Questions and answers

Question reference: S3W-02642

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 15 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average house price has been in each local authority area in each year since 1995.

Question reference: S3W-02663

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive how much brownfield site it estimates is available for (a) residential and (b) other development in each city and each of the five formerly designated new towns.

Brownfield land isdefined in Scottish Planning Policy 3 (SPP3) as land which has previouslybeen developed. The Scottish Government does not hold centrally information on thequantity of brownfield land within cities and new towns.

A significant proportionof brownfield land comprises land designated as vacant or derelict. Informationregarding vacant and derelict land is collected by the government and publishedannually in the voluntary Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey (SVDLS), andcan be seen as an indicator of the approximate amount of brownfield land in Scotland’scities and new towns.

Information on thenumber of vacant and derelict sites and the amount of vacant and derelict land withinthose settlements requested is set out in the following tables. It is for localauthorities to designate preferred uses for vacant and derelict land.

Number of Vacant andDerelict Sites in Cities and New Towns (2006)1-6

Name of Settlement	Total Vacant and Derelict Sites	- of which Residential Development the Primary Preferred Use	- of which Non-Residential Development the Primary Preferred Use
Aberdeen	30	9	21
Cumbernauld	33	1	32
Dundee	202	110	92
East Kilbride	13	0	13
Edinburgh	51	19	32
Glasgow	824	515	309
Glenrothes	15	3	12
Inverness	23	1	22
Irvine	41	6	35
Livingston	4	0	4
Stirling	22	3	19

Amount of Vacant andDerelict Land in Cities and New Towns (2006)1-6

Name of Settlement	Total Vacant and Derelict Land (Hectares)	- of which Residential Development the Primary Preferred Use	- of which Non-Residential Development the Primary Preferred Use
Aberdeen	56	26	30
Cumbernauld	77	1	77
Dundee	207	59	148
East Kilbride	13	0	13
Edinburgh	125	58	67
Glasgow	1,100	554	546
Glenrothes	22	9	13
Inverness	89	0	89
Irvine	87	19	67
Livingston	38	0	38
Stirling	75	6	69

Notes:

1. A City/New Townboundary is based on those postcodes identified by General Register of Scotland(GROS) as belonging to that particular settlement within their 2004 small area populationestimates. Those boundaries will not necessarily be the same as those maintainedby Scotland’s Planning Authorities.

2. Figures may notsum due to rounding.

3. Local Authoritiesare asked to identify up to three preferred or intended uses for each site withinthe SVDLS. The tables above split those sites into those which have residentialdevelopment identified as the first preferred use and those which have non-residentialdevelopment identified as the first preferred use.

4. The informationfor Glasgow refers only to those parts of the Glasgow settlement that are within Glasgow City council boundaries.

Further informationfrom the 2006 survey can be viewed on the Scottish Executive website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/01/30094119/0.

Question reference: S3W-02644

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average age of first-time house buyers has been in each year since 1995.

Estimates of the medianage of first-time buyers in Scotland are set out in the following table. Thesedata are sourced from the Council of Mortgage Lenders. The notes to the tables explainthe coverage of the estimates and the reasons for a possible break in comparabilitybetween 2004 and 2005, at which point the Regulated Mortgage Survey replaced theSurvey of Mortgage Lenders.

Mortgage lenders definefirst-time buyers as those whose names have not previously been on a mortgage contract.As such these figures include divorcees and others who have previously been owner-occupiersbut have not been named mortgage holders.

Median Age ofFirst-Time Buyers taking out Loans for House Purchase – Scotland

Year
1995	31
1996	30
1996	31
1998	30
1999	30
2000	30
2001	30
2002	32
2003	33
2004	34

Source: Survey ofMortgage Lenders (SML).

Median Age ofFirst-Time Buyers taking out Loans for House Purchase - Scotland

Year
2005	31
2006	28

Question reference: S3W-02769

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 August 2007
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive how the non-executive board members of Scottish Water are appointed and what period of time each appointment covers.

Scottish Water''s Board members were appointed by ministers in 2002 after a widely advertised recruitment campaign under rules laid down for public appointments by the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland (OCPAS). Current members were re-appointed for second terms of three years, again in accordance with OCPAS rules. Current membership and terms of appointment are given in the following table:

Name	Position	Start date	End Date
Mr Ronnie Mercer	Interim Chair Chair	18 April 2006 1 October 2007	30 September 2007 30 September 2011
Mr Ian McMillan	Member	1 April 06	31 March 2009
Mr Graeme Crombie	Member	1 April 2006	31 March 2009
Mr David Gray	Member	1 April 2005	31 March 2008
Professor Paul Jowitt	Member	1 April 2005	31 March 2008
Ms Rita Theil	Member	1 April 2006	31 March 2009
Mr Pat Kelly	Member	1 April 2006	31 March 2009

The following is the original answer (published on 14 August 2009); see below.

Scottish Water''s Board members were appointed by ministers in 2002 after a widely advertised recruitment campaign under rules laid down for public appointments by the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland (OCPAS). Current members were re-appointed for second terms of three years, again in accordance with OCPAS rules. Current membership and terms of appointment are given in the following table:

Name	Position	Start date	End Date
Mr Ronnie Mercer	Interim Chair Chair	18 April 2006	30 September 2007
Mr Ian McMillan	Member	1 October 2007	30 September 2011
Mr Graeme Crombie	Member	1 April 2006	31 March 2009
Mr David Gray	Member	1 April 2006	31 March 2009
Professor Paul Jowitt	Member	1 April 2005	31 March 2008
Ms Rita Theil	Member	1 April 2005	31 March 2008
Mr Pat Kelly	Member	1 April 2006	31 March 2009

Question reference: S3W-02396

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive what support it gives to the social enterprise sector.

Our current frameworkfor support to the social enterprise sector is contained in Better business – a strategy and action plan forsocial enterprise in Scotland (Bib. number 42840) which highlights the importantcontribution a social enterprise business model can make to life in Scotland. It also contains a £1.5 million action plan for 2007-08intended to grow and develop social enterprise. We intend to build on the foundationof this strategy in considering the need for further support as part of the forthcomingspending review.

Question reference: S3W-02395

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of Scottish GDP is generated by social enterprises.

Question reference: S3W-02394

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers the role and value of social enterprise is to society and the economy.

Question reference: S3W-02220

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive what the total amount of uncollected water rates has been in each year since 1995.

The questions raisedare of an operational nature. I have therefore asked the Chief Executive of ScottishWater to reply. His response is:

Financial Year	£ Million
1996-97	65.3
1997-98	64.3
1998-99	57.4
1999-2000	61.1
2000-01	78.8
2001-02	101.4
2002-03	100.1
2003-04	90.5
2004-05	67.8
2005-06	31.9

The information istaken from the annual accounts published by Scottish Water and its predecessor organisations.Figures for 2006-07 have yet to be published. The local authorities were responsiblefor the water industry prior to 1996. The information sought from that time is notheld centrally.

Question reference: S3W-02219

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been raised through water rates in each year since 1995.

	£ Million
1996-97	524.8
1997-98	548.6
1998-99	597.5
1999-2000	640.4
2000-01	753.8
2001-02	865.3
2002-03	894.2
2003-04	950.9
2004-05	932.1
2005-06	973

The information istaken from the annual accounts published by Scottish Water and its predecessor organisations.Figures for 2006-07 have yet to be published. The local authorities were responsiblefor the water industry prior to 1996. The information sought from that time is notheld centrally.

Question reference: S3W-02541

Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 27 July 2007
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 14 August 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive how many school leavers it estimates have not acquired the basic standards of (a) numeracy and (b) literacy in each year since 1999.

The number and percentageof school leavers who left school without a maths or English qualification at SCQFlevel 3 or better is contained in the following table:

School Year	English		Maths
School Year	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage
1998-99	3,744	6.6%	4,012	7.1%
1999-2000	3,472	6.3%	3,666	6.6%
2000-01	3,858	6.7%	3,883	6.8%
2001-02	3,886	6.7%	4,025	7.0%
2002-03	3,847	6.7%	4,404	7.7%
2003-04	3,628	6.2%	4,259	7.3%
2004-05	3,771	6.5%	4,463	7.7%
2005-06	3,615	6.2%	4,125	7.1%

SCQF Level 3 is equivalentto a standard grade foundation pass or an Access 3 cluster.

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