- Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 June 2021
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
To ask the First Minister what steps the Scottish Government is taking to ensure there are sufficient resources in place to prevent schools exceeding its maximum class size limits during the next academic year, in light of reports that a number of schools are currently exceeding these limits.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
- Asked by: Siobhian Brown, MSP for Ayr, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 June 2021
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
To ask the First Minister what engagement the Scottish Government has had with the UK Government regarding the extension of the deadline for application to the EU Settlement Scheme.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
- Asked by: Lorna Slater, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 June 2021
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
Question to be taken in Chamber.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
- Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 June 2021
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
Question to be taken in Chamber.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
- Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 June 2021
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
Question to be taken in Chamber.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 June 2021
- Asked by: Neil Gray, MSP for Airdrie and Shotts, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Ben Macpherson on 1 June 2021
To ask the Scottish Government how many carers in the Airdrie and Shotts constituency receive the Carer's Allowance Supplement.
Answer
Social Security Scotland publish statistics for Carer’s Allowance Supplement at local authority level. We do not currently produce statistics by constituency due to the possible disclosure risks caused by producing statistics for overlapping geographies. We will continue to review this when developing future publications.
Since Carer's Allowance Supplement was introduced in April 2018, payments have been made to 9,650 carers in North Lanarkshire local authority area who were eligible on at least one eligibility date from April 2018 to October 2020. For the latest eligibility date of October 2020, payments were made to 7,135 carers in North Lanarkshire.
The most recent statistics were published on 23 rd February 2021 and covered carers in receipt of Carer’s Allowance Supplement to the October 2020 eligibility date. This information is available from: https://www.gov.scot/publications/carers-allowance-supplement-october-eligibility-date-2020-and-carers-allowance-disability-living-allowance-attendance-allowance-and-severe-disablement-allowance-at-august-2020-statistics/ . The next publication of Official Statistics is due to be released in August 2021, and will include information to the April 2021 eligibility date.
- Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 1 June 2021
To ask the Scottish Government what age groups of children will be covered by its policy to provide a bicycle to children who cannot afford one.
Answer
We are currently considering options to deliver this policy which will be informed by pilot projects. Further information on the age groups to be covered will be confirmed once the details have been agreed.
- Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 1 June 2021
To ask the Scottish Government how its policy of providing a bicycle to every child who cannot afford one will be administered.
Answer
We are currently considering options to deliver this scheme which will be informed by pilot projects. No decision has been made on how it will be administered.
- Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 1 June 2021
To ask the Scottish Government which suppliers of bicycles will be used to fulfil its policy of providing every child who cannot afford one with a bicycle.
Answer
We are currently considering options to deliver this policy. No decision has been made on suppliers of bikes.
- Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 1 June 2021
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider changing its guidance so that children under the age of 18, from the same household, do not count towards the total number of people meeting both outdoors and indoors, in light of restrictions on larger families with teenagers who are still unable to meet with one other family household, and in consideration of the effects of isolation on young people’s mental health.
Answer
The Scottish Government regularly reviews restrictions on indoor and outdoor socialising to ensure they are appropriate and proportionate to the health risks and the direct harms of the virus. This past year has been highly challenging for our young people who have had to stay away from family members living in other households, including grandparents. We have made significant progress in suppressing the virus and vaccinating a growing proportion of the population over the last few months, but the virus has not gone away and we remain at risk from new, more transmissible variants which may become resistant to the vaccines. The Scottish Government’s approach is that only children under 12 years old do not count towards numbers indoors and outdoors, although they do count towards the number of households indoors. Close contact does still carry risks especially if it is indoors and amongst large groups of adults from multiple households. In recognition of the effects on young people’s health and wellbeing, the Scottish Government has allowed 4 12-17 year olds from 4 different households to meet outdoors in Level 4, increasing to 6 people (including 12-17 year olds) from 6 households in Level 3, 8 people from 8 households in Level 2 and this will increase to 12 people from 12 households in Level 1. Additionally, from 17 May the guidance was changed to make it clear that people can hug family members and loved ones indoors in a private dwelling or in their garden within the permitted limits.