Questions and answers

Chamber and committees

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 ��˿�� 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: S4W-15432

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 31 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to an independent Scotland, what its position is on applying VAT to (a) food and (b) children’s clothing as suggested in Dimensions of Tax Design: The Mirrlees Review.

Question reference: S4W-15423

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 31 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Fiscal Commission Working Group’s meeting on 28 May 2013 included consideration of the extension of VAT to food and children’s clothing.

Question reference: S4W-15429

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 31 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact on its poverty indicators of an independent Scotland applying VAT to (a) food and (b) children’s clothing.

Question reference: S4W-15436

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 31 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether, in relation to an independent Scotland, it has a position on the statement in Dimensions of Tax Design: The Mirrlees Review that “we should work towards a comprehensive system of congestion charging on the roads, replacing most of fuel duty”.

Question reference: S4W-15424

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 31 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether ministers have instructed the Fiscal Commission Working Group to rule out consideration of the recommendation in Dimensions of Tax Design: The Mirrlees Review to extend VAT to food and children’s clothing.

Question reference: S4W-15428

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 31 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the cost to an average family of an independent Scotland applying VAT to (a) food and (b) children’s clothing.

Question reference: S4W-15479

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 June 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will update the £384.7 million figure for a loss in revenues caused by a 3% reduction in corporation tax shown at table 2 of appendix A of its paper, The Impact of a Reduction in Corporation Tax on the Scottish Economy.

The following answer was corrected on 25 June 2013

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The paper referred to in the question outlines the impacts of a policy equivalent to a 3 percentage point reduction in the main rate of corporation tax from 23 per cent.

The £384.7 million figure referred to in the question is an estimate of a direct static change in corporation tax revenues and does not take into account the indirect impacts of the policy such as the broadening of the tax base. As outlined in the paper, such dynamic effects are estimated to be significant, with the additional economic activity generated by the policy estimated to create 27,000 jobs and boost GDP by 1.4% after 20 years.

Question reference: S4W-15478

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 June 2013
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 12 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what the impact on its revenues would be of a 3% reduction in corporation tax, and whether it will publish this information in the same format and over the same time period shown for capital stock and GDP in its paper, The Impact of a Reduction in Corporation Tax on the Scottish Economy.

Question reference: S4F-01458

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 10 June 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 June 2013

To ask the First Minister what issues will be discussed at the next meeting of the Cabinet.

Question reference: S4W-15188

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether the reported statement by the Minister for External Affairs and International Development at the Doha Forum on 21 May 2013 that “even at the moment, the United Kingdom Government is wanting the UK to leave the European Union” reflects the Scottish Government's understanding of the policy of the UK Government and what it considers the impact is of this statement on Scotland's international reputation, given that it is not the UK Government’s position.

The Scottish Government’s policy is that Scotland should remain part of the European Union, given the benefits of free movement and access to a single market covering more than 500 million fellow European citizens and around 20 million businesses. That position will be best secured as an independent member of the EU, given the proposal by the Prime Minister to hold an in-out referendum on the UK’s continued membership and the stated position of senior UK Government cabinet ministers that they would vote in that referendum to leave the EU.

In terms of Scotland’s international reputation, Scottish Ministers believe our nation’s standing will be massively enhanced by independence, allowing us to speak with our own voice and properly represent the interests of the people of Scotland on the European and wider international stage.