- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 6 June 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to establish an urban task force.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is pursuing a wide range of initiatives of relevance to urban Scotland, including work on social justice, housing, transport, local governance, health, education and the environment. The Executive intends to build on these initiatives in taking forward the Review of Scotland's Cities, announced by the First Minister last year. Further details will be announced before the summer.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 31 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what guidelines are issued with regard to the quality of school meals
Answer
Local authorities are responsible for school meal provision and content. To assist them with this, Model Nutritional Guidelines for Catering Specifications for the Public Sector in Scotland, were published in 1996.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 22 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 30 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking, in partnership with local authorities and private owners where appropriate, to secure cemeteries against vandalism, neglect and environmental destruction.
Answer
The Executive recognises the distress felt by the families involved when cemeteries are vandalised or neglected and deplores such actions. These matters are, however, the direct responsibility of the local authorities and private owners concerned.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 29 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to investigate Norfolk County Council's Quiet Lanes approach to traffic management to establish whether are any lessons for improving safety on country roads.
Answer
We have no plans to do this. The Scottish rural road network is different in character to English "quiet lanes". The Transport (Scotland) Act does not include reference to quiet lanes as it was felt that they were not appropriate in the Scottish situation. However, we will monitor research work that DETR has commissioned on "quiet lanes" to see if there are any lessons which could be learned on improving road safety.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 02 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 29 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what account is taken of football clubs' own financial position in making decisions about the award of public funds to clubs for the establishment of football academies and whether such decisions are subject to any assessment of whether the provision of such assistance to large clubs represents best value.
Answer
As with all Lottery Fund applications and irrespective of applicant, financial need is a factor considered in determining whether an award is made. Value for money and financial viability, both in capital and revenue terms, are other finance-related factors which are assessed by sportscotland before it reaches a decision on an application.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 30 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding Scotland House in Brussels receives annually from (a) the Scottish Executive and (b) other Scottish public bodies.
Answer
Scotland House is an inclusive body that involves a range of interests. Its principal components are the Scottish Executive EU Office (SEEUO) and Scotland Europa, which in turn houses a number of its subscribers.
- The SEEUO budget for 2000-01 was £500,000, which was funded entirely by the Scottish Executive.
Scottish Enterprise contributed £455,000 in 2000-01 towards the costs of Scotland Europa, Brussels. A number of other Scottish public bodies, including Highlands and Islands European Partnership and CoSLA provided indirect support by means of fees or subventions paid in relation to membership of Scotland Europa or residence in Scotland House. A full list of Scotland Europa members is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it will have with Scotland House in Brussels on improving its physical and public profile.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-14399.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to raise the profile of Scotland House in Brussels and its activities.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-14399.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps the National Archives of Scotland (NAS) have taken to encourage departments of Her Majesty's Government to transmit records belonging to Her Majesty and relating exclusively or mainly to Scotland to the Keeper of the Records of Scotland under section 4 of the Public Records (Scotland) Act 1937 and, in particular, whether any representations have been made regarding the transfer to NAS of the military and pension records of Scottish regiments.
Answer
I have asked Mr George MacKenzie, Keeper of the Records of Scotland, to respond. His response is as follows:
The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) has received all the documents specified in section 4 of the Public Records (Scotland) Act 1937. These are Scottish records dating from 1189 to 1284.Under section 5(1) of the Public Records (Scotland) Act 1937 and section 3(8) of the Public Records Act 1958, NAS has in the last 10 years received more than 1,000 shelf metres of records relating to Scotland from UK Government bodies, including the Cabinet Office, Customs and Excise, Inland Revenue, Property Services Agency and the Board of Trade.The main operational records of the Scottish regiments consist of official war diaries, sent to the War Office and now available for consultation in the Public Record Office in London. Records up to 1,920 of individual soldiers' service and pensions are also available in the Public Record Office. Later service records are still in the custody of the Ministry of Defence. The NAS sees no reason to interfere with these arrangements.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities it believes could benefit from implementing the investment in people policy developed by Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council.
Answer
Local authorities, like all other employers, have a responsibility to ensure the highest standards of training and development for their staff and to keep their policies under constant review to ensure success and continuous improvement.
