- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 14 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will encourage a greater take-up rate of free school meals amongst those pupils entitled to them.
Answer
Statutory provision exists to ensure children from lowest income families receive free school meals. The Scottish Executive continues to invest in the Hungry for Success programme in order to revitalise the school meals system for all pupils, whether or not they receive free school meals, and to provide a high quality and attractive service which eliminates stigma and which children and young people will actively choose in preference to less healthy alternatives. As a result of Hungry for Success, school meals are more nutritious, dining surroundings more inviting and food culture better connected to the curriculum to enable children to learn about healthy eating for life.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 14 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average cost of a single school meal under its free school meals programme was in each of the last five years and what the projected average cost will be for each of the next five years.
Answer
| 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 |
| £1.69 | £1.65 | £1.63 | £1.57 | £1.57 |
The cost of school meals in the future is a matter for individual local authorities. Authorities are provided with funding to administer their school meals service, but the Scottish Executive does not specify how much of this resource should be targeted on the cost or subsidy of individual meals. It is up to authorities to decide what they charge, and costs can vary greatly between authorities, depending on individual purchasing requirements and economies of scale.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 14 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what the total cost was of its free school meals programme in each of the last five years; what the projected total cost is for each of the next five years, and what the cost would be if the take-up rate was 100% of pupils entitled to a free school meal.
Answer
Free school meals are provided by local authorities. The estimated total cost to local authorities of free school meals for the last five years was as follows: £33.4 million in 1999-2000; £29.3 million in 2000-01; £28.7 million in 2001-02; £27.5 million in 2002-03, and £29 million in 2003-04. The Scottish Executive does not make projections regarding the cost of free school meals for future years. Cost per meal figures are based on the total gross expenditure by authorities on school meals divided by the total number of school meals provided, and are irrespective of whether a meal is paid for or free. Costs would not therefore change if free school meal uptake was 100%.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 14 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive how much income local authorities made from the sale of school meals in each of the last five years and what the projected income from schools meals is for local authorities in each of the next five years.
Answer
The income that local authorities received from school meals in the last five years is shown in the following table:
| Year | Total Income (£000) |
| 1999-2000 | 34,423 |
| 2000-01 | 32,052 |
| 2001-02 | 33,904 |
| 2002-03 | 40,351 |
| 2003-04 | 42,850 |
Figures are not available for the next five years as local authorities have the autonomy to vary charges for school meals and their income would be likely to fluctuate on the basis of any variations.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 14 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of its block grant was spent on providing free school meals in each of the last five years and what proportion it estimates will be spent on free school meals in each of the next five years.
Answer
The Scottish Executive provides local authorities with funding to administer their school meals service, but does not specify how much of this resource should be targeted on the costs or subsidy of meals. The estimated total cost of free school meals for the last five years was as follows: £33.4 million in 1999-2000; £29.3 million in 2000-01; £28.7 million in 2001-02; £27.5 million in 2002-03, and £29 million in 2003-04. The Executive does not make projections regarding the cost of free school meals for future years.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 17 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what involvement it has had in the decision to establish a National Energy Research Network; what the network's relationship will be with Scottish bodies involved in energy research; what funding the Executive will give to the network; how it will be represented directly, or indirectly, on the board of the network; which of its agencies will be involved with the network and what will be the nature of such involvement, and what potential the network has for the expansion of energy research and related activity in Scotland.
Answer
This is a UK initiative being led by the Department of Trade and Industry. The process of setting up the UK Energy Research Partnership is still at an early stage and details of the operation of the Partnership are as yet undecided. However, all interested bodies including the Scottish Executive will be involved in the process. We will wish to ensure that Scottish bodies, including ITI Energy, have the opportunity to play an active role in the partnership.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 12 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive how many cases of childhood rickets have been recorded by the NHS in each year since 1960.
Answer
Only partial data is centrally held on cases of childhood rickets recorded by the NHS in each year since 1960. Data on the number of cases in people aged 15 and under which were diagnosed in hospital in Scotland, are presented in following table.
| Year of Admission | Incidence |
| 1981 | 12 |
| 1982 | 9 |
| 1983 | 5 |
| 1984 | 7 |
| 1985 | 10 |
| 1986 | 7 |
| 1987 | 7 |
| 1988 | 6 |
| 1989 | 6 |
| 1990 | 9 |
| 1991 | 3 |
| 1992 | 3 |
| 1993 | 2 |
| 1994 | 3 |
| 1995 | 2 |
| 1996 | 1 |
| 1997 | 3 |
| 1998 | 4 |
| 1999 | 5 |
| 2000 | 2 |
| 2001 | 6 |
| 2002 | 4 |
| 2003 | 7 |
| 2004p | 2 |
Source: ISD Scotland (SMR01).
Data are not available before 1981. Accurate all-Scotland data are not available on cases of rickets in children who were not admitted to hospital.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 11 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated annual cost to local authorities is of the amount of time teachers spend on pupil discipline.
Answer
The cost of teacher time spent on pupil discipline has not been estimated. It is difficult to quantify how much staff time (including teachers, headteachers and support staff) is spent on promoting positive behaviour, in the form of policy development, staff development and whole school approaches, and responding to indiscipline when it occurs.
In the Scottish Executive’s Policy Update on Promoting Positive Behaviour in Scottish Schools (October 2004), information was provided on the time spent by headteachers on promoting positive behaviour and responding to indiscipline.
Sixty-seven per cent of primary headteachers report they spend less than 10% of their time on dealing with indiscipline problems, and 52% of secondary headteachers spend less than 10% of their time on dealing with indiscipline problems.
In the same survey reported in the Policy Update, less than half of primary teachers (46%) and primary headteachers (40%) report they are spending more time than they used to on discipline problems. In secondary schools, more than two-thirds of teachers (69%) and just over half of secondary headteachers (53%) feel they are spending more time on discipline problems.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 11 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what the actual spending per head is in (a) nursery, (b) primary and (c) secondary schools, (d) further education colleges and (e) universities, shown also as a percentage of the OECD average.
Answer
In 2003-04, the latest year for which figures are available, gross revenue expenditure per head by local authorities was £2,295 per pre-school recipient, £3,537 per primary pupil, and £5,058 per secondary pupil.
In 2002-03, the latest year for which figures are available for tertiary education, the Executive funding provided to the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Councils and the Student Awards Agency for Scotland totalled £4,677 per student enrolment for higher education institutions and £1,259 per student enrolment for further education colleges. The institutions’ and colleges’ actual spend per head will include income from other sources.
Comparable figures for the OECD are not available.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 March 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 11 April 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive how much gross and net revenue has been raised in each of the last three years from toll charges on the (a) Forth, (b) Tay and (c) Erskine road bridges.
Answer
Revenue raised from toll charges at Forth and Tay road bridges is a matter for Forth Estuary Transport Authority and Tay Road Bridge Joint Board respectively, both of which publish annual accounts.
Revenue raised by toll charges at the Erskine bridge in each of the last three years is detailed in the Erskine Bridge Accounts 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2003-04, copies of which are available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. numbers 25778, 30370 and 34771 respectively).
