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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: S2W-27986

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 August 2006
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 14 September 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what information is held centrally in respect of the length of morning, lunch and afternoon breaks in schools.

Question reference: S2W-27987

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 August 2006
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 14 September 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has set targets or guidance in respect of the length of school break times.

Question reference: S2W-27165

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 4 August 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has invested in sport in each of the last five years and, of this, how much was targeted towards children and young people.

All Scottish Executive fundingfor sport is channelled through sportscotland, the national agency for sportin Scotland. Over the past five years sportscotland has investedExchequer and National Lottery monies directly in sport. The total investment isset out in the following table:

	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04	2004-05
Total Investment in Sport (£)	32,224,000	29,771,916	27,172,821	37,658,793	39,782,943

The information contained inthis table is drawn from sportscotland’s annual reports. The figures presentedinclude investment direct to the Scottish Sports Governing Bodies, as well as otherdirect investments in sporting programmes. These figures include funding that wentto “multi-sports” such as the Active Schools Network, sport and community facilitiesand investment in National Centres.

Much of the investment in sportwill have indirect benefits for children and young people, for example investmentin coaching, but it is not possible to identify these accurately and provide detailsof the exact investment.

However, the following tableshows direct investment in sporting programmes solely targeted at, and deliveredto, children and young people. This list is not indicative of the total investmentin sport for children and young people.

	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04	2004-05
Active Schools	-	-	-	9,200,000	13,900,000
School Sports Co-ordinators	550,739	796,204	2,510,635	2,222,994	-
TOP*	1,240,250	1,556,460	160,533	101,127	47,120
Junior Groups Programme	944,939	1,299,431	1,421,551	1,002,679	-

Note: *The TOP programme is aimed at assistingScotland’s primary schools and community organisations to support children in increasingtheir physical activity and skill levels and to encourage their involvement in sport.

The TOP programmes (TOP Play and TOP Sport) are delivered by the YouthSports Trust. They involve the deployment of resource cards and sports equipmentsuitable for primary schools, supported by a training package for primary teachersand community deliverers.

TOP Play is aimed at children aged from four to nine years and TOPSport is focused on ages seven to 11.

Question reference: S2W-27066

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 23 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Allan Wilson on 24 July 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the voluntary sector is represented on the National Workforce Plus Partnership.

Question reference: S2W-26690

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 13 July 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it is making on the implementation of the 10-point action plan arising from Scotland's Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 in the Dumbarton parliamentary constituency.

Question reference: S2W-26790

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 29 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what additional funding has been allocated for educational maintenance allowances in (a) West Dunbartonshire and (b) Argyll and Bute in each year since 2003.

The following table shows detailsof the amount paid to both West Dunbartonshire Council and Argyll and Bute Councilfor the purposes of the education maintenance allowance (EMA) programme. Figureswere calculated by financial year.

National roll-out of the programmecommenced in 2004. However, West Dunbartonshire was part of the pilot programme, awarding EMAs to eligiblestudents prior to national roll-out.

Local Education Authority	Financial Year			Total
Local Education Authority	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06	Total
West Dunbartonshire	£666,726.00	£572,262.00	£618,995.00	£1,857,983.00
Argyll and Bute	N/A	£161,920.00	£341,835.00	£503,755.00

Note: *No figures for 2003 relatingto EMA payments for Argyll and Bute as national rollout did not commence until 2004.

Question reference: S2W-26840

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 29 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive why the procurement of the necessary electric rolling stock does not form part of the business case for the Airdrie to Bathgate rail link project when that was the requirement in respect of the Larkhall to Milngavie project and the Glasgow Airport Rail Link.

Question reference: S2W-26723

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 29 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to promote businesses run by women in the (a) Argyll and Bute and (b) West Dunbartonshire local authority area since 1999.

Scottish Enterprise andHighlands and Islands Enterprise’s launched the Women’s Enterprise Strategy Sharpeningthe Focus on Women’s Enterprise in Scotland in 2005. The strategy highlightsthe services and activities currently provided by the enterprise agencies and aimsto assist more women to start-up and grow their businesses.

Specific details about activityundertaken in Argyll and Bute and in West Dunbartonshire are an operational matterfor Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise, respectively.

Question reference: S2W-26709

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 29 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time students from the (a) Argyll and Bute and (b) West Dunbartonshire local authority area have received bursaries to support them at university since the bursaries were introduced.

The following table highlightsthe number of full-time students domiciled in the (a) Argyll and Bute local authorityarea and (b) West Dunbartonshire local authority area who received bursaries tosupport them at university since 1997-98 (the earliest year for which data is held).

Academic Year	All Full-Time University Students Receiving a Bursary	Number of Full-Time University Students Receiving a Bursary by Local Authority Area
Academic Year	Total	(a) Argyll and Bute Local Authority	(B) West Dunbartonshire Local Authority
1997-98	59,595	1,005	860
1998-99	59,120	1,005	900
1999-00	43,905	675	770
2000-01	36,465	540	700
2001-02	36,875	565	750
2002-03	38,850	585	765
2003-04	41,345	650	755
2004-05	42,000	630	745

Source: Student Awards Agencyfor Scotland (SAAS), Scottish Executive.

In the table , bursary supportrefers to a student receiving support through any of the following financial awardsadministered by SAAS: Standard Maintenance Allowance, Travel Expenses, Young StudentsBursary, Young Students Outside Scotland Bursary, Mature Students Grant, DependantsGrant, Lone Parents Grant, Lone Parents Childcare Grant, School Meals Grant, DisabledStudents Allowance and Two Homes Grant.

It should be noted that someof the awards were introduced at different times and may not have been availablefor the entire period in question. More information on this can be found in theSAAS publication Student Awards In Scotland 2004-05, a link to which is givenbelow:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/12/1395648/56507.

Question reference: S2W-26705

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 June 2006
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 29 June 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how much the Scottish Further Education Funding Council allocated to Clydebank College in each year since 1997.

The Scottish Further EducationFunding Council, a predecessor of the Scottish Further and Higher Education FundingCouncil, took over the responsibility of allocating funds to further education collegesfrom the Scottish Office Education and Industry Department on 1 July 1999. The informationfor Clydebank College requested is as follows:

Year	Capital (£)	Revenue* (£)
1997-98	-	6,137,900
1998-99	-	6,257,000
1999-2000	153,850	6,785,700
2000-01	608,041	7,453,480
2001-02	885,273	11,089,224
2002-03	2,059,243	8,761,778
2003-04	225,775	8,521,056
2004-05	1,766,887	8,754,073

Note: *Recurrent grant-in-aid.