Jeremy Purvis

9 Nov 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost to for general dental practices will be of implementing the recommendations of the Sterile Services Provision Review Group’s report, Survey of Decontamination in General Dental Practice, on the sterilisation of instruments.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-29732 on 24 November 2006. All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliaments website, the search facilityfor which can be found at <ahref="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/w…

9 Nov 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many dentists have taken action on the eight priority areas identified by the Sterile Services Provision Review Group’s report, Survey of Decontamination in General Dental Practice.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The recommendations in the reportwere directed at the Scottish Executive and relevant working groups and were intendedto inform policy on primary care decontamination practice. The recommendations werenot directed at individual medical or dental practices.</p>

28 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria are used to determine eligibility of vulnerable disabled people for social rented accommodation.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Everyone aged 16 or over is eligiblefor social rented housing. In addition to their statutory obligations towards certaincategories of applicants, most local authorities operate a medical priority routewhich gives a degree of priority to those with health or …

28 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what asessment has been made of the level of demand for social rented accomodation for vulnerable disabled people across Scotland.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive fullyrecognises the need to ensure that there is suitable housing for persons withdisabilities. Consequently, the Scottish Executive expects each localauthority, in its Local Housing Strategy and Supporting People Plan, toidentify the s…

28 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much accommodation is available for rent for vulnerable disabled people across Scotland, broken down by local authority area and type of accommodation.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Information on the provisionof social rented housing for older people and people with disabilities by type ofneed addressed is available in tables 20 and 22 of the statistical bulletin <i>Quarterlyhousing trends in </i><i>Scotland</i><i> – Quarter ending </i>…

27 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will report on the outcome of the British-Irish Council summit held in London on 2 June 2006.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: On 2 June 2006, the UK Governmenthosted the eighth British Irish Council Summit in London, attendedby myself and Mr Ross Finnie MSP, Minister for Environment and Rural Development.The focus of the summit was the Environment on which the UK Government takes th…

15 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what procedure is followed when a foreign law agency applies for DNA information on an individual held by the Scottish Criminal Record Office and which body or individual makes the ultimate decision whether to grant the request.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: Under current arrangements, ifsuch a request were to be received, the decision would be made by the Deputy ChiefConstable of Tayside Police who has lead responsibility within the Association ofChief Police Officers in Scotland for DNA. Responsibility for the …

15 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether, when a request is received from a foreign law agency for DNA information on individuals held by the Scottish Criminal Record Office, the individuals concerned are notified of the request and whether they have a right to appeal against a decision to agree to the request.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The individual would not be informedbecause of the possibility of prejudicing a criminal investigation. If a DNA staintaken from a crime scene matches a profile on the DNA database, the relevant policeforce would be informed. A new evidential DNA sample would…

15 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria are used when deciding whether to agree to a foreign law agency’s request for DNA information on individuals held by the Scottish Criminal Record Office.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: Any such request would be dealtwith on its merits taking account of Interpol’s arrangements for information processingand sharing.</p>

15 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many requests for DNA information on individuals made to the Scottish Criminal Record Office by foreign law agencies have been granted in each of the last five years.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Criminal RecordOffice does not hold DNA information on individuals. The information is held bythe Scottish DNA database at Tayside Police. As no requests have been received,none have been granted.</p>

15 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many requests for DNA information on individuals have been made to the Scottish Criminal Record Office by foreign law agencies in each of the last five years.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Criminal RecordOffice does not hold DNA information on individuals. The information is held bythe Scottish DNA database at Tayside Police. No requests for DNA information onindividuals from foreign law enforcement agencies have been received in t…

14 Jun 2006 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what financial support it is providing for community development trusts.

Answer · Johann Lamont: Development trusts have receivedfinancial support totalling over £800,000 from the Scottish Executive in the lastthree years. Communities Scotland is also funding the Development Trusts Association Scotland.Support may also be available via the enterprise net…

6 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what funding was given to provide clinical psychology assessment and treatment services in the last year, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: This information is not heldcentrally.</p>

6 Jun 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is giving to improve clinical psychology assessment and treatment services in the Scottish Borders.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: It is for NHS boards, workingwithin the framework of national priorities, to consider how best to deploytheir resources to meet local needs. However, I expect NHS boards to takeaccount of the specialist needs of patients in their areas in planning andprovidin…

25 Apr 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when a framework will be put in place to replace the functions performed by the Advocacy Safeguards Agency.

Answer · Andy Kerr: We remain committed tosupporting the development of advocacy. NHS boards are required to ensure thatindependent advocacy is available to all those that require it.</p><p>NHSQuality Improvement Scotland and the Scottish Health Council have complementaryroles i…

13 Apr 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to amend the Community Right to Buy (Definition of Excluded Land) (Scotland) Order 2004, and, if so, when this is likely to take effect.

Answer · Rhona Brankin: The Scottish Executive expectsto present to Parliament later this year an amending order to update the CommunityRight to Buy (Definition of Excluded Land)(Scotland) Order 2004. This willtake account of changes to population statistics and settlement boundarie…

1 Mar 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it contributes funding to the maintenance of the National DNA Database and, if so, how much.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Executive does notcontribute funding to the maintenance of the National DNA Database. Scottish PoliceForces, however, pay a fee of £2.53 for each profile inserted onto the NationalDNA Database.</p>

1 Mar 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the limits which are in place to prevent the illegal use of the National DNA Database, particularly in respect of DNA samples collected from Scotland.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: DNA samples collected by thepolice in Scotland are not held by the National DNA Database. However,it does hold DNA profiles derived from such samples.</p><p>The National DNA Databasemust comply with the legislation which governs the use of the DNA profiles an…

27 Feb 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it contributed to the National Criminal Intelligence Service in 2004-05; what the contribution was spent on, and, in particular, whether the contribution funded permanently staffed immigration posts at Scottish ports, harbours and airports and, if so, how many.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Executive contributed£5,496,000 to the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) in 2004-05.</p><p>NCIS has a remit to provide leadershipand excellence in criminal intelligence to combat serious organised crime. It providesa range of Co-ordin…

26 Jan 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many convictions there were for possession of a firearm in (a) 2004 and (b) 2005, broken down by sheriffdom.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for 2004-05 are planned for publication in April 2006.</p> <p>Persons with a Charge Proved for Possession of a Firearm¹ in Scottish Courts, 2003²</p><table border=1 cellspacing=0 c…

26 Jan 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents of possession of a firearm were considered by trial on indictment in (a) 2004 and (b) 2005, broken down by sheriffdom.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for 2004-05 are planned for publication in April 2006.</p> <p>Persons Proceeded Against for Possession of a Firearm¹, by Trial on Indictment in Scottish Courts, 2003²</p><table bor…

26 Jan 2006 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents of possession of a firearm were considered by summary trial in (a) 2004 and (b) 2005, broken down by sheriffdom.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for 2004-05 are planned for publication in April 2006.</p> <p>Persons Proceeded Against for Possession of a Firearm¹, by Summary Trial in Scottish Courts, 2003²</p><table border=1 …

25 Jan 2006 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether its Environment and Rural Affairs Department has carried out any analysis of the environmental impact of small-scale renewables.

Answer · Ross Finnie: The Executive has recently reviewed its Scottish Community and Householder Renewables Initiative. This showed estimated lifetime carbon savings of almost twenty thousand tonnes for around 650 small scale renewables projects supported by the initiative from it…

14 Dec 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many convictions there have been for possession of a knife in (a) 2004 and (b) 2005, broken down by sheriffdom.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for 2004-05 are planned for publication in March 2006.</p> <p>Persons with a Charge Proved in Scottish Courts for Handling an Offensive Weapon¹, by Sheriffdom, 2003²</p><table bord…

14 Dec 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents of possession of a knife have been considered by trial on indictment in (a) 2004 and (b) 2005, broken down by sheriffdom.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for 2004-05 are planned for publication in March 2006.</p> <p>Persons Proceeded Against on Indictment in Scottish Courts for Handling an Offensive Weapon¹, by Sheriffdom, 2003²</p>…

14 Dec 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents of possession of a knife have been considered by summary trial in (a) 2004 and (b) 2005, broken down by sheriffdom.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for 2004-05 are planned for publication in March 2006.</p> <p>Persons Proceeded Against in Summary Courts for Handling an Offensive Weapon¹, by Sheriffdom, 2003²</p><table border=1…

7 Dec 2005 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to secure consultant-led maternity services across Scotland.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The national policy context is laid out in the <i>Framework for Maternity Services</i> published in 2001 and the report of the Expert Group on Acute Maternity Services (EGAMS) published in 2002. The EGAMS report provides guidance for NHS boards on levels of c…

28 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the outcome of the consultation on Community Justice Authorities.

Answer · Cathy Jamieson: The responses to the consultation were published on the Scottish Executive website on 26 July 2005. I have today placed copies of the independent analysis of the responses to the consultation on Community Justice Authorities in the Scottish Parliament Informa…

29 Aug 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding it will provide for mediation services in the next three years, broken down by department where possible.

Answer · Hugh Henry: Information is not held centrally on funding provision by Executive departments for the next three years.</p>

29 Aug 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been spent on mediation services by its (a) Justice and (b) Communities Department in the last five years.

Answer · Hugh Henry: The information requested is detailed in the following table.</p> <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3> <thead> <tr> <td> <p align=center>Department</p></td> <td> <p align=center>2000-01</p></td> <td> <p align=center>2001-02</p…