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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: S6W-16198

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the number of jobs that have been created at Liberty Steel Dalzell as a result of the financial support that it has provided to GFG Alliance.

Question reference: S6W-16194

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to address any current exposure, that is backed by public funds, to any financial guarantees that it has given to GFG Alliance.

Regular engagement takes place between the Scottish Government and GFG Alliance at both official and ministerial level. Officials hold quarterly meetings to monitor performance in respect of the Scottish Government guarantee and maintain frequent engagement at local and group level on business operations. Officials are further supported in this activity by external commercial experts. The Scottish Government has a suite of securities in relation to the assets at Lochaber that are valued at more than the outstanding amount guaranteed.

Question reference: S6W-16197

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the number of jobs that have been created at the Lochaber Aluminium Smelter as a result of the financial support that it has provided to GFG Alliance.

Question reference: S6W-16256

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the average number of NHS patients per dentist has been in NHS (a) Highland, (b) Orkney, (c) Shetland and (d) Western Isles, in each of the last 10 years.

Question reference: S6W-16257

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the average number of private patients per dentist has been in NHS (a) Highland, (b) Orkney, (c) Shetland and (d) Western Isles, in each of the last 10 years.

Question reference: S6W-16200

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on, or estimates it has made of, the number of people who have been employed at Liberty Steel Dalzell in each year since 2016, including 2023.

Question reference: S6W-16196

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many times its relevant department has received correspondence from Audit Scotland regarding the Lochaber Aluminium Smelter in each year since 2016, including 2023 to date.

The Scottish Government has engagement with Audit Scotland in relation to the Lochaber Guarantee and the year end accounts. The outcome of the most recent Consolidated accounts for the 2021-2022 financial year has been published in full on the Scottish Government’s website and the Auditor General has publicly commented on the findings in relation to Lochaber in December 2022 which can be accessed at this link https://www.audit-scotland.gov.uk/publications/the-202122-audit-of-the-scottish-government-consolidated-accounts .

The Auditor General has stated at page 12 of the 2021-2022 Audit that:

“I have concluded for 2021-22, the Scottish Government’s approach to setting the level of provision against the potential exposure through the guarantee is reasonable”.

Question reference: S6W-16199

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 11 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on, or estimates it has made of, the number of people who have been employed at the Lochaber Aluminium Smelter in each year since 2016, including 2023.

Question reference: S6W-16226

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 6 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-14079 by Jenny Gilruth on 6 February 2023, how many potholes were (a) reported to and (b) repaired by Transport Scotland in Skye in each month of (i) 2021 and (ii) 2022.

The following tables show how many potholes have been reported and repaired by Transport Scotland’s Operating Company, BEAR Scotland, in Skye in each month of (i) 2021 and (ii) 2022.

2021	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	June	July	Aug	Sept	Oct	Nov	Dec
Potholes Reported	14	13	15	17	10	5	8	2	6	6	4	4
Potholes Repaired	14	12	15	17	10	5	8	2	6	6	4	4

2022	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	June	July	Aug	Sept	Oct	Nov	Dec
Potholes Reported	3	8	12	10	16	9	8	4	1	7	8	11
Potholes Repaired	3	8	11	10	16	9	8	4	1	7	4	6

The number of reported potholes may differ to the number repaired within the same month. Reasons for this include delays due to severe weather, restrictions on the network, although temporary repairs will have been made, and repairs being completed the following month while still meeting the requirement to be permanently repaired within 28 days.

Question reference: S6W-16230

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 5 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what research it has undertaken on distance decay in relation to health outcomes in the Highlands and Islands, and whether it has any plans to record the impact of any such distance decay in relation to health outcomes.