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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: S4W-07617

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 May 2012
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 12 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many train journeys were (a) cancelled and (b) delayed in 2012; what the reasons were, and how many of the affected trains were going to or through Fife.

Fifteen thousand, seven hundred ScotRail services were cancelled in total, representing 2.2% of the 719,000 planned to operate in year 2011-12. This figure is not broken down for services operating in Fife.

Fifty-one thousand ScotRail services were delayed by over five minutes, representing 7.1% in year 2011-12. This figure is not broken down for services operating in Fife.

70.4% of the cancellations were due to Network Rail issues, 27.5% were due to ScotRail issues, and 2.1% were due to problems caused by other train operating companies.

Question reference: S4O-01033

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 May 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 24 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on RGR Foundry Limited's plans to build a new foundry at Fife Energy Park in order to supply the offshore wind market.

Question reference: S4O-00966

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 2 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance packages are available for people seeking work in the voluntary sector in Fife.

The third sector is key to Scotland having a successful and fairer future and has a major role to play in supporting Scotland’s communities, in tackling unemployment and in helping people to develop new skills and experience in a tough jobs market.

The Scottish Government has already provided £14 million through the Community Jobs Scotland programme, delivered through the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations and Social Enterprise Scotland, to provide training and support for up to 2000 young people in Scotland, including 161 individuals in Fife.

Question reference: S4O-00760

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S4O-00580

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that the Year of Creative Scotland 2012 benefits rural Scotland.

Question reference: S4W-04355

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 21 December 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether medical laboratories at (a) the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh and (b) Ninewells Hospital in Dundee have been approached to perform cytogenetic blood tests on nuclear test veterans in the last 10 years and, if so, what the response was.

The medical laboratories at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh and Ninewells Hospital in Dundee are not accredited for and so have not performed any cytogenetic blood tests on nuclear test veterans in the last 10 years. Comprehensive records have not been kept of approaches made about testing, although it is thought that the Dundee laboratory has had at least one enquiry. The response to such enquiries would be to note that there are no facilities in Scotland performing cytogenetic blood tests for radiation damage.

Question reference: S4O-00506

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S4O-00472

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 December 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made towards encouraging cooperation and partnership between further education colleges.

Question reference: S4O-00424

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2011
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 December 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what contribution golf and golf tourism make to the Fife economy.

Question reference: S4W-02508

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 02 September 2011
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 30 September 2011

To ask the Scottish Exectuive what progress has been made in its negotiations with the UK Department for Transport and the Welsh Assembly Government to help deliver the Ministry of Defence's commitment to make it easier for seriously injured service personnel and veterans under 60 to access the concessionary travel scheme.

Discussions were held over several months with the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Welsh Assembly Government about adopting a common approach in taking forward the Ministry of Defence commitment to make it easier for seriously injured HM Forces personnel and veterans to apply for a bus pass. The Scottish Government announced on 22 March 2011 that bus pass applications from seriously injured HM Forces personnel and veterans living in Scotland would be fast tracked from 1 April 2011 under the Scotland-wide Free Bus Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled People. Similar arrangements have now been introduced in England and Wales.