Chamber and committees

I have reviewed the role and organisation of Her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools.

I attach great importance to quality assurance in the education system; and the contribution which the Inspectorate can make to supporting education authorities, schools and teachers in improving the quality of education and raising standards of attainment. I wish to see a strong emphasis on rigorous independent inspection and on the collation and publication of evidence from inspections to inform improvements in educational policy and practice. I wish to ensure that the Inspectorate continues to make this contribution.

Following a review of the options for discharging these functions, I have decided that the creation of an Executive Agency represents the best way forward. I have rejected other options, including the creation of a Non-Departmental Public Body. Executive Agency status enables operational independence and impartiality in individual inspections to be combined with direct accountability to Ministers for the overall standard of the work done and Ministers' ability to set a framework for the inspection process which ensures that it supports our strategic objectives for the education system.

Executive Agencies do not have a separate legal status from the departments out of which they are formed; and Ministers remain fully accountable to the Parliament for the activities of the agency.

The review also covered the other current functions of the Inspectorate: contributing to policy advice to Ministers; and leading the development and implementation of new policies.

In addition to the contribution to policy advice which the Executive Agency will continue to make in collating and publishing evidence from inspections, there will also be a role for officials with professional experience as education practitioners to contribute to the internal advice which Ministers receive. They will continue to discharge that role within the core of the Executive. Some staff who are currently part of the Inspectorate will remain within the core to contribute to that function and will not form part of the Executive Agency. This approach will be complemented by the measures which I am taking to ensure that the views of teachers and education authorities are sought regularly as an input to my department's work.

I have concluded that the Inspectorate should not discharge the lead role in the development and implementation of new policies, although it will be important for development work to continue to be informed by evidence from inspection. In the context of devolution, I consider that there should be closer ministerial oversight of such activity. The Education Department will ensure that development work is closely managed on behalf of Ministers, drawing on a wide range of professional contributions.

The review did not cover the role of the Inspectorate in relation to non-compulsory post-school education and training, or inspection of further education colleges or any other task which the Inspectorate undertakes under contract to a body other than the Scottish Executive. Such contracts will be unaffected by the changes flowing from the review.

I believe that these new arrangements will deliver better results through separation of the present functions of the Inspectorate and more appropriate arrangements for the discharge of those functions. The relevant parts of the Inspectorate will operate on an agency basis from 1 December and my department and the Inspectorate will develop the framework for full agency status to begin on 1 April 2001.

Following representations received about different dates set in different areas, officials wrote to authorities in February to ask how holidays were currently co-ordinated between authorities and what could be done to improve liaison in the future. In response, most authorities indicated that they held discussions with their neighbours with a view to securing a consistent approach although complete consistency could not always be achieved because of local circumstances and local holidays. I am considering the detailed responses further.

I have today placed in SPICe copies of the Executive's response to the Procedures Committee report together with copies of the Executive's audit of written parliamentary questions asked of the Scottish Executive over the period 1 January to 30 June 2000. In its report, the Procedures Committee recommended that consideration should be given to making the Staff Directory of the Scottish Executive available to MSPs. I have written to the Presiding Officer today to explain that the Executive would be happy to pursue this matter further with the parliamentary authorities. A copy of this letter has also been placed in SPICe.

There have been no discussions between the Executive and Forces about this matter. It is for Chief Constables to determine the use of particular equipment in their Forces consistent with their obligations under the ECHR. I understand that Fife Constabulary trialled the use of leg restraints for controlling violent detainees but no decision has been taken about the longer-term use of such equipment.

The Scottish Ministers' Annual Report on Further Education in Scotland for 1999 has been published today, and has been laid before the Scottish and Westminster Parliaments. Copies are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe).

1999 was an important year for Scottish further education, with the establishment of the Scottish Further Education Funding Council and a major injection of new funding to expand educational opportunities within a new Scotland.

Our goal of widening access to further education, particularly for those from disadvantaged backgrounds, is being realised. We have set a target of an additional 40,000 college student places by 2002. This is a key part of delivering our social justice agenda and of building a well skilled workforce to underpin Scotland's future economic competitiveness and prosperity.

In addition we recently outlined our new three-year Spending Review that will see annual funding for further education rise over the five years 1999-2004 by over 50%, to £436 million.

This underlines our vision of Scotland as a learning nation, where lifelong learning opportunities are accessible to everyone. Education improves people's prospects of sustainable employment and a better quality of life. The further education colleges are central to delivering this.

The Executive is aware that the case of Sharp v Thomson raised a number of issues in relation to the purchase of heritage from registered companies. To ensure that the implications of this case are fully considered and the wider context of current reviews of the law on diligence and land attachment is taken into account, I have invited the Scottish Law Commission to examine the position, and they have accepted the following reference:

"To consider the implications of the decision of the House of Lords in Sharp v Thomson 1997 SC(HL)66 and to make recommendations as to possible reform of the law."

The contract for the construction of the Inchmichael Interchange is to be awarded today. This forms part of the Executive's on-going programme to improve safety on this important strategic route.

We have extended the period of consultation by three weeks to accommodate a number of organisations who asked for more time to prepare their responses. The consultation period will now end on 20 October 2000. As a result of this extension we now intend to respond to the consultation by the end of the year.

I have today published and laid before the Parliament a consultation paper, Modernising the Complaints System. It is available on the Scottish Executive's website. The paper seeks views on a range of issues to be addressed in framing the Act of the Scottish Parliament which will put in place permanent arrangements for investigating complaints of maladministration. In line with the Executive's commitment to open and participative policy development, this is an initial consultation which is intended to stimulate public debate on the issues. We will develop detailed proposals based on the responses to this consultation and these will then follow the consultation arrangements required for legislation in the Scottish Parliament.

Ministers are committed to the promotion of modern government and high quality public services which are open, efficient, accountable and responsive to public need. Accordingly, I am taking the opportunity provided by this consultation to consider the arrangements for the other public sector ombudsmen in Scotland, i.e. the Health Service and Local Government Ombudsmen.

I want to hear views from as wide a range of interests as possible so the paper is being given a very wide distribution. I will be writing to each MSP individually, enclosing a copy of the paper and encouraging them to let me have their views on this important subject. Copies of the paper are available from today in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

We are taking action on a number of fronts to protect and improve Scotland's beaches and bathing waters in order to encourage tourism and recreation.

Our Programme for Government includes a commitment to bring Scotland's 60 designated bathing waters up to European standards. Improvements in sewerage infrastructure are already showing results but we cannot be complacent. The water authorities' substantial investment programme of £1.8 billion over this and the next two financial years will result in, among other things, further improvements through better sewage treatment standards and will dramatically reduce pollution from point sources. We are also working with a range of interested parties, particularly from agriculture, to tackle the remaining issues.

Building on their substantial investment in wastewater treatment, the three Scottish water authorities have developed initiatives to promote cleaner beaches, involving local communities, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and interest groups.The Executive also provides grant aid to the environmental group Keep Scotland Beautiful which carries out anti-litter initiatives and local authority training programmes.