Parliamentary questions
Dr Sylvia Jackson
415 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many awards of Education Maintenance Allowance were made in Stirling in 2005-06, also showing the total amount paid.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: In academic year 2005-06, a totalof 440 school and college students in Stirling received an EMA payment (370 school students and 70 collegestudents). The total amount paid to school students within Stirling was £324,250.This relates to all weekly and bonus EM…
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people not in employment, education or training there are in Stirling and what proportion of the 15 to 65-year-old population they represent.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: Table 1 shows the number of peoplenot in employment, education or training in Stirling and the proportion of the15 to 65-year-old population they represent, for which figures are available.</p><p>Table 1: Level of People Not in Employment, Education or Traini…
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many jobs there were in each standard industrial sector in Stirling in each of the last three years, also shown as a percentage of all jobs in Stirling.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: Table 1 shows the number of employeejobs in Stirling by standard industry sector for the last three yearsfor which figures are available.</p><p>Table 1: Employee Jobs by IndustrySector – Stirling</p><table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3 width=611> <thea…
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people were in employment in Stirling in each year since 1999.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: Estimates of employment are takenfrom the Labour Force Survey (LFS). Table 1 shows estimates of the level of employmentof people ages 16 and over in Stirling.</p><p>The estimates are based on asample survey, and as such, are subject to some sampling error.</p…
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding has been allocated to Stirling Council to develop and promote the planning system through online access.
Answer · Des McNulty: Based on work to date, we estimate Stirling Council will receive£91,000 worth of e-planning systems from the E-Planning Efficient Government Programme.</p>
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the claimant count (a) number and (b) unemployment rate have been in each ward of Stirling Council in the most recent month for which figures are available.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Claimant Count gives thenumber of people claiming unemployment related benefits and is produced by the Officeof National Statistics.</p><p>Table1 shows the claimant count number and the claimant count rate for each ward in Stirling in February2007.</p><p>…
16 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of employed adults in Stirling worked from home in each of the last three years.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: Table 1 shows the percentageof adults in employment who work from home in their main job in Stirling for thelast three years for which data are available.</p><p>Table 1 Percentage of peopleworking from home in Stirling, 2003-05</p><table border=1 cellspacing=…
13 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what initiatives it has put in place to improve care during pregnancy and post-natal care.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive is committedto constantly improving maternity care provision, working to the principles of the<i>Framework for Maternity Services in Scotland</i> and the report of the ExpertGroup on Maternity Services in Scotland, as well as the adopti…
13 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration has been given to providing one midwife per mother throughout labour.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive is committed to constantly improving careprovision, and the <i>Framework for Maternity Services</i> and <i>Expert Group onAcute Maternity Services</i> (EGAMS) set out clear ways for this to be achieved.The Scottish Executive fully endor…
13 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of household waste was recycled in each local authority area (a) five years ago and (b) at the most recent date for which figures are available.
Answer · Ross Finnie: The following table details the proportionof household waste recycled and composted in each local authority area. The figuresfor 2001-02 may not take account of material collected for recycling or compostingwhich may have been rejected.</p><table border=1 ce…
8 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether consideration has been given to requiring local authorities to seek the views of neighbouring local authorities when large housing developments are proposed which may impact on traffic in the neighbouring area moving to and from such developments.
Answer · Des McNulty: Article 15(1)(a) of the Townand Country Planning (General Development Procedure) (Scotland)Order 1992 already requires planning authorities to consult with “any adjoiningplanning authority, where it appears to the planning authority that thedevelopment is lik…
8 Mar 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether consideration has been given to requiring local NHS boards to be statutory consultees for planning applications concerning large housing developments to enable the impact of such developments on local health services or facilities to be taken into account.
Answer · Des McNulty: Some consideration has beengiven to whether health boards should be statutory consultees on planningapplications. But it was felt that any decision on this should be consideredfollowing the fundamental changes to the planning system as a result of thePlanning…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to improve street safety throughout Stirlingshire.
Answer · Johann Lamont: The Executive awarded £84,255to Stirling Community Safety Partnership to allow it to identify and address localcommunity safety priorities including street safety. Stirling alsobenefited from funding of £109,571 for the Safe City Centres initiatives fundedby …
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many three-year-olds in the Stirling local authority area have benefited from the implementation of the provisions on universal nursery education in the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000.
Answer · Robert Brown: Information on the number ofthree-year-olds in the Stirling local authority area that have benefited from nurseryeducation is not held centrally. The following table shows the number of registrationsfor pre-school education in Stirling of children in their an…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much Stirling Council received under the Sure Start Scotland programme in the last year for which information is available.
Answer · Robert Brown: Resources for the Sure StartScotland programme are distributed through grant aided expenditure (GAE). The GAE is not funding but simply a means of distributingthe funding within the core local government finance settlement. The GAE allocationfor Stirling Coun…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many in-patient and out-patient appointments and procedures there were in NHS Forth Valley in each year since 2000.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The information requested onthe number of in-patient and day case episodes, and new and return out-patient attendancesis shown in following table 1.</p><p>Table 1: Number ofIn-Patient and Day Case Episodes, and New and Return Out-Patient Attendances inNHS For…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many school leavers in the Stirling local authority area entered full-time higher or further education in each of the last three years for which figures are available, expressed also as a percentage of all school leavers in the area.
Answer · Hugh Henry: The figures requested are inthe following table:</p><p>Stirling:</p><table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3 width=577> <tr> <td width=77 nowrap valign=bottom> <p align=center>Year</p> </td> <td width=337 nowrap valign=bottom> <p align=center>Number (…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what dedicated funding has been made available to Stirling Council to tackle antisocial behaviour in each year since 2003.
Answer · Johann Lamont: Dedicated funding has been madeavailable to local authorities to tackle antisocial behaviour since 2004-05, followingthe introduction of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act2004. The funding made available to Stirling Council is detailed in the follow…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what funding has been made available to Stirling Council in 2006-07 for the improvement of local roads.
Answer · Tavish Scott: Stirling Council were allocated £5.132 million in 2006-07 forthe maintenance of local roads through the local government finance distributionmethodology. This allocation is, however, neither a budget nor a spending targetfor the maintenance of local roads. It…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many local authority-owned homes in the Stirling local authority area are centrally heated as a result of the Executive’s central heating programme.
Answer · Des McNulty: I have asked Angiolina Foster,Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:</p><p>Stirling Council did not participatein the central heating programme. However, during 2004-05, Stirling Council replaceda total of 15 partial h…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the home local authority areas of Scottish students studying at the University of Stirling.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The following table lists thehome domicile of students studying at the University of Stirling in academic year 2005-06. This is the latest year forwhich information is available.</p><p>Home Domicile of Students atUniversity of Stirling 2005-06</p><table borde…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what funding has been made available for the provision of affordable housing in the Stirling parliamentary constituency in each year since 2003-04.
Answer · Rhona Brankin: I have asked Angiolina Foster,Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows;</p><p>Funding for the provision ofaffordable housing in the Stirling parliamentary constituency in each year since 2003-04is detailed as follows:</p>…
27 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance can be given to companies in the Stirling parliamentary constituency to boost their businesses through the worldwide web.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: This is a matter for ScottishEnterprise who have responsibility for providing a range of e-business assistancemeasures across their area.</p><p>All companies can access ICTadvice through the Scottish Enterprise and Business Gateway websites, while one-to-onea…
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what funds have been distributed by it in the last four years with respect to flood management schemes and associated projects, broken down by local authority area.
Answer · Sarah Boyack: The following table sets outthe funds that have been distributed with respect to flood management schemes, brokendown by local authority area, for the current and last three financial years. Thereare no projects associated with the flood management schemes be…
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the claimant count (a) number and (b) unemployment rate have been in each ward of Stirling Council in the most recent month for which figures are available.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Claimant Count gives thenumber of people claiming unemployment related benefits and is produced by the Officeof National Statistics. The following table shows the claimant count number andthe claimant count rate for each ward in Stirling in January 2007. …
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how successful Scottish Enterprise has been in attracting inward investment and new international companies to the Stirling local authority area.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: In the five years to March 2006,Scottish Development International and its partners helped attract six projectsto Stirling local authority area involving planned investment of£39.709 million and the planned creation or safeguarding of 990 jobs.</p><p>Scottish…
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the participation rate of young people in the Stirling local authority area has been in taking up new apprenticeships in each of the last three years and what action will be taken to deliver more places and encourage more young people to enter apprenticeships.
Answer · Allan Wilson: The number of modernapprentices (MAs) broken down geographical area and by year is an operational matterfor Scottish Enterprise. This information is not held centrally.</p><p>However, Scottish Enterprisehave published these figures for 2005 and are in the pub…
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the causes of homelessness and reduce the prevalence of homeless households in the Stirling local authority area.
Answer · Rhona Brankin: The prevention or alleviationof homelessness, is a responsibility of Stirling Council. Stirling Council’s homelessnessstrategy outlines the action being taken by the council to prevent homelessnessand to alleviate the problems caused by homelessness. Stirling…
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to assist small businesses in the Stirling local authority area to employ more staff.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive is stronglycommitted to the start up and growth of small businesses – in Stirling and throughoutScotland. Support for the sector is mainly a matter for the Enterprise Network, althoughdirect support from the Executive includes Regional …
26 Feb 2007 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many small business start-ups there were in the Stirling local authority area in the last three years and how this number and the rate of business start-ups in the area compare with the average across Scotland.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: Data on the number of VATregistrations and de-registrations are releasedannually by the Small Business Service, an agency of the Department for Tradeand Industry. These figures are used to monitor the number of businessstart-ups and closures; they are not ava…