- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 05 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 26 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is planning or considering any legislation designed to promote salmon, other than the Salmon Conservation (Scotland) Bill.
Answer
The Executive has no such plans at present.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 05 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 26 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether a co-ordinator should be appointed to ensure effective co-ordination of local and national salmon monitoring and research programmes and, if so, when such a co-ordinator will be appointed.
Answer
The Executive has no plans to make such an appointment. The Freshwater Fisheries Laboratory and Scottish Fisheries Co-ordination Centre already fulfil this role through their work with district salmon fishery boards and fishery trusts.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 26 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to Her Majesty's Government to secure additional agrimonetary compensation and, if so, what amount it will seek to secure.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the United Kingdom Government on a wide range of issues including agrimoney compensation. The Scottish Executive cannot decide unilaterally to pay compensation since agrimoney payments must be made on a UK-wide basis. That is why the subject was discussed along with other issues when I met with the other Agricultural Ministers on Monday 22 January.The United Kingdom Government has until the end of April 2001 to apply to the EU Commission for such aid. Since the precise amounts of agrimoney compensation available to the UK has yet to be determined by the EU Commission, it is rather pre-mature to discuss how much agrimoney compensation, if any, we will apply for. We will consider the matter in more detail once we have a clearer picture of precisely how much money is at stake.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 26 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance is currently provided to farmers and crofters on lower incomes and in particular to those whose net income is below that of a full-time worker in receipt of an income based on the minimum wage.
Answer
There are a wide range of agricultural support measures available to farmers and crofters regardless of income levels. In addition the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board sets a minimum hourly rate of pay for agricultural workers. The rate for an adult worker is currently 18% above the national minimum wage.Farmers and crofters on low incomes are entitled to the normal social security assistance. Social Security is reserved to the UK Parliament.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 25 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the statement by the Deputy Minister for Rural Development on 23 November 2000 regarding the latest scientific advice from the special committee on seal population si'es (Official Report, col. 335), whether this information has been received; if so, when and whether it will place the information in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Answer
I understand that a copy of the latest advice from the Special Committee on Seals has now been received and I will be considering its contents very carefully. I will ensure that a copy of this advice is placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 25 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methods of controlling the seal population provided for by the Conservation of Seals Act 1970 are sufficient.
Answer
The Conservation of Seals Act 1970 provides a flexible framework for control of the seal population.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 25 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has considered the use of non-lethal methods of control of seal populations; if so, what conclusions have been reached and, if not, whether it will now consider the issue.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has considered the use of non-lethal methods of seal population control. In 1998 the Executive asked the Special Committee on Seals (SCOS) of the Natural Environment Research Council to assess whether a recently developed Canadian method of contraceptive sterilisation of seals might be a feasible way to stabilise or reduce Scottish grey seal numbers.
On the basis of SCOS' advice it was concluded that there would be considerable practical and financial problems involved in attempting a successful sterilisation programme using this method in Scotland. In Scotland seal populations are more scattered and more wary of humans than in Canada and hence cannot easily be approached for effective sterilisation using this method. In order to stabilise the grey seal population at its 1997 level of 95,000 it was estimated that a total of 14,000 adult females would need to be sterilised in the first year with gradually reducing annual numbers thereafter reaching 3,000 after some seven years. In order to reduce the seal population below the 1997 level, much greater numbers of seals would need to be sterilised.There are no current plans to introduce contraceptive measures to control the Scottish seal population but the Executive will continue to assess the potential of any future non-lethal control measures.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 January 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sam Galbraith on 25 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether additional measures are required in order to eradicate the feral mink population; if so, in which parts of Scotland and when such steps will be taken.
Answer
Feral mink are widely distributed over most of mainland Scotland and many offshore islands. Their impact on ground-nesting birds is well documented and it is widely believed that mink are also associated with the decline of the water vole.
The Scottish Executive is supporting Scottish Natural Heritage's application for EU LIFE-Nature funding to assist with the first phase of a mink eradication programme for the Western Isles.SNH continues to maintain an overview on the subject of mink predation and control as it relates to the natural heritage. In view of the extensive range which the species now occupies in Britain, total eradication of the species is not possible. Therefore, resources must be carefully targeted at key sites where long-term control is considered to be a practicable option.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 25 September 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus MacKay on 24 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions a direction has been issued to a non-departmental public body and the direction has not been complied with.
Answer
No directions have been given which have not been complied with.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 26 June 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 24 January 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will classify petrol stations in rural areas as "essential services" as recommended by Highland Council.
Answer
The Executive fully recognises the importance of petrol stations in rural areas and is providing financial support through the Rural Petrol Stations Grant Scheme which is aimed at maintaining a network of petrol stations and safeguarding locally available fuel supplies.At the launch of Rural Scotland: A New Approach in May 2000, Ministers asked the Scottish National Rural Partnership to bring together service providers to identify innovative approaches to providing services in rural areas, to consider how these examples might benefit and be replicated in other parts of Scotland and to report back to Ministers. The group's report was published on 15 January. Among the services that the group concluded were important for rural areas were petrol stations. Ministers are giving the report careful consideration and an Executive response will be published in due course.
