Questions and answers

Question reference: S2W-14287

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 February 2005
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 2 March 2005

The table reports the level ofmanufacturing employment in Scotland in 1979 and for the spring quarter in 1997, 1999 and2004.

The manufacturing employmentestimate for 1979 is not directly comparable with the estimates for 1997, 1999 and2004 due to changes in the definition of manufacturing. The 1979 classificationof manufacturing activity was broader and included activities which would now beclassified in other industry groups. For example, in 1979 individuals working invehicle repairs were categorised in the manufacturing sector whereas in 1997 theywould fall into the service sector.

The spring quarter runs fromMarch to May in each year. These figures are estimated from the Labour Force Surveywhich is carried out by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Table 1: Level ofManufacturing Employment¹, Scotland

Year	Level of Manufacturing Employment
1979*	622,000
1997**	380,000
1999**	336,000
2004**	282,000

Source: ONS - Labour Force Survey,Spring Quarters.

Notes:

1. Employment levels are forpeople aged 16 or over.

* - Manufacturing employmentclassified using minimum list headings.

** - Manufacturing employmentclassified using standard industrial classification 1992.

Question reference: S2W-14686

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 February 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 March 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what information is collected on incidents of violence and aggression against NHS staff and what systems are in place for ensuring that all such incidents are recorded.

Question reference: S2W-14140

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 04 February 2005
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 28 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-13048 by Mr Tom McCabe on 24 January 2005, what costs have been incurred by the First Minister in respect of hospitality in each year since 1999.

We have centrally held information in relation to hospitality costs incurred by the First Minister from the financial year 2000-01. This is set out in the table. These figures provide the substantive answer to the member’s question S2W- 13048, which I indicated that I would provide in writing.

Financial Year	£000
2000-01	29
2001-02	35
2002-03	42
2003-04	67
2004 - Jan 2005	60

Question reference: S2W-14200

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 February 2005
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 25 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent on (a) indoor bought plants, (b) indoor hired plants, (c) outdoor bought plants and (d) outdoor hired plants in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S2W-13347

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2005
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 23 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions since 1999 departmental special advisers have travelled (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) abroad in an official capacity; what places were visited, and how much each visit cost.

Since 1999 Scottish Executive special advisers have made over 715 journeys within the UK and 52 journeys abroad in an official capacity. The information requested about each visit is provided in the table which has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 35351).

The following is a corrected answer (published on 13 June 2005); see below.

Mr Tom McCabe: Since 1999 Scottish Executive special advisers have made over 700 journeys within the UK and 52 journeys abroad in an official capacity. The updated information is now provided in tables copies of which have been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 35351).

Question reference: S2W-13348

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2005
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Curran on 21 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what the First Minister's official engagements were in the last year; who was present at each engagement; what the (a) date and (b) location was of each engagement, and what issues were discussed.

Question reference: S2W-13662

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 January 2005
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 15 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) total number of jobs and (b) employment growth rates (i) energy, (ii) water, (iii) manufacturing, (iv) construction, (v) distribution, (vi) hotels, (vii) restaurant, (viii) transport, (ix) communications, (x) banking, (xi) finance, (xii) insurance, (xiii) public administration, (xiv) education and (xv) health sectors in (1) Scotland and (2) Glasgow in each year since 1997.

Table 1 reports the total number of employee jobs in the sectors requested in Scotland from 1998 to 2003.

Table 2 reports the total number of employee jobs in the sectors requested in Glasgow from 1998 to 2003.

Table 3 reports the annual percentage change in the level of employee jobs in the sectors requested in Scotland from 1998 to 2003.

Table 4 reports the annual percentage change in the level of employee jobs in the sectors requested in Glasgow from 1998 to 2003.

The estimates for all the tables are from the annual business inquiry employee analysis (1998-2003), which is produced by the Office For National Statistics (ONS). The data are only available from 1998 onwards. The data are for employees only and people who are self employed are not included.

Table 1: Total Number of Jobs in Scotland, by specified industrial sector, from 1998-03

	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003
Energy	13,300	11,100	9,500	15,100	11,100	11,400
Water#	*	3,600	3,700	#	#	3,300
Manufacturing	326,700	315,000	302,000	285,000	263,400	243,500
Construction	138,500	133,800	130,300	120,100	123,300	120,600
Distribution	465,200	448,800	432,300	405,200	386,700	364,100
Hotels	46,400	43,700	46,900	46,400	46,700	48,000
Restaurants	40,300	40,100	46,600	49,100	52,700	51,500
Transport	79,100	82,500	80,700	89,500	84,200	83,500
Post and telecommunications	35,600	36,500	37,800	39,900	41,600	38,800
Banking	37,100	38,100	44,000	51,100	50,700	59,700
Finance	7,100	6,600	6,700	6,300	9,000	8,300
Insurance	22,400	23,100	27,000	32,200	28,700	25,300
Public Administration	164,100	145,800	147,200	146,600	143,700	151,800
Education	138,200	163,800	180,300	186,400	193,000	198,700
Health	183,300	176,600	190,000	199,500	205,300	216,300

Source: Annual Business Inquiry (ABI).

Notes:

*Based on an estimate that is confidential or statistically unreliable

^#The 2001 and 2002 figures for Water Industry have been removed as they contain a known error in the source data. ONS have been alerted to this.

Table 2: Total Number of Jobs in Glasgow, by specified industrial sector, from 1998-2003

	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003
Energy	*	*	*	*	*	*
Water	*	*	*	*	*	*
Manufacturing	31,400	31,100	30,000	30,300	27,600	25,700
Construction	18,700	16,300	19,800	17,400	16,900	19,500
Distribution	49,600	50,200	48,800	55,400	59,300	55,600
Hotels	3,500	3,500	3,500	3,000	4,200	3,900
Restaurants	6,700	7,000	9,100	9,100	9,600	8,200
Transport	12,500	13,300	12,400	13,600	13,500	12,900
Post and telecommunications	8,400	9,300	9,500	10,000	10,000	8,200
Banking	8,100	10,000	11,000	12,100	9,500	10,900
Finance	2,500	2,400	1,900	2,000	2,500	2,700
Insurance	6,700	7,700	8,500	11,400	6,000	5,400
Public Administration	36,400	30,600	31,400	32,800	28,100	32,700
Education	25,900	27,200	31,100	32,600	36,200	36,300
Health	32,200	31,600	31,700	35,400	36,000	38,000

Source: Annual Business Inquiry (ABI).

Note: *Based on an estimate that is confidential or statisticallyunreliable.

Table 3: Annual percentage change in level of employee jobs in Scotland, by specified Industrial sector, from 1998-2003

% Change	1998-1999	1999-2000	2000-2001	2001-2002	2002-2003
Energy	-17	-14	58	-27	3
Water#	*	3	#	#	#
Manufacturing	-4	-4	-6	-8	-8
Construction	-3	-3	-8	3	-2
Distribution	-4	-4	-6	-5	-6
Hotels	-6	7	-1	0	3
Restaurants	-1	16	5	7	-2
Transport	4	-2	11	-6	-1
Post and telecommunications	2	4	6	4	-7
Banking	3	15	16	-1	18
Finance	-7	2	-7	44	-7
Insurance	3	17	19	-11	-12
Public Administration	-11	1	0	-2	6
Education	19	10	3	4	3
Health	-4	8	5	3	5

Source: Annual Business Inquiry (ABI).

Notes:

*Based on an estimate that is confidential or statistically unreliable.

^#The 2001 and 2002 figures for Water Industry have been removed as they contain a known error in the source data. ONS have been alerted to this.

Table 4: Annual percentage change in level of employee jobs in Glasgow, by specified Industrial sector, from 1998-2003

% Change	1998-1999	1999-2000	2000-2001	2001-2002	2002-2003
Energy	*	*	*	*	*
Water	*	*	*	*	*
Manufacturing	-1	-4	1	-9	-7
Construction	-13	21	-12	-3	16
Distribution	1	-3	14	7	-6
Hotels	1	0	-12	37	-7
Restaurants	5	29	1	5	-15
Transport	7	-7	10	-1	-5
Post and telecommunications	11	2	5	1	-18
Banking	24	10	10	-22	15
Finance	-6	-19	2	28	7
Insurance	14	11	35	-47	-10
Public Administration	-16	3	4	-14	17
Education	5	14	5	11	0
Health	-2	0	12	2	6

Source: Annual Business Inquiry (ABI).

Note: *Based on an estimate that is confidential or statistically unreliable.

Question reference: S2W-13353

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2005
Current Status: Answered by Margaret Curran on 14 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive who the First Minister has entertained with (a) refreshments and (b) dinner in (i) Bute House and (ii) Edinburgh Castle in (1) 2003-04 and (2) 2004-05; what the total cost was of such events, and what the budget is for these purposes for 2004-05 and 2005-06.

The following tables set out the details of the events hosted by the First Minister at Bute House and Edinburgh Castle in 2003-04 and 2004 to date. The tables also include the cost of each event and the total cost for both years at each venue.

The budget for ministerial hospitality for 2004-05 is £100,000; the budget for 2005-06 has not yet been decided. The ministerial hospitality budget covers the hospitality requirements of all ministers. While the First Minister agrees which events will be funded and comprise the programme, he does not host every event

Events Held at Edinburgh Castle and Hosted by The First Minister 2004 to 18 January 2005

Date	Type of Event	Organisation/Occasion	Cost of Event
6/10/03	Reception	First Minister’s Heroes	£1,260.00
27/10/03	Reception	The 15th Commonwealth Conference of Education Ministers	£1,113.00
4/11/03	Reception	MTV Awards	£7,666.00
9/03/04	Reception	Children’s Panel	£3,731.00
16/03/04	Reception	National Youth Orchestra of Scotland	£2,335.00
Total cost of 2003-04 Castle Events			£16,105.00

Events Held At Edinburgh Castle And Hosted By The First Minister: 2004 to 18 January 2005

Date	Type of Event	Organisation/Occasion	Cost of Event
4/10/04	Breakfast	First Minister’s Heroes	£2,080.00
29/11/04	Dinner	5th Conference of the Regions with Legislative Powers	£11,268.00
22/12/04	Reception	Scotland’s Commonwealth Games Youth Team	£3,872.00
Total cost of 2004-05 (So Far) Castle Events			£17,220.00

First Minister Bute House Events 2003-04

Date	Type of Event	Organisation/Occasion	Cost of Event
30/06/2003	Lunch	Bavarian European Minister Rheinhold Bocket	£714.00
10/08/2003	Reception	Home Reading Initiatives Champions	£685.00
12/08/2003	Reception	Edinburgh International Festival	£586.00
03/11/2003	Reception	Scottish Parliamentarians	£511.00
14/11/2003	Reception	ENABLE	£294.00
18/12/2003	Reception	Political Reporters’ Christmas Reception	£1,270.00
24/01/2004	Dinner	First Minister’s Working Dinner	£1,028.00
10/02/2004	Dinner	Chief Constables	£849.00
06/03/2004	Dinner	First Minister’s Working Dinner	£1,223.00
16/03/2004	Reception	Presentation of Honorary OBE	£219.00
Total cost for the events hosted by the First Minister in Bute House 01/04/2003-31/03/2004			£7379.00

2004 to 14 November 2004

Date	Type of Event	Organisation/Occasion	Cost of Event
24/04/2004	Dinner	First Minister’s Working Dinner	£1,432.77
01/04/2004	Reception	Scottish Enterprise	£560.18
11/05/2004	Reception	Project Scotland	£707.85
19/06/2004	Dinner	First Minister’s Working Dinner	£2,279.61
14/08/2004	Breakfast	Military Tattoo Salute	£692.20
16/08/2004	Reception	Edinburgh International Festival	£774.53
04/09/2004	Dinner	First Minister’s Working Dinner	£1,576.70
08/09/2004	Reception	Scottish members of the Athens Olympic Team UK	£1,411.36
30/09/2004	Reception	Reception prior to China Visit	£859.85
07/10/2004	Reception	Scottish Paralympians	£756.50
01/11/2004	Reception	Carnegie Philanthropy Medal Ceremony	£846.46
11/11/2004	Dinner	First Minister’s Working Dinner	£1,666.33
14/11/2004	Reception	Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards	£949.50
8/12/2004	Reception	Christmas Card Artwork	£608.79
15/12/2004	Reception	National Deaf Children’s Society	£1,847.13
16/12/2004	Reception	Political Reporter’s Christmas Reception	£960.89
Total cost for the events hosted by the First Minister in Bute House - 01/04/2004 to 31/01/2005			£17,930.65

Question reference: S2W-13974

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 31 January 2005
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 14 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how the statement by Mr Tom McCabe at c 14063 in the Official Report on 27 January 2005 on the use of £100 figures for Executive accruals in its Budget (Scotland) (No. 2) Bill is consistent with (a) Annex C of HM Treasury's guide regarding departmental resource accounts that relate to Parliamentary supply, the "Yellow Book", which defines accruals accounting as "A method of recording expenditure as it is incurred, and income as it is earned, during an accounting period, rather than when cash is spent or received", (b) the Inland Revenue treatment of accruals as adopted within FRS17 and carried forward to FRS18 that "Required revenue and costs to be accrued, that is recognised as they were earned or incurred, not as money is received or paid, and matched with one another in so far as their relationship can be established or justifiably assumed. They were to be dealt with in the profit and loss account of the period to which they related; provided that where the accruals concept was inconsistent with the prudence concept the latter prevailed", (c) the UK Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and (d) any other generally-accepted use of accruals during a budgeting process that attempts to predict and direct outcomes.

I congratulate the member on his erudition. He will know that the first three references he gives are guidance on accounts, and that accounts come after the end of the relevant financial year. As I explained during the debate on Stage 1, the use of £100 in the Budget Bill is an accepted convention to signal that the exact amount of receipts cannot be accurately forecast, where we could not provide a “taut and realistic” figure for bill. The Budget Bill of course comes before the start of the relevant financial year.

We use £100 to signally clearly that there will be receipts – but that we are as yet uncertain as to their extent. When accurate forecasts become available, we will insert them during the year through the regular budget revisions. Of course, these revisions are long before we reach the accounts. A clear signal to the use of the convention is that for all other budget purposes the smallest unit ofresource we use is £1,000 – in other words, we do not recognize any numbersbelow £1,000, and all figures have to be in complete thousands.

The same convention applies in the Westminster Estimates (the equivalent of our Budget Bill and revisions) – though they use the figure of £1,000 for this purpose.

Question reference: S2O-05330

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 February 2005
Current Status: Answered by Allan Wilson on 10 February 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how many Scottish businesses are trading on the internet.

Chamber and committees