Questions and answers

Question reference: S4W-28357

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any increased demand for services from carers, and consequent increase in cost, as a result of the Carers (Scotland) Bill.

Question reference: S4W-28356

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether the estimated £16 million a year cost of replacement care will come from the existing financial envelope for the Carers (Scotland) Bill and, if so, how much is left in the budget for each year.

The estimated cost of replacement care meeting the carer's identified needs is a maximum of £16 million. Our expectation is that the cost of replacement care will be significantly less than £16 million and that there should be sufficient flexibility within the existing financial envelope for the Carers Bill arising from the unit cost and demand assumptions set out in the Financial Memorandum to cover such costs. The financial envelope will be monitored.

The total maximum resource envelope as set out in the Financial Memorandum, at over £19 million in 2017-18 rising to over £88 million in 2021-22, and thereafter on a recurring basis, is significant and expected to be sufficient to cover the existing costs set out in the Financial Memorandum as well as replacement care.

Question reference: S4W-28358

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether the estimated cost of waiving care charges for support provided under section 22 of the Carers (Scotland) Bill applies to existing services.

The Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013, which came into force in April 2014, introduced a discretionary power for local authorities to support carers. Prior to April 2014, if local authorities supported carers they either did not charge carers for support or sought a minimal contribution towards the support. Most support in the form of respite care is for the cared-for person agreed through the community care assessment rather than through the carer's assessment. It is therefore subject to local authorities' usual charging policies. The resourcing for the waiving of charges of a maximum of £16 million will come into effect when the Carers Bill is commenced in 2017-18.

Question reference: S4W-28359

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what the estimated cost is for each year of waiving care charges for support provided under section 22 of the Carers (Scotland) Bill.

Question reference: S4W-28360

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 November 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 19 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will put transitional financial arrangements to cover any gap between the end of the carer information strategies funding and the commencement of funding from the Carers (Scotland) Bill.

Question reference: S4F-03078

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 November 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2015

To ask the First Minister what discussions the Scottish Government has had with the UK Government regarding using the new welfare top-up powers that are being devolved.

Question reference: S4W-28210

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 30 October 2015
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 13 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment made at point 11.22 of the Scottish Ministerial Code, when it will publish on a quarterly basis the list of gifts received by ministers.

Question reference: S4W-27888

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 October 2015
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 3 November 2015

To ask the Scottish Government when the Ministerial Advisory Group on Child Poverty last met, and what meetings are scheduled for the remainder of 2015-16.

The Ministerial Advisory Group on Child Poverty met with officials on 15 September 2015, and discussed a number of issues related to child poverty in Scotland, including the future approach to tackling child poverty in Scotland in light of the changes being proposed by the UK Government to the Child Poverty Act 2010.

The Scottish Government has requested amendments to the proposed legislation. As soon as possible after those amendments are finalised, the advisory group will meet again to discuss next steps.

Question reference: S4F-03036

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 November 2015

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will provide assistance to families who lose tax credits as a result of the UK Government's proposals.

Question reference: S4W-27054

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 10 August 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 28 October 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many onshore wind projects are awaiting approval by ministers; what the name is of each project; when it was submitted for approval, and how much electricity it is expected to generate.

At present there are no onshore wind projects awaiting approval by ministers. There are currently 42 live wind farm applications with the Local Energy and Consents Department which may be submitted for determination under Section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 following consultation and robust assessment of the proposals. All relevant cases are submitted to the minister for determination rather than for approval. Each application is taken on its own merits and there is a commitment to ensuring the right developments in the right place.

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