Des McNulty

1 Aug 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information electricity suppliers provide to their customers about energy efficient hot water systems as a way of reducing carbon emissions.

1 Aug 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what financial support is being given to projects that assist the development and adoption of technologies, processes and practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions by (a) the Executive and its agencies, (b) local government, (c) the voluntary sector and (d) the private sector.

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to complete the process of acquisition of land required to enable it to build the M74 extension.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: With the exceptionof very small areas, all of the land required for the M74 completion scheme hasnow been acquired.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much land it needs to acquire to build the M74 extension; how many significant landholdings are involved, and who the owners are.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The land requiredfor the M74 Completion was identified on the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) whichwas made on 24 March 2005.</p><p>A copy of the CPOcan be viewed on the M74 Completion Website <ahref="http://www.m74completion.com/">www.m74completion.com</a>.<…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether Scottish Water has indicated any possible difficulties in providing water and sewerage connections to the new houses in the Scottish Borders referred to in the Waverley railway project business case and what the projected costs would be of providing the necessary connections.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Scottish Water isfully funded to provide the strategic infrastructure required for all anticipatednew development during the current investment period.</p><p>The <i>Provision ofWater and Sewerage Services (Reasonable Cost) (Scotland) Regulations 2006</i> intr…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the benefits of the Waverley railway project is attributable to new houses being built in the Scottish Borders Council area in places that will be served by new stations and how many new houses are planned to be built.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Information on thenumber of new houses planned to be built, and the anticipated proportion of benefitsthat is attributable to the new houses being built in the Scottish Borders Councilarea in places that will be served by new stations, can be found in the pro…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many new houses to be sited in or near Stow, Galashiels or Tweedbank have been proposed under Scottish Borders Council’s draft development strategy.

Answer · Stewart Maxwell: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:</p><p>The Scottish BordersFinalised Local Plan provides indicativehousing capacity for all settlements across the Borders.</p><p>The current indicat…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the economic benefits arising from the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route derive from the (a) building of private houses and (b) provision of out-of-town retail facilities.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: (a) None. (b) None.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of congestion on roads in the city of Aberdeen will be alleviated by the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Full details are availablein the Environmental Statement which can be downloaded from the project website<a href="http://www.awpr.co.uk/">www.awpr.co.uk</a>.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what commitments have been given by ministers to community organisations concerned about the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Ministers have correspondedwith community organisations but no commitments were given.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received from private developers in relation to the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route or to development controls over areas of green belt adjacent to the projected route of the project.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: A number of privatedevelopers have approached the project team to enquire about the scheme design asit has progressed. Development control is, however, a matter for Aberdeen City andAberdeenshire Councils.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether any relaxation on building in the green belt will be permitted in relation to sites adjacent to or in the vicinity of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I refer the memberto the answer to question S3W-2717 on 23 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that the green belt is protected in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire following the construction of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: This is a matter forAberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Councils.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the review of the implications of the removal of tolls on the Forth Road Bridge has been seen by ministers and when it will be published.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Ministers have nowseen the final report of the Toll Impact Study, covering both the Forth and Tay road bridges. This was published on Monday20 August, and is available on the Scottish Executive website at <ahref="http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Transport/Ro…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether where will be a gateway review before the final business case is put forward for the Waverley railway line project and, if so, when such a review will be conducted.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: There will be a gatewayreview held before the final business case is put forward for the Waverley railway line project. Until the due diligence exerciseis completed, it is not prudent to comment when the next review will be held.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether there will be a gateway review before the final business case is put forward for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route and, if so, when such a review will be conducted.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Gateway reviews willbe scheduled at the appropriate points in the project development.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been spent on the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route project and what proportion of these costs are attributable to the change of route announced in December 2005.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: To date approximately£22.5 million has been spent on the design and development of the project. Priorto the announcement in December 2005 of the adoption of the Milltimber Brae andFastlink £12.2 million was spent on the design of the Murtle Route. £6.4million…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what commitments were made by the previous administration to Orkney Islands Council and Orkney Ferries Limited regarding revenue and capital support for inter-island ferry services and whether the current administration has had discussions regarding these matters with either body.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The previous administrationinvited Orkney Islands Council to carry out a Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance(STAG) appraisal relating to their internal transport services given the need thecouncil had identified for significant additional capital and revenu…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what provision it has made for home loss payments to those affected by the construction of the Waverley railway line; how this has been calculated, and whether any such provision is included in the capped amount committed by the previous administration for the line.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Home loss paymentswill be made to those eligible under the Land Compensation (Scotland) Act 1973. Provision has been made for this by the Promoterin cost estimates for land purchase, based on independent advice from the DistrictValuer. This provision is curre…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what provision has been made by the promoters of the Waverley railway line in their cost estimates for fencing new track.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The provision in thecost estimate for fencing the new track shall ensure that the boundaries of thenew track are secure to the appropriate railway fencing requirements.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the route of the Waverley railway line involves the use of existing track and what proportion involves laying new track, also showing the distances involved.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The total length of the Waverley Railway line is 56km, from Edinburgh to Tweedbank. 47km of the line is new track, from Tweedbank northwards,connecting to the existing track at Newcraighall.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what benchmark was used in terms of costs per kilometre for estimating the construction costs of the Waverley railway line and how this figure compares with the benchmark figures used by the Strategic Rail Authority in estimating construction costs for new lines elsewhere in the United Ki…

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The promoter has reportedto the Scottish Executive that they did not use a benchmark cost/kilometre to calculatethe capital costs due to the number of variables along the route. Instead, the promoterused a “bottom-up” approach which was based on calculating a…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the review of major transport projects conducted in June 2007 included a full review of projected costs of major capital projects other than the Edinburgh trams project and Edinburgh Airport Rail Link project and whether these costs can now be expressed at 2007 prices.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The review consideredthe costs of each of the major projects based on the latest information for eachproject which are derived from Transport Scotland’s regular project monitoring. To ensure consistency of monitoring the estimatesare based on the out-turn cos…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the review of major transport projects conducted in June 2007 included a full risk analysis of major capital projects other than the Edinburgh trams project and Edinburgh Airport Rail Link project.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I refer the memberto the answer to question S3W-2704 on 3 September 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/w…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what additional risks were identified with the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route project leading to a year’s delay in the projected completion date.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I refer the memberto the answer to question S3W-1672 on 17 July 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.se…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what additional risks were identified through the review of major transport projects conducted in June 2007 relating to (a) the Edinburgh trams project, (b) the Edinburgh Airport Rail Link project and (c) other capital projects.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The review consideredthe risks of each of the major projects based on the latest information for eachproject and the extent to which risks had been or could be mitigated successfully.</p>

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of staff resources and costs of the review of major transport projects conducted in June 2007 was devoted to (a) the Edinburgh trams project, (b) the Edinburgh Airport Rail Link project and (c) other capital projects.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I refer the memberto the answer to question S3W-2702 on 23 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.…

31 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many civil servants were involved in the review of major transport projects conducted in June; how many hours of staff time were dedicated to it, and what the cost was of conducting the review.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The review of majortransport projects was conducted by a small team of officials from Transport Scotland alongside their normal duties. Transport Scotland doesnot keep records of the time spent by officials on individual tasks.</p>

27 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers urgent additional housing investment in Clydebank to be critical to meeting its healthier, wealthier and fairer objectives in that area.

Answer · Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish Governmentconsiders housing investment in Clydebank to be essentialas part of a comprehensive package of measures towards the physical, social andeconomic regeneration of the area.</p><p>Communities Scotland is planning to increase the level of h…

27 Jul 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive why significant investment for housing refurbishment and regeneration is not being made available to residents of Clydebank, given that such investment is being provided to neighbouring areas in Glasgow, and what steps the Executive is taking to address the issue.

Answer · Stewart Maxwell: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:</p><p>Housing refurbishmentin Glasgow is mainly as a result of Glasgow Housing AssociationLtd’s work towards bringing its stock up to the Scottish H…