Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-20159

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 3 December 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recommendation by Audit Scotland, whether its digital infrastructure board will have an overall strategy in place by summer 2019.

We published our digital strategy - Realising Scotland's full potential in a digital world - last year. This sets out our vision for Scotland as a vibrant, inclusive, open and outward looking digital nation, and sets the context for our digital investment programmes.

We will continue to monitor commercial delivery of superfast broadband in the context of the R100 programme and the detail of the associated roll-out will become clear when contractors are appointed in the first half of 2019. However, given the reserved nature of telecoms, the Scottish Government does not have the powers to co-ordinate or oversee wider commercial activity, albeit we maintain good communications with commercial operators regarding their own investment plans.

We remain committed to working with the UK Government, Ofcom and wider industry to ensure that future public investment in digital connectivity, working alongside regulation, is targeted where it is most needed.

Question reference: S5W-20160

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 3 December 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking as part of its R100 scheme to co-ordinate with commercial suppliers to ensure that there is no overlap and that 100% coverage is reached.

The R100 Open Market Review took place between November 2016 and January 2017 to identify those premises that did not have access to superfast broadband at the time, and those for which there were no commercial delivery plans over the following three year period. This is a necessary precursor to public sector investment in broadband infrastructure and ensures that we do not overbuild commercial suppliers.

This information was used to form the basis of a draft ‘intervention area’, which was subsequently tested through a State Aid Public Consultation in June 2017. In choosing to exclude urban premises from the main procurement, we have placed the onus for delivering solutions in these areas onto commercial suppliers. I have been encouraged by discussions with the suppliers around their plans for doing so with recent announcements of investment by CityFibre being one such example of progress outwith the R100 intervention area.

Question reference: S5W-20074

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 3 December 2018

To ask the Scottish Government whether any adjustments have been made to the conditions in which MV Loch Seaforth is insured to sail.

Question reference: S5W-19968

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 16 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 28 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-19398 by Mairi Gougeon on 14 November 2018, for what reason this decision was made in relation to prong collars but not citronella collars, and whether it plans to seek expert advice on the impact of prong collars on animal welfare.

Citronella collars are one of the many different types of electronic training aid and their use was consulted on as part of the Scottish Government’s consultation on potential controls or prohibition of electronic training aids in Scotland. These electronic collars use sprayed citronella oil as the aversive stimulus. The results of the consultation highlighted a number of potential welfare concerns, not least due to the lingering nature of the oil and the prolonged harm this can cause, which brings into doubt its usefulness as a stimulus for use in dog training.

There are no plans to consult on the use of prong collars or any other non-electronic training aids. However, the use of all aversive training aids is covered by the Scottish Government Guidance on Dog Training Aids, regardless of whether they are specifically mentioned.

Question reference: S5W-19656

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 October 2018
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 27 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the decision by the UK Government to ban the use of electric shock collars in England via secondary legislation.

We understand that following consultation the UK Government now proposes to bring forward secondary legislation under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to ban the use of hand-held remote controlled e-collar devices for dogs and cats. The UK Government does not propose to ban the use of anti-bark collars and invisible fencing containment systems; however, it does propose to update relevant codes of practice in relation to invisible fencing containment systems for cats and dogs to emphasize that these should be installed by professionals, that appropriate training should be provided, and that these should be used as a last resort. This is an alternative approach to a complex issue; we will consider the outcome and impact of this approach with interest in due course.

Question reference: S5W-19661

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 October 2018
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 27 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it is providing (a) electric shock collar trainers and (b) other stakeholders regarding whether they can continue to train dogs with electric shock collars.

Question reference: S5F-02834

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 26 November 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 November 2018

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reports that ScotRail has failed to fully deliver 29 franchise obligations.

Question reference: S5W-19801

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 20 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many Transport Scotland maintained bridges have been identified as being in need of repairs.

Question reference: S5W-19804

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 20 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many Transport Scotland maintained bridges are currently out of use as a result of needing repairs, and how many have been out of use in each of the last five years for this reason.

Question reference: S5W-19803

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2018
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 20 November 2018

To ask the Scottish Government when it estimates the backlog of repairs to Transport Scotland maintained bridges will be completed.

We are unable to determine an accurate estimate for the time to clear the current bridge maintenance backlog because the calculation is dependent on a number of unknown variables, such as future funding levels, deterioration rates and network availability. We will continue to use well-developed asset management practices to ensure the areas of most need are prioritised to keep the trunk road network safe and available for use.

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