Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S2W-26790

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 29 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what additional funding has been allocated for educational maintenance allowances in (a) West Dunbartonshire and (b) Argyll and Bute in each year since 2003.

The following table shows detailsof the amount paid to both West Dunbartonshire Council and Argyll and Bute Councilfor the purposes of the education maintenance allowance (EMA) programme. Figureswere calculated by financial year.

National roll-out of the programmecommenced in 2004. However, West Dunbartonshire was part of the pilot programme, awarding EMAs to eligiblestudents prior to national roll-out.

Local Education Authority	Financial Year			Total
Local Education Authority	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06	Total
West Dunbartonshire	£666,726.00	£572,262.00	£618,995.00	£1,857,983.00
Argyll and Bute	N/A	£161,920.00	£341,835.00	£503,755.00

Note: *No figures for 2003 relatingto EMA payments for Argyll and Bute as national rollout did not commence until 2004.

Question reference: S2W-26682

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 28 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken to improve transport links between the Dumbarton parliamentary constituency and Glasgow since 1999.

The Executive has made availableto East and West Dunbartonshire Councils since 1999, the provision shown in thefollowing table for local roads.

	East Dunbartonshire (£ Million)	West Dunbartonshire (£ Million)
1999-2000	4.142	2.799
2000-01	4.210	2.859
2001-02	4.327	2.931
2002-03	4.582	3.102
2003-04	4.814	3.259
2004-05	4.964	3.437
2005-06	5.151	3.567
2006-07	6.239	4.324
2007-08	6.239	4.325

The allocations shown in thetable include East and West Dunbartonshire’s share of the additional funding of £60 million perannum that the Executive has made available to all Scottish local authorities forimproving local roads in 2006-07 and 2007-08 as part of Spending Review 2004.

Although these are the allocationswhich the Executive provides it is for each local authority to determine its ownpriorities and expenditure.

The establishment of the newstatutory Regional Transport Partnerships through the development of their RegionalTransport Strategies provides an opportunity to consider and prioritise projectsand identify funding. Strathclyde Partnership for Transport will receive a totalof £25,227,647 per annum for the next two years for the development of transportprojects in the West of Scotland.

Tolls ended on the Erskine Bridge on 31 March 2006 to easecongestion in Glasgow particularly through the Clyde Tunnel and on the ClydesideExpressway, and have a beneficial impact on air quality in the city.

Question reference: S2W-26792

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 28 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what support is provided for the families of victims involved in fatal accident inquiries.

Fatal accident inquiries (FAI)are concerned with the circumstances of a wide range of sudden and unexpected deaths.It is the responsibility of the Procurator Fiscal to initiate a FAI and to informthe family of the deceased of this course of action. Thereafter Victim Informationand Advice (VIA) will usually make contact with the family and keep it informedof the progress of the inquiry and its outcome.

I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-26793 on 20 June 2006 which provides more detail on the role of VIA in relationto its work with the families of a deceased whose death is the subject of a FAI.

More general support for familiesof deceased persons whose deaths are considered by FAIs is available from a rangeof organisations depending on the nature and circumstances of the death of the familymember. Depending on the circumstances of the death VIA will attempt to identifyan appropriate agency that can provide relevant assistance and support and recommendit to the family.

All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website the search facilityfor which can be at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Question reference: S2W-26794

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Colin Boyd on 27 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what training is provided, and by whom, to procurators fiscal and others in the legal profession to assist them in their work with people with learning disabilities.

The Crown Office andProcurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) is committed to providing services that areaccessible to all members of the public, and ensuring that all people aretreated fairly and in accordance with their needs as far as is possible.

All staff attend a two dayDiversity Awareness Course which includes a session on disability within whichlearning disabilities are discussed. These sessions are delivered by guestpresenters who have some expertise in this area.

Staff also have access to arange of materials on the departmental intranet which assists in working withpeople with learning disabilities. COPFSis delivering an entire training programme about the Vulnerable Witnesses Act2004 and this includes information about adult vulnerable witnesses, adultswith learning disabilities and adults subject to guardianship orders andintervention orders.

Training for the wider legalprofession is a matter for the relevant professional bodies.

Question reference: S2W-26782

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 26 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been allocated to improve the treatment of mental illness in each year since 1999.

The Scottish Executive doesnot provide NHS boards or local authorities with a separate budget specificallyfor mental health services. Spend on mentalhealth services will be drawn from the record funds allocated to these agencies,taking account of national and local priorities.

Theannual allocation for health in 2007-08 will be over £10 billion and the Grant AidedExpenditure to local authorities for social work will have increased to £2.085 billion.

In addition to the general healthexpenditure, we have invested £41.485 million since 2003 to 2006 to help NHS boardsand local authorities implement and deliver the Mental Health (Care and Treatment)(Scotland) Act 2003, with a further £5 million available through NHS boards in both2006-07 and 2007-08.

We have also invested £24 millionfrom 2003 to 2006 for the work of the National Programme for Improving Mental Healthand Well-being, with a further £18 million planned over 2006-08.

Question reference: S2W-26781

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 26 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to improve the treatment of mental illness.

Action continues on improvingtreatment across the whole population from those who experience mild to moderatemental health problems to those with more severe and complex needs. The agenda centreson good health promotion, ill health prevention and improvements to the qualityof care and treatment to help aid recovery.

The new Mental Health (Care andTreatment) (Scotland) Act is a driver for further improvement in serviceswith new rights, benefits and protections for all those who experience mental healthproblems, and their carers.

A wide range of other initiativesis in hand at local, regional and national levels, backed by record resources, includingattention to depression services through our “Doing Well” programme; perinatal mentalhealth accommodation and services; support for crisis and out of hours care,and an ambitious health improvement and well being agenda.

Delivering for Health (Bib. number 37847) sets the forward direction for developingand improving health services and reflects the priority for mental health services.Our work on mental health will be brought together in a national mental health deliveryplan to be published by the end of this year.

Question reference: S2W-26847

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 23 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what impact the announcement of a study into the electrification of the Edinburgh to Glasgow rail line and the subsequent need to procure further electric rolling stock could have on the existing need to procure such stock for the Airdrie to Bathgate rail line and the Glasgow Airport Rail Link.

Transport Scotland has undertakena feasibility study into the possibility of the electrification of the Edinburghto Glasgow route. The rolling stock procurement plan currently being developed todeliver a fleet of rolling stock for the Scottish rail network, will work with orwithout electrification of the Edinburgh and Glasgow route as the industry has sufficientcapacity to produce the required number of vehicles to meet our requirements underany plausible scenario.

Transport Scotland hasthe operational responsibility for this area, and can be contacted for more informationif required.

Question reference: S2W-26843

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 23 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what production lines are operational that produce electric rolling stock suitable to run on the Airdrie to Bathgate rail line.

To facilitate the developmentof a rolling stock procurement plan, Transport Scotland is currently exploringa range of suitable options through discussions with a number of major train manufacturersacross the UK, Europe and beyond. They have all responded positively to thesediscussions and expressed their willingness to produce trains in line with our needs.

Procurement of the vehicles will,of course, be through a competitive process in line with EU legislation.

Transport Scotland hasthe operational responsibility for this area, and can be contacted for more informationif required.

Question reference: S2W-26844

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 23 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will confirm that the electric stock fleet of Class 458 “Junipers”, which has recently been rejected by South West Trains, and on which the customer information service is not compliant with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, will not be considered for the Airdrie to Bathgate rail line or any other Scottish service.

The rolling stock procurementplan, currently being developed by Transport Scotland, is exploring a range ofoptions. I refer the member to the answerto question S2W-26843 on 23 June 2006.

The class 458 trains have beenconsidered for use in Scotland. However, their performance characteristics are feltto be unsuitable for our requirements without major modifications. We continue toexplore whether these changes would represent good value for money.

At this time therefore, no decisionhas been made on the actual type of rolling stock that will service the route.

All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website the search facilityfor which can be at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Transport Scotland hasthe operational responsibility for this area, and can be contacted for more informationif required.

Question reference: S2W-26846

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 23 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is in respect of the adequacy of Class 334 “Junipers” to provide the service on the Airdrie to Bathgate rail line, particularly in respect of acceleration, ability to deal with gradients on the new line and capacity compared with the trains that they would replace west of Airdrie.

The rolling stock procurementplan, currently being developed by Transport Scotland, is exploring a range ofoptions. I refer the member to the answerto question S2W-26843 on 23 June 2006.

The class 334 train has beenused as the “base case” for the timetable model on the Airdrie to Bathgate line.Whether these trains will be deployed on the route remains to be decided.

All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website the search facilityfor which can be at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Transport Scotland hasthe operational responsibility for this area, and can be contacted for more informationif required.