Dean Lockhart

26 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many office premises are subject to the large business supplement, broken down by sector.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Around 3,500 office premises are estimated to be liable for the large business supplement. The Scottish Government does not hold data enabling a sector breakdown of this figure.

26 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much will be paid out in business rates relief in 2017-18, broken down by type of relief.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The following table sets out the estimated cost of non-domestic rates relief for 2017-18, broken down by type of relief. Relief Type Estimated Relief Cost 2017-18 (£million)* Small Business Bonus Scheme 224 Charity 203 Empty Property 79 Disabled Per…

26 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been paid in business rates relief in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The following table sets out the audited amount of non-domestic rates relief for Scotland for 2007-08 to 2015-16 and a mid-year estimate for 2016-17. 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 Non-Domestic Ra…

26 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much revenue raised by the business rates incentivisation scheme was retained by each local authority area in each of the last three financial years.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The additional non-domestic rates raised and retained by individual local authorities in the last three relevant financial years, as a result of the business rates incentivisation scheme, are set out in the following table. The 2012-13 sums were retained for …

20 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the publication of the UK Government’s green paper, Building our Industrial Strategy, in January 2017, what engagement ministers have had with the strategy’s consultation process.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government is focused on ensuring sustainable economic growth. Many of the areas set out in the Industrial Strategy, such as skills, business support and trade and investment support, are devolved to the Scottish Government and it is important th…

20 Apr 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the Council of Economic Advisers is next due to meet.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Council of Economic Advisers last met on 26 and 27 January 2017. Minutes of this meeting are available on the Scottish Government website, accessed via the following link: https://beta.gov.scot/groups/council-of-economic-advisers/. The Council undertake…

22 Mar 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the latest Fraser of Allander Economic Commentary, which states that Scotland has a weak export performance that remains a concern and a key challenge.

Answer · Keith Brown: The latest Fraser of Allander Institute Economic Commentary provides a timely update on the Scottish economy. Latest data shows that exports from Scotland's food and drink sector grew 8% over the past year to a record £5.5 billion. The Scottish Government h…

21 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its news release on 19 March 2017, Record year for food and drink exports, whether it will publish the methodology that it used to calculate that "the destination for over 70% of [Scotland's] food exports is the EU".

Answer · Fergus Ewing: Scotland's food and drink export statistics are derived from the HMRC regional trade database: https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/BuildYourOwnTables/Pages/Home.aspx HMRC estimates that Scotland exported £1.043 billion of food in 2016 to the EU. This is a…

7 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many accidental house fires there have been in each of the last five years in the Mid Scotland and Fife region; how many were caused by electricity, and what steps it is taking to reduce the number of such fires.

Answer · Annabelle Ewing: This information is not held centrally. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) publishes statistics on accidental dwelling fires, broken down by local authority, however this data is not broken down into specific causes. These statistics are available…

6 Mar 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the annual default rate is of businesses receiving a loan or guarantee under the Scottish Growth Scheme, and how much it expects it will pay out each year because of defaults.

Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-07555 on 9 March 2017. 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/28…

26 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it received the draft commercial property values from the assessors.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government had access to the Scottish Assessors’ substantially complete data-set of provisional revaluations in autumn 2016, for the purposes of informing the 2017-18 Draft Budget, with the data-set subject to on-going revision since then.

26 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Constitution on 21 February 2017 (Official Report, c. 18), how much it expects will be generated from business rates in 2017-18, and what impact the decision to introduce a cap on rises has had on its previous estimate.

Answer · Derek Mackay: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-07513 on 29 June 2017, which provides an estimate of non-domestic rates income for 2017-18 and takes into account the increased cost of reliefs amounting to £44.6 million as stated to Parliament on 21 February …

26 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been generated from business rates in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The following table sets out the non-domestic rates income collected by local authorities in each of the last 10 years. (£ million) 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 £1,933m £1,928m £1,924m £2,010m …

26 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will finance the (a) loans, (b) guarantees, (c) disbursements and (d) other forms of investment arising from the Scottish Growth Scheme; what provisions it has made in the 2017-18 budget to pay for this; how much will be drawn from the enterprise budget towards it, and which of it…

Answer · Keith Brown: The funding position for the Scottish Growth Scheme will be set out in due course, when the work on the development and delivery of the scheme is concluded.

14 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government from which part of its budget will funding for the Scottish Growth Scheme be allocated.

Answer · Keith Brown: When an individual guarantee is put in place there is no immediate cash impact on budgets. This would only arise in the event of a default and any such costs would be met from the Economy, Jobs and Fair Work capital budget or the Scottish Reserve. It is inten…

14 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-02382 by Keith Brown on 21 September 2016, whether it will provide an update on how much of the funding will be in the form of (a) loans and (b) guarantees, and by what date the funds will be available.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As previously advised, support under the Scottish Growth Scheme is expected to be largely in the form of guarantees to new and early-stage high growth potential companies, but if appropriate, loans may be offered; the use of loans will be dependent on the nat…

14 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its plans to establish a Scottish business development bank.

Answer · Keith Brown: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30114 on 26 February 2016. 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/parliamentarybusines…

14 Feb 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with the Scottish Growth Scheme.

6 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-06256 by Derek Mackay on 31 January 2017, how much tax revenue it expects will be generated from whisky distilleries by the large business supplement in 2017-18.

Answer · Derek Mackay: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-05856 on 12 January 2017, which includes a breakdown by property classification (shops, hotels etc). The associated data provided by local authorities and Assessors to the Scottish Government is not broken down…

6 Feb 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the reasons that it revised its financial projections for 2017-18 from those set out in the Draft Budget, and on what date the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Constitution was advised of the revision.

Answer · Derek Mackay: At Stage 2 of the Budget Bill, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution provided a provisional breakdown of the changes to the fiscal position between the Draft Budget and the Budget Bill. While the precise mix of funding will continue to evolve…

21 Dec 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is implementing the strategy, Tourism Scotland 2020.

7 Dec 2016 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that pupils with disorders on the autism spectrum have equal opportunities in school.

1 Dec 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many projects Community Broadband Scotland has supported in each of the last five years.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: As of 30 November 2016, Community Broadband Scotland has responded to 800 enquiries across Scotland. It is actively supporting over 100 community organisations through its three-stage project development process, and has approved grant funding - totalling ove…

23 Nov 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to lower outpatient waiting times.

15 Nov 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the large business rates supplement has been in each of the last 10 years, also broken down by how much tax revenue this has generated.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The large business supplement to the non-domestic rate in each of the last ten years is set out in the following table, along with the estimated associated revenue. Year 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-1…

31 Oct 2016 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the University of Strathclyde paper, Brexit and the Scottish Financial Services Sector.

26 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-02542 by Shona Robison on 21 September 2016, whether information regarding the provision of 24/7 palliative care and support services for people approaching the end of their lives is recorded as part of the annual (a) review process for each NHS boa…

Answer · Shona Robison: Information on the provision of 24/7 palliative care and support services is not routinely reported through the NHS Board annual review process. The current suite of indicators for health and social care, upon which Health and Social Care Partnerships will …

21 Sep 2016 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action Skills Development Scotland is taking to tackle the reported digital skills gap.

Answer · John Swinney: Supported by £8.5 million of Scottish Government funding, Skills Development Scotland are working with with public sector partners and industry representatives to deliver a programme of work built around the recommendations in their Digital Skills Investment …

19 Sep 2016 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to reduce waiting times for young people referred to mental health services in Forth Valley and across Scotland.

8 Sep 2016 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the large business supplement rate has been for (a) Scotland and (b) the rest of the UK since 2011.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The non-domestic rates large business supplement (in pence) in Scotland for each year since 2011-12 is set out in the following table. 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.1 1.3 2.6 The Scottish Government has no function…