Parliamentary questions

Jamie Greene

1,978 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

8 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many complaints the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber) has received about the First-tier Tribunal in each year since 2016.

Answer · Keith Brown: This question relates to operational matters that are the responsibility of the Scottish Court and Tribunals Service (SCTS) corporate body. The question has been passed to the Chief Executive of the SCTS who will reply in writing within 20 days.

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Police Scotland regarding plans to further engage on matters of human trafficking with the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security, having temporarily recruited two Vietnamese police officers in 2020.

Answer · Elena Whitham: The six-month secondment of two officers from the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security to Police Scotland concluded in April 2021. The Scottish Government has not held recent discussions with Police Scotland on plans to further engage with the Vietnamese Mi…

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it will spend to continue the roll-out of free mobile phones for prisoners, in light of reports that the project is set to continue.

Answer · Keith Brown: I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows: A decision on the future of prisoner phone services including pricing mechanisms is currently under active consideration. SPS estimate…

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Sheku Bayoh Inquiry will conclude.

Answer · Keith Brown: The terms of reference determine the scope, direction and ultimately, the duration of an Inquiry. As the Sheku Bayoh Public Inquiry is independent of Ministers, it is for the Chair to direct how the Inquiry carries out its duties and when it will conclude.

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that police officer numbers have dropped to 16,570, and whether it remains its policy intention to restore the number of police officers to 17,234.

Answer · Keith Brown: Policing is a priority and will continue to be a priority for this Government. Scotland has the most police officers per capita, with the latest data from Scotland, showing that as of 30 September, there were 30 officers per 10,000 population in Scotland. The…

4 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11704 by John Swinney on 3 November 2022, whether it will provide a breakdown of how much of the combined £3,464,900 figure that has been distributed to survivors in Scotland’s Redress Scheme by contributing organisations and NHS boards has come fro…

Answer · John Swinney: As noted in my response of 3 November 2022, for survivor privacy reasons, given the small number of applications which have been determined in which NHS Scotland Boards are named, we cannot provide a further breakdown to the level of individual organisation a…

3 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many primary school children in (a) Inverclyde and (b) North Ayrshire are eligible for its school clothing grant.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government provides funding to local authorities of over £11 million per year to provide the school clothing grant for eligible children and young people. Local authorities are directly responsible for setting the eligibility criteria at the loca…

2 Nov 2022 · Written Question

Answer · Keith Brown: I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows: SPS do not record information on the number of staff who may have been hospitalised as a result of assaults by prisoners.

2 Nov 2022 · Written Question

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The number of school inspectors employed by Education Scotland is as follows: Financial Year No of HMI staff dedicated to inspection 2011-12 67 2016-17 78 2019-20 67 2020-21 76 2021-22 80 2022 to date 79

2 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the estimated cost of any backlog of maintenance work for the prison estate has been in each year since 2014.

Answer · Keith Brown: I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows: SPS does not record this information.

1 Nov 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what additional strain excessive alcohol consumption is having on the NHS.

31 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its most recent estimate is of the number of people in Scotland who have CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) skills, as referenced in Scotland's Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Strategy 2021-2026.

Answer · Maree Todd: Save a Life for Scotland maintain a portal showing how many people have been equipped with CPR skills by partners in the delivery of the Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Strategy. Recent figures can be found here: Home - Save a Life for Scotland . Beyond th…

31 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress in the implementation of the aims of Scotland's Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Strategy 2021-2026.

Answer · Maree Todd: Delivery of the Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Strategy 2021-2026 is undertaken by a number of organisations who make up the Save a Life for Scotland Partners. Recent updates include:The launch of the Play your Part campaign by Save a Life for Scotland which…

31 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) adults and (b) children have been admitted to hospital with a primary diagnosis of asthma in (i) NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and (ii) NHS Ayrshire and Arran, in each year since 2010.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Asthma patient hospitalisations, age-sex standardised rate per 100,000 3 year rolling average Ayrshire and Arran Rate Numerator 2010-11 to 2012-13 112.55 423.33 2011-12 to 2013-14 111.16 419.00 2012-13 to 2014-15 117.72 439.33 2013-14 to 2015-1…

27 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the HM Inspectorate of Prosecution in Scotland report, Inspection of COPFS practice in relation to sections 274 and 275 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, which was published on 19 October 2022.

Answer · Dorothy Bain: I am grateful to the Inspectorate for doing such a thorough piece of work on this important topic. It is a priority for all prosecutors that complainers are treated with dignity and respect, and that they are not subjected to inappropriate questioning during …

27 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether a prisoner serving a life sentence should be released on licence if a risk of serious harm assessment recommends that they should not.

Answer · Keith Brown: Consideration for temporary releases will be undertaken by a multi-disciplinary Risk Management Team consisting of appropriate officials from SPS, Justice Social Work and key stakeholders. Temporary release and home leave form part of a phased reintegration p…

27 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to data published by Transport Scotland on 26 October 2022 showing that drink driving fatalities increased from 10 in 2010 to 20 in 2020.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: My condolences go to any families who have lost loved ones through drink-driving. The Scottish Government takes this issue very seriously and any road death, no matter what the cause, is tragic. The Scottish Government is committed to achieving safer road tr…

27 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands last met with representatives from the Scottish Crofting Federation, either in person or virtually.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: I last met with a representative of the Scottish Crofting Federation at the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board on 3 November 2022.

26 Oct 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its engagement with stakeholders regarding its Covid Recovery Strategy.

26 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many police station closures there have been since 2013 in the areas served by the (a) Ayrshire and (b) Renfrewshire and Inverclyde Police Division.

Answer · Keith Brown: Responsibility for the management of the police estate sits with the Scottish Police Authority and the Chief Constable. However, Police Scotland has confirmed that 15 police stations have been closed since 2013 across Ayrshire, Renfrewshire and Inverclyde wi…

26 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people under the age of 16 have been admitted to an NHS hospital for a tooth extraction as a result of decay in (a) 2012, (b) 2016 and (c) 2021, in NHS (i) Ayrshire and Arran, and (ii) Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Table 1 shows the number of patients under the age of 16 with a recorded diagnosis of tooth decay who were admitted to hospital for a tooth extraction in (a) 2012 (b) 2016 and (c) 2021, in NHS (i) Ayrshire and Arran, and (ii) Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Table…

25 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many sick days were recorded for fire service personnel for mental health reasons, including anxiety, stress, depression or other psychiatric illnesses, in each year since 2016.

Answer · Elena Whitham: This information is not held centrally by Scottish Government but Scottish Fire and Rescue Service staff absence information is publicly available on the website SFRS under their People Committee meeting papers.

25 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service latest court backlog statistics showing that the average time taken between pleading diet and evidence led trial for the High Court has more than doubled compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Answer · Keith Brown: There has been promising progress in reducing the backlog of cases in the criminal courts, and the total number of scheduled trials outstanding has fallen by over 10,000 since January this year. In the High Court, the number of trials called where evidence is…

24 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the comments by the Law Society of Scotland that thousands of people in the most deprived communities are facing a "chronic shortage of civil legal aid firms".

Answer · Keith Brown: Civil solicitors have always covered a wide geographical area. The location of firms does not appear to support the assertion that advice is not available. Unlike in other jurisdictions, the Scottish Government has maintained wide access to legal aid for civi…

24 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) children's and (b) adult support organisations in (i) North Ayrshire and (ii) Inverclyde currently receive funding from the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund, broken down by the value of the funding allocations.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: Through the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Supports and Services Framework, we are providing local authorities with £15 million per annum to fund community-based mental health supports for children, young people, their families and their carers. North …

24 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the (a) UK Government, (b) North Ayrshire Council and (c) other stakeholders regarding the future of energy generation in Ardeer, in light of reports that the Fusion Forward (Ardeer) Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP) bid was unsuccessf…

Answer · Michael Matheson: Scottish Government officials have been in contact with the UK Government to ensure that North Ayrshire Council and other stakeholders have the opportunity to discuss the decision taken to locate the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production programme at a West…

21 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what urgent action it is taking to reduce the reported backlog in Scotland’s Redress Scheme.

Answer · John Swinney: Scotland’s Redress Scheme is committed to providing a swifter and less adversarial option than court action for survivors of abuse in care. We are aware that, for some applicants, the process is taking longer than they have expected, and officials are working…

21 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-10649 by John Swinney on 2 September 2022, how much of the money that has been distributed in payments by Scotland's Redress Scheme to date has come from (a) taxpayer funds, (b) organisations on the official list of contributors and (c) NHS boards.

Answer · John Swinney: Applicants have six months from receipt of offer of payment to accept or decline the offer. As of 31 October 2022 payments totalling £8,570,168 have been made to survivors or their next of kin. The most recently available data for payment breakdown, as of 3…

21 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many full-time equivalent (FTE) caseworkers are currently employed for processing claims in Scotland’s Redress Scheme.

Answer · John Swinney: On 26 October 2022 16 case workers were employed, working to 15.4 full time equivalent (FTE). From the 14 November 2022, 23 case workers are expected to be in post, with a FTE of 22.2.

21 Oct 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what additional support is being provided to the police and fire services to assist them in their duties ahead of bonfire night 2022.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government provides annual funding to Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS). It is a matter for the Chief Constable and the Chief Fire Officer to determine the most appropriate allocation of resources and operational app…