Parliamentary questions
Brian Adam
1,580 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
5 Nov 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to review the core funding arrangements for women's refuges.
Answer · Margaret Curran: The Action Plan in the <I>National Strategy to Address Domestic Abuse in Scotland</I> contains a series of recommendations about access to services, including refuge provision by Women's Aid. The national Group to Address Domestic Abuse in Scotland was establ…
2 Nov 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to allow compulsory repair orders to be served on commercial properties.
Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Legislation already exists that enables local authorities to take action in respect of buildings found to be dangerous and buildings which they consider to be in need of repair. The relevant powers may be found in the Building (Scotland) Act 1959; the Civic G…
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether grants have been awarded to local authorities for feasibility studies on the use of mobile CCTV cameras in crime and vandalism hotspots.
Answer · Iain Gray: No grants have been made specifically for such feasibility studies. However, Perth and Kinross Council, and Dundee City Council, were awarded grants of £30,000 and £33,000 respectively in 2000-01 for mobile CCTV units through the "Make Our Communities Safer" …
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to establish a Scientific Services Advisory Group.
Answer · Wendy Alexander: <I>A Science Strategy for Scotland</I>, published by the Scottish Executive on 27 August 2001, (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library3/education/ssfs-00.asp), contained a commitment to establish an independent Scottish Science Advisory Committee under the auspic…
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive to ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to increase the numbers of higher training posts for radiotherapy physicists.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Grade B clinical scientists' posts including radiotherapy physicists are funded by NHS Trusts and cover a wide range of qualifications and experience. Post holders are expected to undertake further programmes of professional training, but there is not a natio…
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to increase the number of supernumary Grade A clinical physicist training posts.
Answer · Susan Deacon: There is no change to the number of Grade A funded medical physics training posts funded for the 2001-02 academic year.
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any consultation has taken place or is planned to take place on proposed changes to the starting salary for mature graduates beginning a new teaching career.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The decision on whether or not to accept the proposed changes to pay for probationer teachers is one for the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT). The SNCT consists of representatives from the Scottish Executive, local authorities and teachers o…
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any representations have been received on proposed changes to the starting salary for mature graduates beginning a new teaching career.
Answer · Jack McConnell: We have received a number of representations from concerned individuals, and I have met with a number of students who would be affected by the proposed changes. I have also received a letter from the Deans of the Faculties of Education, and we have been in di…
18 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is against the Scottish Ministerial Code for ministers to comment on the conduct of those charged with offences whose cases have not been dealt with by the courts.
Answer · Jack McConnell: There is no reference to this in the Scottish Ministerial Code.
3 Oct 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in increasing the number of NHS intensive care unit beds.
Answer · Susan Deacon: For the period 1996 to 2000, the average number of funded general adult intensive care beds in Scotland each year was:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=132><TR><TD WIDTH="49%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGHT=16><FONT FACE="Arial"><P ALIGN="RIGHT">1996</FONT…
24 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-16764 by Jackie Baillie on 31 July 2001, when level III information on the social justice budget will be published.
Answer · Jackie Baillie: In response to question S1W-16746, we set out our revised Social Justice expenditure plans, following the Minister for Finance's budget statement on 28 June. On 20 September, the Executive published the draft budget for 2002-03, which sets out our expenditure…
24 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-16758 by Susan Deacon on 31 July 2001, whether there are any as yet unallocated capital and revenue resources within budget headings other than health.
Answer · Angus MacKay: All resources within the budget for 2001-02 are allocated to specific programmes. During the financial year resources may become available due to savings or slippage in individual programmes. These are used to meet emergency pressures or fund new developments…
24 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-16758 by Susan Deacon on 31 July 2001, whether any revenue and capital resources within the health budget remain unallocated following the realignment of resources to support the implementation of free personal care.
Answer · Susan Deacon: All resources within the health budget for 2001-02 are allocated to specific programmes. During the course of a financial year resources may become available due to savings or slippage in individual programmes and these are used to meet emerging pressures or …
14 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to develop Scotland's role in clinical drug trials.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive supports the development of clinical drug trials within the NHS and is taking steps to enhance the capacity of NHSScotland to participate in such work.<P ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Within Scotland, the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Execut…
14 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive in which years it has made funding provision for (a) the Ryder Cup and Euro 2008 bids and (b) the implementation of its National Cultural Strategy and how any such allocations can be identified in its Annual Expenditure Reports.
Answer · Allan Wilson: The costs of the Ryder Cup bid were met from provision made in 2000-01 and 2001-02. This cannot be identified separately in the Annual Expenditure Reports. Provision for the additional programmes identified as part of the Ryder Cup bid was made each year of t…
7 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken or plans to take to ensure that milk production is adequate.
Answer · Ross Finnie: I am not aware of any shortage of milk at this stage but my officials are liasing closely with the Scottish milk industry to ensure the situation is kept under regular review.
7 Sep 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken or plans to take to promote milk.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive is actively promoting the importance of a healthy and balanced diet. Milk makes an important contribution to childrens' diets. Thus, £380,000 per annum is provided through the Health Improvement Fund as a top-up subsidy to support the p…
15 Aug 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to compensate any patients who have contracted cytomegalovirus through contaminated blood products.
Answer · Susan Deacon: If a court finds the NHS to be negligent or in breach of statute, the NHS accepts its liability to pay damages. However, the Executive upholds the general principle of successive administrations that the NHS does not pay compensation where there is no legal b…
15 Aug 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to introduce a fund for befriending and mentoring projects.
Answer · Susan Deacon: There are currently no plans to introduce a specific fund for befriending and mentoring projects.<P>However, the Executive have funded Volunteer Development Scotland (VDS) to work with NHSScotland to re-energise, enhance and develop the role and contribution …
6 Aug 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to tackle the problems associated with silent 999 calls from mobile phones.
Answer · Jim Wallace: Arrangements to filter out "silent" emergency calls originating from mobile phones have been in place across the United Kingdom for about a year. Set procedures are applied to determine whether a "silent" call is inadvertent. Calls will co…
6 Aug 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many silent 999 calls from mobile phones the emergency services have received in each of the last three years, broken down by police force area.
Answer · Jim Wallace: The information requested is not held centrally.
25 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies for NHS medical physics technicians there currently are in each health board area.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The information requested is not held centrally.
25 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies for NHS medical physicists there currently are in each health board area.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The information requested is not held centrally.
24 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail all payments made to farmers who have participated in the GM crop trials.
Answer · Ross Finnie: No payments have been made by the Scottish Executive to farmers for participating in GM crop trials.<P>Contractual arrangements between the farmer and the biotech company are an entirely private matter.
24 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list all farms and farmers who have participated in the GM crop trials.
Answer · Ross Finnie: Consent for individual sites to participate in the farm scale evaluation programme is held by Aventis CropScience and not individual farmers. The Scottish Executive holds detailed map references of all sites and gives these wide publicity but does not hold in…
23 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to increase the numbers of radiographers undergoing training.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The number of Radiographers working in NHS Scotland has increased by 70 WTE (6%) since 1996.<P>An additional 61 funded student places for certain Professions Allied to Medicine groups including Radiographers have been made available by the Scottish …
23 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many current vacancies there are in the NHS for (a) radiographers, (b) radiologists and (c) specialist cancer nurses, broken down by health board.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The latest available data are shown for qualified radiographers in Table 1 and for consultant radiologists in Table 2. Information on vacant posts for specialist cancer nurses is not collected centrally.<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=531><TR>…
20 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the costs of the administration of prescription charges were in 2000-01 and what they are estimated to be in 2001-02.
Answer · Susan Deacon: This information is not available.
20 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12080 by Susan Deacon on 30 January 2001, how much revenue was raised in 2000-01 from NHS prescriptions charges and is estimated to be raised in 2001-02.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The revenue raised from prescription charges in Scotland in 2000-01 is likely to be £43.4 million; this figure is provisional pending finalisation of the NHS Trust annual accounts. The estimate of revenue to be raised in 2001-02 is £45.7 million.
18 Jul 2001 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to make equipment and facilities to deal with obstructive sleep apnoea available across all health board areas.
Answer · Susan Deacon: The planning and delivery of health services, including the provision of equipment, is a matter primarily for Health Boards and NHS Trusts.<P ALIGN="JUSTIFY">A review of the sleep apnoea service provided by the Sleep Centre in Edinburgh has recently been unde…