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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-03780

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take in response to the Audit Scotland report, A review of telehealth in Scotland.

Question reference: S4O-00356

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 November 2011
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 10 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review the legislation regarding dangerous and defective buildings.

Question reference: S4W-03439

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 October 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 7 November 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-38688 by Keith Brown on 11 January 2011, whether it remains its position that the journey time reductions on the Highland Main Line will be delivered in May 2012 and what the savings will be.

Question reference: S4W-03440

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 October 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 27 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a three hour journey time for trains between Inverness and Glasgow will be introduced by December 2012.

No. The project will be delivered in phases and aims to provide incremental journey time reductions throughout the scheme.

A number of technical improvements are planned which should deliver reduced journey times on some services from next year. The full extent of these journey time improvements cannot be determined until the December 2012 timetable has gone through the rail industry’s planning process.

Question reference: S4W-03019

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 27 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to increase the Scottish manufacturing content of proposed (a) onshore and (b) offshore wind developments.

The National Renewables Infrastructure Plan and associated £70 million fund have a primary focus of increasing Scottish manufacturing content for offshore renewables. Both Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and Scottish Enterprise (SE) are involved in negotiations with a number of site owners and renewables manufacturers. Further announcements will be made in the near future, building on the recent decisions by companies including Gamesa, Doosan and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to invest in research and development facilities in Scotland.

The recent and successful conclusion to the ownership issues at the Nigg Yard along with HIE's investment of £1.8 million to help transform the facility into a multi-use modern energy park is an example of progress in this area.

The enterprise agencies are working with a range of partners to support the growth of the supply chain across the full renewables spectrum. For example, HIE is supporting the trade body Energy North in its work to identify opportunities for local businesses to participate in a range of onshore renewables projects, including through the newly established Ignite database, which details procurement personnel in renewable energy projects currently in scoping and planning.

HIE’s support for the Sustainable Energy and Micro Renewables Centre, as part of Inverness College, further demonstrates our commitment to capitalise on new skills and services required for micro-generation.

Question reference: S4W-03048

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many staff (a) were employed by HMIE and (b) are employed by Education Scotland to carry out school inspections.

At 30 June 2011, HMIE had 82 Inspectors; 10 Assistant Chief Inspectors; four Health and Nutrition Inspectors; and nine Assistant Inspectors involved in inspections.

As of 1 July 2011, when we became Education Scotland, we had 80 Inspectors; nine Assistant Chief Inspectors; four Health and Nutrition Inspectors; and eight Assistant Inspectors. Since then, the figures have reduced further so that at 30 September 2011, Education Scotland had 73 Inspectors; six Assistant Chief Inspectors; three Health and Nutrition Inspectors, and seven Assistant Inspectors.

Question reference: S4W-03050

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive to whom Education Scotland's schools inspectorate is accountable.

Question reference: S4W-03056

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what procedures allow staff and pupils of primary and secondary schools to contribute a self-evaluation to a school inspection.

Teaching staff, non-teaching staff and a sample of pupils and parents receive a questionnaire before an inspection and the analysis of their returns influences the activities carried out by the inspection team. The questions in these questionnaires allow staff to offer their views on key aspects of the school. Groups of staff, pupils and parents are also interviewed as part of the inspection. In the new form of school inspections, inspectors have increased the opportunities for staff, parents and pupils to talk to the inspection team. In the best practice, headteachers also use feedback from staff and pupils to help complete the school’s pre-inspection self-evaluation summary form.

Question reference: S4W-03055

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many staff have been (a) diverted and (b) seconded from Education Scotland to work with the Scottish Qualifications Authority in implementing the Curriculum for Excellence.

Question reference: S4W-03049

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 25 October 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to review the complaints procedure in relation to school inspections following the creation of Education Scotland.