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Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S1W-27252

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 July 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 31 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive how many, and what percentage of, applications which have qualified under its central heating installation programme have not yet had central heating installed, categorised by the month in which the application qualified in each of the last six months and broken down by local authority area.

In the period 1 January to 1 July 2002 there were a total of 5,301 applications for the central heating programme, as administered by Eaga. Four thousand, six hundred and fifty-nine of those applicants, or 88% of the total, are eligible for the programme. In the same period Eaga completed 3,651 central heating installations, of which 400 related to applications submitted after 1 January 2002. The remaining 3,251 installations related to applications submitted in 2001. Eaga do not collect figures on a local authority basis.

Question reference: S1W-27251

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 July 2002
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 31 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average time was under its central heating installation programme (a) between an application qualifying and being passed to the surveyor; (b) for an application being passed from the surveyor to the heating company and (c) from an application reaching the heating company to completion of work in the period from January to June 2002 inclusive, broken down by local authority area.

The terms of the question do not reflect the procedures under the central heating programme, as administered by Eaga. An application does not qualify until after a surveyor has visited the home to verify that the terms and conditions of the programme are met.When eligibility is confirmed, Eaga pass the applicant's details to a heating company. Details are generally passed on in the order in which applicants are confirmed as eligible. The period between determining eligibility and giving the applicant's name to a heating company will vary between parts of Scotland and over the duration of the programme. There are no figures by local authority area. When the heating company is authorised to proceed, the central heating is normally installed within three months.

Question reference: S1W-26127

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 May 2002
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 30 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to extend the 50% rates relief scheme available to post offices in rural areas to those in deprived urban areas and which local authorities currently operate an additional 50% relief scheme for post offices in rural areas.

The Scottish Executive has no plans to extend the scope of the existing rural (village shop) rate relief scheme to post offices in deprived urban areas. Post offices in deprived urban areas may be eligible for rate relief under the small business rate relief scheme announced by Andy Kerr on 11 December 2001.The level of discretionary rate relief granted by local authorities under the rural (village shop) scheme is entirely a matter for each local authority. Information on the level of discretionary rate relief granted specifically to post offices by each local authority is not held centrally.

Question reference: S1W-26128

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 May 2002
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 30 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to (a) ensure that the rules and applications for 50% rates relief for rural post offices are uniformly applied across Scotland and (b) establish a uniform definition of what constitutes a rural post office for the purposes of the scheme.

Responsibility for interpreting the legislative framework within which local authorities are required to operate rests with the individual authority and subsequently, where a ratepayer disagrees with that interpretation, the Courts.The Non Domestic Rating (Rural Areas and Rateable Values Limits) (Scotland) Order 1997 designates rural areas for the purposes of the rural (village shop) rate relief scheme. The method used is based on the General Register Office for Scotland post code method of urban/rural classification.

Question reference: S1W-26173

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 May 2002
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 30 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has reached any agreement with regard to a loan to Scottish Borders Council and, if so, whether it will detail the amount of the loan and any conditions attached to it.

Question reference: S1W-27254

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 July 2002
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 29 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what degree of overcrowding there was in Scottish prisons in total and broken down by prison, also expressed as a percentage of the capacity of prisons, on 31 January, 31 March and 30 June 2002.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The available information is in the following tables:Position at Friday 1 February 2002

	Available capacity	Total	% of available capacity
South and West
Barlinnie	825	1,064	129.0%
Cornton Vale	230	232	100.9%
Dumfries	162	111	68.5%
Greenock	254	313	123.2%
Kilmarnock	548	541	98.7%
Low Moss	375	237	63.2%
Polmont	422	389	92.2%
Shotts	516	513	99.4%
Area Total	3,332	3,400	102.0%
North and East
Aberdeen	155	193	124.5%
Castle Huntly	151	132	87.4%
Edinburgh	578	658	113.8%
Glenochil	489	487	99.6%
Glenochil YOI	58	56	96.6%
Inverness	108	129	119.4%
Noranside	121	100	82.6%
Perth	582	527	90.5%
Peterhead	296	293	99.0%
Area Total	2,538	2,575	101.5%
All Scotland Total	5,876	5,976	101.7%

Position at Friday 29 March 2002

	Available capacity	Total	% of available capacity
South and West
Barlinnie	818	1,115	136.3%
Cornton Vale	230	237	103.0%
Dumfries	122	139	113.9%
Greenock	254	317	124.8%
Kilmarnock	548	526	96.0%
Low Moss	345	264	76.5%
Polmont	422	434	102.8%
Shotts	516	518	100.4%
Area Total	3,255	3,550	109.1%
North and East
Aberdeen	155	172	111.0%
Castle Huntly	151	127	84.1%
Edinburgh	578	724	125.3%
Glenochil	496	483	97.4%
Glenochil YOI	58	56	96.6%
Inverness	108	135	125.0%
Noranside	121	100	82.6%
Perth	582	567	97.4%
Peterhead	296	287	97.0%
Area Total	2,545	2,651	104.2%
All Scotland Total	5,806	6,201	106.8%

Position at Friday 28 June 2002

	Available capacity	Total	% of available capacity
South and West
Barlinnie	860	1,200	139.5%
Cornton Vale	230	266	115.7%
Dumfries	178	178	100.0%
Greenock	254	353	139.0%
Kilmarnock	548	537	98.0%
Low Moss	318	295	92.8%
Polmont	422	471	111.6%
Shotts	508	498,518	98.0%
Area Total	3,318	3,798	114.5%
North and East
Aberdeen	155	210	135.5%
Castle Huntly	156	145	92.9%
Edinburgh	578	793	137.2%
Glenochil	496	497	100.2%
Glenochil YOI	76	73	96.1%
Inverness	108	138	127.8%
Noranside	121	112	92.6%
Perth	582	543	93.3%
Peterhead	296	286	96.6%
Area Total	2,568	2,797	108.9%
All Scotland Total	5,886	6,595	112.0%"

Question reference: S1W-26723

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2002
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 15 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive what the ratio of ancillary staff to general practitioners is in Scotland compared with England and Wales.

Question reference: S1W-26947

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 June 2002
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 4 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive why the Borders railway line is not included in the list of "Up-front" transport improvements to be put in place before congestion charges are introduced referred to in the Have Your Say leaflet issued by the City of Edinburgh Council.

Question reference: S1W-26949

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 June 2002
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 4 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide funding for a feasibility study into the possibility of re-opening Reston railway station.

The reopening of a railway passenger station at Reston is a local transport issue. As such we would expect the relevant local authority to take such a project forward.Local authorities 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. Applications for the current round must be submitted by 12 August.

Question reference: S1W-26948

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 June 2002
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 4 July 2002

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the consultation documents on Edinburgh's new transport initiative and copies of the Have Your Say leaflet have made available to the public in the Scottish Borders area.