Parliamentary questions
Ms Wendy Alexander
505 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the 4,000 jobs planned to be created or safeguarded through Regional Selective Assistance have been, or will be, located in the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer · Iain Gray: Following the publication of <I>Regional Selective Assistance - Grant offers accepted April - September 2002</I>, which detailed the planned creation or safeguarding of over 4,000 jobs in Scotland, I can confirm that 997 of these planned jobs are expected to …
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #48 million to build and renovate health centres has been, or will be, allocated to Argyll and Clyde NHS Board and what projects the funds will be used for.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive has so far allocated £5,766,000 to support 17 projects in the Argyll and Clyde NHS Board area from the Primary Care Premises Modernisation Programme. A list of the projects concerned has been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre …
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the 350 one-stop clinics are located in the Renfrewshire Council area; where such clinics are located, and what services they offer.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Information on one-stop clinics operated by NHSScotland is not available in the specific format requested.<P>NHS Argyll and Clyde currently operates 29 one-stop clinics where patients receive consultation, diagnostic tests, results, and if appropriate treatme…
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of additional #3.2 billion to be spent on health by 2007-08 as a result of the UK Budget 2002 will be allocated to the Argyll and Clyde NHS Board and what instructions will be issued about the use of these funds.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Argyll and Clyde NHS Board has been given an indicative increase in unified budget for 2003-04 of £30.115 million. Boards will be notified of actual unified budgets for 2003-04 soon. Decisions on indicative allocation increases to unified budgets for future y…
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #25 million for free local off-peak bus travel for elderly and disabled concessionary card holders has been allocated to the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Renfrewshire's share of these resources is part of its unhypothecated general block grant allocation and is not identified separately. It is for the council to establish its actual level of expenditure on individual services.
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how the #4 billion additional spending on public services up to 2005-06 as a result of the UK spending review has been, or will be, allocated and how much has been, or will be, allocated to the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer · Andy Kerr: Every area of Scotland will benefit for our plans for investing in Scotland over the next three years, as our budget rises to over £25 billion by 2005-06. As I have made clear, this investment will be matched by delivery on our priority targets - bringing bet…
22 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to ensure that people in the Renfrewshire Council area that are eligible to receive free personal and nursing care receive that care.
Answer · Frank McAveety: Provisions of the Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002 together with regulations made by Scottish ministers provide the legislative basis for the delivery of free personal and nursing care. Renfrewshire Council has indicated they are meeting the regu…
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #108 million over three years for higher education has been, or will be, given to the Renfrewshire Council area and how the University of Paisley will use any such funds.
Answer · Iain Gray: The allocation of this funding is a matter for the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council. Details of the full amounts offered to the University of Paisley have been provided to the member in the answer given to question S1W-31837 today. All answers to wri…
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much the Scottish Further Education Funding Council allocated to the (a) Reid Kerr Further Education College and (b) University of Paisley in each year since 1996.
Answer · Iain Gray: (a) The Scottish Further Education Funding Council has been responsible for allocating funds to further education colleges since 1 July 1999, when it took over that responsibility from the Scottish Office Education and Industry Department. The initial annual …
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #100 million over four years in the Health Improvement Fund will be allocated to Argyll and Clyde NHS Board and on what projects any such funds will be used.
Answer · Mary Mulligan: Argyll and Clyde NHS Board will receive £5.324 million from the Health Improvement Fund for the period 2000-01 to 2003-04. Full details about how the board is utilising its share of the fund are given in the 2001 Investment Report <I>Putting the Pieces in Pla…
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #17.1 million allocated for mental health services will be given to Argyll and Clyde NHS Board and what instructions the Executive has issued about the use of such funds.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: No instructions have yet been issued about the allocation of the resources estimated to be required for the Mental Health (Scotland) Bill currently before the Parliament, if that is the context of this question. The Financial Memorandum accompanying the bill …
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #250 million for free personal and nursing care was allocated to Renfrewshire Council.
Answer · Frank McAveety: In the current financial year, from 1 July 2002 to 31 March 2003, Renfrewshire Council received £3.082 million from the overall allocation of £107 million. The allocation to each local authority for 2003-04 will be announced in due course.
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to accelerate the number of households in disadvantaged areas of the Renfrewshire Council area with access to the internet.
Answer · Margaret Curran: The Executive is committed to bridging the digital divide and achieving universal access to the internet by 2005. The Digital Inclusion strategy, <I>Connecting Scotland's People</I>, published in September 2001 sets out how we aim to achieve this.<P>A range o…
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to increase the number of people across the Renfrewshire Council area who take part in voluntary activities since 1997.
Answer · Margaret Curran: We have introduced and are promoting a variety of volunteering initiatives across Scotland aimed at increasing the number of people who take part in voluntary activity. <P>Specifically, we have allocated £4.5 million towards developing the Active Communities …
21 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to increase the quality and variety of homes in the most disadvantaged areas of the Renfrewshire Council area since 1997.
Answer · Margaret Curran: I have asked Mr Bob Millar, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. His response is as follows:<P>Since 1997 Communities Scotland has invested £42.205 million to provide 1033 new homes within the Renfrewshire Council area. Over £20 million has bee…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #24 million child care package was allocated to the Renfrewshire Council area and how the money was distributed.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: In July 2001, £24 million additional resources for child care were allocated through the child poverty package over 2001-04. The money was allocated as follows: <UL><LI>£8.5 million was made available for child care grants for lone parents in full-time higher…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how the (a) #175 million for 79 projects from the Scottish Public Transport Fund, (b) #20 million to local authorities for road and bridge repairs and (c) #680 million for improvements to motorways and trunk road network to 2004 will be allocated and how much of these has been, or will b…
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The funding of projects from the Public Transport Fund is set out in the regional leaflets associated with the Scottish Executive transport delivery report, <I>Scotland's Transport: Delivering Improvements</I> published in March 2002. Awards to a further 23 p…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #1 billion to rebuild and refurbish schools was made available in the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: We have offered financial support to 15 local authorities to enable them to take forward school PPP projects with a total capital investment value of £1.195 billion. Renfrewshire Council's share of that figure is £100 million.
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what drug action teams are operating in the Paisley North constituency area; how much funding has been allocated to each such team, and what indicators have been established to assess the effectiveness of the teams.
Answer · Hugh Henry: Paisley North falls within the area of the Argyll and Clyde Alcohol and Drug Action Team (ADAT).<P>The Executive provides support funding of £122,049 to Argyll and Clyde Alcohol and Drug Action Team to ensure strategic planning of drug-related work and the co…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding was allocated to the Renfrewshire Council area as a result of the creation of Careers Scotland in each year from its inception and what such funding was spent on.
Answer · Iain Gray: On the establishment of Careers Scotland, the Executive made available to Scottish Enterprise (SEn) and Highlands and Islands Enterprise funding it had previously directed at a range of conjoining agencies. In the SEn area, this amounted to a total of some £3…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding has been allocated to the rough sleepers initiative (RSI) in the Renfrewshire Council area since the inception of the initiative and how successful the initiative has been.
Answer · Margaret Curran: Renfrewshire Council received a total of £438,400 in RSI grant in the years 1997-98 to 2001-02 for the provision of a team of outreach and resettlement staff, support staff for rough sleepers with mental health problems, and the reprovisioning of Paisley Soci…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many New Futures Fund projects have been funded in the Renfrewshire Council area and how much has been allocated to each such project since the inception of the fund.
Answer · Iain Gray: There are four New Futures Fund projects in Renfrewshire. Of these, only Renfrewshire Association for Mental Health was funded from inception of the fund, with the others coming on stream during Phase 2. Details of the projects are as follows:<TABLE BORDER CE…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many families in the Renfrewshire Council area have benefited from Sure Start Scotland, and in what ways, and how much of that organisation's #42 million funding was allocated to projects in the area.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: To date £61 million has been allocated to local authorities in Scotland to implement the Sure Start Scotland programme. Of that total, Renfrewshire Council has received £2.476 million. It has used the money to extend existing provision, such as expansion of a…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the percentage change has been in recorded crime levels in disadvantaged areas in the Renfrewshire Council area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Jim Wallace: The information requested is not held centrally.
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to reduce the gap in unemployment rates between the worst areas in the Renfrewshire Council area and the average rate of unemployment for Scotland as a whole and what the reduction in this gap has been in each year since 1996.
Answer · Iain Gray: Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations.<P>The whole range of New Deal program…
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage change there has been in recorded crime levels committed against older people in the Renfrewshire Council area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Jim Wallace: The information requested is not held centrally.
20 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of people in the Renfrewshire Council area have improved their health by (a) reducing (i) smoking and (ii) alcohol misuse and (b) improving their diet and what reduction there has been on mortality rates from coronary heart disease in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Mortality rates per 100,000 population from coronary heart disease in the Renfrewshire Council Area 1996-2001:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=7 WIDTH=189><TR><TD WIDTH="31%" VALIGN="TOP"> </TD><TD WIDTH="69%" VALIGN="TOP"><P>Crude Rate Per 100,00…
19 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to increase the proportion of students in higher education that are from under-represented, disadvantaged groups and areas in (a) Scotland and (b) the Renfrewshire Council area in each year since 1997.
Answer · Iain Gray: There has been a wide range of measures introduced by the Executive since 1997 to increase the proportion of students in higher education (HE) from under-represented, disadvantaged groups and areas. These include:<UL><LI>Funding an additional 2,800 full-time …
19 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to increase the employment rates of disadvantaged groups, such as lone parents and ethnic minorities, in the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer · Iain Gray: Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations.<P>Both the New Deal for Disabled Peop…
19 Nov 2002 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of working age people has been living on low income in the Renfrewshire Council area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Margaret Curran: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-31572 on 27 November 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: <P><A HREF="http://www.scottish.parliame…