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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: S5W-11386

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 September 2017
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 28 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support staff at the Bilston Glen police call centre who are taking on extra work, including handling calls from other police forces in the UK.

The delivery of Police Scotland's contact, command and control function is an operational matter for Police Scotland with oversight from the Scottish Police Authority.

Every Police Force (and other Emergency Authority) has an established reciprocal arrangement in place to assist each other at times of high demand or exceptional need called the Public Emergency Call Service (PECS) Code of Practice. This applies only to emergency 999 calls and not those calls which are received on the 101 platform. Full details of what happens within Police Scotland service centres (call handling centres) are outlined in the Police Scotland statement issued
14 October by Nelson Telfer, ACC Service and Protection, Police Scotland, available at http://www.scotland.police.uk/whats-happening/news/2017/august/c3-message-from-acc-nelson-telfer.

Question reference: S5O-01256

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 September 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its plans to support community policing during the current parliamentary session.

Question reference: S5O-01224

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 August 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 7 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what financial and employment support it plans to give fishing communities after the UK leaves the EU.

EU funding, such as the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, which includes match funding from the Scottish Government, has made a vital contribution to safeguarding jobs and ensuring the prosperity of our fishing communities.

Our communities and businesses expect and deserve clarity from the UK Government on the future arrangements that will replace these vital funding streams in the event that the UK departs from the EU. I recently wrote to Michael Gove requesting such clarity but his reply only referred vaguely to future consultations on the matter. It is imperative for the UK Government to confirm that Scotland would receive its fair share of funding in the future, at a level which properly reflects the importance of fisheries and other marine sectors in our rural economy, as well as the powers to determine how best to invest it.

Question reference: S5O-01226

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 September 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how its targets on climate change and sustainable development are supported through renewable energy projects such as the turbines in the Pentland Firth.

Question reference: S5O-01173

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 June 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the impact on Scotland of the equalities and social security aspects of proposals in The Queen's Speech.

Question reference: S5O-01137

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many nurses from the rest of the EU have registered to work in Scotland since the EU referendum was held, in light of a recent report suggesting that there has been a 96% decline for the UK as a whole.

Question reference: S5O-01070

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 May 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 June 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what recent steps it has taken to promote culture and tourism in Midlothian and East Lothian.

Question reference: S5O-00989

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 May 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether there are plans for the Access to Elected Office Fund Scotland to be open to disabled people wishing to be nominated for the 2017 General Election.

Question reference: S5O-00935

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 April 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 3 May 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support adults who wish to return to education.

Question reference: S5O-00843

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 March 2017
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 29 March 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to promote apprenticeship schemes.

The Scottish Government's skills agency Skills Development Scotland promotes Modern Apprenticeships in a number of ways including its Apprenticeship.scot website and My World of Work. Through the Developing the Young Workforce agenda we are taking forward the promotion of all options for young people, including apprenticeships.

Earlier this month the Scottish Government supported Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2017. This was the most comprehensive Scottish Apprenticeship Week to date with all Scottish Government Ministers undertaking an event to promote the benefits of apprenticeships to employers and to participants. Also involved in the Scottish Apprenticeship Week activities were schools, employers, apprentices, colleges, councils and training providers.