- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on possible sales of children’s hearing centre premises by the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration to address a financial shortfall resulting from the decision of Scottish ministers to refuse a request for £20 million of additional funding to support its front-line services.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is unawareof any such proposal.
The SCRA is being resourced bythe Scottish Executive to upgrade and, where necessary, replace hearings centres.
Where a centre is no longer fitfor purpose and has been replaced by new premises, the Executive may agree to thereceipt from the sale of the old building being retained by the SCRA.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive when it estimates that the number of referrals to the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration on offence grounds will peak.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has madeno such estimates for either offence or non-offence grounds, nor are we in a positionto do so.
The multi-agency MinisterialTask Group, which was set up in the summer, has been developing a new way of workingfor the referrals process. The new model will help referring agencies to identifywhen compulsory measures might be needed and, when they are not, help agencies todeliver services for children much more quickly without a referral to thereporter.
We are primarily concerned thatchildren who offend or are at risk get an appropriate, proportionate and timelyresponse so that positive outcomes are secured. Where that may entail compulsorysupervision in an individual case, then the matter should be referred to theprincipal reporter.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children, who would previously have been dealt with by a children’s hearing panel, it estimates will not now be dealt with as a result of the decision by the Principal Reporter of the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration to prioritise cases by risk, in light of the decision of Scottish ministers to refuse a request for £20 million of additional funding to support its front-line services.
Answer
We are not in a position to providesuch an estimate.
While there has been a steepincrease in the number of referrals in the last year in particular, the percentageof those going to a hearing has remained proportionately similar. At present only10% of referrals to the Children’s Reporter go to a Children’s Hearing.
That is why the multi-agencyMinisterial Task Group was set up in the summer. The new model being developed bythe group will help referring agencies to ensure that children receive the helpthey need when they need it without having to await the outcome of a reporteror hearings decision. It will also help agencies to identify when compulsory measuresmight be needed to ensure appropriate referrals are being made.
The SCRA plans to introduce itscase filtering tool because of the increasing number of referrals where there isno need for compulsory measures of supervision. The tool is intended to help reducethe risk to children by ensuring reporters and hearings can focus on those mostin need of compulsion.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any of its external consultants will be used to validate offence ground referral datasets produced by the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration.
Answer
No.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Robert Brown on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what evidence it has to link the number of offence referrals to the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration to children living in the 10 most deprived communities, as determined by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-27307 on 2 August 2006 which stated that the Scottish Children’sReporter Administration (SCRA) does not hold information on children referred asdefined by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation.All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facilityfor which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive how many eligible applicants have waited for at least six months for (a) the provision of free central heating and insulation under its central heating programme and (b) grants to have their homes insulated under the Warm Deal scheme in each year since the initiatives were introduced, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
I have asked Angiolina Foster,Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:
Information is not held centrallyin the form requested. The average waiting time for both programmes is six months.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) average and (b) longest waiting times have been for the (i) assessment of eligible applications and (ii) installation of central heating under its central heating programme in each year since its introduction, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
I have asked Angiolina Foster,Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:
Information is not held centrallyin the form requested. The average waiting time for the central heating programmeis six months.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 22 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive how many eligible householders received free central heating, insulation and other benefits worth around £3,000 per household by March 2006 from the Executive’s 2005-06 budget of £57 million for its central heating programme and Warm Deal scheme.
Answer
I have asked Angiolina Foster,Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:
In 2005-06, it is estimated thataround 14,000 central heating systems and almost 15,500 Warm Deal measures wereinstalled by the managing agent.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 21 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it can commission any medal in respect of the Scottish Arctic convoys and, if so, whether it will consider commissioning such a medal.
Answer
Matters concerning the commissioningof medals for military service are reserved, initially, to the Ministry of Defence,and Scottish ministers have no locus to intervene in the these decisions.
In recognition of service inthe Arctic during the Second World War, the UK Government has specially commissionedthe Arctic Emblem to commemorate the service of Merchant Seamen and members of theArmed Forces in the Arctic Region between 3 September 1939 and 8 May 1945.
- Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 21 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent on recognising war veterans in each year since 1999.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-27577 on 21 August 2006, which gives details of the fundingprovided by the Executive since 1999 to recognize and commemorate war veterans.All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facilityfor which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
