Parliamentary questions

Donald Gorrie

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

6 Jan 2004 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will seek the agreement of the Church of Scotland to remove the confidentiality clause from, and make public the details of, the financial arrangements for the Parliament's renting of the Assembly Hall.

Answer · John Scott: The Scottish ParliamentaryCorporate Body does not consider the financial arrangements behind the Parliament’s renting of the Assembly Hall to be confidential. The answer givento question S1W-30522 on 7 November 2002 provided details of the financial arrangeme…

22 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what role the Scottish Centre for Autism work at Yorkhill Hospital and the Scottish Society for Autism Executive funded project will play in the development of a diagnosis and assessment centre at New Struan House in Alloa.

Answer · Tom McCabe: The Scottish Centre forAutism at Yorkhill Hospital has no role in the development of the diagnosis andassessment centre at New Struan. For the last 10 years it has provided adiagnostic service for children up to the age of 18 years with suspectedautistic spec…

16 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it next intends to report on its social justice targets and milestones.

Answer · Margaret Curran: Social Justice:Indicators of Progress 2003 will bepublished on Wednesday 17 December 2003.This report meets theProgramme for Government II commitment of the first Scottish Executive to report annually on our progress in achieving our social just…

10 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS clinical staff members have been identified as being carriers of methycillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS trust and board.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: This information is not heldcentrally.

10 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what duty restrictions are placed on any NHS clinical staff members found to be carriers of methycillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Restrictions on duty forstaff found to be MRSA carriers would depend on the circumstances and on theclinical duties of the staff member involving patient contact. This issue willbe dealt with in detail in a forthcoming guidance document on the control ofhealt…

10 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what responsibility NHS boards and trusts have to provide regular testing of clinical staff to establish whether they are carriers of methycillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Routine testing for MRSA isnot currently recommended. The carrier state for MRSA in healthy individuals isusually brief and transitory, which makes routine screening difficult to applyand to interpret.

10 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has issued guidelines to NHS boards and trusts with regard to the regular testing of NHS clinical staff for methycillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and, if so, what these guidelines are.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Draft guidance on staffscreening for health care associated infections (HAI) is being drawn up by aworking group of the Ministerial Task Force on HAI as part of a wider documenton management of HAI outbreaks. It is expected this will form the basis for aconsu…

8 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proposals it has to ensure that funding and policies are in place to ensure an increase in the purchase of books by public libraries and, in particular, the purchase of books reflecting the culture of Scotland.

Answer · Frank McAveety: Statutory responsibility forlocal libraries lies with local authorities. Each local authority isresponsible for determining the level of resources allocated for the libraryservice which they provide for the residents of their area. This includes thepurchasing…

3 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what groups or individuals it consults prior to publication of information literature for use by the public.

Answer · Andy Kerr: It is standard practicewithin the Scottish Executive to consult interested parties on major policyinitiatives and our consultation papers appear on the Executive website. We donot, however, generally seek views on individual documents.Using experienced…

3 Dec 2003 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will meet electricity and other utilities companies to discuss the impact of the level of disconnections in 2003.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: Yes, the Executive is meetingenergy companies to discuss a range of issues including high electricity pricesfor Scottish customers and disconnections.

2 Dec 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to ensure that community care services provided by independent voluntary organisations are adequately funded.

Answer · Tom McCabe: The Scottish Executive islooking at a number of measures to make funding for the voluntary sector moreeffective and sustainable. This includes the Strategic Review of Funding forthe Voluntary Sector, managed jointly by the Executive, COSLA and SCVO, whichis d…

27 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will issue a policy document with regard to teacher training covering special educational needs.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive setout its policy on special educational needs in the document, Moving Forward!Additional Support for Learning, published in January 2003. This includesits support for the training of teachers working with pupils with specialeduc…

27 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has had any discussions with owners of domestic dwellings on the route of the proposed on-line upgrade of the A80 in respect of the impact of any upgrade on their property and, if so, how many owners it has had discussion with.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Discussions have to datetaken place with 13 owners of domestic dwellings.

27 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many owners of domestic dwellings on the route of the proposed on-line upgrade of the A80 it intends to have discussions with in respect of the impact of the upgrade on their property.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: It is too early to say untilthe design process is fully developed. Discussions will be held with all ofthose whose land is to be acquired for the scheme or who have heritable rightswhich might be affected.

26 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-30963 by Lewis Macdonald on 13 November 2002 and S2W-1722 and S2W-3993 by Nicol Stephen on 29 August and 26 November 2003, which towns other than Glasgow and Cumbernauld are (a) currently bisected by a motorway and (b) awaiting the outcome of propo…

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Motorways pass through orare planned to pass through Glasgow and Cumbernauld but no motorway bisects oris planned to bisect any town in Scotland.

26 Nov 2003 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to introduce a register of those convicted of domestic violence.

Answer · Margaret Curran: We have noplans to introduce such a register. Any proposals for a register of this kindwould be subject to consultation before a final decision was taken.

19 Nov 2003 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to enhance sports education for young people.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive has established a PE Review Groupto review the widerperspective of PE in the school curriculum and to consider how schools can besupported to provide a quality PE educational experience. Its report is dueearly in the new year.We …

14 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will improve funding and other arrangements in order to increase the number of people qualifying as social care staff.

Answer · Euan Robson: A £2.2 million specificgrant was initially earmarked for local authorities for training in 2003-04 butan additional £11 million is being provided over three years until 2005-06.This comprises of £9 million to local authorities for training and £2 million spec…

12 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-30963 by Lewis Macdonald on 13 November 2002 and S2W-1722 by Nicol Stephen on 29 August 2003, whether it regards Glasgow as a town or a city and what criteria it uses when assessing town or city status in relation to such questions.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: A city. For the sake ofcompleteness the answer covered towns and other locations with a population ofmore than 5,000.

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to collect and examine evidence into the impact of programmes supplying elderly people with appropriate vitamins and minerals on the number of visits by them to GP surgeries.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The risks and benefits ofproviding vitamin and mineral supplements are being addressed as part of theimplementation of Adding Life to Years, the report of the expert groupon the health care of older people. Visits to GPs by older people aredetermined b…

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider reinstating a full annual medical check up for over-75s in their own homes or in GP surgeries.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Arrangements for annualcheck-ups for over-75s are currently in place.The existing terms ofservice for general practitioners require them each year to invite each oftheir patients aged 75 or over to participate in a consultation to assesswhether the pat…

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce its decision on regeneration proposals for the Ravenscraig site.

Answer · Mary Mulligan: An Alteration to the Glasgow and the Clyde Valley Structure Plan, whichsets the strategic planning policy context for retail development within a newtown centre at Ravenscraig, was approved by the Scottish ministers on 24November.The Scottish ministers…

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the percentage of the #6 million grant, paid to Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive for the development of park-and-ride facilities at Croy Station in 2001, that remains unspent.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Following the announcementon 21 March 2002 of £5 million to expand the park and ride facilitiesat Croy Station, Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority (SPTA) plans todeliver this project in two phases. The first phase, for which the Scottish Executive has …

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish estimates of any expected increase in traffic volume on ancillary roads adjacent to the proposed on-line upgrade of the A80 during the work.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: It is not anticipated therewill be any significant increase in traffic volumes on ancillary roads as twolanes in each direction will be maintained at times of peak demand on the A80during the works contract.

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what additional funds it will make available to North Lanarkshire and Falkirk councils to enable them to maintain the roads for which they are responsible that will be subject to additional traffic use during the proposed on-line upgrade of the A80.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: A requirement of the workscontract will be that two lanes in each direction are made available to trafficat times of peak demand and traffic diversion onto the local network should beminimised. At this stage, I do not anticipate significant additional wear on…

7 Nov 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive in respect of the progress of the development of extended park-and-ride facilities at Croy Station.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive ona wide range of issues, including the development of extended park and ridefacilities at Croy Station.

5 Nov 2003 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of whether a British Olympic football team would affect the status of Scotland's international football side and the Scottish Football Association (SFA).

Answer · Frank McAveety: This is amatter for the Scottish Football Association but we would not wish to see thecurrent status of the SFA or any Scottish places in European and world footballcompetitions jeopardised.

10 Oct 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to introduce into the NHS the whistle-blowing toolkit produced by Public Concern at Work in light of Her Majesty's Government ordering the tool kit for all NHS trusts in England.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: There are no present plansto introduce the Public Concern at Work whistle-blowing toolkit into NHSScotland.The Partnership InformationNetwork (PIN) issued a PIN Guideline prepared by the service for the service inJanuary last year entitled “Dealing wit…

2 Oct 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had, or plans to have, with Her Majesty's Government about the impact on local people of the implications of the sale of Motherwell Bridge for current employee pensions and former employee pensioners.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive has had no discussions with Her Majesty’s Government regarding thismatter. My department is in contact with the local enterprise company and the companyto monitor the implications of the restructuring at Motherwell Bridge.

30 Sep 2003 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to protect the interests of any workers affected by job losses following the sale of Motherwell Bridge

Answer · Jim Wallace: My department is in contactwith the company and the local enterprise company to monitor the implicationsof the restructuring at Motherwell Bridge and the sale of the main operating divisions to MBEngineering Solutions and any support which may be appropriate.…