Chamber and committees

The national response time target for category A calls (life threatening) across mainland Scotland is that 75% of all incidents should be reached within eight minutes. This target is not legally binding but the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) is expected to meet it and it is a key target that the Service is performance managed against. There are no plans to impose penalties on the Scottish Ambulance Service, rather the Scottish Government continues to work with the service in order that the target can be achieved and sustained on a consistent basis.

Both the Scottish Government and the Scottish Ambulance Service are committed to driving continuous improvement in the care provided to patients. A range of annually agreed targets are the subject of ongoing performance management, including the annual review meeting which is held in public and chaired by myself. The Scottish Ambulance Service is required to account for the level of performance it achieves each year through a published annual report.

The level 4 allocation for adaptations within the Housing and Regeneration Supporting Transitions line of the 2011-12 Scottish budget, prior to the announcement of a further £2 million in the Spring Budget Revision, was £8 million.

A complainant may ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to review their decision if it was based on inaccurate evidence or facts or the complainant has new and relevant information. If they remain dissatisfied they may seek a judicial review of the decision.

The terms of appointment of the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) are laid down by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman Act 2002 (Schedule 1). The Ombudsman is appointed by Her Majesty, on the nomination of the Scottish Parliament. In order to safeguard the independence of the SPSO, under the provisions of the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman Act 2002, in the exercise of the SPSO’s statutory functions, the SPSO is not subject to the direction or control of any member of the Scottish Government or the Parliamentary corporation.

The Keeper of the Registers of Scotland is responsible for 16 public registers, the largest of which are the two Scottish property registers (the Land Register of Scotland and the General Register of Sasines). The mechanism of appeal differs according to the register in question.

In respect of the Land Register of Scotland, section 25 of the Land Registration (Scotland) Act 1979 provides (subject to limited exceptions) for appeal to the Lands Tribunal for Scotland “on any question of fact or law arising from anything done or omitted to be done by the Keeper under [the 1979] Act”. A similar provision appears in the Land Registration etc. (Scotland) Bill introduced in the Scottish Parliament on 1 December 2011. In relation to the registration of agricultural holdings in the Register of Community Interests in Land, there is provision in section 25 of the Agricultural Holdings (Scotland) Act 2003 for appeal to the Scottish Land Court where the Keeper makes a decision in respect of a challenge by the owner to the registration of the interest of a tenant.

In addition to these appeal procedures, a decision made by the Keeper in relation to the operation of any of the registers under her control may be challenged in the courts.

Blue Seas, Green Energy – A Sectoral Marine Plan for Offshore Wind in Scottish Territorial Waters was subject to Appropriate Assessment and included consideration of the seabird SPA colony extensions. The plan assessment provides some generic mitigation measures and issues to consider when undertaking project level assessment and planning.

Marine Scotland has considered seven licence applications which have had appropriate assessment against a total of 10 Special Protection Areas (SPA) with marine extensions since designation in September 2009. Four of these have been consented without change, and the other three are still under consideration.

I indicated in my Ministerial Statement on the creation of a network of Marine Protected Areas, which was laid in Parliament on 1 September 2010, that new nature conservation MPAs, along with existing protected sites such as marine Natura sites will “deliver our contribution to the ecologically coherent network of MPAs under the OSPAR convention on the protection of the marine environment in the North East Atlantic”.

I stated that the intention is to consider the OSPAR principles on ecological coherence in the context of the seas around Scotland. Marine Scotland has produced detailed guidelines on Marine Protected Areas in Scotland’s Seas: Guidelines on the selection of MPAs and development of the MPA network. The final stage of the guidelines is intended to assess network design, and refinements of the proposed network can be considered in light of these assessments to ensure ecological coherence. The guidelines are intended to contribute to coherence at the OSPAR network level and to deliver the MPA network duty in the Marine (Scotland) Act.

To deliver the network I have asked Scottish Natural Heritage and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee for advice on what additional marine Natura sites may be needed to complete Scotland’s contribution to the Natura network in the marine environment by the end of 2012. I understand SNH and JNCC are working together to identify locations of seabird aggregations that may meet the scientific guidelines for classification as a SPA under the EU Birds Directive and to provide final advice on marine SAC designations to complete work under the EU Habitats Directive.

In addition, Marine Scotland is leading a project, with input from key partners including SNH and JNCC, to identify which other locations may need to be designated as Nature Conservation MPAs to complete an ecologically coherent network of MPAs. Thirty-one search locations have been proposed by SNH and JNCC for a range of features and these will be assessed using the MPA guidelines with consideration of alternatives where necessary. SNH and JNCC are also identifying search locations that could be examined to represent other features of interest. Any MPA proposals developed from these search locations will be consulted on prior to a decision on the case for designation.

The Scottish Government is aware of OSPAR work and guidance on ecological coherence of marine protected area networks including assessment of coherence. I laid a Ministerial Statement on the Creation of a Network of Marine Protected Areas in Parliament on 1 September 2010.

The statement referred to OSPAR guidance and explained that relevant areas in Scotland will “deliver our contribution to the ecologically coherent network of MPAs under the OSPAR convention on the protection of the marine environment in the North East Atlantic”. For my full statement please follow this link:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/marine/marineenvironment/mpanetwork/MinStatement010910.

The OSPAR maritime area covers a large geographical area, with the North-East Atlantic extending from the Arctic down to the Straits of Gibraltar and across from the Barents Sea at the west end of Russia out to the mid-Atlantic. The latest report of the assessment of the ecological coherence of the OSPAR MPA network can be found at:

http://www.ospar.org/content/content.asp?menu=00700302210000_000000_000000.

Member states are obligated under the EU Birds Directive to take appropriate steps to avoid deterioration of habitats and disturbance of species within special protection areas that have been classified for migratory birds and those listed on Annex 1 of the Directive. Scottish ministers lead on implementation of the Birds Directive in Scottish waters and 31 seabird colony SPAs have been extended into the marine environment. Powers exist to control changes of use that could lead to deterioration and appropriate action can be taken based on the advice of Scottish Natural Heritage.

Development in a marine special protection area is considered to be a plan or project. All consenting authorities must take account of the provisions of Article 6 of the Habitats Directive when considering any proposal that is within a marine special protection area. The competent authority shall decide the requirement for an appropriate assessment and shall for the purposes of the assessment consult the appropriate nature conservation body and have regard to any representations made.