- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 1 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the current status is of plans to create a second diet of examinations each year and whether these plans have been affected by the Scottish Qualifications Authority's problems in processing the results of the single diet of exams in academic session 1999-2000.
Answer
I understand from the Scottish Qualifications Authority that the winter diet in 2001-02 will take place as intended.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 28 February 2001
To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will investigate the possible introduction of vending machines supplying Fair Trade tea and coffee throughout the parliamentary estate.
Answer
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body has investigated the possibility of vending machines supplying Fair Trade tea and coffee within the Scottish Parliament. Our vending machine providers are unable to supply Fair Trade beverages at present, although they will keep this under review. It should be noted that vending machines only account for 5% of coffee and tea purchased in the Parliament and of the other 95% it is estimated that 60-65% is Fair Trade.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 28 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-8554 by Sarah Boyack on 19 July 2000, in relation to how many of the accidents which took place on the A725 in each of the last five years were winter weather conditions reported as an attributable factor, broken down by local authority area and specifying in each case the number of fatalities and serious injuries.
Answer
The number of fatal and serious injury accidents on the A725 in each of the last five years where winter weather conditions were an attributable factor is as follows:
South Lanarkshire
| Year | Fatal | Serious | Total |
| 1995 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1997 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1999 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 1 | 1 |
There were no fatal or serious injury accidents in North Lanarkshire where winter weather conditions were an attributable factor.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 28 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many road traffic accidents took place on the trunk road network in each year since 1995, broken down by local authority area, specifying in each case the number of fatalities and serious injuries and separately detailing those which reported winter weather conditions as an attributable factor.
Answer
Data about injury road accidents are collected by the police and reported to the Scottish Executive using the STATS 19 statistical report form. These returns cover only road accidents in which one or more people were injured: they do not cover damage only accidents.
Accidents for which winter weather conditions were reported as an attributable factor are not identified as such in the STATS 19 returns. However, some information is available about the weather and the road surface condition, using code-lists which are shown on page 128 of Road Accidents Scotland 1998, copies of which are available in SPICe (Bib. no. 11551).The information requested is given in the table entitled "Injury road accidents occurring on the trunk road network, and the associated numbers of fatalities and seriously-injured casualties: 1995 to 1999 (provisional)", a copy of which has been placed in SPICe (Bib. no. 11548).
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 28 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive when the accident statistics for the trunk road network for 2000 will be available.
Answer
Statistics of injury road accidents on the trunk road network are included in the annual Road Accidents Scotland statistical volume, which is generally published by the end of October each year. On present plans, statistics for the year 2000 should be published by around the end of October 2001, in Road Accidents Scotland 2000.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 26 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent on research into the treatment of and possible cures for (a) multiple sclerosis and (b) myalgic encephalomyelitis in (i) 1997-98, (ii) 1998-99 and (iii) 1999-2000 and how much is expected to be spent in 2000-01 and 2001-02.
Answer
Details of expenditure on all research into the treatment and possible cures for multiple sclerosis (MS) and myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) is not held centrally.Within the Scottish Executive Health Department, the Chief Scientist Office (CSO) has responsibility for encouraging and supporting research into health services and patient care within the NHS in Scotland and, as such, is the main Departmental funder of NHS-related research. CSO had no expenditure on MS and ME research projects in 1997-98, 1998-99, and will have none in 2000-01. Nearly £7,000 was spent by CSO on ME projects in 1999-2000 but there was no expenditure on MS.With regard to projected expenditure on MS and ME in 2001-02, CSO is not currently funding, and has no plans to promote or commission, research projects on either of these conditions. However, CSO would be pleased to consider funding proposals for innovative MS and ME studies of a sufficiently high standard.CSO is aware of 162 ongoing or recently completed ME research projects in the UK, (17 of which are or were in Scotland) and 254 ongoing or recently completed MS research projects (15 of which are or were in Scotland). The projects' details are available from the National Research Register (NRR), a copy of which is in the Parliament's Reference Centre. The results of these research projects will inform the future direction of research and treatment in this area.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 14 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12289 by Mr Jim Wallace on 30 January 2001, when the additional work on the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review will be undertaken and whether the resulting information will be published in a way which facilitates informed public debate.
Answer
The additional work is in hand and, when complete, it will be considered by the Executive before being made readily available in a way which facilitates and informs public debate.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 13 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many mortgage repossession orders were made in each court district in each quarter of 2000.
Answer
The recorded figures for the number of mortgage repossession orders granted in each court district in each quarter of 2000 are shown in the following table:
| Court | 1q 2000 | 2q 2000 | 3q 2000 | 4q 2000 | Total |
| Aberdeen | 52 | 75 | 38 | 40 | 205 |
| Airdrie | 95 | 102 | 64 | 51 | 312 |
| Alloa | 10 | 9 | 13 | 17 | 49 |
| Arbroath | 17 | 21 | 17 | 42 | 97 |
| Ayr | 52 | 46 | 30 | 28 | 156 |
| Banff | 12 | 7 | 12 | 12 | 43 |
| Campbeltown | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 20 |
| Cupar | 18 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 48 |
| Dingwall | 15 | 6 | 7 | 12 | 40 |
| Dornoch | 1 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 15 |
| Dumbarton | 52 | 53 | 39 | 45 | 189 |
| Dumfries | 23 | 20 | 25 | 12 | 80 |
| Dundee | 45 | 48 | 60 | 21 | 174 |
| Dunfermline | 43 | 35 | 34 | 33 | 145 |
| Dunoon | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 21 |
| Duns | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Edinburgh | 145 | 166 | 26 | 18 | 355 |
| Elgin | 12 | 12 | 24 | 10 | 58 |
| Falkirk | 40 | 38 | 41 | 37 | 156 |
| Forfar | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 15 |
| Fort william | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 14 |
| Glasgow | 197 | 237 | 264 | 199 | 897 |
| Greenock | 33 | 20 | 18 | 12 | 83 |
| Haddington | 17 | 9 | 26 | 13 | 65 |
| Hamilton | 134 | 135 | 111 | 103 | 483 |
| Inverness | 32 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 85 |
| Jedburgh | 6 | 6 | 13 | 9 | 34 |
| Kilmarnock | 30 | 2 | 28 | 0 | 60 |
| Kirkcaldy | 38 | 53 | 47 | 24 | 162 |
| Kirkcudbright | 9 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 22 |
| Kirkwall | 4 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 20 |
| Lanark | 2 | 14 | 17 | 11 | 44 |
| Lerwick | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| Linlithgow | 56 | 63 | 66 | 44 | 229 |
| Lochmaddy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Oban | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 12 |
| Paisley | 4 | 3 | 27 | 68 | 102 |
| Peebles | 4 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
| Perth | 26 | 33 | 5 | 25 | 89 |
| Peterhead | 24 | 22 | 30 | 22 | 98 |
| Portree | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 8 |
| Rothesay | 4 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 17 |
| Selkirk | 6 | 13 | 9 | 11 | 39 |
| Stirling | 17 | 17 | 21 | 12 | 67 |
| Stonehaven | 15 | 8 | 18 | 9 | 50 |
| Stornoway | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Stranraer | 5 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 19 |
| Tain | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 13 |
| Wick | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| Grand Total | 1,335 | 1,357 | 1,230 | 1,000 | 4,922 |
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 29 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sam Galbraith on 12 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-6799 by Sarah Boyack on 30 May 2000, whether it has completed reviewing the compliance of Scottish planning law and organisation with the European Convention on Human Rights and, if so, whether any legislation now requires to be amended, in particular in relation to appeals and investigations, and what the timescale is for any changes to be implemented.
Answer
The Executive undertook a review of existing planning legislation and concluded that the current planning system, with its inbuilt checks and safeguards, is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights without further amendment.However, we keep under review the need to amend existing law and procedures to comply with the Convention and shall continue to do so, particularly in consequence of any relevant developments in ECHR and domestic case law.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 9 February 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the implications of Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights are for education appeals.
Answer
Education legislation gives a statutory right of appeal against local authority decisions about placing requests, exclusion and certain aspects of the recording process for children with special educational needs. We have no reason to believe that this legislation is incompatible with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights and there have been no successful challenges to date.
