- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 25 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether allowing the Forth Estuary Transport Authority to borrow to pay for the construction of a new Forth crossing would require approval from the UK Government.
Answer
I refer the memberto answer to question S3W-5114 on 25 October 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.Scottish Parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 25 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive when its study into strengthening or replacing the cables on the Forth Road Bridge will be completed and when the results will be published.
Answer
The study into strengtheningor replacing the main cables on the Forth Road Bridge is the responsibility of the Forth EstuaryTransport Authority (FETA) who operates and maintains the bridge.
FETA expects the finaltechnical report on this during spring 2008.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 25 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive when the next update will be given on the progress of efforts to dehumidify the cables on the Forth Road Bridge.
Answer
The Forth EstuaryTransport Authority (FETA) is responsible for the maintenance and operation of theForth Road Bridge.
Providing updateson the progress of the dehumidification works is therefore, a matter for FETA.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 22 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-3854 by Stewart Stevenson on 18 September 2007, what the estimated costs would be, at 2006 prices, to convert one of the two proposed bored tunnels from road use to light rail use during the lifetime of the new Forth crossing.
Answer
Converting one of the two proposed bored tunnels from road to light rail would raise the capacityissue of reducing the crossing to a single lane for general traffic in either direction.
Therefore, no costinghas been produced.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Adam Ingram on 22 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-3561 by Adam Ingram on 5 September 2007, when proposals to increase public awareness of the national Child Protection Line will be discussed with the national working group for this project and with child protection committees.
Answer
Proposals to increasepublic awareness of the national gateway line to local child protection serviceswill be discussed with the Child Protection Line Working Group on 15 November 2007 and with the Chairs of the Child Protection Committeesat their next quarterly meeting on 13 December 2007.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 22 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-3854 by Stewart Stevenson on 18 September 2007, what the estimated costs would be, at 2006 prices, to convert one of the two proposed bored tunnels from road use to heavy rail use during the lifetime of the new Forth crossing.
Answer
The tunnel optionsunder consideration do not satisfy the gradients required for heavy rail to be incorporated,either during construction or at a later stage. As such, we have not estimated thecosts of converting one of the two bored tunnels from road use to heavy rail duringthe lifetime of the new Forth crossing.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 22 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-3854 by Stewart Stevenson on 18 September 2007, what the estimated costs would be, at 2006 prices, to strengthen the decking of a new Forth Bridge during its lifetime as opposed to when initially constructed.
Answer
No decision has yetbeen made regarding the form of the replacement crossing.
Following the decisionon the form, function and location of the crossing, the crossing will be designedand constructed to suit its proposed function and to carry specific, alternativetransport modes.
Therefore, no costshave been prepared for strengthening the deck at a later date, should a bridge bedecided upon.
The whole life maintenancecosts for the bridge and tunnel options are included in the Forth Replacement CrossingStudy reports.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 5 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide a substantive answer to question S3W-2451 which received a holding reply on 23 August 2007.
Answer
I refer the memberto answer to question S3W-2451 on 1 October 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 5 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-2458 by Jim Mather on 4 September 2007, what plans it has to monitor the terms and conditions of staff working for independent voluntary sector public service contractors.
Answer
None.I refer the memberto the answer to question S3W-2459 on 4 September 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 July 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 1 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to provide further resources to local authorities to enable them to provide three-year funding arrangements to voluntary organisations.
Answer
Local authoritiesalready receive their funding from the Scottish Executive in three year financialsettlements, as they have done since 2001. Local authorities have the autonomy tomake local funding decisions, such as those involved in determining the level offunding passed on to the third sector, on whatever basis and to whatever timescalesthey deem appropriate.
The level of resourcesthat local government are to receive from the Scottish Executive will be determinedas part of the Spending Review process and the results of that process are likelyto be known later this year. Altering the quantum of resources provided to localgovernment would not directly affect their ability to pass on funding in three yeartranches. However, we supportthe practice of three year funding for the voluntary sector across the public sectorand encourage the use of longer term funding agreements, where possible, to providea stable and efficient operating environment for the sector.
