Chamber and committees

In the answer given to question S1W-24583, I undertook to continue to report quarterly on the numbers of letters received by ministers and our performance in answering them.In the quarter January to March 2002, 4,511 letters were received for ministerial reply of which 72% received a reply within 17 working days; and 88% received a reply within 25 working days. This is an improved performance on the fourth quarter when 69% of letters received a reply within 17 working days and 86% received a reply within 25 working days. The performance should be viewed against a 27% increase in the volume of correspondence compared to the last quarter.

Volunteering is an important part of life in Scotland and makes a significant contribution to the achievement of the Executive's social justice objectives. The impact of volunteering on Scottish Executive policies is being measured as part of an evaluation of the Active Communities Initiative. The evaluation, which is a three-year study, with the first annual report due later this year, has been commissioned by the Active Communities Forum.The forum brings together representatives from the Scottish Executive, public, private and voluntary sectors and is charged with overseeing the initiative. Its mission is to develop a better understanding of the impact of the Active Communities initiative in Scotland; encourage participation in the initiative; develop an overview of the work being undertaken, and inform and make recommendations to me.

The information requested is not held centrally.

Specialist practitioner courses are currently available at Robert Gordon University, Dundee University and Glasgow University.

The information requested is set out in the following table.

Institutions	1997-98	1998-99	1999-2000	2000-01	2001-02*
Robert Gordon University	2	2	3	2	0
University of Dundee	0	0	0	10	12
University of Glasgow	0	0	0	13	16
Total	2	2	3	25	28

Note:*The numbers for 2001-02 have been counted manually and may not correspond exactly with the statistics to be published later this year.

The issues arising from the recovery of some bird of prey populations and their impact on game birds and moorland management, and on racing pigeons, were considered by the UK Raptor Working Group in a comprehensive report published in February 2000. In response to question S1W-4163 on 3 February 2000 Sarah Boyack welcomed publication of the report and confirmed that Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) had been asked to provide formal advice to the Executive on the report's recommendations and their implications for Scotland.The Executive has now considered the Raptor Working Group report and SNH advice and I have today written to the Chairman of SNH providing him with the Executive's response. Copies of both the letter and the response have been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. numbers 20123 (letter) and 20122 (response)). The Executive accepts most of the recommendations in the report and is satisfied that the work already under way or planned by SNH, working with other key stakeholders, represents the best way forward for Scotland.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-24210.

The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The UK Government has sought the views of the Scottish Executive on trade in education services, including higher education services, in relation to the current GATS negotiations. My officials have consulted Universities Scotland on this and we will be responding to the UK Government in due course.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-24210.

During the debate on Glasgow's acute services review on 12 September 2002, Malcolm Chisholm endorsed a commitment to keep named services at Stobhill General Hospital and the Victoria Infirmary over the next five years, and to have this monitored locally. I have now had the opportunity to consider how this commitment should be discharged and have commissioned two monitoring groups, one for north Glasgow and one for south Glasgow. The remit is the same for both groups and includes an opportunity for stakeholder involvement in service design and other key implementation aspects of the acute services review.The membership of the groups, which will both meet for the first time on Friday 28 March, reflects strong local involvement of elected representatives and members of the public. The remainder of the membership comprises clinical and NHS staff representatives. Both groups have independent chairs with strong links to Glasgow throughout their careers.I believe that this is the best balance to deliver the commitment made during the debate and will ensure that local people have an opportunity to be fully involved as decisions flowing from the acute services review are implemented.