Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S1W-10992

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 5 March 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive how much money there currently is in the bank accounts of former NHS Trusts.

Question reference: S1W-10990

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 5 March 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive what the surplus was of each former NHS Trust at the time when each such Trust was wound up.

The table provides the retained surplus/(deficit) position of each of the former Trusts as at 31 March 1999. The figures have been taken from the Annual Accounts of each Trust and provided the basis for the Summarised Account of the NHS Trusts in Scotland 1998-99.

Name of Trust	Retained Surplus/(deficit) £000
Aberdeen Royal Hospitals NHS Trust	2,639
Angus NHS Trust	1,904
Argyll & Bute NHS Trust	(1,112)
Ayrshire & Arran Community Healthcare NHS Trust	2,024
Borders Community Health Services NHS Trust	677
Borders General Hospital NHS Trust	315
Caithness and Sutherland NHS Trust	1,115
Central Scotland Healthcare NHS Trust	(430)
Dumfries & Galloway Acute & Maternity Hospitals NHS Trust	1,993
Dumfries & Galloway Community Health NHS Trust	514
Dundee Healthcare NHS Trust	60
Dundee Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust	3,460
East & Midlothian NHS Trust	2,499
Edinburgh Healthcare NHS Trust	8,309
Edinburgh Sick Children's NHS Trust	756
Falkirk & District Royal Infirmary NHS Trust	625
Fife Healthcare NHS Trust	1,300
Glasgow Dental Hospital and School NHS Trust	316
Glasgow Royal Infirmary University NHS Trust	2,926
Grampian Healthcare NHS Trust	8,626
Greater Glasgow Community & Mental Health Services NHS Trust	(5,111)
Hairmyres & Stonehouse Hospitals NHS Trust	373
Highland Communities NHS Trust	(14,026)
Inverclyde Royal NHS Trust	2,305
Kirkcaldy Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	2,122
Lanarkshire Healthcare NHS Trust	1,578
Law Hospital NHS Trust	668
Lomond Healthcare NHS Trust	802
Monklands & Bellshill Hospitals NHS Trust	4,330
Moray Health Services NHS Trust	482
North Ayrshire & Arran NHS Trust	6,048
Perth & Kinross Healthcare NHS Trust	2,442
Queen Margaret Hospital NHS Trust	1,802
Raigmore Hospital NHS Trust	2,688
Renfrewshire Healthcare NHS Trust	1,193
Royal Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust	2,813
Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh NHS Trust	1,263
Scottish Ambulance Service NHS Trust	645
South Ayrshire Hospitals NHS Trust	1,344
Southern General Hospital NHS Trust	2,877
Stirling Royal Infirmary NHS Trust	2,051
Stobhill NHS Trust	(1,272)
Victoria Infirmary NHS Trust	192
West Glasgow Hospitals University NHS Trust	820
West Lothian NHS Trust	2,438
Western General Hospitals NHS Trust	393
Yorkhill NHS Trust	1,640
TOTAL NHS TRUSTS IN SCOTLAND AS AT 31 MARCH 1999	61,416

Question reference: S1W-10993

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 5 March 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive for what purpose any money removed from the bank accounts of former NHS Trusts since they were wound up has been used and what any remaining funds will be used for.

Question reference: S1W-10991

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 5 March 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive how much money there has been in the bank accounts of former NHS Trusts since they were wound up; when any such funds were fro'en, and why any such accounts were fro'en.

On 1 April 1999, assets and liabilities of the demitting NHS Trusts were transferred to the new reconfigured Trusts. The bank balances of the old Trusts were among those balances.

The exception was surplus working capital.

The Minister for Finance announced to Parliament, on 6 October 1999, that NHS surplus working capital balances which, under Treasury rules, could not be used for the NHS would be carried in the Scottish Consolidated Fund until it could be used for the repayment of housing debt in 2001-02.This was a technical adjustment that ensured that the Scottish Executive was able to utilise excess cash, which would otherwise have had to be returned to Treasury.

Question reference: S1W-13495

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 16 February 2001
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 2 March 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive how many humans have been killed by animals in each of the last 20 years, which animals were involved in each case and whether the strict liability on owners placed by the Animals (Scotland) Act 1987 has reduced the number of any such deaths.

The available information is presented in the table. There has been no significant variation in the numbers of such deaths recorded over the last 20 years.

Deaths caused by animals, Scotland, 1980-99¹
	Poisoning by venomous animals	Other injury caused by animals	- of which dog bite
ICD9 code ²	E905	E906	E906.0
1980		2
1981		2
1982		2
1983		1
1986		2
1987		1
1988		1
1989	1	2	1
1990		2
1991		1
1992	2	1
1995	1
1996		2
1997		3	2
1998		2
1999		2	2

Notes:1. No relevant deaths occurred in years not listed.2. International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision.

Question reference: S1W-13501

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 16 February 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 2 March 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the current numbers of police officers in Lothian and Borders and across Scotland as a whole are adequate.

Question reference: S1W-12908

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2001
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 14 February 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people were killed by lightning in each of the last 10 years and whether any guidance is issued on this matter.

Question reference: S1W-12909

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2001
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 14 February 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been killed by chemicals in each of the last 10 years and what category of chemicals was responsible for each death.

It is not possible to give a precise answer to this question as it is difficult to define which deaths are due to chemicals or, indeed, what should be covered by the term chemicals. The table below summarises some relevant information on deaths from accidental poisoning. It excludes all deaths resulting from poisoning by drugs and medicaments.

Selected deaths from accidental poisoning, Scotland, 1990-99
Substance involved	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999
Ethyl or methyl alcohol	0	0	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
Cleansing and polishing agents	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
Disinfectants, paints and varnishes
Petroleum products, solvents and	1	1	2	1	0	1	1	1	1	1
their vapours
Agricultural and horticultural	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Chemical preparations etc.
Other and unspecified solid and	4	10	6	3	11	6	2	10	11	13
liquid substances (1)
Gas distributed by pipeline	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
Other utility gas and carbon	4	15	4	3	1	2	3	2	7	2
Monoxide
Other gases and vapours	2	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1

Notes:1. Virtually all of these cases involve exposure to asbestos and resultant asbestosis or mesothelioma.

Question reference: S1W-12901

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2001
Current Status: Answered by Wendy Alexander on 12 February 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive why Scotland's population is declining and whether this represents any net "brain drain" in the business, commerce, industrial, educational and research sectors.

The Registrar General's 1999 mid-year estimate of Scotland's population was 5,119,200. This represents a fall of 17,400 since 1995, reflecting estimated net out-migration and other adjustments of 10,895 and a natural decrease (more deaths than births) of 6,505. However, the fall in population between 1998 and 1999 is estimated to have been only 800, reflecting estimated net in-migration and other adjustments of 2,917 offset by a natural decrease of 3,717. Particular caution should be attached to the estimates for a single year's change.

The General Register Office for Scotland estimates that Scotland will experience a net loss of 1,000 people per annum between now and 2020, the majority of which are young highly skilled people. The Executive takes this issue seriously and both the newly formed Scottish Labour Market Intelligence Unit, now called "Future Skills Scotland", and the Enterprise Networks, plan to look into this matter over the coming year.The Executive does not maintain specific statistical information about the movement of persons working within the fields of business, commerce, industry, academia or research.

Question reference: S1W-12867

Asked by: Lord James Douglas-Hamilton, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 January 2001
Current Status: Answered by David Steel on 7 February 2001

To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will make available access by MSPs to videoconferencing facilities.

Videoconferencing "studio" facilities are available to all MSPs and staff of the Parliament. A fully equipped videoconferencing suite is located in the basement of Committee Chambers. This can be booked through the Parliament Helpdesk (85100) and more information is available on IT Services pages of the Parliament's SPEIR intranet site. Staff in IT Services are also happy to provide further support and guidance, and assist with any special arrangements.The videoconferencing facilities have been used very effectively for several Committee meetings and by Members wishing to link up with organisations or individuals at other locations.