- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 5 June 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what fee is payable to each local authority for a Houses in Multiple Occupancy licence.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-15911.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 5 June 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to monitor any impact that fees for Houses in Multiple Occupancy licences have on (a) landlords and (b) tenants.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-15911.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 5 June 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to set up a forum for people or organisations involved with or affected by Houses in Multiple Occupancy licensing to facilitate discussion about common practices and concerns.
Answer
We consider that a forum of this sort is unnecessary, since local authorities have already established an HMO Benchmarking Group in which they can discuss problems and best practice relating to mandatory licensing of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs). Executive officials and the voluntary sector have established contacts with this group.The licensing structures set up by local authorities were informed by the guidance on the mandatory licensing of HMOs published by the Executive in September 2000. This guidance, which is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. no. 13706), was based partly on examples of best practice and it includes Benchmark Standards for safe, good quality accommodation, as well as information on tenancy management standards. However, under the provisions of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, it is the responsibility of each local authority to set reasonable licensing conditions.Under the 1982 Act it is also the responsibility of each local authority to set licensing fees for its area at a level sufficient to meet the expenses of the local authority in exercising its licensing functions under the Act. Details of fee levels are among the information currently being obtained from local authorities on the revised HMO licensing monitoring return.We have no substantive evidence that landlords are selling properties or evading licensing because of the level of fees. Information on any such trends, and on the impact of licence fees on landlords and tenants, will be sought in the course of a review of the first year of mandatory licensing of HMOs, which the Executive will be carrying out later this year.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 17 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what support it intends to provide to pensioners in local authority houses in the Lothians which have old or partial central heating systems.
Answer
Local authorities receive capital allocations from the Scottish Executive to enable them to repair and improve their own stock, including work in respect of old or partial central heating systems. The Scottish Executive Central Heating Programme is additional to this existing resource and is targeted at those properties which have no form of central heating.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 12 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 15 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-2707 by Jackie Baillie on 14 December 2000, which institutions it has worked with in order to encourage the provision of basic bank accounts, what the nature has been of any encouragement given and what the response has been.
Answer
The Executive has been working with the four Scottish clearing banks, through the Committee of Scottish Clearing Banks (CSCB), and CoSLA to encourage both the provision and uptake of basic bank accounts. A working group has been established to explore new ways of reaching those who remain unbanked. The CSCB advise that 200,000 basic bank accounts are now open with an additional 10,000 being opened per month across the four banks.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 15 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has used or is using any external agencies, organisations or persons in relation to the drafting of legislation, whether primary or otherwise, for consideration in the Scottish Parliament and, if so, who these persons, agencies or organisations are or were.
Answer
No.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 10 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any quantities of toxic waste have been accepted into Scotland from (a) England, (b) France and (c) elsewhere in the last 20 years and, if so, when and what amounts were involved.
Answer
This is a matter for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. The information requested is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 10 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what checks are carried out, by whom and where to identify the content of imported cargo that may contain toxic waste.
Answer
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency is the enforcing authority for the regulations governing the import and export of waste to and from Scotland. The nature and frequency of the enquiries it makes and of the monitoring which it carries out is a matter for the agency.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 10 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many prosecutions of companies or individuals illegally using Scotland to dump toxic waste there have been since July 1999.
Answer
This is a matter for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. The information requested is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Lothians, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 10 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what income from the monitoring of imported cargo has been received by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in each of the last five years.
Answer
This is a matter for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. The information requested is not held centrally.
