Elaine Murray

9 Nov 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is aware of the Association of Dumfries and Galloway Accommodation Providers.

Answer · Patricia Ferguson: I am aware of the website runby the Association of Dumfries and Galloway Accommodation Providers (ADGAP) whichprovides a marketing service for accommodation providers and visitor attractionsin the area. While the organisation does not levy a direct charge for…

1 Nov 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether its International Development Fund is currently closed and, if so, when it will re-open.

Answer · Patricia Ferguson: The Main Grant Scheme of theInternational Development Fund (IDF) is currently closed after 24 Scottish basedcharities and non-governmental organisations were recently given awards fromthe second round of the Main Grant Scheme.</p><p>However, the Small Grants …

30 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has given any consideration to requiring table salt to be fortified with iodine.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Food Standards Agency Scotlandhas informed me that as there is no concern about the dietary intake of iodine inthe Scottish population at present, there is no reason to consider requiring table salt to be fortified with iodine as apublic health measure.</…

30 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has given any consideration to requiring all multi-nutrient fertilisers to be supplemented with sodium selenate.

Answer · Ross Finnie: We have no plans to request fertilisermanufactures to take such action.</p>

30 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any concerns about the dietary intake of iodine in the Scottish population.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Food Standards Agency Scotlandhas informed me that the average intake of iodine in Great Britainas a whole is above the current recommended intake, and that it has no concernsabout the dietary intake of iodine in the Scottish population.</p>

30 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any concerns about the dietary intake of selenium in the Scottish population.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: I am informedby the Food Standards Agency Scotland that a recent review by the Scientific AdvisoryCommittee on Nutrition (SACN) agreed that there was evidence of a decline in seleniumintake in Great Britain to below the current recommendedintake (Department o…

30 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a local authority may alter the hours of operation of a bus lane which has been part-funded by the Executive and, if so, what procedures should be used if an objection to a proposal for such an alteration is received.

Answer · Tavish Scott: The hours of operation of a buslane are regulated by a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) made by the appropriate transportauthority under powers contained in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. Fundingmatters are not directly relevant to the making of a TRO.</…

30 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the permission of a regional transport partnership or Transport Scotland is required before a local authority can alter the hours of operation of a bus lane.

Answer · Tavish Scott: The hours of operation of a buslane are regulated by a Traffic Regulation Order made by the appropriate transportauthority under powers contained in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. This wouldnormally be the local authority and the permission of the regi…

27 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the commercial sale of animals at pet fairs is banned under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Animal Health and Welfare(Scotland) Act 2006 does not ban the commercial sale of animals at pet fairs.</p>

27 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28233 by Tavish Scott on 21 September 2006, whether the discussions between Transport Scotland, Network Rail and Dumfries and Galloway Council have now concluded and when a decision is expected on further funding to enable disabled access to both pla…

Answer · Tavish Scott: Transport Scotlandofficials met with Dumfries and Galloway Council and Network Rail on 26 October 2006 todiscuss the issue of disabled access at Lockerbie station. A decision willshortly be made on the way forward.</p>

24 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether Riminyl will continue to be available under the NHS in Scotland as a treatment for patients with Alzheimer’s disease.

Answer · Andy Kerr: Galantamine (Reminyl ®) willcontinue to be recommended for treatment by the NHS of patients who have moderateto moderately severe Alzheimer’s disease.</p>

17 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether persons in receipt of (a) income support, (b) incapacity benefit and (c) disability living allowance are exempt from NHS dental charges in Scotland.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Those in receipt of incomesupport are exempt from NHS dental charges. Those in receipt of incapacitybenefit and disability living allowance are not exempt from NHS charges but maybe entitled to full or partial help under the NHS Low Income Scheme. This scheme…

9 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discretionary powers local authorities have to grant business rate relief to registered charities that run shops or cafes in connection with their charitable purposes.

Answer · Tom McCabe: Rates relief for organisationsestablished for charitable purposes is governed in Scotland by theLocal Government (Financial Provisions Etc.) (Scotland) Act 1962 as amended. Itis for each local authority to determine whether a shop or cafe is used (a) whollyor…

9 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what entitlement charities that run shops or cafes in connection with their charitable purposes have to business rate relief.

Answer · Tom McCabe: Registered charities are eligibleto receive 80% mandatory rates relief and up to 20% discretionary rates relief forrunning charity shops or cafes. It is for each local authority to determine whethera shop or cafe in their area is used (a) wholly or mainly for…

6 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it recommends that asthma sufferers be immunised against influenza.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executiverecommends that patients with asthma who require continuous or repeated use ofinhaled or systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospitaladmission should be offered seasonal influenza vaccination. This follows advicefr…

5 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider extending entitlement to free bus travel to pensioners using community minibuses, for example on day trips organised by community organisations such as the Annandale Transport Initiative.

Answer · Tavish Scott: I refer the member to the answerto question S2W-28724 on 25 October 2006. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility forwhich can be found at: <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/w…

2 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action can be taken by parents to appeal a decision by a local authority not to introduce a 20 mph speed limit outside a primary school.

Answer · Tavish Scott: There is no formal appeal mechanismin relation to 20mph speed limits outside schools. However, parents and representativescan of course raise such issues locally with their local authority and MSPs canof course initiate Parliamentary action.</p>

2 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it monitors the implementation of its policy, stated in ETLLD Circular No.1/2004, “that a 20 mph speed limit should be the norm outside schools”.

Answer · Tavish Scott: Local authorities are asked toprovide details twice yearly of the number of schools in their area which have hada 20mph speed limit implemented. By the end of June 2006, 20mph schemes were inplace at two-thirds of schools.</p>

2 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding it supplied to each local authority in (a) 2003-04, (b) 2004-05 and (c) 2005-06 to introduce 20 mph speed limits outside schools.

Answer · Tavish Scott: The information requested isgiven in the following table. The table includes additional funding for the periods2006-07 and 2007-08 made available as part of the Spending Review 2004.</p><table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3> <thead> <tr> <td width=15…

2 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive by which mechanism local authorities accessed the £27 million, made available from 2003-04 over a three-year period, to introduce 20 mph speed limits outside schools.

Answer · Tavish Scott: Grant is made available undersection 40 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 as amended by section 76 of the Transport(Scotland) Act 2001. The funds are provided to local authorities on receipt of aclaim in respect of expenditure incurred, submitted under the terms o…

2 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that a 60 mph speed limit is appropriate on a road outside a primary school which provides pupils with direct access to the school.

Answer · Tavish Scott: No, we would like to see theintroduction of a 20mph speed limit around all schools. It is, however, a matterfor each traffic authority to decide, based on their knowledge of the locations,whether or not to implement such a limit at individual schools on roads…

2 Oct 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a council tenant whose tenancy pre-dates the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 and who moved after 30 September 2002 to a property in the ownership of either the same authority or a housing association that has received housing stock through a council housing stock transfer should be co…

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: A tenant whose tenancypre-dates the <i>Housing (</i><i>Scotland</i><i>) Act 2001</i>and who has the Right to Buy retains that right for as long as they remain in thesame property<i>.</i>  </p><p>Any tenant transferring to anew tenancy on or after 30 September…

29 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any potential sources of funding to provide drystane dyking and car parking facilities at sites of historic interest.

Answer · Patricia Ferguson: Historic Scotland doesnot have specific funds to cover provision for car parking for privately owned monuments.Drystane walling repair might be assisted through the agency’s Ancient MonumentsGrants programme but only where the walls are themselves of historic…

29 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth in Westerkirk, Langholm, of the Scottish civil engineer, Thomas Telford, on 9 August 1757.

Answer · Patricia Ferguson: The anniversary of the birthof the renowned engineer Thomas Telford will be marked next year as part of Scotland’sYear of Highland Culture, which the Executive is part funding. Telford’scontribution to building roads and bridges across the Highlands andmore g…

25 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether appeals against the valuation of stock slaughtered during the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak can still be considered.

Answer · Ross Finnie: No, the time for such appealshas lapsed.</p>

25 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether all compensation for stock slaughtered during the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak has now been paid.

Answer · Ross Finnie: Arrangements are in hand forpayment of a small number of outstanding cases. These claims were submitted shortlyafter the original valuations but were held up by a review of policy by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who fund such compen…

21 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S2W-28278 and S2W-28279 by Hugh Henry on 21 September 2006, how it reconciles the Minister’s statement in the answer to the former question that because pension credit is not included in Schedule 2 of the Civil Legal Aid (Scotland) Regulations 2002 inc…

Answer · Hugh Henry: There is no inconsistency betweenthe answers to the two questions S2W-28278 and S2W-28279. The rules for assessmentof disposable income for advice and assistance and civil legal aid are different.</p><p>Question S2W-28278 related tolegal aid. Schedule 2 of th…

21 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what improvement schemes for the A701 (a) have been completed since 1999, (b) are under way or (c) are planned to commence by 2008-09 and what the actual or estimated (i) cost and (ii) commencement date is, or was, for each scheme.

Answer · Tavish Scott: No significant improvement schemeson the A701 trunk road have been completed since 1999, are currently underway orare planned to commence by 2008-09.</p><p>However, between 2001 and 2005the Scottish Executive carried out works on the route to the value of £3.…

14 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has commissioned, or is aware of, any research into the most effective methods of deterring motorists from speeding.

Answer · Tavish Scott: Considerable research hasbeen carried out into speeding and speed management. In particular, UKGovernment research has focussed on the effectiveness of speed cameras, roadhumps and other traffic calming techniques. Research published by the ScottishExecutive …

14 Sep 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive why the One Scotland councillor recruitment advertisement gives only a website address as the point of contact and whether it considers that this discriminates against individuals who do not have internet access but who might wish to find out more about becoming a councillor.

Answer · Tom McCabe: The website provides generalinformation on becoming a councillor and the new remuneration package. This information,plus specific detail about the local situation, is available from local authorities.The website was planned to be complemented by a telephone i…