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For patients admitted into secondary care, Information and Statistics Division (ISD) of National Services Scotland record the cause of injury. It is therefore possible to indicate the number of hospital admissions by NHS board as a result of “operations of war” since 2002. The data does not consider the location of the injury or occupation of the individual. It is therefore not necessarily a member of the armed forces who is recorded. In Scotland, there were zero hospital admissions as a result of “operations of war” in 2001-02 and 2002-03; and less than five in each year from 2003-04 to 2006-07. Due to the small numbers involved and for reasons of confidentiality and disclosure control, board level statistics are not presented.

It is not possible to identify those who received any other form of NHS treatment, such as physiotherapy in the primary care sector, as a result of operations of war, as this data is currently not collected.

Lead responsibility for appointments of board members to cross border bodies is usually a matter for UK Government departments, with the Scottish Government playing a secondary role. This role involves Scottish ministers being consulted or invited to agree by their UK counterparts on an appointment. On other occasions, however, Scottish ministers will appoint board members to cross-border bodies. The different approaches are dependent on the particular arrangements agreed between officials in different UK departments and ministers on either side of the border for appointments to specific cross-border bodies.

Cross-border public authorities, in common with all other public authorities, are subject to the regulation, audit and inspection which is appropriate to their functions.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The Scotland Act 1998 (Cross-Border Public Authorities) (Specification) Order 1999 (S.I.1999/1319) sets out the cross-border public authorities as specified under section 88 of the Scotland Act 1998. A copy of this order can be found in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 23320).

Only one such order has ever been made. The statutory framework for the operation of new bodies with devolved and non-devolved functions created since devolution is set out in the relevant establishing statutes.

A list of contacts made between cross-border public authorities and the Scottish Government is not held centrally.

The information requested is already in the public domain and can be found on the websites of the relevant bodies.

The order referred to in the question sets out the cross-border public authorities as specified under section 88 of the Scotland Act 1998. A copy of this order can be found in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 23320).

Only one such order has ever been made. Any provision in respect of alterations to bodies named in the section 88 order would be made in relevant statute.

There have been no discussions with Her Majesty’s Government about the extension of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 to apply to cross-border public authorities.

Data on abortions carried out in Scotland can be found on the Scottish Health Statistics website.

The number of abortions carried out in Scotland since 2001, broken down by age group and NHS board is available in a table on the Information Services Division website at:

http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/servlet/FileBuffer?namedFile=mat_aas_table207.xls&pContentDispositionType=inline.

All of the bodies mentioned operate in both reserved and devolved areas. Cross-border public authorities are designated as such by virtue of their remit falling partly within the legislative competence of the Parliament. Such bodies can include those dealing with matters which are wholly devolved in Scotland, but which operate both in Scotland and England. They can also include Scotland-only bodies which operate in both reserved and devolved areas.