Questions and answers

Question reference: S3W-39692

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 4 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that any momentum generated by implementing Curriculum for Excellence through outdoor learning in building the confidence and competence of teachers to make effective use of the outdoors to achieve Curriculum for Excellence outcomes should not be lost.

We are committed to our children and young people having positive, sustainable and progressive opportunities to participate in a range of outdoor learning experiences. To achieve this it is imperative that the momentum and interest generated by curriculum for excellence through outdoor learning is maintained and built upon. The Outdoor Learning Implementation Group and National Network referred to in the answer to question S3W-39693 on 4 March 2011 will play key roles in taking outdoor learning forward but individual teachers, educational settings and local authorities must work together to embed the use of the outdoors in learning and teaching to provide powerful learning experiences.

Question reference: S3W-39469

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 2 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many outdoor education centre places have been available to schoolchildren in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

Information from inspection activities suggest that most primary schools provide children with an opportunity to experience a residential outdoor education experience at some point during primary school - most typically during P6 or P7 in which almost all young people participate. Most secondary schools provide young people with an opportunity for at least one residential stay of some description during secondary school but this might not be a traditional outdoor education type experience. Inspections suggest that opportunities for outdoor learning in secondary schools such as participation in the John Muir Award and Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme Programmes are increasing and support the drive for greater opportunity for and recognition of wider achievement enshrined within the expectations of Curriculum for Excellence.

Question reference: S3W-39470

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 2 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many outdoor education centre (a) instructors and (b) team leaders there have been in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority.

Question reference: S3W-39471

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 2 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how much support it has made available to outdoor education centres in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority.

Question reference: S3W-39249

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 23 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time was to see a hearing specialist in each of the last 12 months, broken down by NHS board.

Information on audiology services is collected on an aggregated form. Consequently, it is not possible to provide the information requested. However, information on the median wait for first appointment with a specialist is provided in the following table.

Waiting time information for audiology services is relatively new data and is currently still under development. As the information collection system is fairly new there are data quality issues around this information and figures should be treated with caution. ISD is working with all NHS boards to improve data quality.

NHSscotland: Median Wait for First Appointment with a Specialist for the Quarters Ending March, June, September and December 2010

NHS Board	March (weeks)	June (weeks)	September (weeks)	December (weeks)
Ayrshire and Arran	8	7	6	9
Borders	11	6	6	9
Dumfries and Galloway	1	3	7	12
Fife	10	8	7	7
Forth Valley	13	x	22	24
Grampian	6	7	7	7
Greater Glasgow and Clyde^(a)	6	5	5	6
Highland^(b)	x	11	11	12
Lanarkshire^(c)	0	1	6	4
Lothian	x	x	x	5
Orkney	1	2	2	3
Shetland	4	4	8	7
Tayside^(d)	x	24	23	25
Western Isles^(e)	x	x	0	15

Source: ISD Scotland.

x data not available.

Notes:

(a) Clyde data is not available for January 2010 and July to December 2010 due to system issues.

(b) Data cleansing is ongoing, please treat with caution. Paediatric figures not available for April.

(c) Data cleansing is ongoing, please treat with caution. Adult figures not available for April 2010.

(d) Paediatric figures not available for April 2010.

(e) Provides Audiology services for adults only.

Question reference: S3W-39308

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 21 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what changes were made to the methodology used to determine the natural heritage indicator for the area of Scotland unaffected by built development; for what reason, and how comparable the 2009 results are with the results between 2002 and 2008 as a consequence of these changes.

I understand that results from this Scottish Natural Heritage indicator for 2009 and 2008 are not directly comparable with those from 2002 because it was not possible in that analysis to take account of topography, i.e. Scotland was treated as a flat surface. Technological advances in 2008 enabled topography to be incorporated in the analysis and to produce a more realistic map. At the same time, the distances over which structures were assumed to exert visual influence were reviewed to give a more realistic measure of visual impact.

However, changes in the method have had little effect on the overall extent of visual influence. Replicating the original, i.e. the 2002, method for 2008 gave a result of 30.97% of Scotland unaffected by built development whereas the improved method gave a closely similar result of 31.17% (0.2% difference). A minor revision between 2008 and 2009 was that it became possible to incorporate individual turbine location data in place of a single central point location for wind farms. This has a negligible effect on the indicator results.

Question reference: S3O-12917

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 10 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the availability of tourist information following the closure of tourist information offices across Perthshire and Kinross-shire.

Since the closure of Kinross Visitor Information Centre in 2008, the last such closure in the region, VisitScotland, and Perth and Kinross Council, have continued to review the provision of visitor information services across the region. Both are in agreement that the current provision meets demand within the resources available.

Current provision of visitor information services in the area is provided through VisitScotland Information Centres, Information Points and Partnerships. Together these provide a variety of local knowledge and regional publications; as well as various eMedia solutions such as the VisitPerthshire website and the new national iPhone app.

Question reference: S3W-38859

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the principles set out by European Parliament resolution INI/2008/2210, Wilderness in Europe, which was approved by 538 votes to 19 on 3 February 2009.

The Scottish Government welcomes the discussion and debate in the European Parliament about the contribution that Europe''s wild areas make to safeguarding biodiversity. In contrast to Scotland''s wilder landscapes, some of which show the imprint of past generations, some continental areas are wilderness in the true sense of the word “ including relatively pristine forests in Eastern Europe. A Scottish approach to the issues raised by the resolution is therefore appropriate.

We have commissioned research exploring approaches to the management of wild land elsewhere in Europe and are considering the results of this study. In the meantime Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is currently undertaking further work on the definition and mapping of wildness and wild land areas. We will consider the results of this when it is completed.

The Scottish Government will keep under review progress on the resolution in discussion with SNH.

Question reference: S3W-38860

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what statistics are available regarding the contribution made to the economy by the natural heritage sector.

There are no annual statistics produced specifically for the natural heritage sector. However, some analysis has been undertaken in reports commissioned by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and the Scottish Government, although each report looks at different aspects of the natural heritage contribution. The details are as follows:

Report name	Published	Estimated Contribution	Number of Jobs
SNH Commissioned Report 72: The role of the natural heritage in generating and supporting employment opportunities in Scotland	2004	£2.2 billion	93,000
Valuing our Environment - The Economic Impact of Scotland''s Natural Environment (SNH)	2008	£17.2 billion	242,000
SNH Commissioned Report 398: Assessing the value of nature based tourism in Scotland	2010	£1.4 billion	39,000
The Economic Impact of Wildlife Tourism in Scotland (Scottish Govt)	2010	£64 million	2,760

Copies of the reports can be found on the following web links:

http://www.snh.org.uk/pubs/detail.asp?id=489

http://www.snh.org.uk/pubs/detail.asp?id=1035

http://www.snh.org.uk/pubs/detail.asp?id=1548

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2010/05/12164456/0.

Question reference: S3W-38858

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 1 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the findings of the final report, commissioned by it, Review of Status and Conservation of Wild Land, by the University of Leeds’ Wildland Research Institute.

The Leeds University, Wildland Research Institute report Review of the Status and Conservation of Wild Land in Europe is a useful contribution to the debate on wild land following on from the European Parliament resolution of February 2009 calling for special status and stricter protection for wilderness zones in Europe and the Natura 2000 network. The research examined approaches to the management of wild land elsewhere in Europe comparable to that found in Scotland with a view to identifying lesson from their experiences relevant to the future care of wild land in Scotland.

A key recommendation of the report is for the identification of wild land areas so that these may be safeguarded. Scottish Natural Heritage''s (SNH) wildness mapping project will give a more detailed view of the extent and location of relative wildness than the current indicative search areas of wild land. The new maps will inform revisions to SNH''s guidance and advice regarding wild land in Scotland.

Chamber and committees