Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-09484

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 May 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 13 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government by what means the attainment gap is measured.

The Scottish Government will use the data that will be published each year through the National Improvement Framework Evidence Report to measure the attainment gap at different stages of school, and across literacy and numeracy. The Evidence Report brings together the available evidence on achievement, attainment, health and wellbeing, and the wider education system, with a specific focus on differences between children living in the most deprived and least deprived areas.

This data provides a range of possible ways of measuring the attainment gap, and we have committed to working with stakeholders later this year to agree which specific measures are most useful to drive improvement and measure progress towards closing the gap.

Question reference: S5T-00587

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 12 June 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to EIS members considering supporting industrial action.

Question reference: S5O-01124

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 June 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government when its rural payments division will issue advice to the Crofting Commission to determine the sub-let crofting application at Vigga, West Yell, Shetland, which was submitted to the commission on 24 June 2016.

Question reference: S5W-09483

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 May 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 6 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it provides for teachers and support staff on how best to address racist bullying and incidents in schools.

Bullying of any kind is unacceptable and must be addressed whenever and wherever it arises. We want all children and young people to learn tolerance, respect, equality and good citizenship to address and prevent prejudice. That is why the Scottish Government established Scotland’s Anti-bullying Service “respectme” to work with schools, communities and other organisations to build confidence and capacity to address bullying effectively.

All schools and local authorities should have anti-bullying policies in place. The Scottish Government "National Approach to Anti-Bullying", which is currently being refreshed, identifies that recording and monitoring bullying incidents is essential and is best carried out locally where information can be understood and acted upon. The refreshed guidance will be published later this year.

Question reference: S5W-09438

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 6 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase permanent teacher numbers in rural communities.

The Scottish Government is taking a number of actions to help recruit teachers. We are spending £88 million this year to make sure every school has access to the right number of teachers, we have increased student intake targets for the sixth year in a row, we are setting targets to train teachers in the subjects where they are needed most and we are supporting innovative new routes into teaching, including work with the Universities of Aberdeen and the Highlands and Islands, to help encourage more graduates to become teachers.

We also launched our new teacher recruitment campaign on 8 February 'Teaching Makes People'. This builds on the success of last year’s 'Inspiring Teachers' campaign which helped drive an increase in PGDE applications to Scottish universities.

Question reference: S5W-09204

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 May 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 25 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, when it will provide a substantive answer to question S5W-08896, which received a holding response on 5 May 2017.

The substantive answer to question S5W-08896 'To ask the Scottish Government by what date the £180 million farm payment system will be operational and fully functioning' is as follows:

The Rural Payments and Services IT system has now been operational for over two years. It has previously accepted online applications for SAF 2015, SAF 2016 and has operated successfully throughout the SAF 2017 submission window this year (which closed on May 15) - receiving online applications to anticipated levels.

A significant proportion of SAF 2016 claims have now been processed and payments made, and the target is to make the vast majority of SAF 2016 payments by the end of June 2017, in line with CAP regulations. There are still major features to be added to the IT system, such as the Land Parcel Information component and the Scheme Accounting and Customer Account Management component, and planned core capability has still to be built in, such as that needed to incorporate inspections findings. During the last two years a significant number of other enhancements have been identified that will be built-in through further releases of the IT Platform (which is not uncommon for large and complex IT systems), and the annual business cycle for rural payments always presents the need for additional functionality to be developed. The IT Platform has been designed to enable new schemes to be added using existing components rather than developing completely new IT functionality for each.

The overall business case for the Programme is to deliver a CAP compliant Rural Payments and Services IT Platform for £178m, and the full scope of functionality expressed in that business case is planned to be delivered over the course of the current financial year and within the £178m.

Question reference: S5O-01060

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the terrorism threat level.

Question reference: S5W-09203

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 May 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 19 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, when it will provide a substantive answer to question S5W-08897, which received a holding response on 5 May 2017.

Question reference: S5W-08897

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 April 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 11 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government by what date all less favoured area support scheme (LFASS) payments to crofters and farmers will be made.

The Scottish Government very much regret the delay in processing LFASS payments and the impact on affected businesses. We have processed 85% of LFASS 2015 claims worth over £52 million to almost 9,700 farmers and crofters, prior to national loan scheme recovery. There are around 1,700 claims worth
£1.6 million, where no balance due following loan recovery, leaving approximately 1,700 still to process.

We aim to clear the remaining 2015 LFASS payments, and start processing LFASS 2016 payments, as soon as possible. We are striving hard to deliver the enhancements needed to the complex IT functionality and other steps necessary to support this aim.

We have also taken steps to alleviate further financial uncertainty by agreeing to provide national loans in respect of 2016 LFASS payments, and loan offer letters have started to go out.

Question reference: S5W-08896

Asked by: Tavish Scott, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 April 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 11 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government by what date the £180 million farm payment system will be operational and fully functioning.

The Rural Payments and Services IT Platform has now been operational for over two years. For example, it has accepted applications for SAF 2015, SAF 2016 and SAF 2017 (the SAF 2017 submission window is still live, having opened on schedule on 15th March). It has been used to make SAF 2015 payments, with only a handful outstanding (which has always been the case).

A significant proportion of SAF 2016 claims have now been processed and payments made, and the target is to make the vast majority of SAF 2016 payments by the end of June 2017, in line with CAP regulations. There are still major features to be added to the IT Platform, such as the Land Parcel Information component and the Scheme Accounting and Customer Account Management component, and planned core capability has still to be built in, such as that needed to incorporate inspections findings. During the last two years a significant number of other enhancements have been identified that will be built-in through further releases of the IT Platform (which is not uncommon for large and complex IT systems), and the annual business cycle for rural payments always presents the need for additional functionality to be developed. The IT Platform has been designed to enable new schemes to be added using existing components rather than developing completely new IT functionality for each.

The overall business case for the Programme is to deliver a CAP compliant Rural Payments and Services IT Platform for £178m, and the full scope of functionality expressed in that business case is planned to be delivered over the course of the current financial year and within the £178m.

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