- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 15 April 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 22 April 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with NHS Grampian regarding savings in revenue budgets.
Answer
I chaired the NHS Grampian Annual Review meeting in Elgin on 2 November 2009. A wide range of matters affecting past and present performance and planning for the future were discussed with the board chair and his senior management team.
NHS Grampian, along with all NHSScotland boards, was requested to submit a draft financial plan for 2010‘11 to the Scottish Government Health Directorates (SGHD) on 18 February 2010. Following that submission, the Head of External Financial Performance (SGHD) had several routine telephone conversations with NHS Grampian colleagues (Director of Finance and Assistant Directors of Finance).
The Director of Finance (NHS Grampian), the Director of Finance (SGHD) and the Head of External Financial Performance (SGHD) met and had a general discussion about the draft financial plan on 11 March 2010.
Officials from the SGHD also meet representatives of NHS Grampian regularly to discuss matters of current interest affecting health services in the area. A meeting was held (via video link) with NHS Grampian on 12 March 2010 to take stock of developments since last year''s annual review and look at progress against key targets. This meeting included a discussion on progress with the draft financial plan for 2010‘11 and associated savings. Attendees included the Director General Health and Chief Executive of NHSScotland and the Chief Executive of NHS Grampian.
I meet regularly with all NHSScotland chairs to discuss matters of importance to Health and the NHS in Scotland. I last met the Chair of NHS Grampian on 29 March 2010 at the last regular meeting of NHS board chairs and discussed a range of issues.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 29 March 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 21 April 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Aberdeen City Council regarding the potential use of tax increment financing for city centre regeneration projects in Aberdeen.
Answer
There have been initial discussions with Aberdeen City Council regarding the potential use of Tax Increment Financing (TIF) in Aberdeen.
The Scottish Government is open to innovative ways of encouraging local economic growth and enabling infrastructure where this delivers value for money for the taxpayer. TIF is being actively considered as one such option.
We have tasked the Scottish Futures Trust to liaise with local authorities interested in exploring the use of TIF to fund public infrastructure. TIF proposals will be assessed equally on their merit to ensure that these deliver value for money.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 15 April 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 15 April 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what the impact on patient care will be of a 5% reduction in departmental budgets in NHS Grampian.
Answer
The Scottish Government expects NHS Grampian to provide the highest possible standard of healthcare and it has received a cash increase of £16 million in its 2010‘11 budget. NHS Grampian has advised that whilst the local requirement to deliver a 5% savings target during 2010‘11 is challenging, it is achievable. The board is currently looking at a whole range of efficiency measures with a view to identifying those that will not impact on patient care.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 February 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 2 March 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what projects have not yet received all of the funding allocated under the Wave and Tidal Energy Support Scheme.
Answer
The following projects have not drawn down their total funding allocated under the Wave and Tidal Energy Support Scheme (WATES):
ScottishPower Renewables (previously known as CRE Energy)
Ocean Power Technology
Scotrenewables Marine Power Ltd.
The Scottish Government is working closely with these developers and remain confident that these projects will meet the WATES deadline of March 2011.
Unfortunately, following discussions with AWS Ocean Energy Ltd, the Scottish Government has had to withdraw that company''s WATES award of £1.76 million. This is because the thorough review undertaken by AWS, and the significant changes aimed at improving their technology which emerged from that process, meant that their revised project and development plans no longer met the original WATES eligibility criteria.
AWS has since achieved welcome success in securing a £2 million investment from Scottish Enterprise''s Scottish Co-investment Fund and further private investment from the Shell Technology Ventures Fund.
The Scottish Government will recycle the £1.76 million into a new wave and tidal fund, which we expect to launch during March.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 February 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 2 March 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S3W-17457 and S3W-26834 by Jim Mather on 14 November 2008 and 8 September 2009 respectively, what projects have received grants under the Wave and Tidal Energy Support Scheme to date; how much each project has received, and on what date each funding allocation was made.
Answer
Six projects have received grant payments to date totalling £2,196,080. These are as follows:
| Name of Developer | Actual Milestone Payment | Financial Year Payment Made | Date Paid |
| Ocean Power Technology | £46,295 | 2007-08 | May 2008 |
| Ocean Power Technology | £73,336 | 2007-08 | May 2008 |
| Ocean Power Technology | £64,597 | 2007-08 | August 2007 |
| Ocean Power Technology | £88,718 | 2009-10 | May 2009 |
| Total | =SUM(ABOVE) \# "£#,##0.00;(£#,##0.00)" £272,946 | | |
| Name of Developer | Actual Milestone Payment | Financial Year Payment Made | Date Paid |
| Open Hydro | £182,987 | 2007-08 | March 2008 |
| Open Hydro | £602,305 | 2007-08 | December 2007 |
| Open Hydro | £54,526 | 2007-08 | July 2007 |
| Open Hydro | £284,785 | 2008-09 | April 2009 |
| Total | =SUM(ABOVE) \# "£#,##0.00;(£#,##0.00)" £1,124,603 | | |
| Name of Developer | Actual Milestone Payment | Financial Year Payment Made | Date Paid |
| Wavegen | £49,854 | 2007-08 | January 2008 |
| Wavegen | £76,931 | 2008-09 | January 2009 |
| Wavegen | £22,375 | 2008-09 | April 2009 |
| Total | =SUM(ABOVE) \# "£#,##0.00;(£#,##0.00)" £149,160 | | |
| Name of Developer | Actual Milestone Payment | Financial Year Payment Made | Date Paid |
| Tidal Generation | £45,321 | 2007-08 | July 2007 |
| Total | =SUM(ABOVE) \# "£#,##0.00;(£#,##0.00)" £45,321 | | |
| Name of Developer | Actual Milestone Payment | Financial Year Payment Made | Date Paid |
| Aquamarine Power | £228,337 | 2008-09 | November 2008 |
| Aquamarine Power | -£38,676 | 2008-09 | September 2008 |
| Aquamarine Power | £22,754 | 2007-08 | September 2007 |
| Aquamarine Power | £62,380 | 2007-08 | July 2007 |
| Total | =SUM(ABOVE) \# "£#,##0.00;(£#,##0.00)" £274,795 | | |
| Name of Developer | Actual Milestone Payment | Financial Year Payment Made | Date Paid |
| ScotRenewables | £329,255 | 2009-10 | June 2009 |
The following four projects have been completed:
Aquamarine Power
OpenHydro
Tidal Generation
Wavegen.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 February 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 February 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS Grampian patients have been treated by plastic surgeons following illness or injury in each of the last three years.
Answer
The information is not held centrally in the form requested. However, figures provided by NHS Grampian from its Scottish Morbidity Record (SMR) data indicate that total inpatient and day case attendances for plastic surgery at all hospital sites in the NHS Grampian area were:
2006-07 “ 1,535
2007-08 “ 1,460
2008-09 “ 1,315.
Outpatient attendances at all sites, excluding patients who did not attend their appointments, were:
2006-07 “ 11,184
2007-08 “ 11,128
2008-09 “ 11,031.
Figures for 2009-10 are not yet available.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 3 February 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing will make a statement to the Parliament following the review of the national scoliosis service
Answer
The findings of the review of the national scoliosis service will be published in autumn 2010. A decision about the need for a parliamentary statement will be taken at that time.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 3 February 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive when the review of the national scoliosis service will be completed.
Answer
The review of the national scoliosis service will be completed in autumn 2010.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 3 February 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what aspects of the national scoliosis service are under consultation as part of its review.
Answer
The review group will explore all aspects of the current scoliosis service.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 26 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the ministerial statement by the Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism on 6 January 2010 (Official Report c. 22407), how many kilometres of the Beauly to Denny power line upgrade ministers will require the developers to place underground.
Answer
As I said in my statement to Parliament on 6 January 2010 and to the Enterprise Energy and Tourism Committee on 13 January 2010, under Section 37 of the Electricity Act, under which the Beauly to Denny application was submitted, I have no powers to require the developers to place any of the line underground.
