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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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

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Question reference: S4W-10285

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 2 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to include provisions in its proposed Victims and Witnesses Bill for witnesses to access information about the result of pleading diets in their cases before receiving a citation to appear in court.

The Scottish Government recognises that more needs to be done to ensure that victims and witnesses get better information and support. The recent consultation paper Making Justice Work for Victims and Witnesses contained proposals on a comprehensive package of both legislative and non-legislative measures designed to provide better support to victims and witnesses and improve their experience of the criminal justice system. This included proposals on the provision of information and a commitment to commission a feasibility study into developing an online data hub to provide case specific information to victims and witnesses.

Work in this area is ongoing, and details of provisions to be included in the Victims and Witnesses Bill will be announced in due course.

Question reference: S4W-10277

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 2 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether all Disclosure Scotland applications requiring police checks will be handled by one centralised office under the single Scottish police service and, if so, where this office will be based.

Question reference: S4W-09877

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what the main performance indicators of the energy skills academy will be.

Question reference: S4W-10058

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether Professor Andrew Coyle's review of the proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons will be independent of (a) it, (b) the Scottish Prison Service and (c) Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons Scotland.

Question reference: S4W-10052

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what the remit is of Professor Andrew Coyle's review of the proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons and what other guidance or direction it has given Professor Coyle regarding this.

Question reference: S4W-09876

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what organisations will receive funding from the £3.25 million allocated to the creation of an energy skills academy and how much each organisation will receive.

Question reference: S4W-10054

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether Professor Andrew Coyle's review of the proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons will examine all of its proposals or the most recent proposal only.

Professor Andrew Coyle will be carrying out an independent review of the Scottish Government’s proposals, as announced to stakeholders in August, to replace the Prison Visiting Committees with a new monitoring service. The new service, under the auspice of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland, will be made up of four Senior Monitors supported by lay monitors.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-10056 on 30 October 2012 for the remit of the review. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-10055

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether Professor Andrew Coyle's review of the proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons has (a) been asked or (b) will be permitted to consider alternative models.

Question reference: S4W-10056

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether Professor Andrew Coyle's review of the proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons will consider views previously expressed by stakeholders regarding (a) alternative models and (b) all of its proposals or its most recent proposal only.

The remit for Professor Andrew Coyle’s independent review of the Scottish Government’s proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons will be to consider specifically:

the extent to which the proposals meet the government’s obligations under the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention Against Torture (OPCAT)

responses of prisoners, prison staff and stakeholders to the new proposals

independent monitoring of legalised police cells.

It is for Professor Andrew Coyle to decide how he conducts the independent review.

Question reference: S4W-10057

Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 30 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how Professor Andrew Coyle's review of the proposals on the independent monitoring of prisons will take into account the views of (a) stakeholders and (b) prisoners.