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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.

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Question reference: S5W-18822

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether the R100 programme will be delivered by the end of the current parliamentary session or by December 2021.

The Scottish Government has committed to extending 100% superfast broadband access across Scotland by 31 December 2021 reflecting the complex nature of the rollout and its geographic focus.

Procurement for the initial phase of the reaching 100% or R100 ,programme - for which we have announced the investment of £600 million - Scottish Government 96.5 % of the funding is now well underway. We will award contracts in 2019.

Question reference: S5W-18528

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 03 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 13 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to concerns raised by the lead researcher at the civil liberties group, Big Brother Watch, that the introduction of fingerprint scanning to pay for school lunches normalises hi-tech surveillance from a very young age.

The introduction of biometric identification systems is a matter for education authorities and schools. The Scottish Government published guidance to support them in their decision-making about the introduction and implementation of biometric systems in Scottish schools.

The guidance makes it clear that information collected through a biometric system must, like all personal data, be processed fairly and lawfully in line with data protection laws.

Question reference: S5W-18529

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 03 September 2018
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 13 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether the use of biometric technology to pay for school lunches has been introduced without parents being consulted and, if so, whether it considers this to be acceptable.

The introduction of biometric technology systems in schools is a matter for education authorities and schools. The Scottish Government has published guidance on the use and implementation of biometric identification systems in schools, which aims to support them in their decision-making about the introduction and implementation of biometric systems in Scottish schools.

This guidance is clear that the views of parents, pupils and school staff should be taken into account as part of the decision-making process to introduce and implement biometric technology systems. This guidance is available on the Scottish Government's website through the following link: https://www.gov.scot/Publications/2010/11/11112141/0 .

Question reference: S5W-18227

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been released from prison in each month in the last two years.

Table 1: Number of individual prisoners liberated per month from 1 st September 2016 to 21 st August 2018.

MONTH	LIBERATED PRISONERS
September 2016	979
October 2016	915
November 2016	893
December 2016	1026
January 2017	761
February 2017	770
March 2017	993
April 2017	827
May 2017	870
June 2017	922
July 2017	845
August 2017	923
September 2017	922
October 2017	786
November 2017	877
December 2017	925
January 2018	798
February 2018	729
March 2018	893
April 2018	725
May 2018	891
June 2018	921
July 2018	872
August 2018*	542

Source: SPS management information system

*Only includes information up to 21st August 2018

Note: Figures exclude liberations to court. Figures relate to the total number of individuals liberated per month only. During the overall two year period an individual may have received more than one custodial sentence and therefore been liberated on more than one occasion.

Question reference: S5W-18332

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 4 September 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when it will bring forward legislation based on the outcome of its consultation on crofting legislation, which concluded in 2017.

Programme for Government 2017-18 includes a commitment to consult and develop proposals to reform crofting law during this parliamentary session. A decision on the timing of a Bill will be taken by Cabinet in the context of the Scottish Government’s other legislative priorities. Meantime, Scottish Government officials are working closely with stakeholders to consider the issues to be taken forward that will deliver change quickly and easily; to provide clarity in law and have a positive outcome for crofters and crofting communities, while avoiding unintended consequences.

Question reference: S5W-18009

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 29 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether and how it plans to increase access to mental health services throughout the criminal justice process.

Action 15 within the Mental Health Strategy outlines our clear commitment to funding 800 additional mental health workers in key settings, including custody suites and prisons, ensuring that local provision and support is at the heart of our plans. Funding for this commitment will reach £35 million by 2022.

It is vital that this investment has the greatest possible impact and acts as a catalyst for better joint working between Health and Justice services. Therefore, the Scottish Government has asked the Health and Justice Collaboration Improvement Board to develop advice on how to achieve this as part of the Action 15 investment following its next meeting on 11 September.

Question reference: S5W-18010

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 29 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many mental health professionals worked alongside (a) Police Scotland, (b) the Scottish Prison Service and (c) the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service in each of the last three years.

Answering the member’s question requires access to data which we do not hold centrally: a broad range of professionals work in the field of mental health, employed by a variety of organisations (Scottish Prison Service, NHS, Local Authorities, Third Sector) in different capacities. Many are multi-skilled, combining mental health with other kinds of expertise. They may work with more than one of the partners he identifies, and may or may not work full-time. These factors mean I cannot give him the data he requests.

Question reference: S5W-18008

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 August 2018
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 17 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to consider an investigation into the (a) use and purpose of non-disclosure agreements by employers in Scotland and (b) control mechanisms that regulate the use of non-disclosure agreements in Scotland.

The Scottish Government aims to embed a culture of fair work and fair work practices within all workplaces across Scotland. Our work is underpinned by the Fair Work Framework, published by the Fair Work Convention in 2016, and promotes fair work as work that offers effective voice, opportunity, security, fulfilment and respect; that balances the rights and responsibilities of employers and workers and that can generate benefits for individuals, organisations and society.

The Scottish Government has committed to Scotland becoming a Fair Work Nation by 2025 and we will publish an Action Plan by the end of this year to drive progress on this, using the powers available to us. However, responsibility for employment law and the law relating to protected disclosures in the workplace lies with the UK Government.

Question reference: S5W-17840

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 July 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 8 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) complaints, (b) prosecutions and (c) convictions have been made under the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016, broken down by offence.

The Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 created a new offence of 'Disclosing, or threatening to disclose, an intimate photograph or film.' The offence came into effect on 3 July 2017.

The Scottish Government produces statistics on the number of crimes recorded by the police, rather than the number of complaints made. The Recorded Crime in Scotland 2017-18 National Statistics will be the first to include information on the new offence and these will be published on 25 September 2018.

The Criminal Proceedings in Scotland 2017-18 National Statistics will be the first to include information on both people proceeded against and people convicted of disclosing or threatening to disclose an intimate image. These will be published in early 2019.

Question reference: S5W-17841

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 July 2018
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 8 August 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to review the implementation of the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016.

The Act makes provision in a number of areas. The provisions concerning the domestic abuse aggravation, mandatory jury directions in certain sexual offence cases, extension of courts' powers to impose non-harassment orders and extension of Scottish courts' extra-territorial jurisdiction over certain sexual offences against children were commenced in April 2017.

The new offence concerning the non-consensual sharing of intimate images came into effect in July 2017. As set out in the answer to S5W-17846 on 8 August 2018, the provisions which replace three existing civil protective orders (Risk of Sexual Harm Orders, Foreign Travel Orders and Sexual Offence Prevention Orders) with two new orders, Sexual Harm Prevention Orders and Sexual Risk Orders, have not yet been brought into force.

As set out in the answer to S5W-17840 on 8 August 2018, statistics on the number of offences recorded by the police will be published in September 2018 and statistics on criminal proceedings will be published in early 2019.

The Scottish Government monitors the effectiveness of legislation on an on-going basis in conjunction with justice system partners. There are no plans for a formal review of the implementation of the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 at this time.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.