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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-13544

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 10 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) advice and (b) support it provides to (i) farmers and (ii) landowners who want to install small-scale hydro schemes on salmon spawn tributaries.

In a policy statement issued in January 2010, Scottish Ministers set out their objectives with respect to striking the correct balance between the protection of the water environment and renewable energy generation. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency publication - Guidance for developers of run-of-river hydropower schemes – updated in November 2015, provides advice to those wishing to operate a small scale hydro schemes in Scotland’s rivers. The Scottish Government funded Farming For a Better Climate programme also contains a practical guide on micro hydro schemes.

Question reference: S5W-13554

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 9 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the of the recently-published, Independent Review of Student Financial Support in Scotland, whether (a) it plans to co-opt universities into contributing to the student basic income, and if so, at what level and (b) the recommended student basic income will be given to (i) Scotland-domiciled students only and (ii) (A) EU citizens and (B) others with eligibility for student loans.

This Government is committed to ensuring that all students, especially those in our most deprived communities, are provided with the financial support they need to succeed. That is why we commissioned the independent review of student support, chaired by Jayne-Anne Gadhia, CEO of Virgin Money UK.

The report sets out a number of recommendations that would fundamentally change the way students are supported. It is only right that we now take the time to consider these recommendations in detail, and in particular how these interact with social security payments still reserved to the UK Government. We will set out our next steps in due course.

Question reference: S5F-01901

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 January 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 January 2018

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to improve small business confidence, in light of reports suggesting that it is at a near-record low.

Question reference: S5W-13518

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 3 January 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what research it has carried out on extending concessionary travel passes to people in rural areas aged up to 26 who are in (a) further education and (b) the first year of employment; how much it would cost to introduce this; whether it plans to do so and, if so, by what date.

The Scottish Government is committed to introducing a Job Grant, comprising a cash payment and a 3 month bus pass, for young people aged 16-24 years who have been unemployed for 6 months or more. We are currently engaging with local partners, as well as young people, to develop the detail of the Grant and we will announce a date for implementation in due course.

In addition, we have consulted on our pledge to provide free bus travel to young modern apprentices, many of whom will be undertaking further education as part of their apprenticeships. We estimate that it would cost around £8 million per annum to provide free bus travel to all Modern Apprentices aged under 21 and around
£16 million to extend the offer to all Modern Apprentices. We will be working next year with our partners to develop a pilot Scheme for Modern Apprentices.

Question reference: S5W-13170

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 December 2017
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 20 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the use of the NSPCC hotline dedicated to child abuse in Scottish football, which was launched in November 2016.

The Scottish Government takes allegations of sexual abuse of footballers extremely seriously, and we have been working closely with all key stakeholders on this issue.

It is vital victims feel safe and confident to come forward and that all allegations of abuse in Scottish football are thoroughly investigated by the appropriate authorities.

The NSPCC, Scottish FA, PFA Scotland and Police Scotland all provide routes for victims to report crimes, and I would encourage anyone who may be affected to come forward.

The NSPCC received 2,500 calls to the dedicated hotline from across the UK.

Question reference: S5W-12926

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether the reopening of Reston and East Linton station is a rail infrastructure priority.

Reston and East Linton stations are a key element of the comprehensive programme for the East Coast Main Line rail corridor which Network Rail is currently developing proposals for. It is expected that Reston and East Linton will be delivered within the next railway control period 6, which runs from 2019-24 and our desire to do it early in CP6.

We continue to press the UK Government for a fair rail funding deal for Scotland for control period 6. The current offer is below (by £600 million) early industry estimates for renewing and enhancing the network to meet future demands for rail travel. This will undoubtedly impact on our future rail enhancements.

Question reference: S5W-12925

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what the timescale is for the programme of works to enhance the future capacity on the East Coast Main Line.

Network Rail is developing proposals for a range of interventions as part of a comprehensive programme for the East Coast Main Line rail corridor that will enhance capacity and meet forecast demand. Work has already started on the construction of an additional platform at Dunbar station which will relieve a significant capacity constraint on the East Coast Main Line and the expectation is other interventions under consideration would be commissioned for delivery in the next rail control period from 2019-24 and our desire to do it early in CP6.

We continue to press the UK Government for a fair rail funding deal for Scotland for the next control period. The current offer is below (by £600 million) early industry estimates for renewing and enhancing the rail network to meet future demands. This will undoubtedly impact on our future rail enhancements.

Question reference: S5O-01569

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 6 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what support it offers third sector organisations to empower disabled people in the Scottish Borders.

Question reference: S5W-13000

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 24 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 6 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made in developing and implementing a package of measures to facilitate the step change to climate-friendly farming and crofting, as set out in A Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021.

As set out in A Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021 measures and approaches were being developed for inclusion in the Third Report on Policies and Proposals (RPP3) document which is now known as the Climate Change Plan. The draft of this document was published in January 2017 and demonstrates how the Scottish Government is committed to working closely with the agriculture sector as we look to move towards low carbon farming. The Climate Change Plan (CCP) is currently being finalised and is scheduled for publication early in 2018.

The agriculture chapter of the CCP will include a mixture of policies, proposals and milestones all aimed at achieving GHG emissions reductions within the sector.

Question reference: S5W-13001

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 24 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 5 December 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is on course to meet each of its objectives in A Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021, and what resources it has allocated to meet each objective.

We are making progress on the policies and proposals put forward in the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021, such as the publication of the Scoping an Upland Vision report from SNH on 31 July 2017 and the publication of the Scottish Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement on 28 September 2017. There has been a delay in publishing the reporting framework. In light of the EU referendum result, the Scottish Government is working on future strategic policy for the environment and for agriculture, and we will look to integrate this work with the further steps on the Land Use Strategy.

In terms of resources, it is not possible to identify a specific number of full-time equivalent staff contributing to the delivery of the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2020. The cross-portfolio nature of the objectives mean that a wide range of officials contribute to them, from various policy areas such as land reform, agriculture, climate change, planning and environment.