Parliamentary questions

Claire Baker

1,724 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13906 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008, how many students received financial support excluding non-means tested loans from the Scottish Government in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2006-07, (c) 2005-06 and (d) 2004-05

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The following table shows higher education students who are receiving support, other than non means tested maintenance loan, from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) in academic years 2004-2005 to 2006-2007. <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellp…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13909 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008, how many students will receive any financial support excluding non-means tested loans from the Scottish Government in each of the next three years if earnings rise at the average rate for 2007-08, broken down by…

Answer · Maureen Watt: The latest year for which data are available for students receiving some form of support is for 2006-07. Similarly, 2006-07 is the latest year for which data are available for average earnings. The data show that median weekly earnings rose by 3.1% in the yea…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13911 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008, how many students will receive full financial support over the next three years if income thresholds are held static, as per the SAAS Eligibility efficiency savings, and earnings rise at the 2006-07 average rate…

Answer · Adam Ingram: The following table shows the number of students receiving full support from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) in academic years 2006-07 to 2009-10 based on the assumption that income thresholds remain static (at their 2006-07 levels) and that ear…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to change how discretionary funds are distributed.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: We have no plans to change how discretionary funds are distributed. The funds for higher education have now been allocated for academic year 2008-09. These funds are continually monitored and the guidance is updated on an annual basis. This allows us to regul…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13913 by Fiona Hyslop on 17 June 2008, whether income thresholds for bursaries, loans and grants will continue to be uprated on an annual basis with the underlying rate of inflation given the planned SAAS Eligibility efficiency savings of over £12 mi…

Answer · Adam Ingram: The Scottish Government has in the past raised the income thresholds for loans, bursaries and grants on an annual basis in line with the underlying rate of inflation (RPIX). We have no plans to move away from this practice and indeed the planned efficiency sa…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13916 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008, whether the SAAS - Loans to Grants efficiency savings of £40 million will provide £40 million of additional funding to be spent by the government or whether £30 million of this is a reduction in the Student Loan…

Answer · Adam Ingram: The £40 million efficiency savings are a result of a £30 million reduction in the Student Loans New Lending budget line, which is one of the Annually Managed Expenditure elements of the SAAS baseline. This reduction in the amount of loans advanced also genera…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much research-related funding was provided to universities and colleges, broken down by institution, in each of the last three years.

Answer · Adam Ingram: The following table present details of research-related (including knowledge transfer) funding provided or channelled via the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) to universities and colleges over the last three years. This mainly supports infrastructure and capaci…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how funding for research conducted in tertiary education is distributed and calculated.

Answer · Adam Ingram: The vast majority of Scottish Government funding for research (including knowledge transfer) in tertiary education is distributed and calculated by the Scottish Funding Council. The details of how this funding is distributed and calculated are set out in the …

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13919 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008, when statistics on staff employed by colleges and universities will be available for 2007-08.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Staffing numbers for colleges and universities for the academic year 2007-08 will become available in January 2009.

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13919 by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008, how many staff were employed in (a) colleges and (b) universities in (i) 2007-08, (ii) 2006-07, (iii) 2005-06 and (iv) 2004-05, broken down into academic and non-academic staff numbers.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Further to the answer to question S3W-13919 on 16 June 2008, the number of staff at Scottish higher education institutions and colleges during the past three academic years broken down by employment function is shown in the following table. Number o…

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the teaching activity target for colleges will be in each of the next three academic years.

Answer · Maureen Watt: The teaching activity target for colleges in 2008-09 is that 2,310,323 weighted student units of measurement are to be delivered. This is set out in more detail in Annex A3 of the Scottish Funding Council’s (SFC) circular SFC/17/2008 Main …

20 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time equivalent student places at higher education institutions will be funded in the next three academic years.

Answer · Maureen Watt: The total number of full-time equivalent student places at higher education institutions in academic year 2008-09 will be 130,238. This includes 2,182 ring-fenced places in controlled subjects. As the number of full-time equivalent student places at higher ed…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much on average per student (a) further, (b) higher and (c) all tertiary education institutions (i) spent in each of the last three years and (ii) will spend in each of the next three years, also broken down by institution.

Answer · Maureen Watt: This information is not held centrally. The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) does not publish spend per student by institution. The SFC does publish performance indicators for colleges, which note colleges’ total income and a breakdown of this income …

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding it (a) provided in each of the last three years and (b) will provide over each of the next three years through the Scottish Funding Council for (i) full-time undergraduate, (ii) part-time undergraduate, (ii) full-time postgraduate, (iii) part-time postgraduate and (iv) al…

Answer · Maureen Watt: This information is not held centrally. The SFC does not publish any information on funding per student at higher education institutions (HEIs). The SFC’s teaching funding allocation method distributes funding according to Units of Teaching Resource…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much student support it (a) provided in each of the last three years and (b) will provide over each of the next three years to (i) full-time undergraduate, (ii) part-time undergraduate, (ii) full-time postgraduate, (iii) part-time postgraduate and (iv) all students, also broken down …

Answer · Maureen Watt: The amount of student support provided to each of the four student groups and the average amount per student in the past three academic years was: <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td width=190 nowrap colspan=2 valign=t…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13700 by Stewart Stevenson on 11 June 2008, in what month in the summer it expects Transport Scotland to deliver its initial findings from the strategic transport projects review to ministers and whether these findings will be made public.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Transport Scotland expects to deliver its initial findings from the strategic transport projects review to ministers in August 2008. Ministers will need to give careful consideration to these findings before being in a position to make any public announcement…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what transport projects are being considered by Transport Scotland for recommendation to be prioritised as part of its strategic transport projects review.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The transport projects being considered by the strategic transport projects review (STPR) include those that have been developed specifically to meet the objectives of the STPR, through internal and external workshops, including the regional transport partner…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the upgrade of the Redhouse Roundabout on the A92 is being considered as part of the strategic transport projects review.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Yes.

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost-benefit ratios were of the transport projects approved since May 2007.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The following table identifies the benefit to cost ratio (BCR) for those transport projects committed to by the Scottish Government in the June 2007 statement to the Parliament: <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td vali…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers to be a sufficiently high cost-benefit ratio to enable a transport project to be prioritised as part of its strategic transport projects review.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-14235 on 2 July 2008. Answers to written parliamentary questions can be found on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.sea…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers to be a sufficiently high cost-benefit ratio to enable a transport project to receive central government funding.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: An appraisal using Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) is required when government funding, support or approval is sought for justified proposals to change the transport system. There is no minimum benefit to cost ratio threshold set within STAG. STA…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will prioritise transport projects with higher cost-benefit ratios over those with lower ratios as part of its strategic transport projects review.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The appraisal and subsequent prioritisation of transport projects within the strategic transport projects review is being carried out in accordance with the requirements of the Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG). In terms of the economic cr…

16 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance and allocations for discretionary funds in the 2008-09 academic year were sent to the Student Awards Agency for Scotland on 6 June 2008 for distribution to all institutions.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The information sent to the Student Awards Agency for Scotland on 6 June comprises a guidance document which provides general advice to administrators of the discretionary funds. As these funds are discretionary, it is up to each individual institution to dec…

9 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the location is of the nearest institution where Scottish students with cerebral palsy can study at higher or further education level; how much the attendance fees are, and what financial support the Scottish Government provides towards such fees.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: All institutions within Scotland are covered by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (and as amended in 2005) and as such they are required to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that students with disabilities are not placed at a substantial disadvantage…

9 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what efforts it is making to increase higher and further education provision for people with cerebral palsy.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Colleges and universities in Scotland are continuing to work towards becoming more inclusive for all students including those with a disability. The Scottish Government continues to encourage further and higher education institutions to offer flexibl…

9 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many educational institutions are equipped to provide for students with cerebral palsy.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: We do not hold information on how many educational institutions in Scotland are specifically equipped to provide for students with cerebral palsy. Colleges and universities in Scotland are continuing to become more inclusive for all students. They un…

9 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what provisions it makes to enable people with cerebral palsy to attend university or college.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government encourages all colleges and universities in Scotland to offer flexible courses which respond to the needs of learners while continuing to offer a high quality and relevant learning experience. Additional support provided to st…

9 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what support it provides to Scottish students with cerebral palsy while they are studying in (a) Scotland and (b) the rest of the United Kingdom.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: There is a range of both institutional and individual financial support packages available to disabled students studying within Scotland depending on whether the student is on a further or higher education course. Further education colleges in Scotla…

5 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on how many instances of signal failure that have prevented trains crossing the Forth Rail Bridge (a) between 1 May 2007 and 3 April 2008 and (b) from 3 April 2008.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: This information is not held centrally. It is a matter for Network Rail.

5 Jun 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it costs to lend £1 of student loan, providing a breakdown of these costs.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The direct DEL cost of making loans, known as the student loans subsidy, is 31p per £1 loaned, comprising the interest subsidy rate of 18.2p and the write-off rate of 12.8p.