- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 May 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 2 June 2020
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has assumed executive competence for pre-existing (a) Attendance Allowance, (b) adult Disability Living Allowance, (c) child Disability Living Allowance and (d) Personal Independence Payment (i) overpayment and (ii) fraud debt.
Answer
In accordance with the Scotland Act 2016 (Transitional) Regulations 2017, executive competence for Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, and Personal Independence Payment in Scotland transferred to Scottish Ministers on 1 April 2020. They are currently being delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions(DWP) on behalf of Scottish Ministers under an Agency Agreement.
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 2 June 2020
To ask the Scottish Government what meetings the Minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills has had with representatives of Fair Start Scotland prime contractors since 1 February 2020; who the Minister met, and what was discussed.
Answer
I have held meetings with senior members of all six prime Fair Start Scotland Service Providers since 1 February 2020 in response to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
The purpose of these meetings was to discuss the ways in which the current crisis has impacted Providers and how the Scottish Government can continue to support them in effectively delivering a quality service to Fair Start Scotland Participants.
This was also an opportunity for Providers to openly discuss any other subjects they wished to raise with myself
Additionally these meetings were used to convey the importance of the continuity of Fair Start Scotland, ensuring support is still available for those most vulnerable to the effects of the current crisis.
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 29 May 2020
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of comments by Justin Tomlinson, Minister for Disabled People, at the Work and Pensions Select Committee on 23 April 2020, regarding a fall in the number of applications for Personal Independence Payments (PIP), whether there has been a fall in such claims from disabled people in Scotland.
Answer
The relevant regional statistics have not yet been published. Once published by the Department for Work and Pensions on 11 June 2020, the statistics will be available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/personal-independence-payment-statistics#latest-release
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 18 May 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 27 May 2020
To ask the Scottish Government what the average weekly number of items of correspondence it received from MSPs and MPs has been since 1 January 2019, broken down by ministerial portfolio, and what the average time taken to respond was by portfolio.
Answer
The information in following the table is taken from the Scottish Government Case Handling systems
MSP/MP correspondence to Ministers from January 2019 to 18 May 2020 |
Cabinet Secretary/Minister responding | Average Items Received Per Week | Average Response (working days) |
First Minister | 0.7 | 20 |
Deputy First Minister | 7.3 | 15 |
Minister for Children and Young People | 3.0 | 16 |
Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science | 2.2 | 16 |
Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government | 2.7 | 21 |
Minister for Local Government and Housing | 9.5 | 14 |
Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Fair Work and Culture | 6.6 | 15 |
Minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills | 2.8 | 19 |
Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation | 0.5 | 19 |
Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform | 7.2 | 19 |
Minister for Rural Affairs and the Natural Environment | 2.2 | 18 |
Cabinet Secretary for Finance | 9.0 | 21 |
Minister for Public Finance and Migration | 4.1 | 13 |
Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, Europe and External Affairs | 0.6 | 13 |
Minister for Parliamentary Business and Veterans | 1.3 | 21 |
Minister for Europe and International Development | 0.1 | 15 |
Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport | 23.9 | 18 |
Minister for Mental Health | 3.2 | 21 |
Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing | 8.4 | 19 |
Cabinet Secretary for Justice | 6.1 | 20 |
Minister for Community Safety | 3.9 | 19 |
Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism | 6.6 | 11 |
Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People | 2.2 | 18 |
Minister for Older People and Equalities | 0.8 | 18 |
Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity | 13.0 | 16 |
Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands | 5.7 | 44 |
Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Economy and Fair Work | 2.2 | 15 |
Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs | 3.8 | 18 |
Cabinet Secretary for Government Business and Constitutional Relations | 0.5 | 17 |
Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy | 7.1 | 14 |
Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy | 4.9 | 20 |
Minister for Europe, Migration and International Development | 1.7 | 17 |
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Current Status:
Withdrawn
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 May 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 26 May 2020
To ask the Scottish Government how many times the Cabinet has met since the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic on 11 March 2020; on what dates these meetings took place, and how many were held in a (a) partly- and (b) fully-remote manner.
Answer
Since the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic on 11 March 2020, the Scottish Cabinet has met 11 times, up to and including 19 May. The dates of these 11 meetings are as follows. From 24 March onwards, all of these meetings have been held by teleconference, with a minimum number of Ministers and supporting officials attending in person, while observing the required strict physical distancing and hygiene requirements.
Cabinet meetings held between 11 March and 19 May:
17 March
24 March
31 March
7 April
14 April
21 April
28 April
5 May
10 May
12 May
19 May
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2020
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 28 May 2020
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the long-term health impacts of suspending non-emergency NHS services and procedures because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 28 May 2020
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 April 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 6 May 2020
To ask the Scottish Government what the rate of staff absence has been in (a) Social Security Scotland and (b) the Social Security Directorate during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Answer
In March 2020 there were an average of 19 Social Security Directorate absences (both sickness and special leave), and 21 Social Security Scotland absences per day, representing 4.1% and 3.5% of staff respectively. This compares to a Core Scottish Government figure of 4.3% for the same period.
Source: Management Information from Scottish Government eHR system - absences recorded by 28 April, directly employed staff in post as at the start of each month.
eHR absence data is reliant on timely recording on the system by the relevant employee and/or their line manager. Fewer than 30% of absences are recorded on the first day of absence and it takes up to two weeks to record 90% of absences on the system. Therefore, data up to end April will not be available until after mid-May.
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 April 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 28 April 2020
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People on 1 April 2020 (Official Report, c. 53), whether work on the Social Security Programme has been paused.
Answer
As I informed Parliament in my statement on 1 April, work in the Social Security Programme has not stopped. We have focused remaining resources on delivering the Scottish Child Payment as soon as possible, to support families on low incomes particularly at risk from the pandemic. Work also continues on designing our new disability assistance, albeit at a slower schedule as this relies heavily on engagement with health and social care professionals who are rightly engaged on the front line at present.
Significant uncertainty remains around when we will be able to return to near normal working within the Social Security Programme, Social Security Scotland, the wider Scottish Government, and with suppliers and partners, including DWP. I will keep Parliament updated as the situation becomes clearer.
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 April 2020
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 28 April 2020
To ask the Scottish Government what change in (a) Best Start Grant applications, (b) Funeral Support Payment applications and (c) Carer's Allowance Supplement caseload Social Security Scotland (i) has experienced and (ii) expects to experience since the start of the of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Answer
The number of applications received, decisions made, payments and expenditure for Best Start Grant and Funeral Support Payment since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak have remained fairly consistent.
Given the increases seen in numbers of people applying for DWP unemployment benefits, it is likely that the number of people in Scotland who are eligible for Social Security Scotland benefits will increase. We may therefore expect to see an increase in applications, and subsequently expenditure, over the coming months.
Carer’s Allowance Supplement is made to Scottish recipients of Carer’s Allowance on specific eligibility dates. DWP continue to administer Carer’s Allowance, and they send us a data twice a year to identify those eligible for Carer’s Allowance Supplement on each of the eligibility dates. The data are sent to Social Security Scotland around six weeks after each Carer’s Allowance Supplement eligibility date to allow them to make Carer’s Allowance Supplement payments. The latest eligibility date was 13 th April, therefore we are not due to receive data from DWP until late May. We would not anticipate caseload for Carer’s Allowance Supplement to have changed due to Covid-19.
Scottish Government are working with Citizens Advice Scotland to run a campaign to support people to find out and access all the financial assistance that they are entitled to. This will appear on digital, radio and broadcast channels and be supported by a PR campaign. We are also working with other intermediaries to get this message out there - creating a bank of stakeholder resources in accessible formats and content that can be ordered by voluntary organisations to distribute to very vulnerable people in local communities. Social Security Scotland is also underpinning this with its ongoing marketing activity to encourage people to access the benefits it offers. This includes promoting easements that were included in the recent Coronavirus (Scotland) Act.
