Monday 14 January 2019

SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT

Economy

Alex Neil (Airdrie and Shotts) (): To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of 150 jobs being at risk at Healthcare Environmental Services Ltd in Shotts, what action (a) it and (b) its agencies will take to protect these, and whether it will carry out an urgent review of the (i) reasons for the business being in this position and (ii) impact on the business of actions by the UK Environment Agency and Cabinet Office, SEPA and other government agencies. Holding answer issued: 10 January 2019 (S5W-20617) Jeane Freeman: A holding answer was provided.

Bill Kidd (Glasgow Anniesland) (Scottish National Party): To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to protect the Scottish wildcat population that is living in the wild. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20634) Roseanna Cunningham: A holding answer was provided.

Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (): To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the outsourcing of the Construction Industry Training Board's construction training and other functions. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20638) Jamie Hepburn: A holding answer was provided.

Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government when it has met the Construction Industry Training Board since January 2017. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20639) Jamie Hepburn: A holding answer was provided.

Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government what representations it has made regarding the potential closure of the Construction Industry Training Board facility at Inchinnan. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20640) Jamie Hepburn: A holding answer was provided.

Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the construction industry trades unions regarding the potential closure of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) facility at Inchinnan and the outsourcing of CITB construction training and other functions. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20641) Jamie Hepburn: A holding answer was provided.

Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government whether it supports the outsourcing of the Construction Industry Training Board's (CITB) construction training and other functions, and the potential closure of the CITB facility at Inchinnan. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20642) Jamie Hepburn: A holding answer was provided.

Education, Communities and Justice

Liam McArthur (Orkney Islands) (Scottish Liberal Democrats): To ask the Scottish Government where the female custodial estate will be housed by the end of the current parliamentary session, broken down by (a) institution and (b) respective capacity. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20629) Humza Yousaf: A holding answer was provided.

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-20072 by Kate Forbes on 7 December 2018, whether it will confirm on what dates the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Economy and Fair Work has met the leader of the City of Edinburgh Council since January 2018, and on which occasions the funding of the local authority was discussed. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20630) Kate Forbes: A holding answer was provided. Health and Social Care

Kezia Dugdale (Lothian) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government what action it plans to take to encourage more retailers to introduce "quiet hour" shopping facilities in order to support customers who find music and other shopping noise challenging. Holding answer issued: 10 January 2019 (S5W-20605) Clare Haughey: A holding answer was provided.

Kezia Dugdale (Lothian) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) retailers or their representatives and (b) autism or hearing impairment charities regarding the introduction of quiet hours in shops. Holding answer issued: 10 January 2019 (S5W-20606) Clare Haughey: A holding answer was provided.

Anas Sarwar (Glasgow) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will publish its endoscopy action plan, which it announced on 25 June 2018 in its news release, Action on diagnostics. (S5W-20615) Jeane Freeman: Our Waiting Times Improvement Plan was launched in October and will be overseen by a new Operational Programme Board. The plan aims to improve waiting times performance across all NHS Boards for cancer, diagnostics, outpatient appointments and day case procedures. The Endoscopy Action Plan is central to this and activity and outputs will be monitored via the Operational Programme Board. The Scottish Government Endoscopy Action Plan will be published in February 2019.

Organisational Development and Operations

Alison (Lothian) (Scottish Green Party): To ask the Scottish Government how many of its staff hours each week are being used to develop policy on the proposed income supplement. (S5W-20682) Aileen Campbell: Information on the number of staff hours per week being used to develop policy on the income supplement is not available. This will differ in teams across the organisation who contribute to the policy and is dependent on individual working patterns. Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Scottish Green Party): To ask the Scottish Government how much it has budgeted for policy development of the proposed income supplement. (S5W-20683) Aileen Campbell: The proposed budget for Social Security Advice, Policy & Programme within the Social Security and Older People Portfolio is £77.832 million in 2019-20. This budget includes funding for supporting the development of the income supplement.

Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Scottish Green Party): To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings ministers and/or its officials have had with external groups at which the main topic of discussion was the proposed income supplement. (S5W-20684) Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government has committed to working closely with stakeholders on the development of the income supplement, to consider how the income supplement can best target support where it can have the greatest impact.

Since taking up post in July 2018, myself and Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People have met a range of organisations to discuss issues of importance in their portfolios, including the income supplement for which joint responsibility is held.

Officials have also held introductory meetings with a range of stakeholders with a key interest in the income supplement. To date, such meetings have been held with: Child Poverty Action Group; Poverty Alliance; Joseph Rowntree Foundation; Institute for Public Policy Research; One Parent Families Scotland; Save the Children; Oxfam; and, A Menu for Change.

Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Scottish Green Party): To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to maximise awareness and take-up of the proposed income supplement. (S5W-20686) Aileen Campbell: The Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 places a duty on Scottish Ministers to promote take- to the assistance individuals are eligible to be given through the Scottish social security system, and to publish a strategy to promote take-up.

This section of the Act was commenced on 22 October 2018 with the Act requiring that a strategy is published within one year of this date. In developing the strategy we will consider how best to ensure people receive the information and advice required to access the assistance they are eligible for, and to ensure take-up of assistance is maximised.

We will also give due consideration to the advice of the Poverty and Inequality Commission who advised, among a range of issues, that the development of the income supplement should give consider potential take-up rates.

Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Scottish Green Party): To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its duties under section 9 (4) of the Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017, what consideration it has given to topping up Child Benefit. (S5W-20687) Aileen Campbell: The Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan , published in March 2018, commits the Scottish Government to work towards introducing a new income supplement, to provide additional financial support to low income families.

In developing the income supplement we will take forward an appraisal of all potential options, and the feasibility of each of these. This will include the Poverty and Inequality Commission’s advice in relation to topping up Universal Credit (UC) and the feasibility of what Social Security Scotland could deliver. Delivery models will be based on the most effective way to target families in poverty and the most effective use of resources.

An update on this work will be included as part of the first update report on the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan which will be provide to Parliament by June 2019.

Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Scottish Green Party): To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made or plans to make of the cost of means-testing an income supplement. (S5W-20689) Aileen Campbell: As the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan states, the Scottish Government will consider a range of options to ensure that the income supplement lifts the maximum number of children out of poverty.

In developing the income supplement we will take forward an appraisal of all potential options, and the feasibility of each of these. As part of that we will give consideration to the advice of the Poverty and Inequality Commission, who advised that costings should be taken into account alongside issues such as complexity of delivery, potential take up rates, income security and potential disincentives to move into work or increase earnings, as well as the likely impact and the extent to which it helps meet our statutory child poverty targets.

Decisions on a delivery model will be based on the most effective way to target families in poverty and the most effective use of resources. An update on this work will be included as part of the first update report on the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan which will be provide to Parliament by June 2019.

Neil Findlay (Lothian) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take against companies that have received grants and loans from it and its agencies but which fail to fulfil the terms of the grant or loan. (S5W-20794) Jamie Hepburn: Grants and loans entered into by Scottish Ministers and any public body subject to the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM) are subject to the principles set out in the manual and have appropriate terms and conditions applied to protect public resources.

Scottish Ministers also make clear provision for recovery of funds if an organisation in receipt of grant funding disposes of assets acquired or developed with the aid of that funding in accordance with conditions attached to the grant. In the case of loans and grants if circumstances meant that the company was in administration, or some other factor meant that it was not able to pay back the amount, the Government would fall into line in the same way as any other creditor.

Transport Scotland

Colin Smyth (South Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government for what reason Support for Bus Services, as set out at Table 10.06 of its draft Budget, proposes a fall from £64.2 million in 2018-19 to £57.2 million in 2019-20. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20635) Michael Matheson: A holding answer was provided.

Colin Smyth (South Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government who carries out the maintenance of the ScotRail fleet, broken down by location. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20636) Michael Matheson: A holding answer was provided. Colin Smyth (South Scotland) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government how much of the Green Bus Loan Fund has been used; how it was used, and what the terms of the loans have been. Holding answer issued: 14 January 2019 (S5W-20637) Michael Matheson: A holding answer was provided.