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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-25450

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 21 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the responses to the pre-qualification questionnaire received from bidders for the 2012-18 contract for Northern Isles ferry services.

Question reference: S4W-25449

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 21 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the report in The Shetland Times on 1 May 2015 that Transport Scotland's bid for the re-tender of the 2012-18 contract for Northern Isles ferry services was returned unopened by David MacBrayne Ltd.

The then Minister for Transport and Veterans covered these issues during the debate in the Scottish Parliament on 5 September 2012 on ferry services to Orkney.

The process used for the Northern Isles ferry services is standard practice for procurement exercises such as this. Tender submissions include separate proposals for the quality of the services to be provided and for the cost of providing those services. These proposals are assessed separately using a predetermined formula. The quality proposals are assessed first, and if they achieve the predetermined standard, their price submission is assessed before bringing together the marks for quality and price to identify the most economically advantageous tender.

As the assessment of the quality proposals in the tender from NorthLink Ferries Ltd. (a subsidiary of David MacBrayne Ltd.) was judged not to meet the quality standard, their financial submission was then returned to them unopened.

Question reference: S4W-25457

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 21 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what payments Serco NorthLink has made to the CalMac pension fund since May 2012.

Question reference: S4W-25454

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 21 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how much revenue from fares has been raised on Northern Isles ferry services in each year since May 2012.

Question reference: S4T-01018

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 May 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the recently published road traffic statistics.

Question reference: S4W-25420

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 April 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 11 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what the current waiting time is for a driving assessment from the Scottish Driving Assessment Service.

Question reference: S4W-25333

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 April 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 29 April 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to secure the identity of passengers on the Aberdeen - Shetland ferry service.

Question reference: S4T-01001

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 27 April 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the wire corrosion on the Forth Road Bridge.

Question reference: S4W-25090

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 March 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 27 April 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how it will avoid further job losses at the Arnish yard on Lewis.

Arnish is a valuable asset for Lewis and home to a range of businesses including Burntisland Fabrications Ltd, Hebridean Seaweed and The Scottish Salmon Company.

The site has been identified as a key location for the renewables sector in the Scottish Government’s National Renewables Infrastructure Plan and Highlands and Island Enterprise is working to market the site as a location for businesses in the renewables sector as well as in oil and gas and other sectors.

In 2013, Arnish received £2 million for site development and improvement from funds made available by the Scottish Government in 2012-13.

With regard to the recent job losses announced at Burntisland Fabrications Ltd at Arnish and Fife, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Enterprise and their partners are working closely with the company to help it diversify and grow its business and to help ensure its future both in Arnish and in Fife.

Question reference: S4W-25223

Asked by: David Stewart, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 April 2015
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 27 April 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential to encourage the modal shift of the (a) Motorways of the Sea, (b) Marco Polo and (c) TEN-T funding packages.

The Scottish Government welcomes all programmes that can help encourage modal shift and we would support any application that met the criteria of the funding streams available.

We would encourage any port, shipping company or other party looking to make an application under EU funding streams to engage with Transport Scotland at an early stage to discuss their proposals.

Scottish Ministers have supported successful applications for TEN-T projects in the previous funding round, such as feasibility study work to support the Aberdeen Harbour expansion, and have supported projects in the recent call for bids.