- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 October 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 11 November 2015
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide alternative support services for the reported 167 patients on the Sandyford gender identity clinic waiting list and, if so, what these will be.
Answer
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have advised that they are in the process of recruiting an additional consultant to increase their current capacity at the Sandyford Clinic and improve waiting times for patients.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2015
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 5 November 2015
To ask the First Minister at what level the Scottish rate of income tax will be set.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 5 November 2015
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 2 November 2015
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-27627 by Fergus Ewing on 1 October 2015, what Department of Energy and Climate Change electricity generation statistics it is referring to that demonstrate that the cost of providing sufficient electricity storage to deal with the intermittency issue arising from onshore wind power will be "far lower than nuclear".
Answer
The statistics referred to in the previous question are from the Department of Energy and Climate Change's document, Electricity Generation Costs (December 2013) and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/269888/131217_Electricity_Generation_costs_report_December_2013_Final.pdf
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 October 2015
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2015
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has collected in Land and Buildings Transaction Tax.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2015
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 28 October 2015
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-27627 by Fergus Ewing on 1 October 2015, what capacity of hydro-storage projects it believes would be necessary in order to accommodate the intermittency issues arising from onshore wind power in order to equate to the baseload output from the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.
Answer
We have requested the UK Government and devolved administrations to form a group to examine these and other issues.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 October 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 27 October 2015
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of funds distributed by the Community Broadband Scotland Initiative for projects in (a) each local authority area and (b) each year since its inception in 2012.
Answer
Community Broadband Scotland has awarded grants totalling £2,423,820 to 13 local authorities across Scotland, as of 23 October 2015. The breakdown is as follows:
2013
|
|
Local Authority
|
Grant Awarded
|
Argyll and Bute
|
£9,000
|
Highland
|
£234,259
|
Moray
|
£14,908
|
Shetland
|
£15,000
|
Aberdeenshire
|
£15,000
|
Dumfries and Galloway
|
|
East Lothian
|
£17,000
|
Midlothian
|
|
Fife
|
|
Perth and Kinross
|
£15,000
|
Scottish Borders
|
£23,300
|
South Lanarkshire
|
£19,620
|
Stirling
|
£21,000
|
Total
|
£384,087
|
2014
|
|
Local Authority
|
Grant Awarded
|
Argyll and Bute
|
£59,000
|
Highland
|
£130,649
|
Moray
|
£5,000
|
Shetland
|
|
Aberdeenshire
|
£21,000
|
Dumfries and Galloway
|
£5,000
|
East Lothian
|
£152,000
|
Midlothian
|
£5,000
|
Fife
|
£400
|
Perth and Kinross
|
£66,000
|
Scottish Borders
|
£5,866
|
South Lanarkshire
|
£13,387
|
Stirling
|
£7,500
|
Total
|
£470,802
|
2015 to date
|
|
Local Authority
|
Grant Awarded
|
Argyll and Bute
|
£1,037,479
|
Highland
|
£345,930
|
Moray
|
|
Shetland
|
|
Aberdeenshire
|
£1,000
|
Dumfries and Galloway
|
|
East Lothian
|
|
Midlothian
|
|
Fife
|
|
Perth and Kinross
|
£110,078
|
Scottish Borders
|
£67,444
|
South Lanarkshire
|
£7,000
|
Stirling
|
|
Total
|
£1,568,931
|
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 05 October 2015
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 8 October 2015
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reports from the Auditor General that it underspent its budget by almost £350 million in 2014-15.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 8 October 2015
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 5 October 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the economic impact of it declaring Scotland to be GM-food free.
Answer
The Scottish Government’s decision to opt out of growing EU approved GM crops was taken to protect the clean, green image of Scotland’s multi-billion pound food and drink sector. As the latest official figures show, the sector generated a record £14.3 billion for our economy and accounts for around 20% of all Scotland’s exports. Food exports alone are up by 57% from 2007. This growth has occurred without the cultivation of GM crops in Scotland.
The Scottish Government’s long-standing policy takes account of the wider social and economic ramifications that growing GM crops might have for Scotland and our unique brand. We know, from a recent Bank of Scotland study, that over 78% of firms surveyed said that Scottish provenance has a good reputation in international markets. And many of our key export markets for potatoes ask for sight of a GM-free certificate. Scottish food and drink is valued at home and abroad for its natural, high quality and often attracts a premium price.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by Aileen McLeod on 2 October 2015
To ask the Scottish Government what the timetable is for announcing a decision on the future of beavers in Scotland.
Answer
A decision on the future of beavers in Scotland will be announced in due course. Ministers are carefully considering the Scottish Natural Heritage report Beavers in Scotland and meeting stakeholders to hear their views.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2015
-
Current Status:
Answered by Aileen McLeod on 2 October 2015
To ask the Scottish Government whether the decision on the permanent reintroduction of beavers will be (a) a decision in principle to retain or remove, followed by a further period of time to establish the necessary legal and practical detail to deliver this or (b) a fully considered legal and funded proposal that is ready to be implemented right away.
Answer
The Scottish Natural Heritage report Beavers in Scotland sets out four possible scenarios for the future of beavers in Scotland. Any decision is likely to be based on these options. Furthermore, any announcement would need to provide information on how the preferred scenario would be achieved and what management framework would be envisaged.