Chamber and committees

Doctors, nurses and other health professionals from within the EU are subject to the same employment checks as any other job applicant including registration status and occupational health requirements.Employers are responsible for ensuring that any job applicant has the necessary language and professional skills to carry out the duties of their employment. Guidance on this was issued by the Scottish Executive in HDL 2000(25).

I had a very positive meeting with Helen Eadie MSP, Scott Barrie MSP and several other people, including representatives from the Dunfermline West parliamentary constituency, on Monday 26 August.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-27187 on 1 August 2002.

The remit of the Sustainable Development Forum for Scotland is to provide a focus for Scottish thinking and action on sustainable development.Adverts in the national press on 7 June invited nominations and requests to attend. Information was also available at: www.sustainable.scotland.gov.uk. The adverts indicated that we want to ensure that the forum has a wide range of participants from all sectors. The first 75 applicants were invited to the first meeting of the forum, which was held in Dundee on 24 July. No selection criteria have been applied, other than that where there were two or more applicants from the same organisation they have been invited to nominate one person to attend. We do not envisage the forum having a fixed or exclusive membership. Applicants who were unsuccessful, or who are unable to attend the first meeting, will be given priority for subsequent meetings. All applicants are being encouraged to keep in touch with the forum via our website at: www.sustainable.scotland.gov.uk.

Members of the board of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) are appointed in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 4 of schedule 6 to the Environment Act 1995. This states that "in making appointments, Scottish Ministers shall have regard to the desirability of appointing persons who have knowledge or experience in some matter relevant to the functions of SEPA." It is also important to have representation from local government and the business sector as stakeholders in SEPA.The information requested on individual board members is contained in the following table.Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Board Member	Residence	Background	Attributes/Skills
Mr Kenneth Collins (Chairman)	East Kilbride	Former MEP for Strathclyde East; former Chairman of the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection Committee.	Commitment to environmental issues; committee skills.
Mrs Deirdre Hutton CBE (Deputy Chairman)	Kelso	Chairman, Scottish Consumer Council	Extensive committee experience; wide knowledge of NGOs
Mr David Hughes Hallett	Edinburgh	Member NGO; Chartered Surveyor	Knowledge of a broad range of environmental issues; professional expertise.
Cllr Cormick McChord	Stirling	Councillor	Committee and management experience; local government experience.
Mr Frederick Edwards LVO RD	Penicuik	Voluntary Worker	Knowledge of the voluntary sector; links with a wide range of NGOs; awareness of SEPA's role.
Cllr William Howatson	Montrose	Journalist; Councillor	Knowledge of agricultural issues.
Cllr Susan Clark	Cupar	Councillor	Committee experience; knowledge of local environmental health issues.
Professor Stanley Dagg	Bridge of Weir	Visiting Professor, Glasgow Caledonian University	Experience in waste management; understanding of the role of SEPA.
Professor Brian Clark	Aberdeen	Professor, Aberdeen University	Expertise in research and academic issues.
Mr William Furness	Edinburgh	Chief Executive, Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce & Enterprise	Corporate management experience; business sector perspective.
Mr Nicholas Kuenssberg	Glasgow	Company Chairman	Corporate management skills; business sector perspective.
Mrs Patricia Henton	Edinburgh	Chief Executive, SEPA	Chief Executive.

There are no statutory provisions allowing claims for compensation for contamination specifically by a genetically modified organism (GMO). Therefore, organic farmers would have the same remedies available to them under general law if a crop were contaminated by a genetically modified organism as they would if the crop were contaminated by any other substance which prevented the crop being sold as organic. If the presence of GM material arose through a breach in the terms of a consent to release GMOs, there are powers under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 for the consent holder to be prosecuted.

There have been a number of trials of GM oilseed rape in Belgium. The Belgian authorities recently ordered the destruction of a small research plot of GM oilseed rape because it did not have the required separation distance between it and a conventional crop of oilseed rape which was planted subsequently. Separation distances are concerned with maximising crop purity and are not about safety. In Scotland, those distances are set following expert advice and are based upon their successful use in conventional agriculture. Compliance with separation distances is monitored by the Executive's GM Inspectorate who have visited all Scottish release sites. They have not identified any instances where sexually compatible crops were growing within the permitted separation distances.

Eaga currently have 85 surveyors working under the central heating programme.

In June 1999, Scottish Enterprise provided a guarantee to underwrite £5.4 million of bank borrowing by Scottish Coal (Deep Mine) Ltd in order to allow the company to continue trading. The level of this guarantee was varied on several occasions in line with the company's bank borrowing requirements. Under the terms of the guarantee agreement, Scottish Enterprise has now paid out £4.514 million to the Royal Bank of Scotland.In addition, over three years until 31 March 2002, £37,260 was provided from Scottish Enterprise for the Modern Apprenticeships Scheme at Longannet.

In the three years to 31 March 2002, the Scottish Enterprise network contributed a total of £81,591 in direct support to Scottish Coal Company Ltd and its subsidiaries. These contributions went towards a number of projects including studies on opencast mine reinstatement and the Modern Apprenticeships Scheme at Longannet and were in addition to the bank guarantee of £4.514 million provided by Scottish Enterprise to Scottish Coal (Deep Mine) Ltd and paid to the Royal Bank of Scotland.