- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 2 December 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what programmes were supported by the Rural Enterprise category of EU Support and Related Services in 2010-11 and how it considers that these could be reduced by 58% in 2011-12, as indicated in table 11.03 on page 174 of Scotland’s Spending Plans and Draft Budget 2011-12.
Answer
The Rural Enterprise budget supports off-farm/forest rural development through the Scotland Rural Development Programme (SRDP). Support is mainly delivered through Rural Priorities, where activities include renewable energy, development of micro-enterprises and diversification of off-farm/forest based businesses. Under Land Managers'' Options, support is provided for active management to encourage tourism. This budget also covers payments under legacy schemes that are no longer open to applicants.
Reductions reflect the decrease of Land Management Contract Menu Scheme (LMCMS) legacy payments for maintenance of access, and the projected budget outturn in 2010-11.
The draft budget will not reduce the Scottish Government''s capacity to support high-quality projects.
Under the SRDP, awards are paid on project completion. The draft budget allows the Scottish Government to honour its commitment to existing projects in full.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 2 December 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what programmes were supported by the Rural Communities category of EU Support and Related Services in 2010-11 and how it considers that these could be reduced by 61% in 2011-12, as indicated in table 11.03 on page 174 of Scotland’s Spending Plans and Draft Budget 2011-12.
Answer
The Rural Communities budget supports community related projects through the Scotland Rural Development Programme (SRDP). Under Rural Priorities, this supports activities such as the creation and upgrading of paths and access routes. Under Land Managers'' Options, support is provided for active management to improve vernacular buildings, archaeological sites and access facilities.
Reductions reflect the transfer in support for some measures from Rural Priorities to LEADER, and the projected budget outturn in 2010-11.
The draft budget will not reduce the Scottish Government''s capacity to support high quality projects.
Under the SRDP, awards are paid on project completion. The draft budget allows the Scottish Government to honour its commitment to existing projects in full.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 26 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will reduce the budget for the Scottish Environment and Protection Agency from £44.3 million in 2010-11 to £39.4 million in 2011-12, as reported in table 11.06 on page 178 of Scotland’s Spending Plans and Draft Budget 2011-12.
Answer
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency is preparing for a reduction in its grant-in-aid in 2011-12 by continuing to implement a programme of significant transformational change designed to deliver the Agency''s regulatory functions more effectively and efficiently from a smaller cost base. This will allow SEPA to become a leaner regulator, by delivering a more risk-based and proportionate approach to regulation while focussing on its main objective of protecting Scotland''s environment and human health. The Scottish Government will work closely with SEPA to ensure it continues to be adequately resourced to deliver its core regulatory duties and support sustainable economic growth.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 26 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will reduce the budget for the Forestry Commission from £55.1 million in 2010-11 to £47.7 million in 2011-12, as reported in table 11.06 on page 178 of Scotland’s Spending Plans and Draft Budget 2011-12, and what programmes will contribute to the reduction in programme costs.
Answer
The Forestry Commission Scotland budget for 2011-12 will reduce by £7.4 million when compared to the 2010-11 Budget. This will be achieved by reducing £2 million from the Timber Transport Fund and £2.4 million from capital and the remaining £3 million is made up by the difference between the £8.9m (increase in available grants) of the £11.9 million EU income.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how the projected outturn efficiency of £0.094 million by Veterinary Surveillance reported in the Efficiency Outturn Report for 2009-10 has been achieved.
Answer
An outturn efficiency of £0.094 million was achieved by The Scottish Agricultural College, which delivers veterinary surveillance functions in Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Government, by a combination of more efficient work and energy cost savings.
Staff cost savings of £0.064 million have been achieved through the loss of three positions that had become vacant and have not been filled.
An additional £0.030 million saving in fuel costs has been achieved through the investment in new, more efficient boilers in three of the eight veterinary investigation centres in Scotland.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how the projected outturn efficiency of £0.245 million by the Cairngorms National Park Authority reported in the Efficiency Outturn Report for 2009-10 has been achieved.
Answer
The Cairngorms National Park Authority has achieved outturn efficiency savings of £0.245 million for 2009-10 as shown in the following table:
| Measures Taken | Efficiencies Achieved (£ million) |
| Staffing “ salaries and oncosts | 0.085 |
| Staffing “ training and other non-salary | 0.031 |
| Estates “ lease termination | 0.015 |
| Office running costs | 0.025 |
| Information and communications technology | 0.086 |
| Professional Services “ reduction internal audit cost | 0.003 |
| Total | 0.245 |
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how the projected outturn efficiency of £0.02 million in Animal Health and Welfare Publicity reported in the Efficiency Outturn Report for 2009-10 has been achieved.
Answer
The efficiency saving of £20,000 was achieved by using new methods of providing information to farmers and other stakeholders on animal health and welfare matters. Making greater use of text messaging and email reduced the cost of mailshots whilst maintaining the same level of service.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how the projected outturn efficiency of £0.448 million in the Contract Research Fund reported in the Efficiency Outturn Report for 2009-10 has been achieved.
Answer
The efficiency savings arise entirely from the securing of co-funding for research projects while obtaining 100% of the contracted outputs.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how the projected outturn efficiency of £0.568 million by the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh reported in the Efficiency Outturn Report for 2009-10 has been achieved.
Answer
The Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh achieved efficiency savings of £0.568 million in 2009-10 by the following sources:
| Efficiency Saving | Value (£ million) |
| Levering in donations for the Gateway Visitor Centre on the back of Scottish Government (SG) capital funding. | 0.096 |
| Levering in further funding to supplement SG grant-in-aid in the form of donations. | 0.085 |
| Co-funding for research projects while obtaining 100% of the contract outputs. | 0.310 |
| Improving business processes, such as staff deployment and working practices | 0.077 |
| Total | 0.568 |
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how the projected outturn efficiency of £4.046 million by Scottish Environment Protection Agency reported in the Efficiency Outturn Report for 2009-10 has been achieved.
Answer
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency achieved cash releasing efficiency savings of £4.046 million for 2009-10 by improving the way it delivered services, without material detriment to the quality of the services provided. Efficiency savings were achieved as follows.
| Measures Taken | Efficiencies Achieved (£ million) |
| Implementing more efficient working practices, absorption of new work and re-engineering of service delivery. | 2.082 |
| Reduction in property maintenance and property improvement projects. | 0.618 |
| Reduction in procurement and increased in-house training. | 1.023 |
| Reduction in travel costs. | 0.163 |
| Reduction in research and development programme. | 0.05 |
| Cessation of Regional Boards. | 0.06 |
| Reduction in cost of pool vehicles. | 0.05 |
