- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 February 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sam Galbraith on 24 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive how many general purpose classrooms there will be in St Thomas Aquinas School in Glasgow on completion of the new building and whether these rooms will be of the same si'e as the current rooms.
Answer
This is a matter for Glasgow City Council.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 February 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 24 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive Scottish Executive why tenants and trades union representatives have been excluded from the Glasgow Housing Stock Transfer Steering Group.
Answer
The Glasgow Housing Partnership Steering Group is preparing a framework within which tenants and trade unions can be fully involved in shaping a transfer proposal. I have met with both tenants and unions but informal consultation will begin as soon as the Group has completed its work.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 23 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to ensure that the percentage increase in water and sewerage rates next year is no more than the rate of inflation.
Answer
I refer Mr Gibson to my parliamentary statement of 26 January.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 23 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what the percentage increase in water and sewerage rates will be for East of Scotland Water, North of Scotland Water and West of Scotland Water in 2000-01.
Answer
Water and sewerage charges next year are to be agreed between the water authorities and the independent Water Industry Commissioner for Scotland, following Ministers' determination of a charges cap. That determination will take place once advice from the Commissioner has been presented and fully considered. I am not, therefore, in a position at present to comment on the level of charges.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 November 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 23 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to restrict housing and large scale retail development on greenbelt land and encourage development on brownfield sites.
Answer
The Executive's policies on the location of housing and retail development are set out in National Planning Policy Guidelines 3: Land for Housing and 8: Town Centres and Retailing. NPPG3 indicates that priority should be given to the re-use of urban brownfield sites wherever possible and that the release of sites in the Green Belt should be considered only in exceptional circumstances. NPPG8 contains a firm commitment to the protection and enhancement of existing town centres in preference to sites outwith town centres. This guidance indicates that new retail developments should not conflict with Green Belt policy.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 28 January 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 23 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that people with mental health and learning difficulties have equal access to legal services.
Answer
People with mental health and learning difficulties qualify for legal aid in the same way as any other person - by satisfying a number of statutory tests, one of which is financial eligibility. Regulations will be laid in this parliamentary session to enable those involved in certain mental health proceedings to be exempted from the financial eligibility and contributions tests in relation to assistance by way of representation.
The Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Bill will make provision for legal aid to be available to adults with incapacity and anyone else who wishes to use the measures provided for in the Bill, subject to the usual statutory tests being met.In addition, the Central Research Unit is undertaking a number of studies which look specifically at access to legal advice and services for people with mental health and learning difficulties and the results of these studies will be carefully assessed by the Scottish Executive Justice and Health Departments in the context of policy development on Adults with Incapacity and on mental health.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 February 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 22 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans there are to introduce car parking charges within hospital grounds in the Glasgow area.
Answer
Arrangements for charging for car parking are currently in place at Yorkhill NHS Trust, the Victoria Infirmary, which is part of South Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust, and Glasgow Royal Infirmary which is part of the North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust. GGPCT has advised that there are no plans to extend these current arrangements nor to introduce charges at hospitals forming the Greater Glasgow Primary Care NHS Trust.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 28 January 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 22 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-975 by Iain Gray on 17 January 2000, to specify the amount allocated to each local authority for (a) services for home based elderly people; (b) residential accommodation for elderly people and (c) casework and related administration in respect of elderly people, expressed on a per capita basis for each person receiving each of these services.
Answer
Grant-Aided Expenditure (GAE) allowances are not intended to be spending targets or limits for individual services, but contribute towards the assessment of councils' relative total expenditure needs within the distribution system.The information requested is not available centrally. The allocations to each authority are contained in Grant-Aided Expenditure 2000-01. It is available in SPICe.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 18 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the #305,017 paid to Lorna Naismith, former Director of Personnel at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, represents value for money in the NHS.
Answer
Lorna Naismith was given early retirement on grounds of organisational change due to trust reconfiguration. She did not receive the sum mentioned, the major part of that figure - £268k - represents the capitalisation costs for the pension which the employer is obliged to set aside to cover future payment of the pension until normal retiral age. The Trust reconfiguration process was a managed one which has been audited and shown to provide value for money to the NHS in Scotland. The process is expected to save £100 million for investment in patient care.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 December 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 18 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive how capital spending by Scottish local authorities in 2000-01, excluding PFI projects, compares to local authority capital spending in 1990-91 (in current prices) and, if its assessment differs from COSLA's statement in convention item 4 on 10 December that "ten years ago, the Government limited capital spend by Scottish councils to some #700 million at current prices; next year the level of expenditure, excluding PFI, which has been authorised by the Executive is almost half the amount", whether it will explain how it arrived at its figure.
Answer
Local authority capital expenditure in 1990-91, including water and sewerage and housing, was £1.7 billion at current prices. Total capital spending by local authorities in 2000-01 will not be known until the end of that financial year, therefore, a comparison is not possible. I have, however announced the provisional non-housing allocations which also no longer include water and sewerage for 2000-01: question S1W-2651 refers. In practice, the Government only limits the part of local authority capital expenditure which it supports through capital allocations. Further information on capital expenditure by local authorities is given in my letter of 9 September sent in response to questions S1W-743 and S1W-744. A copy is available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
