Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-24449.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-24408.

Evidence from pilot schemes in the west of Scotland has shown that the group lending model is suitable for women, and women are expected to be the main beneficiaries of the extended scheme. Evaluation of the programme will, however, assess carefully the impact of the scheme on any mixed gender groups established.

Currently, 0.5% of senior civil service grades within the Executive have identified themselves as coming from an ethnic minority background and 1% have self-declared a disability.

Twenty-four members of staff currently work permanently from home on a full-time basis and nine do so part-time. Information on staff who work from home on an ad hoc basis is not held centrally. However, 370 staff currently have information technology installed which allows them to work from their home computer.

The Executive currently provides the following childcare facilities for its staff:Two workplace nurseries, both in Edinburgh, which currently provide care for 66 children, andThree subsidised holiday play schemes, in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness. The schemes were attended by 41 children over the Easter and summer breaks last year.Twenty-seven staff are currently awaiting nursery places.We are currently undertaking a review of our childcare strategy provision to ensure that the childcare support we provide best meets the needs of staff, their families and those of the Executive.

The range of measures is set out in our Diversity Strategy, launched in November 2000. Our efforts in the last year have been concentrated in three main areas: awareness raising within the organisation; diversity proofing personnel processes with the aim of removing unnecessary barriers, and outreach work with under represented groups. With regard to monitoring, we produce regular reports against targets for the Executive's Management Group and for Cabinet Office.

The number of any job reductions cannot be confirmed until Babcock Naval Services has reviewed its requirements. However, Scottish Enterprise Dunbartonshire (SED) is currently considering the potential impact on the local economy and will meet shortly with representatives from the Clyde Base.Once the scale of any job losses is known, SED will assess the likely cost of the assistance offered to any employees affected. Support will be provided for those affected through dedicated local response teams in conjunction with the Executive's PACE framework. It will be for SED to discuss with Scottish Enterprise any requirement for additional financial assistance which cannot be met from its existing budget.

We cannot identify the number of private sector households that will benefit from the central heating programme by local authority area, but Eaga's budget will provide for 4,600 owner-occupiers and private sector tenants across Scotland in 2002-03 to receive central heating. Allocations for local authorities and housing associations have not yet been finalised for 2002-03, because most of them are still finishing the programme for 2001-02, and so it is not possible to provide the information requested at (b) and (c). The budget for this sector means that around 6,000 local authority tenants and 1,200 housing association tenants should benefit from the programme in 2002-03.

The information requested for the private sector part of the central heating programme is not held by local authority area, but 3,500 installations were delivered across Scotland in 2001-02. A report on the results of the programme across all sectors of the stock in 2001-02 will be published later this year. Tables A and B show the position for the local authorities and housing associations respectively.Table A: Local authorities

Local Authority	Number of Dwellings
Aberdeen	83
Angus	6
Argyll and Bute	28
Dundee	604
East Ayrshire	133
East Dunbarton	8
East Lothian	0
East Renfreshire	61
Edinburgh	140
Falkirk	0
Fife	319
Glasgow	1,352
Highland	24
Inverclyde	84
Midlothian	21
Orkney	60
Renfrewshire	121
Shetland	28
South Lanarkshire	863
West Dunbarton	72
Total*	4,007

Note:*Local authority stock in Aberdeenshire, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Moray, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Perth and Kinross, Scottish Borders, South Ayrshire, Stirling, West Lothian and Western Isles all have central heating and so were not included in the programme.Table B: Housing associations

Local Authority Area	Number of Dwellings
Edinburgh	102
Dundee	109
Falkirk	61
Glasgow	281
Inverclyde	22
North Lanarkshire	12
Stirling	19
Total	606**

Note:**This is an estimated figure. Communities Scotland are responsible for the housing association programme. They estimate that central heating will be installed in a total of 871 housing associations dwellings in 2001-02.