Rachael Hamilton

3 Nov 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage the use of (a) soil analytical technology and (b) other similar approaches in order to protect the (i) land and (ii) environment.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government announced the introduction of compulsory soil testing in June 2015 and we have been working on the detail with a range of scientific, environmental and industry stakeholders. We are considering options for compulsory soil testing to be…

3 Nov 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review its agricultural environmental schemes.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The principal agricultural environmental schemes in Scotland are the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) and the Environmental Co-operation Action Fund (ECAF) under the Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP), supported through ‘Pillar 2’ of the Europe…

3 Nov 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to farmers with fallen stock and what plans it has to review this.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government does not provide direct support to farmers to help with their fallen stock. Unfortunately dealing with fallen stock is a consequence of keeping livestock, and the disposal costs are therefore one part of the production costs for livest…

2 Nov 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the threat to woodland from invasive rhododendron.

25 Oct 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes healthy lifestyles among children in order to tackle obesity, and what action it takes to encourage them to maintain such lifestyles in adulthood.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is taking a wide range of actions to ensure children and as importantly their families have the knowledge and skills necessary for healthy living across the life course. This begins with the Government’s Improving Maternal and Infant N…

17 Oct 2016 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to make roads in South Scotland safer.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government is committed to achieving safer road travel on our roads through a vision of challenging casualty reduction targets, as set out in ‘Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2020’. Road casualty figures for 2015 released last week are at the…

10 Oct 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it encourages young people to consider working in the agriculture sector.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: Agriculture is amongst the most diverse, dynamic and rewarding sectors in Scotland. Through, in particular, our funding of Lantra we promote the sector as a positive career choice by raising the awareness and understanding of the range of rewarding careers av…

10 Oct 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much support it has provided to agricultural organisations in each of the last five years to teach school pupils about the agriculture sector, broken down by organisation.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government has given the following funding to the Soil Association Scotland’s Crofting Connections project to help teach young people about crofting past, present and future through Curriculum for Excellence: 2012-13 £52,000 2013-14 £30,000 20…

27 Sep 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the estimated completion date is for the new East Lothian Community Hospital.

9 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it encourages testing for arial fibrillation.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government’s Heart Disease Improvement Plan (HDIP) was published in 2014 and identified six priorities, one of which is Arrhythmias. Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is a related condition and can cause events such as heart attacks and strokes; it may pr…

9 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will encourage more people to learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Answer · Shona Robison: We are committed to improving survival rates from Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) and are working in partnership with a range of public and voluntary organisations to deliver the aims in Scotland's strategy for OHCA published in March 2015. The Strateg…

9 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made in implementing Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: A Strategy for Scotland.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is working in partnership with a range of public and voluntary organisations to deliver the aims set out in Scotland's strategy for Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest. A review of progress in implementing the Strategy will be published in …

9 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it proposes to reduce the number of people who develop heart disease.

Answer · Shona Robison: We know that a significant proportion of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is preventable and influenced by modifiable health behaviours. The Scottish Government is taking decisive action to address alcohol consumption, reduce smoking rates, encourage active livin…

4 Aug 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is helping ScotRail to meet its service arrival targets, broken down by (a) region and (b) journey.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: For 2016-17, the PPM (Public-performance-measure) targets by region are as follows: Service category PPM target Comment Express Group 86.5% Intercity services Edinburgh & Glasgow 89.3% Trains between Edinburgh and Glasgow via Falkirk High Rural serv…

1 Aug 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its progress in achieving its equality outcomes.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government has a statutory duty to report progress on its equality outcomes. A progress report was published in April 2015 and a further report will be published by 30 April 2017.

4 Jul 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many businesses have seen a reduction or remission in non-domestic rates through the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015.

Answer · Angela Constance: This information will be collated at a local authority level as part of our regular monitoring arrangements and will be available later in the year. The Scottish Government understands that Perth and Kinross Council has decided to make use of its power, brou…

13 Jun 2016 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will ensure that existing infrastructure is expanded to cope with new demand from housing developments.

3 Jun 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government further, to the answer to question S5W-00184 by Fiona Hyslop on 3 June 2016, which stations it has asked to run public information adverts in each of the last five years, broken down by the amount received.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government has asked the following community radio stations to run public information adverts in each of the last five years, broken down by the amount received. Station January to December 2011 January to December 2012 January to December …

26 May 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport last met NHS Lothian.

Answer · Shona Robison: Ministers and government officials regularly meet with representatives of all health boards, including NHS Lothian, to discuss matters of importance to local people.

24 May 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the estimated completion date is for the new East Lothian community hospital.

Answer · Shona Robison: Construction programmes are being finalised for the new facility and the current Roodlands services will be maintained throughout the build programme. NHS Lothian are planning for a phased handover and at this time it is anticipated some outpatient services, …

24 May 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what services will be available at the new East Lothian community hospital and when people will be able to access these.

Answer · Shona Robison: Construction programmes are being finalised for the new facility and the current Roodlands services will be maintained throughout the build programme. NHS Lothian are planning for a phased handover and at this time it is anticipated some outpatient services, …

23 May 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has provided to community radio in each of the last five years, broken down by radio station.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government currently provides no direct funding for community radio stations. Ofcom administers a Community Radio Fund of approximately £400,000 per calendar year, which is a key source of funding for community radio in the UK and which Scottish …