Chamber and committees

The Scottish Executive is committed to widening access to further and higher education to individuals from all backgrounds. In addition to free tuition, this is underpinned by a wide-ranging package of support targeted specifically towards individuals facing financial barriers in starting or continuing a course of study. Young students from low-income backgrounds in full-time higher education will receive part of their living cost support in the form of a non-repayable bursary and those from the lowest income backgrounds will receive a higher level of support overall. All eligible students are also entitled to receive non-repayable supplementary grants in recognition of additional financial needs such as the cost of caring for dependants (with extra help for lone parents), additional study costs arising from a disability and travel expenses. Additional discretionary support is also available through colleges and universities in the form of a grant from the Hardship Fund or a Hardship Loan. New mature students who started courses since 2001-02 can also get additional help through the Mature Students Bursary Fund for formal child care, housing or excess travel costs.For those in further education, student support is provided in the form of a discretionary, means-tested bursary. In addition to general living costs, the bursary can include allowances for costs relating to travel, study, caring for dependants and special educational needs. Additional support can be provided through the Childcare Fund and students who find themselves in financial difficulties that would otherwise force them to leave college can receive further help from the Hardship Fund or the Young Student Retention Fund.16- to 19-years-olds in further education will also soon benefit from Educational Maintenance Allowances, which will give young people from low income families financial support to remain in full-time education. Education Maintenance Allowances are currently being piloted in four local authorities in Scotland, and are due for national roll out in 2004-05. The Executive is keen to ensure that the current support arrangements are helping us achieve our goal of widening access. As part of our forthcoming review of the funding of learners in post-compulsory education, we will work with our stakeholders to re-examine the support available for students facing financial hardship.

The Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland allows disabled people to give their views on transport issues and advise on any practical improvements which could be put in place which in turn could improve general access to public transport for all, irrespective of gender.

Women and Transport: Guidance and Checklist was issued to local authorities, Strathclyde Passenger Transport and transport providers in Scotland in July 2002. How the guidance is put into practice is not monitored centrally.

The Strategic Group on Women was established on 6 February 2003 as a small, independent, short-duration group of individual women to examine what more the Executive should do to improve opportunities for women. It will be for the group to decide what issues it wishes to consider but it will take full account of previous work that has been done.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-34759 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

We are committed to improving services to young people leaving care and improving the educational attainment of looked after children. We are considering the responses to our consultation on the report of the Throughcare and Aftercare Working Group and we have been working with the group and local authority lead implementation officers to plan for implementation of the recommendations and to identify areas in which services can be improved. We are also developing materials to assess the young peoples needs, and plan support for the transition from care to independent living.

Meetings between ministers take place at regular UK Tourism Summits or when a particular issue warrants a meeting. I met with UK Tourism ministers at the latest summit on 28 November and two days earlier Mike Watson attended a meeting involving UK tourism ministers on "Tomorrow's Tourism", the UK tourism strategy.

A total of 148 responses were received during the consultation on Assessing our children's educational needs: The Way Forward? last year, including a response from the Education Sub-Group of the Cross Party Group on Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Since publication of the Executive's response to the consultation (Bib. number 19469), we have held further consultation seminars attended by over 300 delegates, including education authority staff, educational psychologists, teachers, health professionals, social workers, voluntary organisations and parents, and representatives from the Cross Party Group on Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Responses received and comments raised during these events are being taken into account as the proposals for changing the assessment and recording procedures for children with special educational needs are being developed.

I have set the Registers of Scotland the following key targets for 2002-03 :

• For the Trading Fund to achieve a return of 6% on net capital employed over the three-year period ending 31 March 2003.

• To reduce the standard production cost index by 3% by 31 March 2003 from its base at 31 March 2002.

• To continue the Land Register extension programme, by extending the operation of the Land Register to the counties of Inverness and Nairn as operational areas, and by preparing for the transfer of the Counties of Banff, Moray, Ross and Cromarty, Caithness, Sutherland, Orkney and Zetland on 1 April 2003.

• To maintain and enhance customer service through retention of the Charter Mark; by increasing customer satisfaction by 10% as regards the accuracy, speed of response and the value for money represented in the delivery of the agency's services, and by processing 96% of all other enquiries in compliance with the Registers of Scotland Customer Service Policy.

• To achieve recording and registration turnaround times:

- averaging 15, but not exceeding 25 working days for Sasine Writs;- averaging 25, but not exceeding 30 working days for Dealings with Whole, and- averaging 105, but not exceeding 125 working days for Domestic First Registrations, 70% of all applications to be completed within 125 working days.

• To achieve 20,000 chargeable accesses per week to the Registers Direct website by 31 March 2003.

• To achieve a registration accuracy of at least 98% during 2002-03.

Achievement of these targets will ensure that homebuyers receive an improved and more efficient service over the coming year. The transfer to the Land Register of Banff, Moray, Ross and Cromarty, Caithness, Sutherland, Orkney and Zetland in April 2003 will complete the transfer of counties from the Register of Sasines to the Land Register.

The Scottish Executive has responsibility for the national museums and galleries. The responsibility for non-national museums, such as the Summerlee Heritage Museum, Coatbridge, lies with local agencies. The Public Libraries Consolidation (Scotland) Act 1887 sets out that all libraries, museums or art galleries established by local authorities under the act, or to which the act applies, shall be open to the public free of charge. The Scottish Executive supports that position.