Parliamentary questions

Alex Johnstone

582 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

26 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what role the development of biomass renewable energy crops has in its overall renewable energy strategy.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: We believe that emerging renewables technologies such as biomass and marine can play a significant part in achieving Scotland's ambitious renewables objectives. The Forum for Renewable Energy Development Scotland will be tasked with identifying measures that …

26 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to separate support for short rotation coppice from the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme and treat it as an arable crop.

Answer · Allan Wilson: We have no plans to separate support for short rotation coppice from the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme and treat it as an arable crop.

26 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to introduce a scheme equivalent to the Energy Crops Scheme.

Answer · Ross Finnie: We have no such plans at present.

26 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether potential producers of short rotation coppice (SRC) are at a competitive disadvantage compared with potential producers in England owing to the level of forestry commission grant available in Scotland for SRC being lower than that available in England for SRC when combined with f…

Answer · Allan Wilson: Forestry is a devolved issue and the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme (SFGS) supports priorities contained within the Executive's Scottish Forestry Strategy.The steering group that developed the SFGS felt that, while energy crops and wood fuel were potentia…

26 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to the concerns of potential producers of short rotation coppice (SRC) in relation to the level of forestry commission grant available for SRC in Scotland being lower than that available in England for SRC when combined with funding under the Energy Crops Scheme.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Forestry is a devolved issue and the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme (SFGS) supports priorities contained within the Executive's Scottish Forestry Strategy.The steering group that developed the SFGS included representatives from the Timber Growers Associat…

26 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-651 by Allan Wilson on 18 June 2003, why the level of grant available for short rotation coppice under the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme is reduced in respect of land set aside as part of the Arable Area Payment Scheme.

Answer · Allan Wilson: The level of grant availablefor short rotation coppice under the Scottish forestry grants scheme is reducedfrom £600 to £400 per hectare in respect of land set aside under a separatescheme, the arable area payment scheme (AAPS).This is because under th…

24 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what studies it has conducted into the impact energy to waste schemes might have on the environment and on public health.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive is represented on a working group which is overseeing a UK-wide study of the environmental and health impacts of waste management, including incineration. The draft report, by a consortium led by Enviros Consulting Ltd, was recently pas…

24 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many applications have been (a) made and (b) approved for energy from waste schemes in each year since 1999.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Information relating to applications for planning consent is not held centrally. An application for an operating license must also be made to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. The following table contains information regarding applications made and …

19 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which organisations it will consult in making progress towards giving further and higher education students the right to refer complaints to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman when other mechanisms have been exhausted.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The organisations consulted will include, in addition to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman:Association of Managers of Student Services in Higher Education (Scotland)Association of Scottish CollegesAUTBeattie Resources for Inclusiveness in Tec…

19 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in giving further and higher education students the right to refer complaints to the Scottish Public Service Ombudsman when other mechanisms have been exhausted.

Answer · Jim Wallace: In our Partnership Agreement A Partnership for a Better Scotland, we gave a commitment to give students in further and higher education the right to refer matters to the ombudsman when institutional mechanisms fail them. We will consult on our plans in…

17 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to address concerns of residents in rural communities in respect of the requirement to apply for retrospective consent to discharge sewage effluent into controlled waters.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Discharge of sewage effluent to the water environment requires consent under the Control of Pollution Act 1974. I support the need for any such discharges that do not have consent to be brought into line with legal requirements.

17 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to assist those on low incomes who find it difficult to pay the charge for applying for retrospective consent to discharge sewage effluent into controlled waters.

Answer · Allan Wilson: The current cost of an application for small discharges such as those related to individual households is £82. For discharges not subject to monitoring requirements, this is a one-off fee, which is intended to cover costs incurred by the Scottish Environment …

17 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) retrospective and (b) new consents to discharge sewage effluent into controlled waters have been awarded by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in each year since 1999 and how much income the agency has derived from such consents.

Answer · Allan Wilson: The number of applications for discharge consent made to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in the years in question, and associated income, are shown in the table. Figures for new discharges and retrospective consents are not collected separately.<TA…

17 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive why retrospective consent to discharge is required from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency for existing discharges of sewage effluent from domestic properties into controlled waters rather than new discharges.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Discharge of sewage effluent to the water environment requires consent under the Control of Pollution Act 1974. It is an offence not to hold a consent for such a discharge. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency will take action to require dischargers to …

12 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to ensure that the Outdoors Access Code continues to protect rare species of wildlife protected under related acts, in particular the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Part 1 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 establishes rights of responsible access to land and inland water. Those exercising access rights will be required to comply with legislation providing for the protection and conservation of wildlife. In addition,…

12 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to concerns expressed by farmers, crofters and other organisations involved in environmentally sensitive areas, in response to its consultation on the future of such areas, that many of the benefits achieved within the environmentally sensitive area scheme might be pu…

Answer · Ross Finnie: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-795 today. All answers to written parliamentary questionsare available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at <A HREF="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_w…

12 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will extend the environmentally sensitive area scheme for a further five years in response to views of farmers and crofters and other organisations involved in the scheme.

12 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how the benefits of work carried out by farmers and crofters over the last 10 years in environmentally sensitive areas will be sustained in any replacement scheme.

12 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made on its plans for the future of environmentally sensitive areas.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) Schemes closed to new applications on 31 December 2000 and were replaced by the Rural Stewardship Scheme. However, I am aware of the environmental and other benefits which the ESA Schemes have delivered and that is why…

5 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action will be taken to increase the acreage of willow coppice.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Encouragement to undertake short rotation coppicing (SRC) is available under the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme. In addition, payments for set aside land, which can include production of SRC, are also contained within the Arable Area Payment Scheme.

5 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to increase the level of grants available for establishing willow coppices.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Grants for short rotation coppicing are contained within the Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme, which was launched in February 2003 and supports priorities contained in the Scottish Forestry Strategy. The scheme was developed in association with a wide stakehol…

5 Jun 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive why grants for establishing willow coppices in Scotland are lower than the equivalent grants in England.

Answer · Allan Wilson: The level of grant available in Scotland for short-rotation coppice (SRC) in the new Scottish Forestry Grants Scheme (SFGS) is £600 per hectare, but on land set aside as part of the Arable Area Payment Scheme, the SFGS grant is £400 per hectare.Within the …

15 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of households living in fuel poverty contains dependent children.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: Using tables on household type and differences in the proportion of income spent on energy by household characteristics in the Scottish House Condition Survey, 1996, approximately 172,700 households with children are estimated to live in fuel poverty, …

15 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have benefited from its (a) Warm Deal initiative and (b) Central Heating Installation Programme since 1999.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: The Scottish Executive does not hold information on the composition of households that benefit from the Warm Deal and so cannot provide the information requested. All of the households that benefit from the part of the Central Heating Installation Programme, …

15 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of households living in fuel poverty contain older people.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: According to the 1996 Scottish House Condition Survey, 332,000 pensioner households were estimated to be in fuel poverty out of a total number of 738,000 households estimated to be in fuel poverty.

15 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of households that have benefited from the Warm Deal initiative and the Central Heating Installation Programme since 1999 contain (a) older people and (b) dependent children.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: Information is held by household and so it is not possible to identify the number of individuals that have received measures.The number of households to benefit from each of the programmes is as follows:Warm Deal<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=7…

15 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many households are in fuel poverty and what criteria it uses to define fuel poverty.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: According to the 1996 Scottish House Condition Survey, 738,000 households in Scotland were estimated to be in fuel poverty. The definition for fuel poverty is "a household is in fuel poverty if, in order to maintain a satisfactory heating regime, it would …

7 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will increase the ability of GPs to commission NHS chiropody services directly and expand demand-led chiropody services.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The planning and provision of NHS chiropody services is a matter for NHS Boards. GPs are already directly involved in the planning of local NHS services through Local Health Care Co-operatives. This role will be strengthened through the development of Communi…

7 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS chiropodists there are in each NHS board area.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested in available on the ISD website, tables F1 and F2. In these tables chiropodists are termed podiatrists.<A HREF="http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/isd/NHSiS_resource/Workforce/workforce_statistics.htm">http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/isd/NHS…

7 May 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to increase the number of NHS chiropodists by expanding training places.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The allocation of places to specific subject areas is rightly a matter for individual institutions.Higher education institutions are autonomous bodies and legislation precludes ministers from directing funds to particular institutions or courses. The Scott…