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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.

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Question reference: S2W-03119

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 October 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 14 October 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what the reasons were for not including in-cell showers in the design of the new Iona houseblock at HM Prison Polmont.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is asfollows:

It is not current SPS policyto provide in-cell showers in mainstream young offender accommodation atPolmont because it would increase the capital cost per cell, thereby reducingthe pace at which the SPS can provide new accommodation, replace unsatisfactoryaccommodation and reduce slopping out.

Question reference: S2W-03122

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 October 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 13 October 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-1869 by Cathy Jamieson on 9 September 2003, whether, as a result of the revision of baseline figures for HM Prison Kilmarnock's performance, any repayment has been made to the operators of the prison.

Question reference: S2W-03118

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 October 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 13 October 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what body was responsible for the decision not to include in-cell showers in the design of the new Iona houseblock at HM Prison Polmont.

Question reference: S2W-02950

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 September 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 8 October 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what the underspend in the Justice budget was for 2002-03 and under which budget headings the underspend took place.

Question reference: S2O-00478

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 September 2003
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 25 September 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to improve road safety.

Question reference: S2W-02299

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 September 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 11 September 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is on the structure of criminal justice social work.

Question reference: S2W-02419

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 September 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 10 September 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will start consultation on civil partnership registration.

The Scottish Executive has been carefully considering the issue of civil partnership registrationin recent months. The Department of Trade and Industry published a consultationpaper at the end of June on a possible civil partnership registration schemefor same-sex couples. The scheme is a mixture of reserved policies such aspensions, benefits, taxation and immigration issues and devolved matters suchas registration, family law issues on the breakdown of a relationship or thedeath of one party, and detailed considerations such as prison visiting and whocan register a death or consent to medical treatment for an ill partner.

We have been considering howbest to handle the implications of the UK Government’s proposals should theydecide to proceed with legislation.

The Scottish Executive has also been mindful of the legal rights of same-sex couples. Thecreation of a civil partnership registration scheme to provide same-sex coupleswith the opportunity to register their partnership and trigger access to someemployment benefits is the approach taken by the UK Government to ensure compliancewith the EU Employment Directive (2000/78/EC). In the absence of Scottishprovisions, couples will have to travel down south to get some of the rights oftheir counterparts in England and Wales. There could be a legal challenge by a Scottishsame-sex couple on grounds of discrimination.

In examining the options forScottish legislation, key considerations have been the intertwining of devolvedand reserved policy issues, our desire to avoid a complex web of differingrights emerging between Scotland and England and Wales, and the advantageswhich parity offers in relation to cross-border issues. Separate legislationnorth and south of the border would lead to a complicated set of arrangementsunderstood by few people. We have therefore concluded that a Sewel motion toinclude Scottish provisions in any future UK legislation offers the most effective and sensiblemeans of delivering a package of rights and responsibilities for committedsame-sex couples.

The DTI is alreadyconsulting with Scottish interests on the reserved elements of their civilpartnership scheme. It is our intention to consult on the devolved elements andto publish a short paper around the end of this month.

Question reference: S2W-02300

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 September 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 9 September 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what training it offers to (a) lay and (b) legal members of the Judicial Appointments Board.

Question reference: S2W-02302

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 September 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 9 September 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-1360 by Hugh Henry on 29 July 2003, whether incumbent members of the Judicial Appointments Board will be involved in future interviews for membership of the board.

Question reference: S2W-01869

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 August 2003
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 9 September 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-34453 and S2W-50 by Mr Jim Wallace on 24 February and Cathy Jamieson on 5 June 2003 respectively, what the quarterly baseline total, as defined in paragraph 3 of Schedule F of the Minute of Agreement between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Limited for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock, was in the first quarter of the performance year 2003-04.

I have asked Tony Cameron,Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is asfollows:

The following table includessome figures which have been corrected since publication of the answer to questionS1W-34453 on 13 March 2003. Previous figures are shown in brackets.

Performance Year	Performance Quarter	Baseline
Year 1	1	408
2	685
3	685
4	685
Year 2	1	651
2	693 (675)
3	713 (697)
4	713 (690)
Year 3	1	678 (664)
2	678 (656)
3	678 (659)
4	678 (700)
Year 4	1	644 (636)
2	644 (629)
3	644 (629)
4	676
Year 5	1	665