Chamber and committees

The Public Transport Fund (PTF) is supporting cycling and walking measures both as part of wider public transport improvements but also as stand-alone projects. The award to Scottish Borders Council for the development of the railway to the Central Borders is to assist the council take the project forward through the parliamentary process. As part of any future bid by the council to the PTF, walking and cycling measures could be included as part of any wider application.In the first three rounds of the PTF only projects which cost over £200,000 have been eligible for assistance under the PTF. In September 2000 I announced that the fund would be increased to £150 million between 2001-04 and I indicated that I propose to give more prominence to cycling and walking projects. Details will be issued to local authorities shortly about the arrangements for seeking bids to the next round of the fund. The budget for the PTF in 2001-02 is £40 million.

Responsibility for the provision of cycling infrastructure rests with the local authorities. They receive a block allocation for expenditure on a number of services including transport. It is for the local authorities to allocate resources in accordance with locally determined priorities. Information about the level of spending by local authorities on cycling projects is not held centrally.However, cycling projects are eligible for support from the Public Transport Fund which was announced in 1998 in the Scottish Transport White Paper to assist local authorities to provide key value for money developments to their public transport network. It is open to all of Scotland's local authorities and Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority to bid for support from the fund.So far, three Public Transport Fund Competitions have taken place with 53 projects receiving funding totalling over £95 million. During this time, eight bids for projects for improved cycling facilities have been received; all have been successful and received support from the fund. The projects and allocation is listed in the table.In May 2000, I announced that local authorities had been allocated additional capital consents, totalling £5.2 million, to take forward work on implementing safer routes to school schemes. It is for individual authorities to take decisions on the specific measures to be implemented in their areas having regard to local needs and priorities. Measures could, however, include capital expenditure on cycle projects related to safer routes to school schemes.In addition, there are occasionally funding opportunities from other sources such as the Millennium Commission which provided resources for the development of the National Cycle Network. However, these are not administered by the Scottish Executive

Authority	Project	Total Award (£ million)	Allocation 2000-01 (£ million)
Dumfries & Galloway	Dumfries Transport Initiative1	£1.063	£0.3
Midlothian	Sheriffhall Cycle Bridge	£0.802	£0.802
East Renfrewshire	Cycling and Walking Facilities	£0.450	-
Dumfries & Galloway	Stranraer Integrated Transport Package1	£0.943	-
East Ayrshire	Cycling and Walking in Kilmarnock	£0.670	-
Argyll and Bute	Cycleways in Helensburgh and Lomond	£1.900	-
Perth and Kinross	Cycle Commuter Routes	£0.200	-
Renfrewshire	Integrated Transport Improvements1	£0.268	-

Notes:1. Project also includes other public transport measures.

The Executive is not aware of any such formal assessment in Scotland. I understand that the possible significance of flooding for health will be covered in an expert review Health Effects of Climate Change in the UK, which is due to be published by the Department of Health in early 2001.

Regulation of financial services is a reserved matter. The Scottish Executive is working with the Scottish financial institutions to encourage the promotion of more inclusive products and practices.

The vast majority of Scottish Executive grant support to local government for expenditure on services, including home care and other social work provision for older people, is not ring-fenced or hypothecated. It is for each local authority to establish its priorities and set its budget consistent with meeting its statutory requirements and Scottish Executive policy. Following from the 2000 Spending Review, substantial additional resources have been provided for the next three years to enhance and improve care services for older people. We are discussing with local authorities what we expect to be achieved from these extra funds and shall issue detailed guidance early this year.

The information requested is not held by the Scottish Executive.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The Executive has no plans to review its current procedure of providing information requested in certain parliamentary questions by letter and lodging a copy of the letter in the Parliament's Reference Centre. However, in consultation with the parliamentary authorities, we will give consideration to whether, and if so how, these responses might be placed in the wider domain.

The report concerned was produced by the Ambulance Service Association and is based on statistical evidence from Ambulance Services in England and Wales between 1991-92 and 1994-95. In Scotland the occupational health and safety service strategy Towards a Safer Healthier Workplace, which was published in December 1999, makes clear that NHS in Scotland organisations must develop policies aimed at reducing costs associated with OHSS issues, including, sickness absence, injury benefits claims, and early retirement costs due to illness, accidents and injury.Our aim is to provide security of employment and to retain experienced officers in useful employment within the service.

The percentage increases in water charges are shown in the following table, for each former regional council area. The results vary within water authority areas as the charges were progressively harmonised from the different levels charged by the former regional councils.

Band D Water Charges, year on year percentage change
	1996-97	1997-98	1998-99	1999-2000	2000-01
East of Scotland Water Area
Borders	-4%	5%	8%	0%	20%
Forth Valley	4%	13%	40%	21%	37%
Fife	5%	12%	25%	2%	30%
Lothian	-1%	5%	8%	0%	20%
North of Scotland Water Area
Grampian	4%	7%	11%	8%	39%
Highland	2%	7%	11%	8%	39%
Tayside	4%	10%	16%	16%	45%
Orkney	-5%	-4%	-1%	8%	39%
Shetland	-2%	-4%	-1%	8%	39%
Western Isles	-38%	-4%	-1%	8%	39%
West of Scotland Water Area
Dumfries and Galloway	8%	6%	8%	4%	12%
Strathclyde	3%	6%	8%	4%	12%

Sewerage charges were not separately levied by the former regional councils, but were included in the council tax. There is therefore no meaningful comparison with 1996-97. Domestic Sewerage Relief Grant offset most of the domestic sewerage charge in 1996-97, and a decreasing proportion thereafter until 1998-99. The figures shown in the table below show the change in the gross amount levied by the water authority, before the deduction of the grant.

Band D Sewerage Charges, year on year percentage change
	1997-98	1998-99	1999-2000	2000-01
East of Scotland Water Area	8%	12%	18%	25%
North of Scotland Water Area	7%	14%	13%	48%
West of Scotland Water Area	6%	17%	20%	27%