Chamber and committees

The period for public consultation on the Executive's proposals for the future of the prison estate ended on 12 June. The proposals focused on three main challenges: to provide enough places for the prisoner population; to end the practice of slopping out in our prisons as quickly as possible, and to find the option which represents the best value for money to the taxpayer. The Executive remains committed to meeting those challenges. We will study carefully all the responses to our proposals before taking any decisions.

The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) began carrying out its own recruitment from January 2000. Prior to that date, recruitment was conducted on behalf of the SPCB by the Scottish Office/Scottish Executive. Details of staff recruited in each year from 1999 to 2002, broken down by sex, ethnic origin and disability are set out in the table below:

Year	Total	Sex		Ethnic Origin1					Disability5
		M	F	White	Asian2	Black3	Other4	Not Indicated
1999	237	139	98	210	1		1	25	6
2000	101	60	41	83	1	1	1	15	1
2001	77	41	36	72	-	-	-	5	-
2002	44	23	21	41	-	-	1	2	-

Notes:1. As defined in the Census (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2000.2. Refers to Asian Indian, Asian Pakistani, Asian Bangladeshi, Asian Chinese or other Asian background.3. Refers to Black Caribbean, Black African or other black background.4. Where a candidate has indicated either an unspecified ethnic origin or unspecified mixed origin.5. Refers to applicants who indicated on their application form that they have a disability whether or not it falls under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

As part of the implementation of the Parliament's Equality Framework, we plan to conduct a detailed equalities audit of staff before the end of this year. This will provide more detailed information about the composition of the workforce of the Parliament and will provide sound base-line data on which to base future work to tackle any areas of under-representation and disadvantage. Details of staff currently employed by sex, ethnic origin, disability and grade are set out in the table below:

Grade1	M	F	Ethnic Origin2					Disability6
			White	Asian3	Black4	Other5	Not indicated
CE	1	-	1	-	-	-	-	-
Director	1	4	5	-	-	-	-	-
7	8	4	9	-	-	-	3	-
6	26	19	39	-	-	-	6	1
5	31	30	48	-	-	-	13	1
4	57	43	84	-	-	1	15	1
3	27	33	57	-	-	-	3	1
2	56	58	100	1	-	1	12	3
1	48	20	59	1	1	1	6	1
Total	255	211	402	2	1	3	58	8

Notes:1. Scottish Executive secondees have been included at the equivalent Scottish Parliament Grade. Staff on temporary promotion are shown at the grade that they are currently working.2. As defined in the Census (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2000.3. Refers to Asian Indian, Asian Pakistani, Asian Bangladeshi, Asian Chinese or other Asian background.4. Refers to Black Caribbean, Black African or other black background.5. Where a candidate has indicated either an unspecified ethnic origin or unspecified mixed origin.6. Refers to applicants who indicated on their application form that they have a disability whether or not it falls under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

As the First Minister said in his statement of 30 May on the Executive's programme, we intend to publish our draft Family Law Bill when the policy and legislative implications of the current adoption review have become clear and our approach to these areas is fully co-ordinated.

Under section 10 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968, my department is providing in the current year a revenue grant of £45,778 to support the work of Family Mediation Grampian, as part of our total package of support for mediation services across Scotland. Local authorities may also provide funding for local services, as may private funders. It is for the organisation to set its business targets in light of available resources.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:Yes, Clause 49 of the contract between SPS and Kilmarnock Prison Services Limited permits, but does not require the disclosure of Confidential Matters as defined in paragraph 1.1.14. In deciding whether disclosure is appropriate, in each case account is also taken of the public interest, and of the contractor's position regarding company commercial confidentiality at the time in question.Almost all of the contract has been published and is available on the internet. In addition, arrangements were made to show the Justice 1 Committee the full contract under appropriate confidentiality arrangements.

Local authorities, and in the case of the Strathclyde area, Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive, may apply for funding of feasibility studies for public transport improvements from the Public Transport Fund (PTF). Studies or projects supported by the PTF would have to satisfy eligibility criteria and compete with other bids. Details of the rules and guidelines can be found on the websites of both the Scottish Executive and Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

We have no plans at present to alter the existing planning arrangements in this regard.A meeting or event may require planning permission, depending on the circumstances, in particular if a change in the use of land is involved. However, permitted development rights exist which grant a general planning permission across Scotland for, among other things, the temporary use of land (up to 28 days in total in any calendar year) for any purpose except caravan sites or open air markets.

It would not be appropriate to set out the arrangements. However, guidance issued by the Cabinet Office and the national security authorities covering the threat from chemical and biological agents has been taken on board together with advice received from the Lothian NHS Public Health Department and customised to suit the Parliament's circumstances. The Parliament's Police Unit, experts from Lothian and Borders Police HQ and other emergency services personnel would of course be involved in dealing with any incident.

The respective Agriculture Ministers discuss animal health issues on a regular basis. In addition, discussions between officials of the Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department (SEERAD) and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) are held frequently. Senior officials from SEERAD, DEFRA and the other UK Agriculture Departments meet monthly, when animal health and welfare issues are on the agenda.