Parliamentary questions

George Foulkes

1,927 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to report to the Parliament on the outcome of the Crerar review of scrutiny of public bodies.

Answer · John Swinney: Professor Crerar published The report of the independent review of regulation, audit, inspection and complaints handling of public services in Scotland on 25 September 2007. This was debated by the Parliament on 3 October 2007. The Scottish …

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide the latest information on its consideration of the Borders rail reconstruction project; what cost/budget analysis has been made, and whether it proposes to re-examine the plans in light of cost increases.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: In my statement to the Parliament on 5 March 2008, I explained that I could not give an exact cost for the railway, because to announce a headline number would prejudice commercial negotiations, and for this reason I am unable to provide any further cost/bud…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what further consideration has been given to the Glasgow crossrail proposal since the Members’ Business debate on 17 April 2008; what the Executive’s current position is, and when it expects to make a decision on the project.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: Transport Scotland has received a copy of the final STAG report from Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, and it is being considered in the strategic transport projects review, which will report to ministers in the summer.

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time-equivalent staff were employed in each of its directorates at 1 May 2008 and what the comparative figures were for 1 May 2007.

Answer · John Swinney: Information about the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff employed in each directorate at 1 May 2008 and the comparative figures for 1 May 2007 is in the following tables. Full-Time Equivalent Staff Employed in Each Departmental Group (see Bac…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which public transport projects have been approved since May 2007; what the total capital cost is, and what the comparative figure was for the previous year.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: In the June 2007 transport investment statement the Scottish Government committed to the following: · Airdrie to Bathgate rail link project - £300 million to £375 million · Glasgow Airport Rail Link - costs currently under review <p …

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which trunk road projects have been approved since May 2007; what the total capital cost is, and what the comparative figure was for the previous year.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: The following projects have been approved for construction contract award since May 2007 at a capital cost of £488 million compared to projects valued at £75.4 million which were approved for construction contract award from May 2006 to April 2007. <tabl…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many planning applications it considered in 2007-08 and how many were dealt with after a public inquiry, broken down by those recommended for (a) approval and (b) refusal and showing in each case whether ministers (i) accepted or (ii) rejected the recommendations of the reporter.

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: During the period 1 January 2007 to 30 May 2008, 379 planning applications were notified to Scottish ministers for consideration, of which 24 were called in for determination by ministers. Of these, four were recommended for approval and two for refusal. In e…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is on end-year flexibility for the budgets of (a) central government, (b) local authorities and (c) NHS boards.

Answer · John Swinney: Our policy is that the financial resources available to the Scottish Government should be applied fully, efficiently and effectively to supporting excellent public services. Consequently we expect unspent balances at the end of each financial year to be very …

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the arrangements will be for a St Andrew's Day holiday for (a) its, (b) UK Government and (c) private sector staff in 2008 and how this compares with 2007.

Answer · John Swinney : The Scottish Government is committed to marking St Andrew’s Day as a National Day and as a holiday. With effect from this year, staff in its core Directorates, including senior civil servants, and those agencies which make up the Scottish Government main barg…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive who invited the First Minister to the UEFA Cup final in Manchester in May 2008; what his travel arrangements were, and what the total costs were of his attendance.

Answer · John Swinney: The First Minister was invited to the UEFA Cup final by UEFA. He caught a flight from Edinburgh to Manchester in the early evening of 16 May. The First Minister returned from Manchester after the match in a government car. The total cost of the First Minister…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many special advisers it has; what the comparative figure was in May 2007; to whom each adviser is responsible, and and what its total cost is for special advisers.

Answer · John Swinney: There were no special advisers in post on 1 May 2007 as all had resigned in the lead up to the Scottish election. Currently, there are nine special advisers of which seven are full-time appointments, one a part-time appointment and one an unpaid appointment.<…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which of the public bodies abolished since May 2007 have been incorporated into its central establishment and how many staff have been transferred as a consequence.

Answer · John Swinney: In October 2007, the Scottish Government published a comprehensive baseline of 199 national public sector organisations and committed to a reduction in this number of 25% by 2011. The number of public bodies has to date reduced by 31 organisations. T…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the implementation of revisions to international standards on auditing.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government''s Internal Audit Division works to Government Internal Audit Standards (GIAS) drawn up by HM Treasury in consultation with UK Departments, including the devolved administrations. That is set out in the Internal Audit section of the Sc…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many commercial businesses, including farms, it owns and what plans it has for the disposal of such businesses.

Answer · John Swinney: The detailed information requested is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available and a copy will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 45749).

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what vehicles it has (a) acquired and (b) disposed of since May 2007, broken down by (i) number and (ii) type of vehicle, including buses, lorries, vans, cars and bicycles.

Answer · John Swinney: The information requested is shown in the following tables: <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td colspan=2 valign=top > Acquired </td> </tr> <tr > <td valign=top > <p align=center …

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what properties it has (a) acquired and (b) disposed of since May 2007, showing the cost in each case.

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it gives to councils regarding the provision of fish in school meals on Fridays.

Answer · Adam Ingram: None. It is for local authorities and schools to devise school meal menus which comply with the Hungry for Success recommendations.

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring it undertakes of the provision of school meals to ensure that they comply with national nutritional standards.

Answer · Adam Ingram: HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) has been monitoring the implementation of the recommendations of Hungry for Success through its programme of school inspections. Inspection activities include checks to ensure that school meals meet the Scottish nutr…

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure compliance by councils with its policy on the nutritional value of school meals.

22 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3M-12925 by John Swinney on 21 May 2008, what security classification has been given to the First Minister, in relation to what threat assessment and from whom.

Answer · John Swinney: It is not the practice to comment on any minister’s threat assessment but the Scottish Government can confirm that appropriate security measures and arrangements are in place.

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many schools it expects to have initiated by May 2011 using (a) PFI, (b) the Scottish Futures Trust and (c) public finance.

Answer · John Swinney: Information on the Scottish Government’s investment plans for schools, working closely with local authorities, is set out in the Infrastructure Investment Plan (Bib. number 45134) published on 27 March 2008.

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which private bodies it expects will contribute to funding projects through the Scottish Futures Trust.

Answer · John Swinney: There is a wide range of bodies which will be interested in investing and lending to Scottish public projects. Public procurement rules oblige public bodies to invite responses to their requirements through open competition.

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what funding mechanisms it proposes to adopt for public works prior to the Scottish Futures Trust becoming operational.

Answer · John Swinney: There is a range of funding mechanisms available to public bodies for investment, and public bodies should continue to use the funding mechanism most appropriate to the investment they are undertaking to secure best value for money. The Government has publish…

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it had with COSLA prior to the publication of Taking Forward the Scottish Futures Trust.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government’s Taking Forward the Scottish Futures Trust publication (Bib. number 45605) was endorsed by the Scottish Futures Trust Steering Group which includes a representative from the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives. I have …

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects the first project to be financed under the Scottish Futures Trust to commence.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) company will be established this summer and will immediately become engaged with delivery and funding issues across a wide range of infrastructure sectors. The formation of at least two “community hubs”, including primary/comm…

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which private sector companies have expressed support for the concept of the Scottish Futures Trust.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government has not collated comments on the Scottish Futures Trust in accordance with this question. All the responses to the consultation exercise have been published, subject to any confidentiality requests, on the Scottish Government website a…

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what form of limited liability partnership the Scottish Futures Trust Finance and Investment organisation will have and what legislation governs this.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Futures Trust will be a company. The Development and Delivery arm will be a public sector classified body and the Finance and Investment arm will sit within the private sector.

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive in what legal form the Scottish Futures Trust Development and Delivery organisation will be established, including details of the legislative framework under which the organisation will be covered.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Futures Trust will be a company. The Development and Delivery arm will be a public sector classified body.

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which types of public sector projects will be financed by the Scottish Futures Trust.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government’s document Taking Forward the Scottish Futures Trust (Bib. number 45605), which accompanied the announcement of our decision to set up the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), sets out the areas where SFT will proceed immediat…

21 May 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many discussions it has had with HM Treasury regarding the establishment of the Scottish Futures Trust and what views were expressed by Treasury representatives.

Answer · John Swinney: I have written to the Chief Secretary to HM Treasury to inform her of progress on the Scottish Futures Trust’s development.