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It is for the local authorities to monitor the success of the specific schemes they propose for Quality of Life funding. However, the Scottish Executive has provided £150,000 to Keep Scotland Beautiful to develop, with all local authorities in Scotland, performance indicators for the standard of cleanliness of streets and pavements.

The Scottish Executive considers that the provisions of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation) Order 2000 are compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

A consultation exercise on the proposals for mandatory licensing of houses in multiple occupation was undertaken by the Scottish Office from 4 June to 30 October 1998. Apart from local authorities, police and fire brigades consultees included landlords' organisations, higher education institutions and student bodies, health boards, tourism interests and voluntary organisations providing housing and support for a wide variety of client groups. The results of this exercise were announced by the Secretary of State for Scotland on 24 March 1999.A working group representing key interests was subsequently established to consider the detail of implementation and to draw up guidance on the scheme. Limited consultation was conducted on the draft order, and further comments were also sought before the guidance was finalised.

The Scottish Executive collects annual statistics from local authorities on the following aspects of the mandatory licensing scheme:

• number of applications received, refused, granted, revoked or suspended during the year, by types of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO);
• number of applications pending at 31 March, by types of HMO;
• total number of licenses in force at 31 March, by type of HMO and by number of occupants;
• reasons for refusals for licences, and
• licensing fees and fee structure.

The resulting figures have been published in the Scottish Executive's Statistical Bulletin, Housing Trends in Scotland. The relevant issues, which are available in the Parliament's Reference Centre, are for quarters ending 31 December 2001 and 31 March 2002 (Bib. number 23303) and quarter ending 31 March 2001 (Bib. number 16396).The Executive also commissioned independent research, A Review of the First Year of Mandatory Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation in Scotland, by Hector Currie, and officials keep in touch with current issues and developments through attending the meetings of the Scottish HMO Network Group of local authority officers.

Funding for the police in Scotland is at record levels and Lothian and Borders Police has substantial resources at its disposal. This year Lothian and Borders Joint Police Board set a budget of £159.8 million, an increase of £10.7 million over the budget set by the Joint Police Board for 2002-03. It is for the chief constable to make decisions on how the resources made available to him are used to meet local needs and priorities.

The task of monitoring any individual who poses a threat to local communities is taken extremely seriously by the police and by other agencies which have a responsibility. The measures available to the police include, for example, applying to the sheriff court for a Sex Offender Order which would seek to place restrictions on the actions of the individual in question. While it would be a matter for the relevant Chief Constable to determine the measures to be taken in each individual case, Lothian and Borders Police has already given assurances that it will undertake a full assessment in respect of Mr Cronin, should he return to the East Lothian area.

The Executive has had sight of the three independent reports commissioned by Scottish Borders Council in respect of the "Miss X" case. The latest of these is the report written by Ms Anne Black, which was received by the Executive on 29 May 2003. I have asked the Chief Social Work Inspector to examine the documents and report back to me.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-455 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

In August 2001, the Scottish Executive announced approval in principal for the Larkhall/Milngavie rail link scheme and made available £16 million towards its construction costs. Strathclyde Passenger Transport (SPT) is the lead authority for the project and the Scottish Executive continues to support SPT as they take this project forward.

The private bill promoting the re-opening of the Stirling to Alloa to Kincardine railway line was introduced to Parliament in March this year. Subject to its successful passage, the project could be authorised for construction by summer 2004, with a view to running services by winter 2005-06.For the proposed re-opening of the Airdrie to Bathgate line, the Scottish Executive has made available £500,000 to West Lothian Council in order to fund a detailed engineering study into the scheme. We expect to receive the study's findings by spring 2004.