Chamber and committees

The information requested is contained in the following table:

	RSA Offers Accepted	Planned Capital Investment	Created/Safeguarded Jobs
1999-2000	£3,514,000	£14,303,600	564
2000-01	£3,110,000	£13,649,000	481
2001-02	£5,664,000	£27,204,000	759

This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise.

Scottish Enterprise Lanarkshire is focusing on the direction and priorities set out in the Executive's A Smart, Successful Scotland. This sets out the foundation for sustained improvement in economic performance in Scotland. It focuses on three key challenges for raising productivity:

• Growing businesses
• Global connections
• Learning and skills

In addition, a number of local economic initiatives, targeted on specific areas within Lanarkshire including Hamilton North and Bellshill, are being operated by Scottish Enterprise Lanarkshire in partnership with other agencies.

Section 30(2) of the Scotland Act 1998 allows for Her Majesty by Order in Council to make any modifications of schedule 4 or 5 which She considers necessary or expedient. An order under this section requires the approval of each House of Parliament and of the Scottish Parliament by affirmative resolution.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-27031 on 23 July 2002.

The policy analyst recruitment process is still on-going and selection decisions are not expected for some weeks. At this level of recruitment, successful candidates are likely to be subject to three months notice to their current employers. It is likely therefore that the majority of successful candidates will join the Executive from the beginning of 2003.Successful candidates will fill posts at policy analyst level that are vacant at the time of their appointments. In the meantime the vacancy position remains fluid as posts are filled or vacated by the internal movement of existing policy analyst staff.

The Scottish Executive is in touch with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including appointments to EU institutions.

The borrowing powers of the Scottish Executive are set out in section 66 (1) of the Scotland Act 1999 which states that "The Scottish Ministers may borrow money from the Secretary of State any sums required by them for the purpose of:(a) meeting a temporary excess of sums paid out of the Scottish Consolidated Fund over sums paid into that Fund, or(b) providing a working balance in the Fund."

The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including issues relating to legislative competence where appropriate. Schedule 5 to the Scotland Act 1998, which sets out reserved matters, has been amended by the following five Orders:S.I. 1999/1749 The Scotland Act 1998 (Modifications of Schedules 4 and 5) Order 1999S.I. 2000/1831 The Scotland Act 1998 (Modifications of Schedule 4) Order 2000S.I. 2000/3252 The Scotland Act 1998 (Modifications of Schedule 5) Order 2000S.I. 2001/1456 The Scotland Act 1998 (Modifications of Schedule 5) Order 2001S.I. 2002/1629 The Scotland Act 1998 (Modifications of Schedule 5) Order 2002Copies of these orders can be found in the Parliament's Reference Centre, Bib. numbers 23328, 23324, 23325, 23326 and 23327 respectively.

The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.