Irene Oldfather

9 Jan 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to lay before the Parliament the revised Small Claims (Scotland) Amendment Order and the revised Sheriff Court (Scotland) Act 1971 (Private Jurisdiction and Summary Cause) Order and what its timetable is for these Orders from laying to implementation.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive have not yet fixed a date for the laying of these Orders before the Parliament. It would be premature to indicate a timetable for implementation at this stage. The Orders will be re-laid for debate by the Justice and Home Affairs Commit…

21 Dec 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what new steps are being taken to assist industrial museums.

Answer · Sam Galbraith: The National Cultural Strategy announced that we would support an audit of all museums and their collections, buildings and other resources with the aim of identifying their relative importance in national and local terms; and that priority in the audit would…

5 Dec 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what contact it has had with management, unions and other agencies regarding planned redundancies at Fullarton Computer Industries plants in North Ayrshire.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: The Executive and its agencies have been in close contact with Fullarton's management, and have discussed the current position with local union representatives and the STUC.<FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE=2><P>Assistance will be made available to those affected by re…

4 Dec 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to secure a buyer for Adam Cunningham & Son.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: KPMG have been appointed as receivers to Adam Cunningham &amp; Son and are pursuing the best way forward for the business.<P>The Executive and local agencies are in contact with the company and have offered their assistance with this process.

4 Dec 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to secure a buyer for the Seagate Distribution plant, Irvine and, what action it is taking regarding the planned redundancies there.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: Officials are working very closely with Seagate Distribution (UK) in an attempt to secure a buyer for its Irvine operation.<FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE=2><P>Local agencies have been made aware of the possibility of redundancies at the facility. Assistance will be …

29 Nov 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it plans to take to deal with any difficulties or inequalities in the law on march fence type boundary walls as identified in page nine of the Consultation Paper on Mutual Boundary Walls issued by the Scottish Law Commission in 1992.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Commission published a report on this subject on 25 March 1998, which recommended that it was not necessary to introduce legislation either to reform or restate the existing law on boundary walls. The Executive supports this view and does not plan to take…

29 Nov 2000 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to reduce unemployment in North Ayrshire.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: We will continue to work with all local agencies to encourage business development and to ensure that the Ayrshire workforce has the necessary skills to suit labour market requirements within the area.

7 Sep 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to encourage the use of deposits on food and drink containers in order to prevent litter.

Answer · Sarah Boyack: The Executive would be supportive of any initiatives aimed at reducing the amount of litter and waste, particularly those sponsored by the industries which use packaging themselves.

4 Sep 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in future editions of the Statistical Bulletin - Criminal Justice Series, it will break down any statistics relating to the Strathclyde police force area on a divisional basis.

Answer · Jim Wallace: All statistical bulletins in the Criminal Justice Series except those relating to motor vehicle offences and offences involving firearms include information at the lowest level of geographic detail collected centrally. The lowest level of geographic detail at…

4 Sep 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to give local authorities powers to cleanse litter on private land when it does not constitute an environmental health ha'ard.

Answer · Sarah Boyack: Section 90 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 allows local authorities to designate certain categories of land not in public ownership as litter control areas. They may do so if they are of the opinion that the presence of litter or refuse on the land i…

4 Sep 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to review eligibility to free prescriptions, particularly for those suffering from long-term illness.

Answer · Susan Deacon: We have no current plans to do so.

24 Aug 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken to find an occupant for the former site of the Volvo bus and truck manufacturing plant in Irvine since its closure.

Answer · Henry McLeish: Officials from the Executive, Locate in Scotland, Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire and North Ayrshire Council continue to work together to identify future options for the Volvo site at Irvine. Consultants have been appointed to work up a master plan for the site …

24 Aug 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to retain undergraduate orthoptic degree courses.

Answer · Susan Deacon: I have invited a number of universities in Scotland (including Glasgow Caledonian University, where orthoptic education finished this summer) to consider launching a course in orthoptics from within the normal Scottish Higher Education Funding Council (SHEFC)…

21 Jun 2000 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has for a national cervical screening system.

Answer · Susan Deacon: I announced on 6 June my approval for the development of a single national cervical screening call/recall system for Scotland. A working group, Chaired by Trevor Jones, General Manager of Lothian Health Board, is developing a full business specification and t…

31 May 2000 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to enable those from disadvantaged areas to gain entry to higher education.

Answer · Henry McLeish: Measures such as the £50 million student support package recently announced, fee waivers and loans for the most disadvantaged part-time students and the funding of an additional 2,000 places in higher education institutions by 2002 should provide real help to…

17 May 2000 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to reduce unemployment in North Ayrshire.

Answer · Henry McLeish: The Scottish Executive is very conscious of the particular problems of areas such as North Ayrshire and we shall seek to ensure, through investing in jobs and skills, fostering enterprise and encouraging the growth of new businesses, that we create sustainabl…

31 Mar 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the publication of its Strategy for Carers on 24 November 1999, what steps have been taken to improve the lives of carers in Scotland.

Answer · Iain Gray: Since launching our Strategy for Carers in Scotland, we have been working closely with carers' organisations and local authority representatives on implementing key measures set out in the Strategy. Authorities now have their share of the £10 million ear-mark…

31 Mar 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of any plans it has to provide extra funding for methods of anxiety control, other than dental general anaesthesia, for dental patients.

Answer · Susan Deacon: The main alternative means of treating dentally-anxious patients is sedation. The Scottish Council for Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education runs courses on sedation for general dental practitioners. The number of courses provided depends on demand and th…

31 Mar 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to remove dental general anaesthesia from the list of treatments available under general dental services or to transfer the administering of dental general anaesthesia to specialist centres.

Answer · Susan Deacon: I have asked my officials to work with clinicians to phase out the use of general anaesthesia in NHS general dental practice as soon as practicable. Such services will be transferred to acute hospital centres but I also hope that there will be a continuing re…

15 Mar 2000 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken to encourage the provision of childcare in Scotland.

Answer · Peter Peacock: We are investing over £432 million over three years in the Childcare Strategy and pre-school education. This will help provide good quality, affordable childcare in every neighbourhood. A further £42 million is also available for Sure Start Scotland to suppor…

2 Mar 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to claw back any grant assistance paid to Volvo in support of its Irvine plant, should the plant close in June.

Answer · Henry McLeish: I refer to my answer to question S1W-4873.

2 Mar 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what grant assistance, in the form of Regional Selective Assistance or other grant aid monies, has been paid to Volvo in support of its Irvine plant.

Answer · Henry McLeish: Central records are not maintained of all grant schemes which Volvo may have been eligible to apply for. However, the principal form of government grant assistance made available to industry is Regional Selective Assistance. In 1994 Volvo was offered Regional…

16 Feb 2000 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to announce the results of the "Make Our Communities Safer" challenge competition.

Answer · Angus MacKay: Applications submitted for CCTV and community safety projects under the "Make Our Communities Safer" Challenge Competition are being evaluated. We hope to be able to announce the results shortly.

4 Nov 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will estimate the amount saved on prescription fraud since patients were required to provide evidence of entitlement to exemption from prescription charges in January 1998.

Answer · Susan Deacon: Checks of entitlement to free prescriptions (point of dispensing checks) were introduced as a deterrent to fraud against the NHS. Patients have been asked by community pharmacists to provide proof of entitlement since January 1999, and by dispensing doctors s…

29 Oct 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take to reduce the incidence of prostate cancer in men and to promote good practice in this area.

Answer · Susan Deacon: There is no conclusive evidence of specific actions which if taken would lead to a reduction in the incidence of prostate cancer, although some evidence suggests that a low fat, high fruit and vegetable diet with reduced red meat consumption <I>may</I> reduce…

29 Oct 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to improve the treatment of heart disease among women.

Answer · Susan Deacon: It is a fundamental policy of the Scottish Executive that treatment in the NHS in Scotland should be based on clinical need.<P ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The CHD Task Force has been looking at issues related to equity of access to cardiac services. It is generally accep…

20 Oct 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to introduce a formal system for accrediting quality work experience activities and to relate such a system to University and College Admissions Service points.

Answer · Henry McLeish: The tariff used by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) to assign points to entry qualifications for use by higher education institutions is a matter for UCAS itself. The level and type of qualifications required for admission to courses is…

8 Oct 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is taking steps to assist householders, particularly those on a low income, who wish to replace or repair domestic drinking water systems contaminated by lead solder.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: Assistance for households in such circumstances falls within the scope of the improvement and repairs grant scheme which is administered by local authorities. Grant may be paid in respect of works to private houses more than 10 years old. It is subject to a t…

8 Oct 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is taking steps to assist householders, particularly those on a low income, who wish to test their domestic drinking water systems to ensure that they are free from lead contamination.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: I refer Ms&nbsp;Oldfather to the reply given to Question SW1-1968.

8 Oct 1999 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is taking steps to evaluate how widespread the use of lead solder within domestic drinking water is.

Answer · Susan Deacon: Yes. A survey is being arranged to establish whether the use of lead solder in cold water plumbing is widespread in houses recently completed in Scotland.