The short answer is ...

One of the most annoying things about listening to broadcasts of questions to ministers in the House of Commons is the way in which a simple question is often responded to with a long and rambling answer which bares no relation, whatsoever, to the question being asked.

I am glad to see that the Scottish Parliament is bucking this trend and giving answers that are short and to the point:

Ms (Annabell) Goldie had asked the government how many drug finds there had been in each Scottish prison over the last five years, broken down by type.

The answer - issued in the name of Enterprise Minister Jim Mather and not the justice department - simply stated: "Blah."