- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 August 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 5 September 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the use of the not-for-profit trusts as a vehicle for increasing investment in public services.
Answer
The Executive has been supporting developing work by Partnerships UK for some time with Argyll and Bute Council. Good progress has been made with the council in developing a variant model, founded on the standard public private partnership model, but dealing with the issues of internal distribution of surpluses (ie non-profit distributing) and stakeholder involvement. The 25 June announcement of over £1 billion in schools infrastructure by Cathy Jamieson supported this project with revenue support for an investment value of £80 million. However, the test of whether this model will work lies in a live procurement situation, and the funding announcement now allows Argyll and Bute, supported financially by the Executive and with the continued expertise of Partnerships UK, to enter the procurement stages. It will take about a year for that process to reach the stage where we can properly assess whether this variant model has been successful as a new delivery vehicle.The Executive evaluated the SNP's Scottish Investment Trust proposal last year. Whilst it had in principle the advantage of aggregating borrowing to lever in more competitive lending rates, the proposal was flawed in claiming that a private sector trust would be able to access borrowing rates at the same low rates as Government itself. If to achieve this the Government had to act as guarantor to the trust, then loans to the trust would count as public expenditure and assets created would score as on the public sector balance sheet. If that were the result, then some key advantages of PPP would be negated. Also, there were unanswered questions about issues such as control over appointments as trustees, and accountability over such a powerful funding body influencing public infrastructure investment.Other trust models claiming to be based on not-for-profit objectives have been publicised. However, to date none has been submitted for consideration of revenue support from the Executive. Unless new issues emerge, and until it is ready for wider application in due course, the Executive will continue to focus its interest in new developments efficiently and with strong technical support in the Argyll and Bute model.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 02 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 3 September 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-20533 by Lewis Macdonald on 29 November 2001, when it will publish the Performance Audit Group's independent report on the first year of operation of the new trunk road operating companies in accordance with the recommendation of the Auditor General for Scotland in his report of 22 November 2001.
Answer
The report entitled Report on the First Year of the New Trunk Road Operating Companies, 2001-02 will be published on Wednesday 4 September 2002. The report, which has been prepared by the Performance Audit Group, will be available on the Scottish Executive's web page and copies will be placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre. Further copies can be obtained directly from the Performance Audit Group by writing to them at 16 Abercromby Place, Edinburgh, EH3 6LB.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 July 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 27 August 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received any reports of incidents of poisoning during the 1989-90 trial of Nuvan500/Aquaguard by the Veterinary Products Committee.
Answer
No such reports have been received.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 15 July 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 16 July 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive when the report of the Royal Society Inquiry into Infectious Diseases in Livestock will be published.
Answer
This report has been published today and copies have been made available to the convener and members of the Rural Development Committee. A copy has been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. Number 22294) and the report can be viewed on the website of the Royal Society.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 June 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 27 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to deliver on the commitment made in the UK Parliament in 1998 to extend the provisions of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 in order to ensure that police officers who wish to disclose wrongdoing receive the same protection given to other workers under that act.
Answer
Amendments have been tabled to the Police Reform Bill, currently before the UK Parliament, to fulfil this commitment by amending the Employment Rights Act 1996 so that police officers in England, Wales and Scotland are covered by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. These are due to be considered by the Standing Committee on the Bill on 27 June 2002.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 13 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made with the renovation and building of schools.
Answer
Significant progress is being made. On 25 June, Cathy Jamieson and I announced support for capital investment of £1.15 billion in Scotland's schools - across all 15 local authorities which submitted bids. This emphasises the strong commitment of Scottish ministers to the modernisation of our schools estate.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 10 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-6545 by Susan Deacon on 26 June 2000, what progress has been made by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate in addressing the effects of exposure to organophosphate poisoning.
Answer
In December 1999 the UK Government announced its four-point plan on organophosphates (OPs). This included funding a comprehensive series of research studies into areas of uncertainty that had been identified in the 1999 report from the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment. The first of these studies - commissioned by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate of the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - is due to report its findings later this year.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 6 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what medical treatment is available to treat sufferers of organophosphate poisoning.
Answer
The Scottish Poisons Information Bureau is the main source of advice to the NHS on treatment of poisoning for a wide variety of toxic substances including organophosphates. Their TOXBASE database gives details of treatment options for organophosphate poisoning that include decontamination of exposed skin, gastric lavage, protection of the airway and administration of oxygen, atropine, pralidoxime mesylate and diazepam. Selection of the appropriate combination of these treatments depends on the nature and severity of exposure.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 29 May 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how the establishment of the Cairngorms National Park will be taken forward following the earlier consultation by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).
Answer
The report by SNH, as the reporting body under section 3 of the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000, was submitted to Scottish ministers on 21 August, 2001. We have considered this report very carefully. We are satisfied that the Cairngorms area meets the criteria for designation as a National Park. We are, therefore, publishing today a draft Designation Order for consultation, as required under section 6 of the National Parks (Scotland) Act. This consultation document will be widely distributed and copies have been made available to the Parliament's Reference Centre. The Executive's consultation closes on 22 August 2002, after which the draft Order will be amended as required in light of comments received, before being submitted to the Scottish Parliament for approval in the autumn.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 21 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 19 March 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many successful awards made under the Rural Stewardship Scheme were to farmers and crofters with IACS holdings, not including common gra'ings, of under 10 hectares.
Answer
Thirty-three awards made under the Rural Stewardship Scheme were to farmers and crofters with an IACS holding, not including common grazings, of 10 hectares or below in area.