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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-23977

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 21 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 19 July 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23526 by Joe FitzPatrick on 12 June 2019, when the three-month tolerance was introduced, and how long it expects it to be in place for.

Breast screening is delivered in line with expert advice from the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC). The UK NSC and Healthcare Improvement Scotland have set performance thresholds for breast screening invitation, and uptake and recall rates to reduce breast cancer mortality and ensure breast screening takes place in a timely manner. NHS boards are responsible for implementing the breast screening standards within their board area and should ensure that at least 90% of all eligible women are invited for screening at 36-month intervals following their first invitation, in line with the NHS Breast Screening Programme consolidated standards.

National Services Division, who commission and performance manage the Scottish Breast Screening Programme (SBSP) advise that the 12 week tolerance is a mechanism they have developed within the SBSP since the 1990’s in recognition for the need to allow women flexibility in attending screening appointments and account for any unanticipated events e.g extreme weather conditions.

Existing breast screening clinical standards for the provision of 3 yearly screening invitations, appointments and results at all points on the pathway must be adhered to. Delay is monitored locally and reported monthly to National Services Division who commission and manage the programme. Where delays are significant, screening centres are required to submit a robust action plan detailing the initiatives and timescales to reduce delays.

Question reference: S5W-23976

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 21 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 17 July 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23526 by Joe FitzPatrick on 12 June 2019, what assurances it can provide that, when NHS boards are running behind the three-month tolerance period, women who will have gone above the screening age during this time will continue to be invited for screening.

As recommended by the UK National Screening Committee, the Scottish Breast Screening Programme (SBSP) invites women who are aged between 50 and 70 years, for breast screening in a 3 year cycle. The SBSP uses a national IT system to manage the call and recall of women for breast screening. The IT system includes a safeguard report which identifies any woman reaching her 71st birthday that has not been invited for their final screening and automatically generates an invitation letter to the woman.

Question reference: S5W-23890

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 27 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23630 by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019, whether it will publish a comparison of the year-by-year increase since 2016 in the UK personal allowance and the equivalent increase that would be needed to take the personal allowance to £12,750 by 2021, in line with Scottish Government policy.

Table 1 sets out the path for the UK- wide Personal Allowance since 2016. As this is now £12,500, the Personal Allowance would need to increase by a further £250 to be at £12,750 by 2021.

Table 1 : UK Personal Allowance 2016-17 to 2019-20

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20
Personal Allowance	£11,000	£11,500	£11,850	£12,500
Annual change		4.5%	3.0%	5.5%

Historic income tax rates and allowances (including the Personal Allowance) can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-income-tax/income-tax-rates-and-allowances-current-and-past .

Question reference: S5W-23892

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 27 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23630 by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019, when the discussions took place between officials of the Scottish Exchequer and the Treasury.

Question reference: S5W-23891

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 27 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23630 by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019, what response has been received from the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Economy and Fair Work of 4 April 2019.

The Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Economy, and Fair Work received a reply from the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on the 26 April 2019. The Chief Secretary re-stated the position of the UK Government, which is that increases to the Personal Allowance in 2018-19 and 2019-20 do not constitute a post-devolution change in government policy, and therefore this is not an example of a direct spillover of the kind set out in the Fiscal Framework Agreement.

Question reference: S5W-23895

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 27 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23630 by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019, whether it remains its policy to create a tax-free allowance in income tax of £12,750 by 2021.

Question reference: S5W-23893

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 27 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23630 by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019, whether it has asked the Scottish Fiscal Commission to (a) advise on the spillover effect and (b) compare the spillover effect with the likely compensating change to the Block Grant Adjustment.

Question reference: S5F-03463

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 24 June 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 June 2019

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S5W-23630

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government when it requested consideration of a compensating transfer for the spillover effect arising from the increase in the personal tax allowance, as stated in the Medium Term Financial Strategy published on 30 May 2019.

The Chief Secretary to the Treasury and I agreed a detailed process for considering spillover effects in December 2017, which came into effect in 2018-19. I wrote to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 4 April 2019 presenting estimates that the Scottish Budget was around £30m worse off in 2018-19 and around £70m worse off in 2019-20 as a result of increases in the personal allowance. This correspondence followed discussions between officials of the Scottish Exchequer and HM Treasury, in accordance with paragraph 53 of the Fiscal Framework Agreement. It did not consider the impact in 2017-18 as this predated the agreement on direct spillover effects coming into force. The Fiscal Framework Agreement requires that any decision or transfer relating to a spillover effect must be jointly agreed by the Scottish and UK Governments, as must the understanding of the evidence on which estimates are made.

Question reference: S5W-23632

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2019
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 18 June 2019

To ask the Scottish Government for which financial years it has requested a compensating transfer for the spillover effect arising from the increase in the personal tax allowance, as stated in the Medium Term Financial Strategy published on 30 May 2019.