Parliamentary questions
Alex Neil
3,059 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
27 Sep 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what its estimate is of underspend in regional selective assistance during the current financial year.
Answer · Allan Wilson: Our current expectation is that spend on regional selective assistance (RSA) for the current financial year will be broadly in line with the budget of £40.2 million. However, RSA is a demand led scheme, under which instalments are only released as firms make …
21 Sep 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to Her Majesty’s Government in respect of amending the Scotland Act 1998 arising from Lord Fraser’s report of the Holyrood Inquiry.
Answer · Margaret Curran: Section 21 of the Scotland Act 1998 provides for the establishment, membership and functions of the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body. The Executive will wish to consider the views of the Presiding Officer, other members of the Scottish Parliament Corporate …
21 Sep 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps have been taken to encourage its suppliers to procure goods and services that minimise any adverse impact on the environment.
Answer · Tavish Scott: The Scottish Executive iscommitted to playing a full role in Scotland’s sustainable development and has implementedcomprehensive environmental policies in support of this goal. When we buy goodsand services we aim to do so in a way which minimises impact on t…
21 Sep 2004 · SPCB Written Question
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) whether it will make representations to Her Majesty’s Government in support of the Scotland Act 1998 being amended to extend the SPCB’s powers of delegation as recommended by Lord Fraser in the report of the Holyrood Inquiry.
Answer · George Reid: On 22 September the Parliament unanimously approved a resolution inviting the SPCB to consider the Fraser Report. This the SPCB will do. As part of that process, consideration will be given to the recommendation of Lord Fraser that section 21 of the Scotland …
15 Sep 2004 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has a policy on how best to involve patients in the process for appointing new GPs.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: It is a matter for each NHS board to decide how it will involve patients in theappointment process.</p><p>Boards are already expected to involve individuals, groups and communities in the wider planning of services and the NHS Reform (Scotland) Act 2004 place…
25 Aug 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider increasing the small business rate relief allowance in line with any increase in rateable values arising from revaluation for the purpose of business rates.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive will consider the impact of the 2005 revaluation of non-domestic property, which takes effect from 1 April 2005, on the small business rate relief scheme (SBRRS). The Scottish Executive aims to announce the 2005-06 poundage rate, the 20…
22 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide information on any follow-up action to the recommendation contained in the report by Audit Scotland, Local economic forums: A follow-up report, that it should continue to monitor the impact of local economic forums on the business community.
Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes. All of Audit Scotland’s recommendations will inform policy development and implementation relating to Local Economic Forums (LEF). Progress will be reported in a variety of ways including at a stakeholder conference planned for later this year and throug…
22 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide information on any follow-up action taken in response to the recommendation contained in the report by Audit Scotland, Local economic forums: A follow-up report, that it should work with Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to investigate wide …
Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes. All of Audit Scotland’s recommendations will inform policy development and implementation relating to Local Economic Forums (LEF). Progress will be reported in a variety of ways including at a stakeholder conference planned for later this year and throug…
22 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide information on any follow-up action taken in response to the recommendation contained in the report by Audit Scotland, Local economic forums: A follow-up report, that it should take steps to disseminate good practice related to addressing guidelines issued to loca…
Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes. All of Audit Scotland’s recommendations will inform policy development and implementation relating to Local Economic Forums (LEF). Progress will be reported in a variety of ways including at a stakeholder conference planned for later this year and throug…
22 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide information on any follow-up action taken in response to the recommendation contained in the report by Audit Scotland, Local economic forums: A follow-up report, that it should work with Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to explore cost-effe…
Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes. All of Audit Scotland’s recommendations will inform policy development and implementation relating to Local Economic Forums (LEF). Progress will be reported in a variety of ways including at a stakeholder conference planned for later this year and throug…
22 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide information on any follow-up action taken in response to the recommendation contained in the report by Audit Scotland, Local economic forums: A follow-up report, that it should review the added value delivered by local economic forums and whether they still have a …
Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes. All of Audit Scotland’s recommendations will inform policy development and implementation relating to Local Economic Forums (LEF). Progress will be reported in a variety of ways including at a stakeholder conference planned for later this year and throug…
16 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-3508 by Colin Boyd QC on 14 November 2003, whether the work of the Scottish Criminal Record Office in general was examined prior to January 1997 and, if so, how many years' work prior to this date was examined and who undertook such an examination.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The work of the Scottish Criminal Record Office (SCRO) in general is routinely examined as part of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary’s (HMIC) inspection programmes. Prior to 1997, the SCRO was inspected by HMIC in 1993 and 1995.</p>
15 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the outline business case costs were for the PFI/PPP initiatives undertaken (a) at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and (b) for the South Lanarkshire secondary schools refurbishment programme; what the actual costs of these initiatives are, and what the percentage difference is between the…
Answer · Andy Kerr: In respect of part (a) the outline costs for the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary were £173.315 million. The actual cost in the Full Business Case was £180.923 million which is a percentage increase of 4.4%. The Full Business Case is available from the Parliament’s …
15 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made to Her Majesty's Government on the impact of increased oil prices on the Scottish economy.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including the impact of oil prices on the Scottish economy.</p>
8 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to S2W-7721 by Mr Andy Kerr on 5 May 2004, whether it was consulted by the Electoral Commission before the announcement on the referendum was made.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive was not consulted by the Electoral Commission before the Prime Minister announced that a referendum would be held on the European Constitution. The Electoral Commission will be responsible for approving detailed arrangements for the ref…
4 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7587 by Cathy Jamieson on 4 May 2004, whether it can provide any examples of where a police board or chief constable has been granted costs in the past, but chosen not to recover them.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The recovery of costs awarded by the court is a matter for the party or parties concerned. The Scottish Executive does not hold a central record of decisions in relation to such costs.</p>
4 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the actual capital charges as a percentage of income have been of each PFI and PPP initiative undertaken since 1999, broken down by year of operation in comparison with the projected capital charges as set out in the outline business case for each initiative.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The information requested is not collated centrally. This is a matter for individual public sector procuring bodies.</p>
4 Jun 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there are for qualified nurses in each NHS board area.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Information on staff in NHSScotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.Details on nursing vacancy rates are given in tables E10 and provide a summary ofqualified nursing and midw…
20 May 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-5676 by Mr Andy Kerr on 28 January 2004, at what stage the review of its policy for all Scottish Executive staff retiring at 60 is and, if the review is complete, what its findings were.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The policy review of all Scottish Executive staff retiring at the age of 60 is on-going. We are considering both issuesrelated to age and also what further steps we might take as an organisation in helpingour staff, who are approaching retirement age, prepare…
20 May 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-5676 by Mr Andy Kerr on 28 January 2004, at what stage the review of its Diversity Strategy is and, if the review is complete, what its findings were.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The review of the Executive’sDiversity Strategy <i>Positive about You </i>has now been completed. It confirmsthat much of its five year programme of work has been achieved and that, generally,good progress has been made towards the targets set for under-repre…
18 May 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7853 by Lewis Macdonald on 11 May 2004, how much the research project awarded to DTZ Pieda Consulting and the Science, Technology and Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex will cost.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The total cost of the contractawarded to DTZ Pieda Consulting and the Science, Technology and Policy ResearchUnit at the University of Sussex for this research was £50,115 excluding VAT.</p>
18 May 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7855 by Mr Jim Wallace on 11 May 2004, why it does not set targets for those they expect to be in full-time employment upon completion of their modern apprenticeship scheme and, in the absence of such targets, how it measures the success of the schem…
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: We have set targets for the numberof modern apprentices in training and we are currently working with the enterprisenetworks to set targets for completion of the MA programme.</p>
12 May 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there are for newly qualified nurses in each NHS board area.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Information on all nursingvacancies is held centrally, however, this does not differentiate thosevacancies suitable for newly qualified nurses.</p><p>NHS employers remainresponsible for the recruitment and selection procedure within their localarea.</p>
12 May 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there are for newly-qualified paediatric nurses in each NHS board area.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Information on all nursingvacancies is held centrally, however this does not differentiate thosevacancies suitable for newly qualified paediatric nurses.</p><p>NHS employers remainresponsible for the recruitment and selection procedure within their localarea.…
29 Apr 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether DNA samples (a) volunteered by individuals or (b) obtained from a suspect in the course of a criminal enquiry who subsequently is found not guilty of having committed any crime are kept on record in either Scotland on a national or local database, or elsewhere on an alternative da…
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: DNA samples in Scotland canonly be retained if individuals are convicted of a criminal offence. The only exceptionsare samples which are volunteered and prints and samples taken under the TerrorismAct 2000, which allows for such samples to be retained for the…
27 Apr 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the latest available figures are from the enterprise networks for the numbers of those in training under the Modern Apprenticeship Scheme, and how many of these individuals it expects to be in full-time employment within (a) three months, (b) six months and (c) one year after the com…
Answer · Jim Wallace: I announced on 6 May that thereare currently 31,392 Modern Apprentices in training. The retention of apprenticesis a matter for individual employers.</p>
27 Apr 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive who it has consulted on the proposed methodology that it is considering for applications for Regional Selective Assistance to be assessed against its sustainable development objectives, as referred to in target three of the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning chapter of its Annual Evaluatio…
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Theprocedural changes being introduced were not subject to external consultation sincethey represented the application of existing Executive policy to a well-establishedscheme. </p><p>The methodology was agreed byministers as being consistent with the sustain…
27 Apr 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive who it has commissioned to undertake research into business decisions on innovation and research and development in order to increase business investment in research and development compared to OECD competitors, as referred to in target one of the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning chapter …
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Following a competitive tenderthe Scottish Executive commissioned DTZ Pieda Consulting and the Science, Technologyand Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex to undertake research into business decisions on innovationand research and development.</p>…
22 Apr 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it will make to Her Majesty's Government about whether the vote and result of the proposed referendum on the EU draft constitution will be counted and reported for Scotland separately from the rest of the United Kingdom.
Answer · Andy Kerr: The decision to hold a referendumon the EU Constitution was only announced on 20 April and the details have not beenfinalised at this stage. The Scottish Executive continues to work closely with theUK Government on issues relating to the draft Constitutional …
22 Apr 2004 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the position is in respect of the approximately 1,400 pieces of correspondence sent to its Ministerial Correspondence Unit from the residents of Greengairs and the surrounding area concerning Eden Waste Recycling Ltd's application for a new landfill site and why any of the correspon…
Answer · Mary Mulligan: Responses to over 700 postcards received to date are presently being issued.</p>