Chamber and committees

Trials involving the Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) at St. Andrews and the Cornish Fish Producers Organisation are currently underway in the Celtic Sea. These are designed to test under commercial conditions the deterrent effect of a "pinger" on small cetaceans swimming near static fishing nets. So far mainly porpoises rather than dolphins have been encountered but a full report will be submitted to the European Commission, who are funding the project, this summer.

Financial assistance may be available under the new Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG) which we expect to open to applications later this year. Any scheme for processing and marketing will be competitive in nature, predominantly geared toward projects which add value and therefore provide an economic spin-off with the creation of jobs and deliver increased returns in the industry. This priority was highlighted by the industry in the consultation exercise undertaken on the new FIFG programme. Alternatively, with some financial assistance from the Executive or other UK Departments, bodies such as the Sea Fish Industry Authority (SFIA) and Seafood Scotland provide training and other assistance intended to promote best practice throughout the fishing industry, including the processing sector. Advice and assistance are also available from Local Enterprise Companies (LECs).

In the last five years (1995-99), 54 injury accidents have occurred on the A90 trunk road between Balmedie and Tipperty, details of which are given in the table below.

Year	Fatal	Serious	Slight	Total
1995	1	2	12	15
1996	0	2	7	9
1997	1	3	10	14
1998	1	0	7	8
1999	1	2	5	8
Total	4	9	41	54

Since 1994 the Scottish fish processing industry and related sectors have received a total of £19.7 million, and payments continue to be made. The Executive has not received any formal applications from fish processors for financial assistance in respect of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. At recent meetings between industry representatives and officials, the possibility of making a fully costed bid for resources was discussed. Assistance may then be available under the new Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG) which we expect to open to applications later this year.

The information requested in relation to how many letters received from members of the UK Parliament who are not members of the Scottish Parliament since 1 July 1999 is not available. The information we can provide is detailed below. These figures exclude the Scottish Executive Justice Department, for which this disaggregation is not available.

Number of letters received from MPs between 1 July 1999 and 31 May 2000	Number of letters received from MSPs between 1 July 1999 and 31 May 2000
2,508	6,202

Scottish Executive policy on genetically modified organisms was set out during the parliamentary debate which took place on Thursday 23 March. Any application to produce or sell GM fish in this country would be required to pass the rigorous regulatory process, which we have in place, no such application has been made. Our policy and the regulatory process ensure that public health and environmental considerations are paramount.

This is a matter for the United Kingdom Government. Scottish Ministers do not have access to correspondence and communications that took place between the Scottish Office and other Departments of the United Kingdom Government.

No. The adventitious presence of GM seed in conventional seed stocks was first announced by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on 17 May 2000.

No.

We take very seriously the need to respond positively in the face of the decision to commence a rundown of activity at RAF Buchan, which is due to take place over the next four years. We will be working closely with Scottish Enterprise Grampian and the Aberdeenshire Council in identifying measures which can respond to the rundown and in helping the local community deal with the economic impact of the decision.