Lord James Douglas-Hamilton

20 Jun 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had, and with whom, on a railway link to Edinburgh Airport and what the outcome was.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive, along with British Airports Authority, Scottish Enterprise, the Strategic Rail Authority and the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions, has just commissioned a study into rail links at Glasgow and Edinburgh Airports…

20 Jun 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the programme is for future review of local government constituencies and how it will ensure that the wider implications of such review are taken into account.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The next statutory review of local authority electoral wards is scheduled to take place between 2006 and 2010. Any implications arising from that review will be considered at that time.

3 Jun 2001 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister whether the waiting time targets for the NHS have been achieved and what the reasons are for any instances where these targets have not been met.

Answer · Henry McLeish: On 31 March 2001, the national waiting time guarantee of 12 months for inpatient and day case treatment was met across Scotland.

29 May 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what further discussions have been held with Motorola and what percentage of employees being made redundant from the Bathgate plant have secured other employment.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: The Motorola task force, comprising representatives from Scottish Enterprise Edinburgh and Lothian, the Employment Service, West Lothian Council, the Careers Service and the Benefits Agency have been in regular contact with the company with a view to supporti…

11 May 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether, during the First Minister's recent meeting with President George W Bush, a possible visit to Scotland by the President was discussed.

Answer · Henry McLeish: During my meeting with President Bush on April 5 we discussed a number of topics of mutual interest. I took the opportunity of extending an informal invitation to the President to visit Scotland during any future trip to Britain.

3 May 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) sheep, (b) cattle and (c) pigs there were in Scotland immediately prior to the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease; how many of each it estimates there are currently; how many of each it estimates there will be once the outbreak is over, according to current predictions on the…

Answer · Ross Finnie: Only historical census figures and the numbers of animals culled to date are available. These are shown in the table below. It is impossible to predict how many will eventually be culled. The focus of our strategy is to restrict advancement of the disease, he…

25 Apr 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-2911 by Susan Deacon on 8 February 2001, whether the Health Technology Board for Scotland's advice on beta interferon is currently expected to be available in September.

Answer · Susan Deacon: The Health Technology Board for Scotland will report on beta interferons following the publication of the NICE guidance which is expected in September 2001. <P>The Board is working closely with NICE to ensure that its Comment follows the NICE Guidance promptl…

2 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to review or change the Scottish Ministerial Code.

Answer · Henry McLeish: I have no plans at present to amend the Scottish Ministerial Code.

2 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether its principles of good practice for Ministers with regard to the requirement for civil servants to be impartial and non-party political are to be changed.

Answer · Henry McLeish: No.

2 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the guidelines relating to the working relationships between Ministers and civil servants are the same in Scotland as in the rest of the UK.

Answer · Henry McLeish: Yes.

2 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it ensures that its civil servants remain politically neutral.

Answer · Henry McLeish: The conduct of civil servants is governed by the Civil Service Code which requires that they &quot;conduct themselves with integrity, impartiality and honesty&quot;. The full code is available at www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/central/1999/cscode.htm

28 Mar 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will be in a position to say whether compensation will be paid, and, if so, at what level, to the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland in respect of loss of income caused by voluntary closure due to foot-and-mouth disease.

Answer · Alasdair Morrison: I refer the member to the answer that given to question S1W-14552 on 28 March 2001.

27 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-4387 by Mr Jim Wallace on 29 February 2001, whether it will provide the updated average time period figures for the same courts for each quarter from January 2000 to date.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The following table shows the average waiting periods between plea and trial, in summary criminal proceedings, at the conclusion of each quarter of the year 2000 for the sheriff courts at Linlithgow, Stirling, Falkirk, Dundee, Hamilton, Lanark, Dunfermline an…

21 Mar 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Royal Zoological Society for Scotland will receive support to compensate for the voluntary closure of Edinburgh Zoo and the Highland Wildlife Park to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease.

Answer · Ross Finnie: To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Royal Zoological Society for Scotland will receive support to compensate for the voluntary closure of Edinburgh Zoo and the Highland Wildlife Park to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease.

14 Mar 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether Historic Scotland will consider a grant application to repair Cramond Weir now that the question of the weir's ownership has been resolved.

Answer · Allan Wilson: I have asked Graeme Munro, Director and Chief Executive of Historic Scotland to answer. His response is as follows:<P>It is open to anyone who is in a position to undertake repairs to the weir and to maintain the structure thereafter to seek financial assista…

12 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the failure of the Deputy Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs to vote, although present at Decision Time, in support of its policy on amendment S1M-1725.1 to motion S1M-1725 on Scotland's Fishing Industry was a breach of paragraph 2.4 of the Scottish Ministerial C…

Answer · Nicol Stephen: I voted on all three divisions in line with Executive policy, however my vote on the second division appears not to have been recorded by the electronic voting system. I have written to the Presiding Officer about the matter.

6 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it can provide to the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland to safeguard the Scottish National Zoological Collection during the current foot-and-mouth disease outbreak and beyond.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive has provided authoritative veterinary advice on foot-and-mouth disease through its website and a link to the MAFF website. Specific advice where required can also be provided to bodies such as the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland on…

6 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many jobs the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland sustains directly and indirectly and how much money it generates for the local economy through Edinburgh Zoo and the Highland Wildlife Park.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: Data on the employment and turnover of companies and institutions are held by the Inter-Departmental Business Register, to which the Scottish Executive has access. However, the Executive is not able to publish individual record data.

6 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is providing, or will provide, to current conservation, education and research programmes of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland which assist Scotland and the United Kingdom to meet obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Answer · Allan Wilson: No support for the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland for conservation, education or research programmes to meet obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity is either in process or intended by the Scottish Executive.

6 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to provide financial aid to the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland to enable it to continue to fulfil its national conservation, education, research and economic roles at Edinburgh Zoo and the Highland Wildlife Park following their closure due to the foot-and-mouth dis…

Answer · Ross Finnie: I announced on 8 March that work would begin to assess the wider element impacts arising from the present foot and mouth outbreak. The priority is to assess the immediate implications and I expect an initial assessment to be available in the near future. It i…

16 Feb 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the current numbers of police officers in Lothian and Borders and across Scotland as a whole are adequate.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Decisions on the number of police officers in Lothian and Borders, as well as in other forces across Scotland, are operational and a matter for the appropriate Chief Constable. Additional funding provided by the Scottish Executive for police services is suffi…

16 Feb 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many humans have been killed by animals in each of the last 20 years, which animals were involved in each case and whether the strict liability on owners placed by the Animals (Scotland) Act 1987 has reduced the number of any such deaths.

Answer · Iain Gray: The available information is presented in the table. There has been no significant variation in the numbers of such deaths recorded over the last 20 years.<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=526><TR><TD VALIGN="TOP" COLSPAN=4 HEIGHT=20><FONT FACE=…

30 Jan 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been killed by chemicals in each of the last 10 years and what category of chemicals was responsible for each death.

Answer · Iain Gray: It is<FONT FACE="Helv"> not possible to give a precise answer to this question as it is difficult to define which deaths are due to chemicals or, indeed, what should be covered by the term chemicals. The table below summarises some relevant information on dea…

30 Jan 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people were killed by lightning in each of the last 10 years and whether any guidance is issued on this matter.

Answer · Iain Gray: Three people were killed by lightning in the last 10 years, one each in 1992, 1995 and 1996. The Scottish Executive has not issued any guidance on this subject.

30 Jan 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive why Scotland's population is declining and whether this represents any net "brain drain" in the business, commerce, industrial, educational and research sectors.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: The Registrar General's 1999 mid-year estimate of Scotland's population was 5,119,200. This represents a fall of 17,400 since 1995, reflecting estimated net out-migration and other adjustments of 10,895 and a natural decrease (more deaths than births) of 6,50…

26 Jan 2001 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will make available access by MSPs to videoconferencing facilities.

Answer · David Steel: Videoconferencing &quot;studio&quot; facilities are available to all MSPs and staff of the Parliament. A fully equipped videoconferencing suite is located in the basement of Committee Chambers. This can be booked through the Parliament Helpdesk (85100) and mo…

18 Dec 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of any impact of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) on (a) civil liberties, (b) policing generally and (c) the operation of its departments; whether ECHR has had any impact on the spending levels of (i) its departments and (ii) non-departmental pub…

Answer · Jim Wallace: The UK has been bound by the European Convention of Human Rights since 1951. The principal effect of the Human Rights Act is to allow UK citizens to assert their Convention rights in domestic courts, rather than having to take their cases to Strasbourg. As su…

7 Dec 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many cases before sheriff courts have been abandoned or lost as a result of pressure on the courts; what it intends to do to prevent such occurrences, and whether it has consulted victims of crime in relation to its policy in this area.

Answer · Colin Boyd: The records of all Procurator Fiscal Offices have been checked. During the year to December 2000 no cases are recorded as abandoned or lost because of pressure on sheriff courts.

22 Nov 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will make legal aid available to people pursuing cases through employment tribunals and how much it will cost in the current financial year and each of the next 10 financial years to extend legal aid to this group.

Answer · Jim Wallace: On 15 January 2001, legal representation at employment tribunals became available under the Assistance by Way of Representation scheme for certain types of case. The costs will depend on the number of eligible cases and the way the Scottish Legal Aid Board in…

7 Nov 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive for what purpose any money removed from the bank accounts of former NHS Trusts since they were wound up has been used and what any remaining funds will be used for.

Answer · Susan Deacon: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-10991.