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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-01352

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government when information held by Police Scotland's automatic number plate recognition system dating back longer than two years will be deleted.

Question reference: S5W-01353

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether senior Police Scotland officers were aware in 2013 of the legal requirement to delete all automatic number plate recognition data over two years old; whether they did so, and what the reason is for their position on this matter.

Question reference: S5W-01423

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the extent to which brain injuries should be taken into account as a mitigating factor in sentencing.

Sentencing in any given case is a matter for the court. They will take into account the full facts and circumstances of a case before deciding upon an appropriate sentence. This includes any relevant injuries or conditions affecting the offender. The Scottish Government has not undertaken any specific assessment in terms of the extent to which brain injuries should be taken into account when sentencing.

Question reference: S5W-01351

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what bodies have access to information collected by Police Scotland via the automatic number plate recognition system.

The information requested is a matter for the Chief Constable of Police Scotland, with the oversight of the Scottish Police Authority. I have alerted the Chief Constable to your question and I have asked him to write to you. Information from Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology must be used and retained in compliance with relevant legislation including the Data Protection Act 1998, the Human Rights Act 1998, the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, and the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (Scotland) Act 2000.

Question reference: S5W-01357

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government who has been appointed to Police Scotland's short-life working group to tackle automatic number plate recognition issues, as reported in The Ferret on 7 July 2016; when it will meet, and what will be discussed.

Question reference: S5W-01494

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to improve the transfer of information regarding head injuries between A&E units and (a) police custody units and (b) prisons.

Question reference: S5W-01350

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether, as reported in The Ferret on 7 July 2016, officials told Police Scotland “We do not want you to provide us with detailed answers to all of the questions Ms McInnes asks" and, if so, for what reason and what action it will take.

A number of the Parliamentary Questions asked by the former MSP Alison McInnes in March 2016 sought information on the governance and regulation of policing activity whilst others sought detailed information on the delivery of operational policing activity. Responsibility for the delivery of operational policing activity lies with Police Scotland with oversight of the Scottish Police Authority and the Scottish Government’s approach to requesting information reflected this position.

Question reference: S5W-01348

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government on what statutory basis Police Scotland has collected a reported 852,507,524 number plate records and whether this process was debated by the Parliament.

Question reference: S5W-01402

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take to inform and engage the public regarding the use of armed police and what its response is to the suggestion made on Radio Scotland on 12 July 2016 that “we have got to have an informed debate" regarding the operation of armed officers.

Question reference: S5W-01417

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 8 August 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of brain injury on the life of prisoners.

The Scottish Prison Service and NHS Boards are carrying out a study to seek to identify the prevalence of head injury in prisoners in Scotland. A second study, beginning later this year, will investigate the usefulness of two screening tools, which will be piloted in two prisons and two police custody sites. This will also estimate the number of prisoners with a disability arising from brain injury.