognise that Scotland’s regions and communities have varied needs with regard to developing their e…
19 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the (a) work and (b) outcomes of the Fraserburgh taskforce.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: 26 January 2018. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx
19 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when (a) the Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy and (b) its officials last visited Fraserburgh to discuss the Fraserburgh taskforce.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Fraserburgh Taskforce was established in September 2015 to respond to and mitigate the impact of the job losses at Youngs Seafood following the loss of a significant contract. The taskforce, which met on 6 occasions, was time-limited and sought to co-ordi…
12 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many incidences of livestock theft have taken place in each year since 2007.
Answer · Annabelle Ewing: The information requested is not held centrally. The data the Scottish Government receives from Police Scotland is a general count of the number of crimes and offences recorded by the police, split by local authority, and the number cleared up by the police. …
12 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many incidences of vandalism have taken place on farms in each year since 2007.
Answer · Annabelle Ewing: The information requested is not held centrally. The data the Scottish Government receives from Police Scotland is a general count of the number of crimes and offences recorded by the police, split by local authority, and the number cleared up by the police. …
12 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many incidences of machinery theft have taken place on farms in each year since 2007.
Answer · Annabelle Ewing: The information requested is not held centrally. The data the Scottish Government receives from Police Scotland is a general count of the number of crimes and offences recorded by the police, split by local authority, and the number cleared up by the police. …
29 Nov 2017 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the drivers of child poverty.
Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government is taking a wide range of action to tackle the drivers of child poverty by increasing family incomes and reducing the costs of living. For example, we are investing over £100 million every year to mitigate UKG welfare cuts; we have inv…
27 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recent vote in the European Parliament against its use, what its position is on the continued use of glyphosate in farming.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government supports the recent five year renewal of the glyphosate licence which allows its continued use in Scotland and the rest of Europe. Glyphosate is important to Scottish farmers who use it to control weeds, manage harvests, and reduce gra…
23 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that beaver populations in Tayside are growing and expanding their territory without protection, and that there is evidence of serious environmental damage, wide-scale tree felling, flooding of farmland along the Tay and its tributaries and numbers of beavers in this…
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Ministers announced on 24 November 2016 that the beaver populations in Knapdale in Argyll and in the Tay and Earn catchments can remain in Scotland, subject to satisfactory completion of a Strategic Environmental Assessment and a Habitats Regulations…
23 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) landing quotas there are and (b) net size regulations and monitoring is in place for the fishing of squid.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: (a) Squid are not regulated under the EU Total Allowable Catch (TAC) system and there are no quota limits set for this species. (b) Net sizes are specified in EC Regulation 850/98, known as the Technical Conservation measures, net (or mesh) sizes for the squ…
20 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) advice and (b) support it provides to farmers regarding the potential increase in risk of mycotoxins in cereal crops and silage as a result of a wet harvest season.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: There are legal limits for fusarium mycotoxins deoxynivalenol (DON) in wheat intended for human consumption and guidance limits for grain used for animal feed. The owner (farmer, merchant or processor) is legally obliged to ensure the grain is safe for human …
20 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to reports from the RSPB that corncrake numbers are falling.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government has provided land management options to benefit corncrakes since 1995 through Agri-Environment Climate (AEC) schemes under the Scottish Rural Development Programme. In excess of £10 million has been spent or committed to specifically p…
16 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of fuel theft have been recorded in each local authority area in each year since 2007.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The information requested is not held centrally. The Scottish Government receives information supplied by Police Scotland for the production of the annual National Statistics on Recorded Crime. This includes a count of the number of crimes of theft recorded w…
16 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of sheep worrying have been recorded in each local authority area in each year since 2007.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Information on cases of sheep worrying is not held centrally in the format requested. Information is available on the number of offences recorded by Police Scotland under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953 – which relates to dogs worrying livestock o…
16 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people (a) applied for and (b) started modern apprenticeships in (i) agriculture, (ii) aquaculture, (iii) fisheries management, (iv) the equine sector, (v) horticulture, (vi) land-based engineering, (vii) rural skills, (viii) the maritime sector, (ix) gamekeeping and (x) forestr…
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Skills Development Scotland has responsibility for contracting for Modern Apprenticeship places. The information on the number of applications is not held centrally. The number of starts on the closest frameworks to information requested is laid out in the f…
14 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have started veterinary medicine courses in each of the last 10 years.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The number of enrolments on veterinary science courses at Scottish HEIs since 2007-08 are as follows (figures for 2016-17 are as yet unavailable): Enrolments on Veterinary Science Courses at Scottish HEIs 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011- 12 201…
14 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to reports that the Bluetongue virus has been identified in cattle imported from France.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Routine post-import tests successfully identified fragments of Bluetongue virus in some animals from a group of cattle imported from France in October. Swift action was taken by Scottish Government and the Animal and Plant Health Agency by culling the 3 cows …
14 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the overpayments that arose as a result of the error in calculating Basic Payment Scheme and Greening loans in 2016, whether it will confirm (a) how many farmers were overpaid, (b) what the (i) average and (ii) total overpayment was, (c) what action it has taken to recall th…
Answer · Fergus Ewing: Under the 2016 National Basic Payment Scheme loans valued at £262 million have been paid to 13,273 farmers and crofters. 166 farmers and crofters were overpaid at a total value of £746,000.00, with the average overpayment being £4,403.27. We took prompt actio…
30 Oct 2017 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to tackle reported falling farm incomes and rising farm debt.
26 Oct 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to help gamekeepers, in light of reports from the Scottish Gamekeepers Association that there has been an escalation in vandalism and interference with legal traps.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: A person interfering with a legally set snare or trap may be committing one of a number of offences. Any gamekeeper experiencing interference with or damage to a snare or trap should report the matter to Police Scotland.