- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 04 November 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 16 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children of asylum seekers who were referred to the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration were referred on grounds that they were potentially at risk because they lived in the same household as an offender under Schedule 1 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1975, from 2003 to date.
Answer
This is a matter for the Scottish Childrens Reporter Administration and I have asked the Principal Reporter to write to you.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 04 November 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 16 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what average notification time it received from Home Office officials prior to them carrying out a removal of children of asylum seekers who may potentially have been subject to a referral to the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration from January 2003 to November 2005.
Answer
The removal of asylum seekers is a reserved matter. The Executive does not currently routinely receive notification prior to a removal being carried out.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 9 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the levels of public participation at different stages in the planning process.
Answer
The Executive does not hold thisinformation centrally.
The forthcoming Planning AdviceNote on Community Engagement will look at issues of public participation in theplanning system, building on previous research contained in Getting Involvedin Planning: Summary of Evidence and Planning and Community Involvement in Scotland.
Copies of both research documentsare available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. numbers 24757and 33268 respectively).
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what research has been undertaken to determine the effectiveness of public hearings prior to decisions being made on planning applications, including gathering information on experiences of the general public.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has notundertaken such research.
We discussed the issue of hearingsin detail with a wide range of stakeholders as part of drawing up the White PaperModernising the Planning System. Responses that we have subsequently receivedto the White Paper confirmed that there is widespread support for extending theuse of hearings.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has conducted any economic assessment to consider and quantify the potential impact on the economy of the introduction of a third-party right of appeal.
Answer
The Executive has not undertakenany specific economic assessment of the possible impact on the economy of introducingof a third party right of appeal.
The Scottish Executive’s consultationpaper Rights of Appeal in Planning, issued on 1 April 2004,was accompanied by a Partial Regulatory Impact Assessment, which indicated the typeof costs that might arise from the various models of appeal mechanism consideredin the consultation paper.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the number of public hearings for communities that have taken place in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
This information is not heldcentrally.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 31 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to improve the opportunities for disabled people who wish to become involved in volunteering.
Answer
The Scottish Executive’s VolunteeringStrategy sets out our way forward to embed a robust culture of volunteering acrossScotland, including volunteering by disabled people. This includes the provisionof resources for Volunteer Development Scotland and the network of volunteer centresto provide advice and support to all volunteers and volunteer-involving organisations.Volunteer Development Scotland has recently undertaken and published a report onVolunteering and Disability: Experiences and perceptions of volunteering fromdisabled people and organisations, which will help raise awareness of this issueand provide a platform to address barriers.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 3 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on how many complaints relating to the planning system have been lodged with the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman in each of the last five years and, of these, how many have been upheld.
Answer
This information is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 3 November 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has conducted into the effectiveness of pre-application consultation with communities prior to the submission of planning applications to local authorities for determination.
Answer
The Executive has not undertaken any research on the effectiveness of pre-application consultation with communities.
- Asked by: Sandra White, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 26 September 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 26 October 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to offer financial incentives for small businesses and employers to open up flexible working as a means to stimulating the Scottish economy and "unblocking the hidden brain drain", as referred to in the Equal Opportunities Commission's report, Britain's Hidden Brain Drain.
Answer
We have no plans to offer financial incentives for small businesses and employers to open up flexible working. Many small businesses already offer flexible working because they recognise the business case.
