- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 10 April 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how long the pilot projects in which primary school children are provided with free fruit and vegetables will last.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-14557.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 10 April 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the aims are of the pilot projects in which primary school children are provided with free fruit and vegetables.
Answer
The Executive's recent provision of resources from its £26 million Health Improvement Fund to all health boards is enabling them to work with their local partners to introduce a range of initiatives, including the provision of fruit for infants in pre-school settings and fruit and salad bars and breakfast clubs in schools. Initiatives are supported according to local needs, and projects vary in their format, length and costs from area to area. Each of these initiatives is designed specifically to stimulate children's interest in, and enjoyment of, fruit and vegetables.Funding for the Health Improvement Fund has been committed until 2003-04, and health boards have been asked to give a full public account of how these resources are being invested, and what they have helped local people to achieve, through their annual reports and the accountability review process.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 10 April 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how much the pilot projects in which primary school children are provided with free fruit and vegetables are costing.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-14557.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 19 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 9 April 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will fund a feasibility study on decommissioning for the fish processing industry.
Answer
No. I do not consider decommissioning to be a feasible option for the fish processing sector.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 29 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-11742 by Susan Deacon on 5 March 2001, who the members are of the sub-group of the Health Department's Advisory Group on Infection.
Answer
This sub-group consists of experts from a range of disciplines, along with officials from the Scottish Executive.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Food Standards Agency allowed 21 tons of beef carcass from Spain to be released from an abattoir in Dundee into general circulation when spinal cord was found in part of the consignment; if so, on what basis it did so and what assurances can be given that the consignment is safe.
Answer
The Food Standards Agency has confirmed that part of a consignment of beef from Spain imported to an abattoir in Dundee was released into general circulation after it had been subject to thorough checks by MHS officials. Two beef forequarters found to contain spinal cord were not allowed to enter the food chain and were destroyed. The agency has informed me that there was no food safety reason to prevent any beef entering the food chain that met the rigorous inspection standards in place for all imported and domestically produced meat. Thorough inspections by MHS staff had shown the other carcass portions were free of all specified risk material (SRM).
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the Food Standards Agency's policy is with regard to spinal cord being found in consignments of beef.
Answer
The Food Standards Agency enforces strict controls to ensure that spinal cord and other designated specified risk material (SRM) in beef is removed from the food supply. This applies equally to imported and domestically produced beef. Where SRM is found the beef is removed from the food chain.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive in how many instances spinal cord has been found in abattoirs in the past year.
Answer
The Food Standards Agency advises that there have been 17 occasions where spinal cord has been discovered in cutting premises in UK since April 2000. This includes a single find in Scotland on 7 March where two quarters out of a consignment of 79 carcasses (158 sides) from Spain were found to contain spinal cord. In addition, there have been two occasions in this period where spinal cord was found in domestically produced health-marked sheep carcasses.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of beef carcass has to be affected by spinal cord before a consignment will be discarded.
Answer
The Food Standards Agency has advised that any individual part of a carcass found to contain spinal cord will be destroyed. Following rigorous inspection to determine that there has been no contamination of other parts, there is no basis in law for rejecting the rest of the consignment and preventing it from entering the food chain.
- Asked by: Andrew Welsh, MSP for Angus, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the beef carcass consignment from Spain sent to an abattoir in Dundee was affected by spinal cord.
Answer
The Food Standards Agency advises that two beef forequarters out of a total consignment of 79 carcasses (158 sides) were found to contain spinal cord.
