Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S5O-04047

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 January 2020
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government how it is working with drug companies and pharmacies to reduce single-use plastics in the dispensing of medicines.

Question reference: S5O-03995

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 January 2020
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the £30 million link road project at the Haudagain roundabout in Aberdeen.

Question reference: S5O-03961

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 December 2019
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the UK Government's spending pledges and the Barnett consequentials that might arise from these.

Question reference: S5W-26588

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 December 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 4 December 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the procurement of the next Northern Isles Ferry Services contract.

We have been formally notified that CalMac Ferries Limited have raised legal proceedings to set aside the decision to appoint Serco Limited as the preferred bidder to provide the Northern Isles Ferry Services.

Given the ongoing legal proceedings, Scottish Ministers are limited in what we can say at this stage, so as not to prejudice the outcome of those proceedings.

However, I can confirm that Scottish Ministers remain fully committed to the provision of safe, effective and reliable ferry services to the Northern Isles. On behalf of Ministers, Transport Scotland are liaising with the current operator, Serco Limited, to make arrangements for the extension of the current contract to maintain continuity of service and to ensure full connectivity to and from the Northern Isles. This will mean that the local communities, passengers and businesses who rely on the services, and the staff who work on them, will not be affected by the legal proceedings and services will be run as normal throughout this period.

The legal proceedings will not affect our recent commitment to fare reductions on the Shetland routes for islanders, including a 20% discount on cabin fares and a three year fares freeze from January 2020 on the Northern Isles ferry services that builds on the existing 30% discount for passenger and vehicle fares already enjoyed by islanders.

Question reference: S5O-03873

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 November 2019
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to concerns regarding the number of hoax calls to the emergency services in Aberdeen.

Question reference: S5W-26259

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 November 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by John Swinney on 8 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the forthcoming first anniversary of the closure of The New School Butterstone, when the Scottish Ministers will respond to the call for an independent review into this matter.

An independent review into the closure of the New School Butterstone has been commissioned and will be led by James Martin CBE.

The Review will consider the procedures followed by the Board of The New School Butterstone, the Care Inspectorate, Education Scotland, the Registrar of Independent Schools, all relevant Local Authorities and the Scottish Government in advance of the decision by the Board of Governors to close the School, and the School’s care accommodation service, on 23 November 2018.

The Review will focus on these procedures to provide reassurance to all those affected, with the overriding purpose of the Review being to consider this information fully and, if applicable, identify any learning that could enhance practice in the future.

Further details are available at https://www.gov.scot/groups/new-school-butterstone-closure-independent-review/

Question reference: S5O-03761

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 November 2019
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports of women, including single mothers, resorting to so-called survival sex because their universal credit payments do not cover the basic needs of daily living.

Question reference: S5O-03637

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2019
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that Northern Ireland will be given powers to shape its future relationship with the EU, what representations it has made to the UK Government regarding similar powers being given to Scotland.

Question reference: S5O-03505

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 September 2019
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 11 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what the expected costs incurred by Police Scotland will be in preparing for Brexit.

Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority are keeping the expected costs of preparing for Brexit under review. The Scottish Government has already committed to funding EU exit-related policing costs of up to £17 million in 2019-20. This funding is ringfenced to support the effects of a No Deal EU exit.

In parallel, the Scottish Government continues to pursue the costs of EU exit with the UK Government. EU Exit was not Scotland’s choice and the Scottish Government has been clear that any costs relating to EU exit should not have a detrimental impact on Scotland’s public finances.

Question reference: S5W-24154

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 July 2019
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Fergus Ewing on 3 July 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it met the EU threshold target of paying at least 95.24% of the total value of valid pillar 1 schemes applications by the 30 June 2019 date.

I can confirm that the Scottish Government did meet the EU threshold target of paying at least 95.24% before the 30 June 2019 for all 5 pillar 1 schemes. By the 30 June 2019 we had paid:

£432.5 million

The Scottish Government has also paid 95.40% of value of LFASS (less favoured areas support scheme) applications, this is several months earlier than last year and ahead of our payment schedule deadline.

In total £516.9 million has been paid out through all of our rural support schemes by 30 June 2019 which is 18% more compared to the same time last year.

Scheme	Value Paid (£ Millions)	% progress of payments value made
Pillar 1
BPS / Greening / YFP	387.25	96.82
SSBSS	38.63	96.09
SUSSS	6.62	95.83
Pillar 2
LFASS	63.89	95.40