- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it would be appropriate or normal for a minister to seek to instruct an independent non-departmental public body or other agency on the basis of a telephone call where the minister had neither sought nor received formal advice prior to making that call.
Answer
Within the scope of relevant legislation and in appropriate circumstances, Scottish ministers have the ability to require a body to take a particular action or pursue a particular area of work. This ability is part of the long established framework of governance and accountability to which non-departmental public bodies operate.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) or ministers that are responsible for advice to planning authorities on individual planning applications when SEPA is acting in its independent statutory role.
Answer
As a statutory consultee in the planning process, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency has responsibility for providing advice directly to planning authorities.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Environment Protection Agency has specific statutory responsibilities that it carries out in relation to planning matters and, if so, what these responsibilities are.
Answer
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency is a statutory consultee for developments identified under the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) (Scotland) Order 1992, as amended, and for planning applications requiring environmental impact assessments under the Environmental Impact Assessment (Scotland) Regulations 1999. SEPA also provides advice to planning authorities on environmental aspects which are material planning considerations. In addition, SEPA has a statutory duty under the Environment Act 1995, if requested by a planning authority, to provide advice on the risk of flooding in any part of the authority''s area.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Environment Protection Agency is intended to operate independently of ministers in its day-to-day operational role and in relation to individuals and casework, albeit within a framework of policies and priorities agreed by ministers.
Answer
All non-departmental public bodies are required to work to, and be aware of, the Scottish Government''s strategic priorities and objectives. They operate with a degree of independence and flexibility in areas of work where direct hands on control would be inappropriate.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what protects the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s operational independence in the conduct of its statutory duties.
Answer
The Environment Act 1995 and the Management Statement for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) set out the relationship under which SEPA operates.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Chief Executive of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is accountable on a day-to-day basis to the board of SEPA for the operational decisions taken by staff of SEPA, or to ministers.
Answer
The Chief Executive of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is accountable to SEPA''s board. SEPA''s board, like other non-departmental public bodies'' boards, is appointed by ministers and accountable to Scottish ministers. The precise nature of the relationship is set out in the Environment Act 1995 and SEPA''s management statement.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Chief Planner or any other Scottish Government official had any contact with Mr Donald Macdonald or his representatives during which discussion took place on the planning application in Aviemore in which Mr Macdonald had an interest; if so, on what dates and what issues were discussed.
Answer
Neither the Chief Planner nor any Scottish Government official has met Mr Donald Macdonald or his representatives to discuss the proposed development in Aviemore.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any minister raised issues with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency about the planning application in Aviemore in which Mr Donald Macdonald had an interest; if so, on what dates, whether any Scottish Government officials or special advisers were present at these discussions and what was said in the conversations.
Answer
I contacted the Chief Executive of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency on 7 December 2007 to ascertain if there were any misunderstandings or matters of process within SEPA that were unnecessarily holding up proper consideration of the planning applications. No officials or special advisers were present during these discussions or during SEPA''s Chief Executive''s return phone call to me on the same day during which he updated me in the light of his own inquiries into the matter.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Chief Planner had any contact with Cairngorm National Park Authority planning officials concerning the planning application in Aviemore in which Mr Donald Macdonald had an interest; if so, when such discussions took place and what issues were discussed.
Answer
The Chief Planner was copied into, and acknowledged, an e-mail from the Head of Planning at Cairngorms National Park Authority to the Head of the Landscapes and Habitats Division (in his role as sponsor for the national park authority) on 7 December 2007. This e-mail re-iterated the verbal information provided to me by the convenor of the park authority on 5 December regarding the process which the park authority was following in handling the planning applications for the proposed development.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 January 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any minister raised issues with any public agency which had a locus in the planning application in Aviemore in which Mr Donald Macdonald had an interest, following representations received from Mr Macdonald, his representatives or others to the First Minister and, if so, which agencies these were.
Answer
I met the Convenor and the Chief Executive of the Cairngorms National Park Authority on 5 December 2007 to discuss their plans for taking forward the business of the authority over the coming year. In the course of this meeting the convenor referred to the significant media and local interest, including local MSP interest, in the Aviemore planning applications and informed me how the matter was being handled by the authority.
On 7 December I discussed with the Chief Executive of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency the process and timescales for SEPA''s work assessment with the Aviemore planning applications.
The Minister for Community Safety, acting in his capacity as constituency MSP, has raised issues with different public agencies concerning the Aviemore planning applications on a number of occasions.
The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment raised issues with his officials in the light of correspondence from the constituency MSP on 29 November 2007. Officials were subsequently in touch with SEPA.
