Questions and answers

Question reference: S2W-29491

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 15 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive why the estimated completion date for the Royal Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh upgrade has moved from January 2009 to January 2011 and whether it expects any further delay to the project.

The start and completiondates for the Royal Commonwealth Pool upgrade were based on projections fromCity of Edinburgh Council which have proved to be unrealistic as the projecthas progressed. A contributory factor in the delay of this project was due to adelay in obtaining planning consent for the project.

Sportscotland are concernedabout delays in the timescales for this project and are in regular discussionswith City of Edinburgh Council to try and resolve any problems as they arise.

City of Edinburgh Council have not raised any concerns about the project during these meetingsand I have no reason to expect any further delays with this project.

Question reference: S2W-29490

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 15 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive why the estimated completion date for the Sighthill Park municipal stadium in Edinburgh has moved from May 2009 to June 2011 and whether it expects any further delay to this project.

The start and completion dates for the Sighthill Park municipal stadium project were based onprojections from City of Edinburgh Council which have proved to be unrealisticas the project has progressed. A contributory factor in the delay of thisproject was due to a delay in obtaining planning consent for the project.

Sportscotland are concernedabout delays in the timescales for this project and are in regular discussionswith City of Edinburgh Council to try and resolve any problems as they arise.

City of Edinburgh Council have not raised any concerns about the project during these meetingsand I have no reason to expect any further delays with this project.

Question reference: S2W-29494

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 15 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive why the estimated completion date for the Toryglen indoor football facility in Glasgow has moved from September 2007 to July 2008 and whether it expects any further delay to the project.

The start and completiondates for the Toryglen indoor football facility were based on projections fromGlasgow City Council which have proved to be unrealistic as the project hasprogressed. A contributory factor in the delay of this project was due to adelay in obtaining planning consent for the project. Glasgow City Counciladvise that the estimated completion date for this project is September 2008.

Sportscotland are concernedabout delays in this project and are in regular discussions with Glasgow CityCouncil to try and resolve any problems as they arise.

Glasgow City Council havenot raised any concerns about the project during these meetings and I have noreason to expect any further delays with this project.

Question reference: S2W-29492

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 15 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive why the estimated completion date for the East End national indoor sports arena in Glasgow has moved from March 2009 to August 2009 and whether it expects any further delay to the project.

The start and completiondates for the East End national indoor sports arena project were based onprojections from Glasgow City Council which have proved to be unrealistic asthe project has progressed. A contributory factor in the delay of this projectwas due to a delay in obtaining planning consent for the project. Glasgow CityCouncil advise that the estimated completion date for this project is May 2010.

Sportscotland are concernedabout delays in the timescale for this project and are in regular discussionswith Glasgow City Council to try and resolve any problems as they arise.

Glasgow City Council havenot raised any concerns about the project during these meetings and I have noreason to expect any further delays with this project.

Question reference: S2W-29455

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 15 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what financial support it provides to each local authority for the provision of Dial-A-Journey services.

No funds are provided tolocal authorities specifically for dial-a-journey services. All Scottish localauthorities except the four city Councils receive grants under the Rural PublicPassenger Transport Grant Scheme which they are free to spend as they see fit onconventional bus services, community transport services or demand responsivetransport such as dial-a-journey in rural areas.

Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Argyll and Bute, Dundee City, Edinburgh City, Fife, Glasgow City andHighland Councils received Scottish Executive funding in the period 2003-04 to2005-06 under a demand responsive transport pilot scheme. These Councilscontinue to receive assistance in 2006-07 and 2007-08 in respect of successful projectsunder the scheme.

Question reference: S2W-29447

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2006
Current Status: Answered by Johann Lamont on 14 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the installation specification for the central heating programme, previously administered by Eaga Partnership Ltd, has changed since the contract was awarded to Scottish Gas.

I have asked Angiolina Foster,Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her response is as follows:

As part of the re-tendering processthe opportunity was taken to update and improve the specification for delivery of the central heating and Warm Deal Programmes.

A copy of the contract, includingthe specification, has been placed in the Scottish Parliament InformationCentre (Bib. number 40709). For reasons of commercial confidentiality certain sectionsof the contract were withheld.

Question reference: S2W-26373

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 May 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 23 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-15179 by Patricia Ferguson on 22 March 2005, how much funding each project has received and what the timetable is for completion of each project.

The allocation to each projectwill be confirmed on approval of the related Stage Two application. Following continuedwork with lead councils and their partners to help finalise the development of theirrespective projects, the Executive and sportscotland will soon be approvingthe first of the Stage Two applications.

Thetimetable for completion of each project as it currently stands is as follows:

Lead Applicant · Project	Estimated Completion Date
Falkirk Council: · Westfield Stadium	April 2008
Stirling Council: · Forthbank	April 2008
City of Edinburgh Council: · Sighthill Park	June 2011
· Hunters Hall	March 2009
· Royal Commonwealth Pool	January 2011
Aberdeen City Council: · Linksfield	August 2008
Glasgow City Council: · East End	August 2009
· Scotstoun	May 2008
· Toryglen	July 2008
North Lanarkshire Council: · Ravenscraig	September 2008

Lead Applicant

· Project

Estimated Completion Date

Falkirk Council:

· Westfield Stadium

April 2008

Stirling Council:

· Forthbank

April 2008

City of Edinburgh Council:

· Sighthill Park

June 2011

· Hunters Hall

March 2009

· Royal Commonwealth Pool

January 2011

Aberdeen City Council:

· Linksfield

August 2008

Glasgow City Council:

· East End

August 2009

· Scotstoun

May 2008

· Toryglen

July 2008

North Lanarkshire Council:

· Ravenscraig

September 2008

Question reference: S2W-26850

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Johann Lamont on 23 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to change the regulations which make provision for sprinklers in residential care homes.

Question reference: S2W-25484

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 April 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 16 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish details of any representations it has made to Her Majesty's Government regarding the proposed privatisation of air search and rescue services in Scotland.

Control and tasking of theair search and rescue service is a reserved matter and will remain with the UKGovernment. The Department for Transport and the Ministry of Defence announcedon 9 May that the joint Search and Rescue Helicopter project would go forwardto a competition under the Private Finance Initiative. The Scottish Executivehas responsibility for managing the consequences arising from civil emergenciesand works closely with the UK Government and a variety of organisations in ensuringemergency preparedness, and will continue to discuss with the UK Governmentthese and other issues.

Question reference: S2W-26412

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 May 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 15 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of each of the projects that have been supported under the National and Regional Sports Facilities Strategy; how much exchequer funding is being provided for each project; how the remaining funding will be provided; what the timescale is for the completion of each project; whether there have been any cost or timescale changes to the projects since the strategy was announced, and, if so, what these changes are.

The Executive and sportscotlandwill be contributing £49.5million (£28.8million Exchequer and nearly £21millionfrom the Lottery Sports Fund) to the ten projects approved at Stage One of the National and Regional Sports Facilities Strategy. As stated in my answer toS2W-26373, the allocation to each project will be confirmed on approval of therelated Stage Two application, the first of which is nearing approval.

Thethree main reasons for changes in timescale can be summarised as:

1.By virtue of their size, there are planning complexities which take time towork through (local consultation, traffic impact assessments etc).

2.Again, given the scale of these projects, the procurement process, includingadvertising through OJEU for design teams and contractors, adds time to theproject programme. This is difficult to estimate at the outset and it is onlyafter these projects are developed beyond the initial concept that it ispossible to make a realistic estimate of completion dates.

3.£50 million is a substantial contribution to the Strategy but the projects willcost some £230 million in total and it takes time for the local authorities, insome cases working with partners, to put together full funding packages.

Thefollowing table sets out the information requested

Lead Applicant Project	Exchequer and Lottery Sports Fund Allocation*		Estimated Date of Completion
Lead Applicant Project	At Stage One	As at 31 May 2006	At Stage One	As at 31 May 2006
Falkirk Council Westfield Stadium: Regional indoor football facility.	£3,000,000	£3,000,000	March 2007	April 2008
Stirling Council Forthbank: Curling academy and sports hall (and Swimming pool and hockey pitch.)	£2,000,000 (+£500,000 BFSP¹)	£2,000,000 (+£500,000 BFSP¹)	October 2007	April 2008
City of Edinburgh Council Sighthill Park: Municipal stadium (6k seats), synthetic grass pitch, 2 grass pitches, indoor athletics training facility and sports hall (and Gymnastics facility).	£6,500,000 (+£500,000 BFSP¹)	£6,500,000 (+£500,000 BFSP¹)	May 2009	June 2011
Hunters Hall: Indoor football facility and outdoor pitches².	£6,000,000	£3,000,000²	May 2009	March 2009
Royal Commonwealth Pool: Upgrade to provide 50m x 8 lane main pool, international diving pool.	£4,000,000	£4,000,000	January 2009	January 2011
Aberdeen City Council: Linksfield: Indoor athletics training facility, outdoor pitches, indoor football facility and sports hall.	£5,000,000	£5,000,000	October 2008	August 2008
Glasgow City Council: East End: National indoor sports arena with 200m track, indoor athletics training facility, sports hall and velodrome.	£9,500,000²	£13,500,000²	March 2009	August 2009
Scotstoun: Municipal stadium (6k seats) and indoor athletics training area.	£4,500,000	£4,500,000	May 2007	May 2008
Toryglen: Indoor football facility and outdoor pitches.	£3,000,000	£3,000,000	September 2007	July 2008
North Lanarkshire Council Ravenscraig: Indoor athletics training facility, indoor football facility, sports hall and outdoor pitch.	£5,000,000	£5,000,000	August 2007	September 2008

Notes:

*The precise amount ofExchequer and Lottery Sports Fund allocation to each project will be determinedas the programme rolls out.

1. Building for SportProgramme for elements of the project that were not eligible under the NRSFS

2. Following the bid tobring the 2014 Commonwealth Games to Glasgow, the City of Edinburgh Council agreed to remove the velodromeelement from their Hunters Hall project and agreement has been reached withGlasgow City Council for it to be added to the East End project.

Chamber and committees