Chamber and committees

The Chief Executive of the Scottish Court Service (SCS) has provided information on the running and general maintenance costs for each court. This information is set out in the following table. It excludes capital expenditure and staff-related costs. Information on 2002-03 is not yet available.

Court	1999-2000			2000-01			2001-02
	Running Costs	Maint-enance	Total	Running Costs	Maint-enance	Total	RunningCosts	Maint-enance	Total
Lochmaddy	£50,100	£4,800	£54,900	£53,500	£6,300	£59,800	£48,300	£1,300	£49,600
Tain	£60,000	£36,800	£96,800	£59,300	£54,300	£113,600	£61,000	£8,700	£69,700
Dingwall	£66,900	£3,600	£70,500	£72,800	£2,500	£75,300	£63,400	£35,100	£98,500
Portree	£45,500	£16,000	£61,500	£44,800	£6,200	£51,000	£46,100	£1,000	£47,100
Peebles	£50,700	£1,500	£52,200	£53,100	£3,400	£56,500	£53,100	£1,800*	£54,900

*In addition, SCS spent £35,500 in respect of stabilisation work at Peebles.

The Executive has not been made aware of any such problems.

To be eligible for the central heating programme in the private sector all applicants or their partner must be aged 60 or over. Applications to date show that a very large number are in their 70s. All applicants would naturally like central heating as quickly as possible. The programme generally delivers central heating on a first come first served basis to avoid having to determine the relative needs of thousands of applicants, but exceptional cases will be considered on an individual basis.

There are no secure places designed specifically for young people with a physical disability or who are have a clinical diagnosis of a mental health disorder. As part of the Executive's implementation of the 10-point youth crime action plan, I am currently examining options for the re-configuration of the secure estate.I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-26764, Table 3 of which gives the number of male and female residents on 31 March in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Places are currently not segregated with the exception of the six bed unit for girls only which has operated in Kerelaw since 2001.

Ministers have no powers to direct that private solicitors undertake legal aid work; this is a commercial decision by solicitors. I understand that a legal aid practitioner in Peebles, which undertook 15 cases in 2000-01, has decided not to undertake new civil legal aid cases. There are, however, two firms of solicitors who provide civil legal aid in Galashiels and a further two firms in Selkirk.The provision of legal advice and representation in rural areas is a priority area for pilot work as part of the Review of Legal Information and Advice Provision in Scotland.

The information provided by the Chief Executive of the Scottish Court Service for each of the courts is set out in the following table:Sheriff Court Civil

	1999-2000	2000-01	2001-02	April-June2002
Ordinary Actions
Lochmaddy	37	43	30	6
Tain	119	150	148	36
Dingwall	243	229	214	51
Portree	89	86	70	19
Peebles	115	118	111	34
Summary Cause
Lochmaddy	10	14	11	2
Tain	175	188	126	8
Dingwall	109	99	119	22
Portree	45	39	43	3
Peebles	58	109	84	18
Small Claims
Lochmadday	47	23	26	1
Tain	283	148	120	17
Dingwall	258	171	163	30
Portree	100	59	45	14
Peebles	109	93	86	23
Total
Lochmaddy	94	80	67	9
Tain	577	486	394	61
Dingwall	610	499	496	103
Portree	234	184	158	36
Peebles	282	320	281	75

I have been advised by the Chief Executive of the Scottish Court Service that no new sheriff courthouses have been built since May 1999, but a number have been extensively refurbished.

The consultation exercise by the Scottish Court Service on the alternative proposals for the delivery of court business in Peebles will provide an opportunity for any additional costs or savings to be identified. At present, while it is recognised that there may be a small increase in some costs due to the increased travel, for example for witness expenses, it is not anticipated that there will be significant additional costs to the public purse given the low level of business currently undertaken at Peebles.Should any additional costs be identified these would have to be weighed against the potential savings to the Scottish Court Service and the substantial cost required to upgrade the court.

I have been advised by the Chief Executive of the Scottish Court Service that the sheriff courthouses which have been the subject of substantial renovation works since May 1999 and the cost spent on each is as follows:

Arbroath	£1.7 million
Ayr	£10.7 million
Peterhead	£2.7 million
Stirling	£1.6 million

Work is currently under way or about to commence at Dumbarton and Lanark Sheriff Courts.

The information provided by the Scottish Court Service for the number of summary complaints dealt with at each of the courts requested is set out in the following table:Sheriff Court - Summary Criminal

	1990-2000	2000-01	2001-02	April-June2002
Summary Complaints Registered
Lochmaddy	89	99	87	17
Tain	557	497	618	157
Dingwall	513	435	471	129
Portree	50	90	77	18
Summary Complaints Concluded
Lochmaddy	98	90	84	15
Tain	542	485	585	151
Dingwall	441	464	462	113
Portree	58	73	83	18
Summary Trials Evidence Led
Lochmaddy	4	4	8	5
Tain	41	31	26	7
Dingwall	27	17	28	12
Portree	7	8	6	2