Asked by: Tommy Sheppard (Scottish National Party - Edinburgh East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what proportion of SCS2 civil servants on full-time equivalent contracts in his Department are women.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
The Scotland Office has only one SCS2 post which is not currently held by a woman.
Asked by: Douglas Chapman (Scottish National Party - Dunfermline and West Fife)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs on his Department's provision of support for Scottish Ministers on planned overseas visits to promote the Scottish (a) economy and (b) culture.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
I have had frequent recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs on his Department's provision of support for Scottish Ministers on planned overseas visits. I fully agree with the FCDO's current guidance which states that, when ministers from the devolved administrations are holding meetings with ministers from overseas governments (or positions of equivalent seniority e.g. EU Commissioner), a senior UK Government official is expected to attend.
Asked by: Jamie Stone (Liberal Democrat - Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support the whisky industry.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
I am in regular contact with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues of importance to Scotland’s whisky industry.
Scotland’s whisky industry continues to go from strength to strength at home and abroad, and Scotch whisky is the UK’s premier food and drink export. I want Scottish producers to take full advantage of the new trade deals the UK Government is striking around the world.
In this vein, earlier this month I visited Vietnam, a key growth market for Scotch whisky, where along with representatives from the Scotch Whisky Association, I hosted a whisky reception for key business leaders in Hanoi.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) the Scottish Government or (b) representatives instructed to act on behalf of the Scottish Government on the role of the Lord Advocate and potential changes to the Scotland Act.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
I have had no discussions with either the Scottish Government or representatives acting on behalf of the Scottish Government in regards to the role of Lord Advocate and potential changes to the Scotland Act.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much their Department spent on equality and diversity training in the 2022-2023 financial year.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
The Scotland Office did not spend anything on equality and diversity training in the 2022-2023 financial year.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much the Boundary Commission for Scotland spent on equality and diversity training in the 2022-23 financial year.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
The Boundary Commission of Scotland has responsibility for its staff, who are employed by the Scottish Government and assigned to the Commission, within the terms of Scottish Government policies and processes. Training for staff is accessed through the Scottish Government, including on diversity and equality. Boundary Commission for Scotland therefore incurred no expenditure on such training in the 2022-23 financial year.
Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, on how many occasions (a) he and (b) the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland visited a (i) Government Hub and (ii) ministerial office outside London in (A) 2022 and (B) 2023.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
The information requested is not centrally collated and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the UK's withdrawal from the EU on trends in the level of Scottish (a) imports and (b) exports.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs’ regional trade statistics show that in the year ending March 2023, the overall value of UK trade in goods increased by 18% for exports and by 24% for imports, compared with the previous year.
Compared with the year ending March 2022, Scotland’s goods exports to EU countries were worth £22bn (up £4.3bn, or 24%) in March 2023, whilst Scotland’s goods imports from EU countries were worth £12bn (up £3.3bn, or 38%) in March 2023, resulting in a surplus of £10bn.
Since the fourth quarter of 2020, the value of EU exports from Scotland has consistently exceeded the value of non-EU exports.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) has been found within their Department's estate.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
For now, the focus is on bringing together the information we hold about the Government estate into one place. This work is being coordinated by the Office for Government Property. Survey work is underway.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what has been the average time taken to respond to public inquiries by his Department in each of the last five years; and whether he plans to introduce measures to improve this.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
The Scotland Office has not held policy responsibility for any public inquiries for the past 5 years.