Mr David Davidson

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail any guidelines or directions it has issued to VisitScotland on how it should use its marketing budget.

Answer · Mike Watson: Ministers have not issued any such guidelines or directions. This is an operational matter for the VisitScotland Board.

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the VisitScotland shopping voucher pilot scheme would breach any EU competition rules as a form of market assistance were it made available in other countries and whether there are any plans for a petrol voucher scheme to encourage European visitors to travel north of the central…

Answer · Mike Watson: VisitScotland's "Shop till you Drop" campaign does not breach any EU competition rules. There are no plans to introduce a petrol voucher scheme.

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it gave approval to, or had advance knowledge of, the decision by VisitScotland to issue shopping vouchers as a tourism promotion tool.

Answer · Mike Watson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-20742 on 20 December 2001.

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it plans to take to redress the drops in visitor numbers to Scotland as identified by National Statistics in its press release of 10 December 2001.

Answer · Mike Watson: The drop in overseas tourism visitors for October is disappointing, but in line with expectations. Both VisitScotland and the British Tourist Authority are currently working on a number of new campaigns to encourage tourists to come to Scotland. These will be…

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that its current proposals for land reform improve the conservation of wildlife and the rearing of managed game, including fish, as core components of rural tourism.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Land (Scotland) Reform Bill will not impede the rearing of managed game, including fish.

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-4241 by Mike Watson on 6 December 2001, whether it will give a definition of eco-tourism.

Answer · Mike Watson: Eco-tourism is tourism which is based on an appreciation of the natural environment of an area, contributes to the local economy and contributes to the conservation of the natural heritage being visited.

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what issues will be addressed in its wildlife tourism strategy to be published next year.

Answer · Mike Watson: This is an operational matter for VisitScotland and its partners. I understand that work is at a very early stage.

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport has to make a ministerial statement to the Parliament on the current situation in the tourism industry.

Answer · Mike Watson: I have no such plans at present. I shall be publishing the outcome of the review of our national tourism strategy in the New Year. The actions arising from this review, together with a new approach to marketing that VisitScotland is developing, will both assi…

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish details of its current research projects into wind energy production and whether it will consult with Her Majesty's Government into the possibility of extending the national grid so that it can link into wind energy developments in the west of Scotland and the Hig…

Answer · Ross Finnie: We published two reports on Scotland's renewable energy resource on 10 December. The first outlined the huge scale of that resource, including onshore and offshore wind, marine energy and biomass. The second, related, report, into the Scottish electricity gri…

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the current planning regulations for the location of wind farms so that the regulations take account of their proximity to inhabited areas and the possible environmental sustainability of such developments.

Answer · Margaret Curran: There are no separate planning regulations for wind farm developments. Guidance on such proposals is contained in <I>National Planning Policy Guideline (NPPG) 6</I>: <I>Renewable Energy Developments. </I>We have no current plans to review NPPG 6 which was pub…

11 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to re-appraise the Arbuthnott Index relating to mortality rates among people under 65 as one of the key indicators for the provision of health board funding under the Arbuthnott formula.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive currently has no plans to re-appraise any of the key indicators of the Arbuthnott Index. The mortality rate among people under 65 has long been recognised as a good indicator of the relative health of the population living in different …

10 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review the funding allocated to Grampian Health Board so that the health board is able to fill all consultant vacancies at a time when it is in a position of budget deficit.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: None. Grampian NHS Board has been allocated £453.154 million of revenue resources in the current year, an increase of 5.5% over the equivalent budget for 2000-01. It is for the board to decide how best to meet the health care needs of their resident populatio…

10 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to ensure that health boards receive the necessary level of funds to meet any expected growth in demand on a per capita basis for their services.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: NHS Boards are given an annual allocation to meet the health care needs of their resident populations. NHS Boards received an average increase in unified budget of 6.5% in the current year. Increases to individual boards ranged from a minimum of 5.5% to a max…

10 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will undertake research into the provision of maternity services in rural areas.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: NHS Boards have conducted local maternity service reviews, which take account of the various geographical and demographic features of their particular area. The Scottish Executive is currently auditing NHS Board strategies against the principles laid out in <…

10 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will continue to provide support for the community hospital network in the Grampian area and whether it will ensure that there will be no cutback in community hospital provision in rural areas.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive is providing substantial resources to NHS Grampian as part of the record investment we are making in NHSScotland. I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-20849 for the details. The formula under which funding is allocated to NHS B…

10 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to ensure that any notional charge on capital under the resource accounting and budgeting system will not result in health boards being required to cut back on service delivery.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The introduction of the resource accounting and budgeting system has not changed the way NHS Boards account for capital. NHS Boards are given an annual general allocation to meet the health care needs of their resident populations. It is for boards to determi…

10 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether Grampian Health Board is unable to fund the use of all drugs which have been approved by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence and what the reasons are for the board's position on this matter.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive expects NHS Grampian to follow the guidance on drugs from the Health Technology Board for Scotland. The board also has to manage within the resources made available. The Executive is providing substantial funding to NHS Grampian as part of recor…

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made to Her Majesty's Government and the European Commission to obtain full less favoured areas support to Aberdeenshire hill farmers.

Answer · Ross Finnie: I announced improvements to the Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme for 2002 on 29 November. These were achieved following detailed discussions with the European Commission, supported by the UK Government and industry representatives. The measures help farmers…

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what regulatory procedures will be contained in the Title Conditions (Scotland) Bill.

Answer · Richard Simpson: The Title Conditions (Scotland) Bill will codify and reform the rules governing the constitution, validity and enforcement of non-feudal real burdens on property which will remain following abolition of the feudal system. Real burdens are conditions and restr…

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many road accidents resulting in deaths have occurred on trunk roads in the Grampian police area (a) in the current year to date and (b) in each of the last three years.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The number of road accidents resulting in deaths that have occurred on trunk roads in the Grampian Police area in the current year and in each of the last three years is as follows: -<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=7 WIDTH=255><TR><TD WIDTH="44%" VALI…

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it plans to take to reduce the number of road accidents resulting in deaths in the Grampian police area.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive is committed to working towards GB casualty reduction targets for 2010, one of the aims of which is to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured by 40% against the average for the years 1994-98. As part of this strategy t…

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Her Majesty's Government on facilitating competitive landing fees at Scottish Airports.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive has had no recent discussions with the UK Government about landing fees at Scottish airports.

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proposals it intends to make regarding the refurbishment of rural schools in Aberdeenshire.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Aberdeenshire Council is responsible for proposals for the refurbishment of schools in its area. The Scottish Executive makes substantial resources available to all authorities to help them take forward their school building programmes, including allocations …

29 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proposals it intends to make regarding support for rural schools in Aberdeenshire.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: All our policies for schools are directed towards ensuring that all children in rural areas benefit from school provision of the highest quality. It is, however, for Aberdeenshire Council to consider what specific measures may be needed to support schools in …

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will give a breakdown of its press and communications budget spending in each of the past two years and what the projected spending is for each of the next two years.

Answer · Andy Kerr: As a consequence of devolution, since 1999 the Scottish Executive has strengthened the resources devoted to media and communications in order to respond to the much higher level of public and media interest in the work the Executive is doing than was the case…

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what conference facilities it has within its premises and where they are.

Answer · Andy Kerr: There are a range of meeting facilities within Scottish Executive buildings. These are intended to support a range of meetings, discussions, seminars and conferences.<P>The main meeting facilities in the Executive's larger buildings are set out in the followi…

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions since May 1999 it has made media announcements outwith the facilities in Victoria Quay, Edinburgh; what venues were used, and what the total cost was of these announcements.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive makes announcements in venues appropriate for the nature of the announcement, for example: in Parliament; at events or conferences; through visits to organisations or projects throughout the country, and through news releases, as well a…

21 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Environment Protection Agency is required to conduct an environmental assessment prior to any application for planning permission being granted for waste management handling facilities and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.

Answer · Margaret Curran: No. The environmental impact assessment process associated with planning applications is co-ordinated by the planning authority. The responsibility for preparing the environmental statement rests with the applicant. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency …

21 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it issues to local authorities on how public consultation should be structured regarding planning applications for waste management facilities, materials recycling facilities and energy from waste plants.

Answer · Iain Gray: There are no separate statutory requirements for public consultation on planning applications for such proposals. The Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) (Scotland) Order 1992 sets out the basic statutory requirements for consultation on…

16 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consult with the organisations representing the dental profession on whether there is a need to establish two-year post graduate training availability in all health board areas to encourage graduates to work in all areas of Scotland.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Two-year postgraduate training in dentistry, known as General Professional Training (GPT), has been the subject of discussions with the profession on several occasions in the past. It is also regularly discussed with representatives of the dental profession a…