Chamber and committees

The evidence provided on the skills and abilities of Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd prior to the letting of the contract for the MSP building cladding package is being assessed by Audit Scotland as part of their routine audit of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body's (SPCB) accounts and it is not appropriate to provide details until the findings of the audit report are known. Any further action by the SPCB will be considered in the light of Audit Scotland's findings.

Section 9(2)(a) was included following representations received during the consultation on the draft Land Reform (Scotland) Bill. Since the introduction of the bill, concerns have been expressed by some that the inclusion of this provision will curtail the activities of people such as mountain guides. We have received 35 letters to this effect. Views for and against section 9 (2) (a) have been included in evidence to the Justice 2 Committee. Although in principle, we are not convinced it is appropriate to grant a business a statutory right of access to someone's land for the purpose of making a profit, we are considering the suggestions made by the Justice 2 Committee concerning possible amendment of section 9(2)(a).

Information is currently being sought from the Parliament's legal office which will enable the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body better to consider its position. The Parliament's own legal directorate has been taking specialist legal advice from Shepherd & Wedderburn WS.

Information is currently being sought from the Parliament's legal office which will enable the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body better to consider its position. The Parliament's own legal directorate has been taking specialist legal advice from Shepherd & Wedderburn WS.

Tenders for the MSP cladding and windows were received and opened on 9 October 2000 and I understand from the Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group they were considered by the Design Team, Cost Consultant and Construction Manager from then until 25 January 2001 when the tender recommendation was submitted to the Holyrood Project Team. The recommendation was that Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd should be awarded the contract for the MSP cladding package. The Parliament has received legal advice that the documents requested should not be made publicly available while the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body's rights and entitlements are still being evaluated, as they may form part of the productions in any litigation which may follow.

The Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group has confirmed that the Parent Company Guarantee was dated 28 September 2001 and was received by the Construction Manager, Bovis Lend Lease Ltd, on 5 October 2001.

I understand from the Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group that tenders for the various elements of the MSP cladding package are presently being evaluated and therefore it is not possible to provide a detailed breakdown of this figure. The previous estimate of the additional cost of £2 million was based only upon information that the supply of windows as sourced by Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd was no longer available.

I understand from the Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group that the Interim Contract was executed on 29 January 2001.

The Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group has confirmed that the parent company guarantee was signed by Johnson K Fong for and on behalf of the Guarantor.

In his report on the public local inquiry into the application for scheduled monument consent to conserve Castle Tioram, the Reporter stated that the realisation of the project would not make the castle a national tourist attraction and the economic impact of the development would not be of national importance. However, given its fragility, he stated that the application would benefit the local economy. He also observed that similar benefits could accrue in terms of specialist trades and tourism under the consolidation approach.