- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-878 by Henry McLeish on 31 August 1999, whether it will provide updated information on the number of people in each unit of delivery currently enrolled in each of the following New Deal options: (a) full-time education and training, (b) voluntary sector and (c) environmental task force.
Answer
Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations as indicated in the answer to question S1W-3137 also answered today.
The table below shows the numbers in Scotland by Unit of Delivery currently enrolled (end September figures) in each of the following New Deal options: (a) full-time education and training, (b) voluntary sector, and (c) environment task force.
Unit of Delivery | Full Time Education/Training | Voluntary Sector | Environment Task Force |
Ayrshire | 145 | 105 | 85 |
| Borders | 25 | 7 | 20 |
| Dumfries & Galloway | 62 | 17 | 16 |
| Edinburgh, East & Midlothian | 107 | 75 | 76 |
| Forth Valley | 128 | 46 | 69 |
| Glasgow | 467 | 201 | 228 |
| Grampian | 55 | 41 | 20 |
| Inverness & Nairn | 15 | 6 | 16 |
| Lanarkshire | 285 | 123 | 188 |
| Renfrewshire | 99 | 70 | 74 |
| Tayside | 127 | 63 | 100 |
| Western Isles | 13 | 5 | 12 |
| Dunbarton | 118 | 27 | 65 |
| Fife | 258 | 61 | 75 |
| Moray, Strathspey & Badenoch | 8 | 8 | 18 |
| West Lothian | 24 | 16 | 21 |
| Argyll & the Islands | 16 | 10 | 31 |
| Caithness & Sutherland | 26 | 4 | 12 |
| Lochaber | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Orkney | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Ross & Cromarty | 17 | 1 | 9 |
| Shetland | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Skye & Lochalsh | 4 | 0 | 1 |
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-304 by Henry McLeish on 29 July 1999, whether it will provide updated information on the number of people who have joined the employment option of the New Deal for Young People to date; how many have left the option; of these, how many moved into unsubsidised jobs, and whether any information on the number of young people retained by the employer who took them on after completion of the six month period is now available.
Answer
Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations as indicated in the answer to question S1W-3137 also answered today.
By the end of September 3,553 had joined the employer option: of the 2,057 who had left the employer option 749 had moved into unsubsidised employment either as a result of being retained by their employers or by moving to a job with another employer. This includes people who left the New Deal from the Employment Option, and people who moved from it into Follow-through and then subsequently left the New Deal.Details of the periods spent on options and the numbers who are retained by the employer who took them on under the employer option are not available.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-300 by Henry McLeish on 29 July 1999, whether it will provide updated information on the number of people who have joined the New Deal for Young People and on the expenditure incurred on this programme to date.
Answer
Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations as indicated in the answer to question S1W-3137 also answered today.By the end of September 39,700 had joined the programme in Scotland. Expenditure incurred to that date was approximately £34.5 million, excluding the cost of allowances where separate information on Scotland is not available. This figure understates the total costs accrued due to time lags in billing and reimbursement.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1208 by Mr Jack McConnell on 29 November 1999, whether it will provide a breakdown of the budgeted and actual costs incurred by Scotland Europa in relation to Scotland House.
Answer
The breakdown of the budgeted and actual costs incurred by Scotland Europa is a matter for Scotland Europa and its members, both private and public sector. It is not a subsidiary of the Scottish Executive.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to require Local Enterprise Company board members to be accredited by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
Answer
We have no plans to bring Local Enterprise Company board appointments under the remit of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. They are private companies that operate under contract to Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the criteria for Board membership are set out in their operating contracts. In making appointments to their Boards, LECs have adopted principles similar to those recommended by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2607 by Henry McLeish on 30 November 1999, what is the normal margin of error, in percentage terms, used in Regional Selective Assistance calculations.
Answer
Based on past experience of Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) forecasts, the margin of error, in percentage terms, for RSA expenditure is given in the table below:
Forecasting | Typical Margin of error |
1 year ahead | 3 to 15% |
2 years ahead | 16 to 22% |
3 years ahead | 15 to 28% |
RSA is a demand led scheme with individual grants ranging in value from several thousand pounds to tens of millions of pounds.RSA is drawn down by companies in instalments linked to their progress in implementing the assisted project.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1208 by Mr Jack McConnell on 29 November 1999, what was (a) the budgeted and (b) the actual cost of acquiring Scotland House.
Answer
Scotland House is leased by Scotland Europa and sublet to its resident members and the Scottish Executive EU Office. As stated in my answer to question number S1W-3174, the budgeted and actual costs of acquiring Scotland House are a matter for Scotland Europa.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-302 by Henry McLeish on 29 July 1999, whether it will provide updated information on how many young people who have obtained employment through the New Deal Gateway have been taken on by employers who are not receiving a New Deal subsidy and what percentage of those taken on under the employment option this represents.
Answer
Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations as indicated in the answer to question S1W-3137 also answered today.The total number to the end of September was 7,930 and this represented 61% of those who had moved into sustained employment by that date.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1032 by Henry McLeish on 6 September 1999, whether it will provide updated destination statistics for the New Deal for Young People and other New Deal Programmes.
Answer
Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations as indicated in the answer to question S1W-3137 also answered today.The information requested in relation to the New Deal for Young People is published as part of the Government's statistical services monthly statistical first release on New Deal and held centrally by the Scottish Parliamentary Information Centre. The New Deal for Disabled People and New Deal 50 plus are still at the pilot stage.
- Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 21 December 1999
To ask the Scottish Executive how many new ventures have been set up under the auspices of "Technology Ventures" since the initiative was launched; what is the total value of the investment made to date in these ventures, and whether it will provide a breakdown of the sources of funding for this investment.
Answer
The Technology Ventures Initiative is a partnership between Scottish higher education, the financial community, the business sector and the public sector led by Scottish Enterprise. The role of TVI is not to make investments and I shall ask the Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise to write to Alex Neil MSP on the matter.
