- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 March 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 28 March 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive who the members are of the public health network referred to by the Minister for Health and Community Care in a letter to me of 8 January 2007 and on what basis each member was selected.
Answer
The Scottish Public Health Networks(ScotPHNs) remit is to facilitate joint working between all organisations involvedin health improvement and health services by providing a means of communication,through specific projects in areas of national importance, and to do this thenetwork consists of a steering group which is chaired by a Director of Public Health.Its membership is drawn from key individuals from relevant organisations such asDirectors of Public Health and Medical Directors from Special Health Boards. Itagrees and guides the ScotPHN work programme.
Governance of the network is undertaken by a stakeholdergroup. These stakeholders include broad representation from organisations responsiblefor delivering health improvement and health service, such as Directors of PublicHealth; Consultants in Public Health Medicine; Health Promotion Managers; PublicHealth Specialists; Public Health Academics; Public health colleagues from SpecialHealth Boards; Community Health Partnership General Managers or Clinical Directors;Dental Public Health; Pharmaceutical Public Health and Environmental Health Specialists.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 March 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 27 March 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what the remit is of the public health network referred to by the Minister for Health and Community Care in a letter to me of 8 January 2007; what the network’s objectives are, and how its work is monitored.
Answer
The Scottish Public Health Networks(ScotPHNs) remit is to facilitate joint working between all organisations involvedin health improvement and health services by providing a means of communicationand through specific projects in areas of national importance.
The objectives of the network areto:
undertake prioritised national piecesof work where there is a clearly identified need, which will impact on planningand decision making at both national and local level. This will be facilitated byusing the skills, knowledge and expertise, which are spread widely across Scotland,in addressing public health issues, and
to create effective communicationamongst professionals and the public to allow efficient co-ordination of publichealth activity. To share information effectively so that duplication of effortis avoided.
The network has a steering group whichis chaired by a Director of Public Health. Its membership is drawn from key individualsfrom relevant organisations. It agrees and guides the ScotPHN work programme.
Governance of the ScotPHN is undertakenby a stakeholder group including broad representation from organisations responsiblefor delivering health improvement and health services. The ScotPHN is facilitatedand monitored by a lead clinician with the support of a project manager. The ScotPHNis hosted by NHS Health Scotland.
ScotPHN is open to everyone in Scotland who has a professionalinterest and significant involvement in the wider health improvement agenda includingstaff from the NHS, local authorities, academia and others. The ScotPHN work programmeis still under development as it has been fully functioning for less than six months.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 22 February 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 8 March 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-31737 by Mr Tom McCabe on 22 February 2007, to what occasion or occasions the reference in the draft paper, EU Business: Reviews of Engagement with Europe and of EU Office, to “unfortunate examples are where there is no seat for the Minister in the council room during the meeting so they have to follow discussions from the salle d’écoute alongside officials” relates; which minister or ministers were involved in these examples, and at which council meeting or meetings such circumstances have arisen.
Answer
It is not our policy tocomment on leaked documents.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 12 February 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 22 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-31369 by Mr Tom McCabe on 9 February 2007, why the answer related only to 2006 when no timescale was specified in the question.
Answer
The information requestedfor the period before 2006 is not recorded.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 12 February 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 22 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-31369 by Mr Tom McCabe on 9 February 2007 and in light of the reference in the draft paper, EU Business: Reviews of Engagement with Europe and of EU Office, to “unfortunate examples are where there is no seat for the Minister in the council room during the meeting so they have to follow discussions from the salle d’écoute alongside officials”, on which occasions other than in 2006 ministers have had to follow discussions from the salle d’écoute; at which council meetings, and which ministers were involved in each year since 1999.
Answer
The information requestedfor the period before 2006 is not recorded.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 15 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions it has participated in European Commission impact assessments in each year since 2003, broken down by subject area.
Answer
Responding to this question involvesconsiderable background investigation. This information is currently being gatheredand I will write to you when it is available. A copy of the information will beplaced in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 41907).
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 15 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions it has submitted a response directly to a European Commission consultation in each year since 2003 and to which consultations it responded.
Answer
Responding to this question involvesconsiderable background investigation. This information is currently being gatheredand I will write to you when it is available. A copy of the information will beplaced in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 41906).
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 February 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 15 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to ensure that more affordable rented homes are made available in mid Scotland and Fife.
Answer
We have substantially increasedour funding to support affordable housing investment across Scotland. Themid Scotland and Fife area is benefiting from this with Communities Scotlandplanning to invest around £32 million in the current year. This is a 34% increaseover the previous year and should result in around 370 new or improved affordablerented homes.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 25 January 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 9 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will release the ministerial paper of July 2005 by the then head of its European Office which considered how the political and administrative resources of the Executive could be put to best effect in relation to the European Union.
Answer
The Scottish Executive does notintend to release this paper as it contains confidential policy advice toministers.
- Asked by: Bruce Crawford, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 9 February 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions Scottish ministers attending European Council meetings have had to listen to proceedings from the “salle d’écoute” and have not been seated in the council meeting room and on which occasions this has occurred.
Answer
In the interest of good governanceand transparency, I include a literal translation of “salle d’ecoute” to aid understandingfor members of the public. “Salle d’ecoute” means “listening room”.
In 2006 Scottish ministers attendedten European Union Council of Ministers meetings. No minister was obliged to listento proceedings from the listening room at any of these meetings. Attendance at EuropeanUnion Council of Ministers meetings provides a valuable opportunity for Executiveministers to network with other ministers and Commission officials. Such networkingoccurs both inside and outside the formal Council negotiating room.
