Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S1O-04030

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 October 2001
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 8 November 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in recognising the importance of children's play.

Our Programme for Government sets the objective of providing children with a stimulating environment for playing, developing and learning. The pre-school education curriculum is founded on the concept of learning through play. Physical development and movement is a key aspect of children's development and learning. 97% of four-year-olds and 80% of three-year-olds, now receiving grant funded pre-school education, are benefiting from learning through play.We are providing funding to a range of organisations committed to the development of play and, through the Special Educational Needs Innovation Grant Programme, to projects developing integrated play and learning for children with special needs.

Question reference: S1W-19721

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 7 November 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to consult on the procedures of a victim's statements scheme in accordance with the commitment given in the Scottish Strategy for Victims.

Question reference: S1W-18862

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 1 November 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in relation to increasing the age of criminal responsibility.

Question reference: S1W-18863

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2001
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 1 November 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it would consider reviewing the terminology used within the Children's Hearings system, including the name itself, with a view to more accurately reflecting the function it fulfils and the roles of its officials.

In its response to the recommendations of the Youth Crime Advisory Group, the Scottish Executive agreed to consider changing the name of the Children's Hearings system. No clear consensus on a new name has emerged from the consultation. The Executive intends to keep the name under review pending further development of the system. Terminology within the system is often determined by statute but we are willing to consider changes which make the system better understood.

Question reference: S1W-18345

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 September 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 4 October 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to change the basis for the funding of local authority criminal justice services.

Following agreement between the Scottish Office and CoSLA, funding of mainstream local authority criminal justice services has, since April 1999, been based on a formula approach focused on workloads and needs factors. There are no plans to change this approach.

However, with effect from 2002-03 financial year, funding will in future be provided to groupings of rather than individual local authorities.

Question reference: S1W-18344

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 September 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 4 October 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) community service orders, (b) probation orders, (c) supervised attendance orders and (d) custodial sentences were imposed in each of the past three years, broken down by local authority area.

The information requested on community service orders and probation orders is given in tables 7 and 13 of the Statistical Bulletin Criminal Justice Social Work Statistics, 1999-00; published by the Scottish Executive in November 2000, a copy of which is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 16387). Information on supervised attendance orders by local authority area, readily available only for 1999-2000 which was the first full year of national availability, is detailed in table 1. Information on custodial sentences is available by court rather than local authority. Figures for the three latest available years are shown in tables 2 to 4.

Supervised attendance orders - Table 1

Local authority	1999-2000
Aberdeen City	88
Aberdeenshire	65
Angus	137
Argyll & Bute	13
Clackmannanshire	18
Dumfries & Galloway	179
Dundee City	235
East Ayrshire	201
East Dunbartonshire	10
East Lothian	14
East Renfrewshire	14
Edinburgh, City of	96
Eilean Siar	-
Falkirk	141
Fife	104
Glasgow City	63
Highland	66
Inverclyde	77
Midlothian	22
Moray	18
North Ayrshire	66
North Lanarkshire	94
Orkney	2
Perth & Kinross	118
Renfrewshire	43
Scottish Borders	51
Shetland	4
South Ayrshire	134
South Lanarkshire	105
Stirling	97
West Dunbartonshire	68
West Lothian	58

Custodial sentences, 1997-99 Table 2

District Courts (including Stipendiary Magistrates)

Court	1997	1998	1999
Aberdeen City	34	85	55
Aberdeenshire	9	6	5
Angus	9	11	5
Argyll & Bute	2	3	1
Clackmannanshire	-	1	1
Dumfries & Galloway	22	13	4
Dundee City	74	81	41
East Ayrshire	12	19	13
East Dunbartonshire	17	9	3
East Lothian	-	-	-
East Renfrewshire	1	1	-
Edinburgh, City of	17	7	4
Eilean Siar	4	-	-
Falkirk	13	8	9
Fife	18	14	30
Glasgow City	1,648	1,467	1,533
Highland	37	18	33
Inverclyde	31	13	6
Midlothian	-	-	-
Moray	4	2	3
North Ayrshire	6	6	5
North Lanarkshire	20	21	17
Perth & Kinross	23	22	11
Renfrewshire	14	-	3
Scottish Borders	2	2	-
South Ayrshire	14	3	26
South Lanarkshire	13	11	10
Stirling	1	2	-
West Dunbartonshire	10	7	15
West Lothian	1	-	3

Custodial sentences, 1997-99 Table 3

Sheriff Courts

Court	1997	1998	1999
Aberdeen	924	862	843
Airdrie	309	310	383
Alloa	96	119	114
Arbroath	142	189	141
Ayr	406	460	516
Banff	38	31	32
Campbeltown	22	33	30
Cupar	100	74	52
Dingwall	57	67	53
Dornoch	6	15	8
Dumbarton	398	369	374
Dumfries	215	207	210
Dundee	665	745	728
Dunfermline	303	257	232
Dunoon	71	48	34
Duns	14	20	10
Edinburgh	1,408	1,393	1,436
Elgin	141	89	117
Falkirk	317	392	357
Forfar	82	65	59
Fort William	68	53	52
Glasgow	2,450	2,406	2,689
Greenock	574	645	630
Haddington	95	110	73
Hamilton	586	504	486
Inverness	243	236	217
Jedburgh	76	68	66
Kilmarnock	714	945	1,006
Kirkcaldy	570	553	528
Kirkcudbright	44	33	38
Kirkwall	19	15	26
Lanark	116	92	103
Lerwick	34	28	45
Linlithgow	242	197	235
Lochmaddy	5	10	9
Oban	45	44	45
Paisley	696	689	633
Peebles	11	19	32
Perth	280	230	202
Peterhead	132	138	96
Portree	6	4	2
Rothesay	17	18	4
Selkirk	42	51	43
Stirling	202	136	145
Stonehaven	36	35	30
Stornoway	51	38	37
Stranraer	138	150	145
Tain	32	35	18
Wick	38	47	25

Custodial sentences, 1997-99 Table 4

All Courts (including High Court)

	1997	1998	1999
Scotland	16,207	15,926	16,091

Question reference: S1O-03897

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 September 2001
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 4 October 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in ensuring that the international ferry link between Rosyth and continental Europe will be operational by next year.

Superfast Ferries and Forth Ports who wish to develop the link have submitted applications for Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) to fund the project. Consideration of these applications has been given top priority but the European Commission has still to respond to a UK request - made in spring of this year - seeking the Commission's agreement to extend the existing inland waterways FFG scheme to cover shipping.

Question reference: S1W-18492

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 25 September 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to reform the law on psychiatric injury.

The Scottish ministers made a reference to the Scottish Law Commission on 4 July in the following terms:

"To examine the law of Scotland relating to psychiatric injury caused by another person and to make recommendations as to possible changes in the law."

This reference has now been accepted by the Commission. The Executive will consider any recommendations, and any resulting legislation would be a matter for the Scottish Parliament.

Question reference: S1F-01188

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 25 June 2001
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 28 June 2001

To ask the First Minister how the Scottish Executive will ensure that the message of its new initiative on drug driving reaches all sections of society.

The Scottish Road Safety Campaign, which is funded by the Scottish Executive, has produced a new leaflet which provides advice about police powers in relation to drug driving and the penalties faced by offenders. The leaflet is being distributed by police forces throughout Scotland via licensed premises and local drug action groups.In addition, the Executive announced on Monday an extra £180,000 for the campaign to develop a cinema or television advert on drugs and driving. The advert will be targeted at young drivers in the light of Scottish Executive research which found that nearly 10% of drivers aged 17 to 39 have driven under the influence of drugs.

Question reference: S1O-03671

Asked by: Scott Barrie, MSP for Dunfermline West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 June 2001
Current Status: Answered by Jack McConnell on 28 June 2001

To ask the Scottish Executive what further progress has been made in implementing measures to tackle youth crime since the publication of the report of the Advisory Group on Youth Crime and the Executive's response to the report last year.