Jamie Stone

8 Dec 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the outcome of the tender competitions for trunk road maintenance in the north west and south west of Scotland.

Answer · Tavish Scott: My officials have written today to each of the four tenderers involved in these competitions indicating the intention to award the contract for the North West Unit to Scotland TranServ (a joint venture between Balfour Beatty and Mouchell Parkman) and the one …

30 Nov 2005 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what incentives are available to businesses to help them reduce their carbon emissions and to encourage good environmental practice.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Executive supports a number of initiatives to help business reduce carbon emissions and encourage good environmental practice. For example, we directly fund the Carbon Trust in Scotland to deliver energy efficiency programmes including free on-site energy…

2 Nov 2005 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Her Majesty¿s Government about the impact on the economy in the Highlands of the Chancellor of the Exchequer¿s pensions proposals that could allow second homes to be bought as part of a self-invested personal pension.

Answer · Allan Wilson: The Executive has regular discussions with the UK Government on a range of issues.</p> <p>The changes to pension rules from April 2006 are a reserved matter for UK Government. Should there be any evidence of these changes having a negative impact, in the High…

18 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made by the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council in planning to make a meaningful contribution to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development.

Answer · Allan Wilson: In the guidance letter to the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council and the Scottish Further Education FundingCouncil for 2005-06, sent in January 2005, the funding councils were asked to workwith higher education institutions and colleges to make a meani…

21 Sep 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the single farm payment was due to be paid and when it anticipates that payment will now be made.

Answer · Ross Finnie: Payments under the Single Farm Payment Scheme are due to be made between 1 December 2005 and 30 June 2006. The timing and amount of payment is dependent on agreement at EU level to legislation providing for partial or advance payments, ahead of finalising the…

8 Sep 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Crofters Commission will publish advice given by its officials to its board in respect of disputes with the Land Court over Taynuilt in Argyll and Ocraquoy in Shetland and whether it will make copies of such advice available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: There are no disputes between the Crofters Commission and the Scottish Land Court. The Scottish Land Court has had no role in the recent de-crofting case in Taynuilt, Argyll. The Scottish Land Court recently upheld an appeal against a Crofters Commission deci…

22 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the reasons are for the inclusion of provision in the draft Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill for croft tenancies to be sold on the free market.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: The draft Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill does not include any provision allowing croft tenancies to be sold on the free market.</p> <p>The draft bill provides that every assignation of a croft will be subject to the consent of the Crofters Commission. If the…

22 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which individuals and organisations it consulted in preparing the draft Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill and, of these, which responded with written evidence.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: Prior to the issue of the draft Crofting Reform Bill, the Executive issued for consultation a White Paper <i>Crofting Reform: Proposals for Legislation</i>. Approximately 2,500 copies were sent out to various organisations and individuals who had either intim…

18 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will take action to stop Highland Council’s plans for the closure of rural nursery schools in Caithness and, if so, what action it will take.

Answer · Robert Brown: Local authorities have astatutory duty to provide pre-school education. Consideration of the pattern ofprovision needed to meet this duty in any particular area is a matter for the localauthority.</p>

12 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take in order to address the issue of vehicle drivers not in possession of a blue badge parking their vehicles in parking spaces that are clearly marked as being for the use of blue badge holders and their associated vehicles only.

Answer · Tavish Scott: We are determined to tacklethe unacceptable abuse of disabled parking spaces.</p><p>Scotland introduced the Power To Inspect Legislation on 1 January 2004,which is designed to tackle the abuse of the Blue Badge Scheme by able-bodiedmembers of the public, who …

12 Jul 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to assist low-income families in meeting the cost of transport to rural nurseries.

Answer · Robert Brown: Section 37 of the Standardsin Scotland’s Schools Etc. Act 2000 gives local authorities thepower to provide transport, free of charge, to and from places which deliverpre-school education.</p><p>It is for local authoritiesto decide how they wish to exercise th…

29 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to prevent the closure of rural primary schools in Caithness.

Answer · Robert Brown: I am advised by The Highland Council that they have no proposals for the closure of primary schools in Caithness.</p>

15 Jun 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans Disclosure Scotland has to upgrade its database to enable the information provided on enhanced disclosure certificates to be processed under applicants names, as well as those of relevant organisations.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: Disclosure certificates are already processed this way. The Police Act 1997 requires that applications for disclosures are made and processed in the applicant’s name. The information that appears on the certificate is about the applicant or it is stated on th…

25 May 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to ensure the recruitment and retention of suitably qualified staff in Thurso High School.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The recruitment and retention of teaching staff in individual schools is a matter for the Education Authority concerned. The Scottish Executive conducts an annual teacher workforce planning exercise with the aim of balancing supply and demand at a national le…

25 May 2005 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to assist any small care organisations like Crossroads Caithness that are disproportionately affected by Care Commission charges.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: Regulation is an integral part of the cost of providing a service, and so it should normally be met by that service. Fee levels set by ministers and the Care Commission’s charging regime both take account of smaller care service providers.</p> <p>In response …

11 May 2005 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to address the shortage of skilled tradesmen.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Data from Futureskills Scotland’s Employers Skill Survey 2004 demonstrates that, according to employers, only 2.4% of employee jobs in the skilled tradespeople sector are hard-to-fill. This is down from the previous year’s figure of 3.0%, but higher than the …

31 Mar 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to help facilitate the establishment of a day care centre for Canisbay and Dunnet in Caithness.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: Local authorities have a dutyunder the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 to assess the needs of, and provide appropriateservices to, people in their area who appear to need them. They are responsiblefor arranging services to meet the needs of the population in …

9 Mar 2005 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to promote archaeological tourism in the Highlands and Islands.

Answer · Patricia Ferguson: Historic Scotland is active in promoting archaeologicaltourism in the Highlands and Islands. The agency markets more than 70 properties in the area in thecare of Scottish ministers to the national and international tourism markets. Italso supports Scottish Ar…

8 Mar 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether co-proxamol will still be available through private prescriptions following the decision that the NHS will no longer pay for it to be supplied to patients.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The safety of medicines available on the UK market is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the expert independent advisory committee, the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM).</p> <p>The MHRA has advised t…

2 Mar 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is to see an epilepsy specialist in the Highlands.

Answer · Andy Kerr: This information is not collected centrally.</p><p>Emergency cases will be immediately referred to a general ward for care and to await assessment. Urgent referrals and children will be seen by visitingneurologist service from NHS Grampian in four to eight we…

21 Feb 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will take rapid action to ensure that the EU Commission has all the information it requires to complete its audit into European regional development funding in the Highlands and Islands.

Answer · Allan Wilson: In respect of the initial auditundertaken in 2003 the Scottish Executive has already provided a substantial response includingall documentation requested. As to the forthcoming audit, officials are working closely with applicants to ensure that alldocumentati…

2 Feb 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding will be awarded to Highland Council for coastal and harbour repairs following the storms in January and when this will be made available.

Answer · Tavish Scott: Local authorities have a general duty to deal with emergencies and there is no automatic entitlement to special assistance. In exceptional circumstances authorities can apply under the Bellwin Scheme for emergency assistance to meet any undue financial assist…

1 Feb 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to reduce the number of nurses undergoing training.

Answer · Andy Kerr: Proposals regarding intakes for pre-registration nursing and midwifery programmes are being considered presently as part of the Scottish Executive’s procedures for workforce planning.</p><p>The student intake target is arrived at having first considered proje…

24 Jan 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what complaints have been received regarding the standard of service cover and delivery since the introduction of NHS 24 in the Highlands.

Answer · Andy Kerr: Between 1 May 2003 and 25 January 2005, NHS 24 dealt with over 47,500 calls from the Highland area and received 25 formal complaints. In the same time span, the Scottish Executive received nine complaints about specific cases. On 1 December 2004, NHS 24 was r…

13 Jan 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the prescription of stoma appliances is under review and, if so, what aspects of the provision of such appliances are being reviewed and what options are under consideration.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: I refer the member to the question S2W-6327, answered on 8 March 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at:</p><p><a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/wa…

13 Jan 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether patients prescribed stoma devices have a choice of the available devices or are restricted to a single specified device and, if they are so restricted, how the particular device is chosen and how often the device is reviewed.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: The choice of device and frequency of review is a matter for the clinical discretion of the prescriber. Patients who are prescribed stoma devices may present the prescription to any NHS community pharmacy or appliance supplier of their choice.</p><p>Current a…

10 Jan 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what records are held regarding the names and dates of attendance of pupils at primary and secondary schools during the 1950s and 1960s and how this information can be accessed.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The <i>Schools General (Scotland) Regulations 1975</i>, which replaced similar, earlier, provisions, require education authorities to preserve registers of attendance for five years. If any records still exist for the 1950s and 1960s,they would be held by the…

9 Dec 2004 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what further progress has been made in respect of arrangements for cross-border flows of students.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Implementation Advisory Group is making good progress towards fulfilling its remit to offer advice on tuition fee levels for Scottish higher education institutions from 2006 and to oversee the administrative changes required as a consequence of changing t…

24 Nov 2004 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it plans to support the tourist industry so that it grows by 50% by 2015.

Answer · Tom McCabe: We share with the tourism sector and with VisitScotland their ambition to grow tourism revenues by 50% over the next decade. We gave VisitScotland a 28% increase in their marketing budget earlier this year, and the recent spending review earmarked £14 million…

4 Oct 2004 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to tackle methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Answer · Andy Kerr: Reducing the incidence of MRSA is an important priority for the NHS in Scotland, as part of the programme of tackling healthcare associated infection (HAI). Actions already taken include establishing a system of national mandatory surveillance of MRSA; develo…