Parliamentary questions
Phil Gallie
528 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
17 Jun 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what reduction in the number of administration posts will result from dissolving NHS trusts and setting up (a) general hospital and (b) community health divisions, as referred to at the public meeting of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board on 4 June 2003
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: This is an operational matter for NHS Ayrshire and Arran.
2 Jun 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the economic impact of any discriminatory action being taken by the Traffic Commissioner for Scotland against Trans Consult in Edinburgh.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: None. The functions of the Traffic Commissioners for the Scottish Traffic Area in relation to freight are reserved.
2 Jun 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what powers it has in respect of economic development to support firms in securing fair treatment from bodies and offices such as the Traffic Commissioner for Scotland.
Answer · Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive has no such powers.
19 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to secure the interest of Scottish parents in circumstances such as the repeated process of appeal used by the appellant in the case of Fawcett v McRoberts in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit which created substantial demands on pro bono re…
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-00240. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: <A HREF="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa"…
19 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the situation of Scottish parents whose children have been abducted to the United States of America and for whom no legal aid support can be offered to defend court actions initiated there.
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-240 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: <A HREF="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search…
19 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the judgement by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in the case of Fawcett v McRoberts contravenes section 2(3) of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and, if so, what steps it is taking to protect the interests of Scottish children and parents with contact rig…
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Children (Scotland) Act 1995 does not form part of the law of the USA. However, the Scottish Executive shares the concerns expressed about the effect of this appeal judgement having regard to the terms of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of Inter…
19 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the implications of the judgement by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in the case of Fawcett v McRoberts that it is acceptable within the law for a Scottish child to be taken to reside in the United States of America by a parent with reside…
Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Executive is aware of this appeal decision. The case arose following an abduction to the USA from Scotland following which the Scottish child was ordered to be returned to Scotland under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International …
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many prisms were dispensed through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of these, how many were dispensed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The number of optical vouchers with supplements for prisms paid in respect of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board area for the financial years 1997 to 2003 is shown in table 1. A robust estimate is not available for 1996. The number of optical voucher with supplemen…
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the total value of claims was for hospital eye service contact lens solution made through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of this, how much was claimed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-142 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at <A HREF="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_…
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the total value of claims was for low vision aids made through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of this, how much was claimed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: This is a matter for Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board as the information requested is not held centrally. However, the Chief Executive of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board has agreed to write to you on these matters.
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many supplements for children's spectacle frames were claimed through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of these, how many were claimed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The number of optical vouchers with supplements for small glasses paid in respect of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board area for the financial years 1997 to 2003 is shown in table 1. A robust estimate is not available for 1996. The number of optical vouchers with s…
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many dual pairs of spectacles, one for reading and one for distance, were dispensed through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of these, how many were dispensed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not available.
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many pairs of bifocal spectacles were dispensed through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of these, how many were dispensed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The number of optical vouchers for bifocal spectacles paid in respect of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board area for the financial years 1996 to 2003 is shown in table 1. The number of optical vouchers for bifocal spectacles paid in respect of each ophthalmic dispe…
14 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many pairs of spectacles with tinted lenses were dispensed through Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board and, of these, how many were dispensed by each registered optician in the board's area in each year since 1996.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The number of optical voucher supplements for tints paid in respect of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board area for the financial years 1996 to 2003 is shown in table 1. The number of optical voucher supplements for tints paid in respect of each ophthlamic dispenser…
13 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what effect the current General Agreement on Trade in Services negotiations will have on large and small businesses.
Answer · Jim Wallace: The current General Agreement on Trade in Services negotiations, which are due to end on 1 January 2005, are aimed at improving market access for exporters of services and should therefore have a positive impact on businesses. Exports of Scottish services, wh…
13 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what decision-making powers and responsibilities it would lose under the current European Union proposals on better market access to environmental services.
Answer · Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive will not lose decision-making powers or responsibilities In respect of environmental services with regard to the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).<P>The regulation of international trade is a reserved matter and as such the…
13 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Her Majesty's Government on the current General Agreement on Trade in Services negotiations.
Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues including the General Agreement on Trade in Services.
12 May 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the level of manufacturing output was in each month of (a) 1996-97 and (b) 2002-03.
Answer · Jim Wallace: Statistics on manufacturing output are not available on a monthly basis. The following table details the quarterly index of Gross Value Added (GVA) in the manufacturing sector between 1996 and 2002. <P>Statistics on the cash value of manufacturing output are …
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive under what conditions the Scottish Agricultural College buildings at Auchencruive were inherited by the nation and whether any change of use of the buildings and land away from agricultural education purposes would negate their current ownership.
Answer · Ross Finnie: This is a matter for the Scottish Agricultural College which has title to the land and buildings at its campus at Auchincruive.
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it remains its policy to disperse its staff and those of non-departmental public bodies from Edinburgh to outlying regions and whether it would block relocation of staff from outlying regions into Edinburgh.
Answer · Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive is committed to ensuring that government in Scotland is efficient and decentralised, as part of a wider vision of more accessible, open and responsive government. We are committed to examining opportunities as they arise and on a case b…
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many reports of child abuse were submitted by the police to procurators fiscal and how many of these reports concerned complaints against (a) females and (b) males in each of the last five years for which figures are available.
Answer · Elish Angiolini: This information is not held centrally at present, but action is currently being taking to improve how this type of information is recorded. It is hoped that it should be possible to complete the improvements to our record keeping systems in the coming months.
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) females and (b) males were charged with abuse of children in each of the last five years for which figures are available.
Answer · Jim Wallace: The available information is contained in the following table. The statistics relate only to those offences where by definition the victim was a child. Information on proceedings in relation to other offences which may involve child victims, e.g. assault, can…
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many farms in the East Ayrshire Council area remain under restrictions imposed after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor in 1986 and what those restrictions are.
Answer · Mary Mulligan: I am advised by the Food Standards Agency that 10 farms in the East Ayrshire Council area remain under restrictions imposed after the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986.<P>In Scotland, as in the rest of the UK, restrictions were placed in designated areas whe…
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the causes of the pattern of cancer deaths in the East Ayrshire Council area have changed significantly since 1980.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Since 1980 the population in the East Ayrshire Council areas has increased slightly while the number of cancer deaths has remained relatively stable.<P>The following tables provide detail of the number of deaths for various cancers in the East Ayrshire Counci…
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people in the East Ayrshire Council area have died from cancer that may have been caused from radiation in each year since 1986.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: It is not possible to deduce how many cancer deaths have been caused by exposure to ionising radiation.
17 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people in the East Ayrshire Council area are being treated for cancers that could have been caused by radiation.
Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: It is not possible to identify patients currently undergoing treatment for cancer, nor is it possible to deduce how many cancers have been caused by exposure to ionising radiation.
10 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider setting a job specification for the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland that ensures that all requirements of a public service regulatory appointment are met.
Answer · Ross Finnie: The Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland was appointed by Scottish ministers on 1 April 2002 under powers conferred by subsection 7(1) of the Water Industry (Scotland) Act 2002. The regulator has a job specification in that the terms of his appointme…
10 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will not proceed with the proposed public charter for the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland in the light of the level of response and content of responses received in respect of its consultation on this matter.
Answer · Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive is committed to ensuring that enforcement procedures are fair and transparent through the provision of a public charter for the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland. This charter will therefore seek to comply with the Executive…
10 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost has been of the consultation on the Public Charter for the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland.
Answer · Ross Finnie: Definitive costs attributed to the consultation on the Public Charter for the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland relate to document production. The total costs of document production relating to the two phases of the consultation are £1,367.
7 Mar 2003 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what public positions Joan Aitken has held since 1 May 1999 and on what dates she started and completed her periods of service for each position.
Answer · Andy Kerr: Miss Aitken has been employed by the Scottish Executive as the Scottish Prison Complaints Commissioner since 1 November 1999 and will leave this post on 19 March 2003.<P>During the period in question, Miss Aitken has not been a board member of any public body…