Michael Russell

26 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to involve private companies or private finance in assisting those who are temporarily or permanently excluded from school.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Executive currently has no plans at a national level to engage the private sector in assisting pupils excluded from school.

21 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what professional advice it expects local authorities to seek on an on-going basis with regard to risk and performance when placing monies on the money markets.

Answer · Peter Peacock: This is a matter for local authorities, although we expect them to have regard to the CIPFA Code of Practice for Treasury Management in the Public Services (2001) and professional advice where it is an issue.

21 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish an estimate of the volume of daily transactions by local authorities on the money market.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The information requested is not held centrally.

21 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidelines it issues to local authorities with regard to placing of local authority monies on the money markets.

Answer · Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive currently issues no guidelines to local authorities on this issue. Local authorities are constrained by the Trustees Investment Act 1961 and are expected to have regard to the CIPFA Code of Treasury Management.<P>The Scottish Executive …

21 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what supervisory arrangements it expects local authorities to implement in order that local authority employees dealing in the money markets on behalf of their authorities are adequately monitored at all times.

Answer · Peter Peacock: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-23369.

21 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what training arrangements it expects local authorities to make in order to ensure that all local authority employees dealing in the money markets on behalf of their authorities are suitably qualified.

Answer · Peter Peacock: These are matters for local authorities, although we would expect them to have regard to the revised CIPFA Code of Practice on Treasury Management in the Public Sector.

20 Feb 2002 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Presiding Officer how the Parliament plans to mark the 295th anniversary of the adjournment of the former Parliament of Scotland, which falls on 25 March 2002.

Answer · David Steel: >I will raise this at the next Parliamentary Bureau meeting on Tuesday 12 March 2002. In the interim, you may wish to discuss the matter with your Business Manager.

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what grants are available to private house owners or owners of business premises to allow them to replace lead water piping or water pipes affected by lead solder.

Answer · Margaret Curran: Local authorities have discretion to pay repair grants towards the cost of replacing lead plumbing in private sector houses. This also applies to business premises which share plumbing with such houses, where the premises are subject to a repair notice. The a…

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what estimate has been made of the cost of eliminating all lead water piping or water pipe affected by lead solder from domestic or commercial premises.

Answer · Ross Finnie: As indicated in the answer given to question S1W-23228 today, there is no accurate data on the number of properties that have internal lead pipes or lead pipes connecting the property to the public water supply. Consequently, there is no reliable estimate of …

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what resources it makes available to local authorities and housing associations to replace lead water piping or water pipes affected by lead solder in housing stock owned or managed by such bodies.

Answer · Iain Gray: No such allocations are made by the Scottish Executive. It is for local authorities and Registered Social Landlords to decide how best to deploy the resources available to them to meet housing need, including the replacement of lead piping.

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to undertake a public information campaign on the danger of excess lead in domestic water supplies which may be caused by lead piping in the home or lead piping joining the home to the public water supply.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: In December 2000 a public information initiative, combining press advertising and an information leaflet, highlighted the simple precautions which could be taken to minimise any harmful effects of lead in water. The leaflet remains available to the public.

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what facilities it makes available to the public for water from domestic premises to be checked for the presence of lead free of charge.

Answer · Ross Finnie: If a customer is concerned that they may be at risk from lead in their drinking water, as a result of lead plumbing, the water authority will test their supply on request and free of charge. A similar service is available from the local authority environmenta…

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) domestic and (b) business premises are supplied with water from (i) lead pipes within the building, (ii) lead pipes between the building and the public supply and (iii) pipes affected by lead solder.

Answer · Ross Finnie: There is no accurate data on the number of properties that have internal lead pipes or lead pipes connecting the property to the public water supply. Similarly, the number of properties with copper pipes with lead solder joints is not known.<P>The use of lead…

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what estimate has been made of the number of people who may suffer from minor ailments caused by a higher than normal dose of lead as a result of being supplied with water through lead pipes or through pipes which contain lead solder.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been treated by the NHS for lead poisoning as a result of consuming water delivered by lead pipes in domestic premises in the last 25 years, broken down by local authority area and year.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that no lead piping is used in the supply of water in homes or business premises.

Answer · Ross Finnie: There are no lead water mains in Scotland and lead plumbing has not been used since the 1960's. Internal lead plumbing is confined to properties constructed before 1964 although the use of lead supply pipes (the underground pipes connecting properties to the …

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it holds comparitive information about the acceptable levels of lead in drinking water in all EU countries and whether Scotland's standards are being observed consistently across the country.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The current standard for lead in drinking water in EU Member States is set in EC Directive (80/778/EEC). The new Drinking Water Directive (98/83/EC), which sets a tighter standard for lead, comes into force in December 2003. The Scottish Executive does not ho…

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what investigations it has undertaken into the level of lead in drinking water and whether it will publish the results of any such investigations.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Water Supply (Water Quality) (Scotland) Regulations 1990 require the Scottish water authorities to monitor levels of lead in drinking water. A summary of compliance with the lead standard set in the Regulations is published annually in the Executive's rep…

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether current legislation regarding lead levels in drinking water is being complied with by each local authority in regard to its housing stock.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Scottish water authorities monitor compliance with the lead standard set in the Water Supply (Water Quality) (Scotland) Regulations 1990. When non-compliance is detected as a result of domestic plumbing, the owners/occupiers of the building are notified o…

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its current estimate is of the number of speakers of Scottish Gaelic and what projections it has made in respect of this matter for the next 10 years.

Answer · Mike Watson: We have made no estimate or projection beyond the result of the 1991 Census that 69,510 people could speak, read or write Gaelic. The results of the 2001 Census are expected by March 2003.

15 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Registrar General for Scotland plans to publish information from the April 2001 census in respect of the number of Gaelic speakers.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The main results from the 2001 Census are due to be published by March 2003. This will include the number of Gaelic speakers.

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it conformed with the objective of developing public confidence in the effective use of public resources for six ministerial cars to remain parked in the Lawnmarket, High Street, Edinburgh for over an hour after decision time had taken place on Thursday 7 February 2002.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive is committed to the effective use of public resources, and the resources invested in the Government Car Service are no exception.<P>The operation of the Government Car Service in Scotland is consistent with UK guidance on ministerial tr…

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police and Lothian Transport plc with regard to parking of ministerial cars on double yellow lines and at a bus stop in the Lawnmarket, High Street, Edinburgh between 5.00 pm and 6.00 pm on days when the Parliame…

Answer · Andy Kerr: No discussions have taken place between the Scottish Executive and Lothian Transport plc, about parking in the Lawnmarket. There were discussions with the Lothian and Borders Police Scottish Parliamentary Police Service in 1999, about the safe transportation …

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-22172 by Dr Elaine Murray on 5 February 2001, on what grounds it stated that Kilmartin House had not accepted its offer of a meeting and on what date the offer was declined.

Answer · Elaine Murray: My predecessor, Allan Wilson, offered to meet with representatives of the Kilmartin House Trust in a letter dated 7 November 2001. The director was advised by telephone to await the ministerial reshuffle before making an appointment with the appropriate minis…

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether any local authorities intend to end existing temporary contracts for teachers in order to finance one-year placements for new entrants to the teaching profession from August 2002.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Deployment of staff is a matter for local authorities and information on the use of temporary contracts is not held centrally.

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will ensure that local authorities are funded so that one-year placements are guaranteed to all new entrants to the teaching profession who seek them from August 2002.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive is fully committed to meeting the direct cost of implementation of the agreement, <I>A Teaching Profession for the 21<SUP>st</SUP> Century</I>. <P>Appropriate measures are being taken to ensure sufficient funding is in place to meet the…

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many one-year placements for new entrants to the teaching profession it expects local authorities to offer from August 2002.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: There will be approximately 2,400 eligible students leaving Scottish Higher Education Institutions with a Teaching Qualification in June 2002 and all of these have been guaranteed a one year training contract. The Scottish Executive is working with local auth…

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had, or is having, with local authorities with regard to the one-year placement for new entrants to the teaching profession.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Local Government representatives have been present at all meetings of the Induction Implementation Group (which was established in July 2001 to develop in partnership the Teacher Induction Scheme). In addition, during February and early March each local autho…

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what encouragement and assistance it has given, or plans to give, to small towns who have established or plan to establish development trusts.

Answer · Iain Gray: To date, the Scottish Executive has not provided direct or explicit encouragement or assistance to small towns wishing to establish a development trust. However, initiatives such as Working for Communities have focused on exploring new ways to organise and de…

13 Feb 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has undertaken, and what proposals it will bring forward, for the establishment of town champions, animateurs, enablers or facilitators as envisaged by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland and referred to in the report of the Urban Task Force in 1999, Towards…

Answer · Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive has no plans to bring forward specific proposals regarding the establishment of town champions. However, any appointment by local authorities of appropriate people to such, or similar, posts would be consistent with the general thrust o…