Chamber and committees

The following table provides the information requested:

Date, Council and Lead Minister	Subjects Discussed	Decisions Taken
8-6-2000: Education Council: Nicol Stephen	1. The future challenges and training objectives of education systems in the learning society.2. Report of education ministers to the Stockholm European Council in spring 2001.3. The e-learning initiative.Also CONSIDERED:4. Quality indicators and evaluation in school education.5. Recommendation on Mobility within the Community.	1. To establish the European Year of Languages 2001.2. That education and training policies would play a key part in follow up of Lisbon European Council.3. Need for education ministers to feed into the Luxembourg Employment Process.
12-2-2001:Employment and Youth Council: Nicol Stephen	1. Strategies for lifelong learning.Also considered:2. Community Action Programme.3. Leonardo da Vinci.4. European Year of Languages 2001.5.Trans-European co-operation scheme for higher education.	To adopt a report on the concrete future objectives of education and training systems, and to discuss the work programme arising from the report at the next Education Council meeting.
5-6-2001:Health Council: Susan Deacon	1. The EU public health framework programme.2. Misuse of alcohol by children and young people.3. Proposals for a tobacco Advertising Directive.4. Research and information exchange on vCJD.	To include certain rare diseases in the scope of the public health framework programme, and to call on member states to build on existing work on surveillance and prevention of all Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies as they affect human health.

The Scottish Executive and the UK Government will always seek to resolve any difference of view as to whether a function is within or outside devolved competence but if that is not possible Scottish ministers are entitled to act on their view of the position. Schedule 6 to the Scotland Act provides that the Lord Advocate or the Advocate General may institute proceedings for the determination of a devolution issue.

Decisions about the deployment of individual civil servants are management matters for the Scottish Executive and are within the delegated responsibility of the Permanent Secretary and his colleagues.

The Scotland Act 1998 (Cross-Border Public Authorities) (Specification) Order 1999 (S.I.1999/1319) sets out the cross-border public authorities as specified under Section 88 of the Scotland Act 1998. A copy of this order can be found in the Parliament's Reference Centre, Bib. Number 23320.

I am unaware of any significant levels of funding or other assistance being provided to Cameron House Hotel, although I understand that the business has received a small grant from Scottish Enterprise Dunbartonshire.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) and its Species Survival Commission are responsible for classifying and approving categories of animals and plants which are recognised as being critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable at international or national levels.

The Executive does not put forward nominations for appointments to these UK bodies, which are made in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments' Code of Practice. However, where there is a vacancy for a Scottish position, Scottish ministers are invited to put forward the names of people who they feel have the right experience and background. Those people would then be sent notice of the advert and an application pack.

The procedures for classifying endangered species of animals and plants are adopted and approved by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). They have produced a "Red List" showing categories of animals and plants that are currently classified as "endangered". Before any plant or animal can be classified it must be assessed against a number of quantitative criteria relating to several possible risk factors, for example information on the reduction or decline of a species, its population fluctuations, the geographical extent of its occurrence, the isolation or fragmentation of the species and the turnover rate of breeding inviduals/generation length. Updates of the "Red List" are made every year. Full details of the species listed can be accessed on the website at: www.redlist.org.

The total amount of confiscation orders imposed by the courts in Scotland under the Proceeds of Crime (Scotland) Act 1995 in respect of drug offences is as follows:

1996-97	£455,183
1997-98	£391,016
1998-99	£495,059
1999-2000	£807,213
2000-01	£117,884
2001-02	£532,812
April 2002 - August 2002	£269,890

Figures for the amounts collected are not available centrally.

No proceedings under the Data Protection Act 1998 were recorded for the year 2000. Data for the year 2001 are expected to be available in November 2002.