Parliamentary questions

Bill Bowman

310 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

4 Sep 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish Retail Consortium’s call for a moratorium on any new or additional business rates levies during the remainder of the current parliamentary session, as set out in its submission on the 2020-21 budget.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government is committed to a fair and sustainable non-domestic rates system. As has been the case in previous years, the non-domestic poundage rate will be considered as part of the Scottish Budget process.

27 Aug 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the holistic approach taken in the UK Government's Clean Air Strategy 2019 could be applied to Scotland in order to reduce carbon and other such emissions.

26 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of prioritising engagement with minority and African-descent applicants being highlighted as an area for improvement in the Fair Start Scotland Evaluation Report 1: Implementation and Early Delivery Review, what its position is on Remploy, which is Tayside's sole Fair Start Sco…

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Fair Start Scotland is designed to support a range of people who face barriers in their journeys towards and into employment. The Scottish Government continues to take forward a range of measures designed to tackle the specific barriers minority ethnic commun…

26 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of recent reports, what actions it is aware small retail businesses are taking to mitigate pressure from economic, geo-political, environmental and behavioural factors.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government works closely with a number of delivery partners to ensure that small businesses, including in those in retail, have access to advice and support across a wide range of issues. We are developing an online single entry point to give bu…

26 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many Tayside partnerships have been developed through Fair Start Scotland since its inception, and what action it will take to encourage future bidders.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government actively encourages Fair Start Scotland Providers to enhance existing partnerships and create new relationships with a view to supporting participants. We do not keep information on the number of partnerships developed but regularly mo…

26 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Fair Start Scotland (FSS) being a voluntary programme, what action FSS can take to tackle protracted unemployment and disengagement with the employment system in Dundee.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: At 4.0% the unemployment rate for Scotland is low compared with historical records. In the year to March 2019, Dundee saw the 3 rd largest rise in employment rate of any local authority in Scotland and the 3 rd greatest fall in the inactivity rate. However, t…

26 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the change in the number of SMEs has been in each of the last 12 months.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government does not hold monthly data on the number of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) operating in Scotland. However, annual estimates are included in the Businesses in Scotland 2018 publication, which is available on-line at: https:/…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the Michelin plant closure in Dundee on the (a) Tayside and (b) Scottish economy.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Scottish Enterprise has worked directly with Michelin since the first announcement of closure in November 2018, to assess the impact of the plant closure in Dundee on the Tayside and Scottish Economy. OCEA completed two reports for Ministers in November 2018…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the findings for the first international independent review of the Scottish Fiscal Commission will be published.

Answer · Derek Mackay: This is an operational matter relating to the Scottish Fiscal Commission and the Chief Executive of the Commission has provided the following response: “The independent review of the Scottish Fiscal Commission led by the Organisation for Economic Co-operatio…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that earnings in Scotland are underperforming compared with the rest of the UK; what analysis it has carried out of this, and how it is addressing any imbalance.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Gross median weekly earnings for full-time employees in Scotland increased by 3.0 per cent from £546.60 in 2017 to £563.20 in 2018. In the UK, gross median weekly earnings for full-time employees were £569.00, an increase of 3.5 per cent over the same period.…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address the management of fiscal framework, following reports that this has resulted in £1 billion worth of reconciliations.

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried of what risk is involved in increasing the borrowing limit to the fiscal framework.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Whilst our reserves and borrowing capacity are sufficient to manage the 2017-18 reconciliation for income tax, which will apply to the 2020-21 budget, it is already clear that the current limits on the use of the reserve and borrowing powers are inadequate to…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on collating Whole of Government Accounts in preparation of the 2021 fiscal framework review, and for what reason this practice was not adopted when Scotland was given greater fiscal responsibility in 2016.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government complies with all financial reporting and auditing requirements and is developing its financial reporting to support transparency and the understanding of the increasingly complex financial picture. There have been improvements in each…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to address the reported gap between reconciliations and its annual borrowing limit for forecast error.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Official figures published by HMRC on 18 July 2019 confirmed that our reserves and borrowing capacity are sufficient to manage the reconciliation for 2017-18 income tax, which will be applied to the 2020-21 budget. Reconciliations which will apply to the 2021…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in addition to the 9,789 people referred between April and September 2018, and the 4,978 who started the programme in that period, how many people have (a) been referred to First Start Scotland and (b) started the programme since then, broken down by local authority.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Statistics on Fair Start Scotland (FSS) and the other devolved employability services are published quarterly by Scottish Government. The latest release was on 29 May 2019, presenting statistics up to end March 2019 i.e. covering the first year of FSS. This i…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the underspend or overspend was of the £96 million allocated to Fair Start Scotland in the period March 2018 to March 2019, broken down by local authority.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government is investing up to £96m over the totality of the Fair Start Scotland service. Spend on Fair Start Scotland is determined by Fair Start Scotland Providers’ performance in moving participants towards and into work. Financial expenditure …

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to streamline the Fair Start Scotland provider scheme.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government contracted Fair Start Scotland Providers to deliver Fair Start Scotland for the duration of the service as set out in their bids and against key delivery indicators. The Scottish Government is committed to continual improvement of our…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the most frequent assistance provided through Fair Start Scotland is.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government contracts Providers of Fair Start Scotland to take an individualised approach to participants’ needs, giving them personalised help to find and stay in work. A range of pre- and in-work support is available to people who participate i…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason Dundee and Tayside have not been included in the invitation to participate in public workshops on the Big Climate Conversation 2019, which was announced on 8 July, and whether Dundee will be a listed destination for one of the six follow-up public workshops.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government has aimed to ensure geographical representation across Scotland in respect of The Big Climate Conversation public workshops. There is a public event in Perth on 29 August, which participants from Dundee and wider Tayside are encouraged…

12 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Dundee City Council and other stakeholders regarding reviving the post of city makar, or official poet, which has been unfilled since October 2018.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government welcomes all initiatives to promote poetry across Scotland. This includes the appointment of civic makers by the relevant local organisations across Scotland. Civic makars complement the work of the national Makar, Jackie Kay, who is …

12 Jun 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it plans of the impacts on tourist numbers in Tayside.

5 Jun 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with the Referendums (Scotland) Bill.

29 May 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government when NHS Tayside's next annual report on drug deaths will be published.

21 May 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the talks between the Confederation of Passenger Transport and Transport Scotland regarding the national concessionary travel scheme cap.

15 May 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people achieved vocational qualifications at stage 4 as part of the Skills Development Scotland Employability Fund for 2018-19.