- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 16 November 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 27 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what measures will be put in place to ensure that local authorities can accurately identify the level of second home ownership in their areas to inform local housing strategies in the event of council tax being abolished.
Answer
I intend to launcha consultation before Christmas on our proposals for the abolition of council tax,which will include discussion of the identification and taxation of second homes.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 16 November 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 27 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how local authorities will be compensated for the loss of revenue for affordable housing from additional council tax on second homes in the event of council tax being abolished.
Answer
I intend to launcha consultation before Christmas on our proposals for the abolition of council tax,which will include discussion of the taxation of second homes.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 12 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will continue to provide Mental Health Specific Grant funding.
Answer
Provision of the MentalHealth Specific Grant is being considered, with all other government expenditure,as part of Spending Review 2007.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 12 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether Mental Health Specific Grant funding will be increased in the next financial year.
Answer
Provision for MentalHealth Specific Grant is being considered, with all other government expenditure,as part of Spending Review 2007.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 05 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 5 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what land holdings it has in Moray.
Answer
There is no full centralrecord of land holdings for the constituent bodies of the Scottish Government. Informationon significant holdings is shown in the 2007 National Asset Register which is publishedon the Treasury website.
The main ScottishGovernment land holdings in Moray are those required for the trunk road network.Centrally held records show also one freehold building - Elgin Sheriff Court with 0.3 acres of land - and 11 leaseholdbuildings.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 25 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 1 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether guidance for local authorities is in place on the use of houses of multiple occupation to tackle homelessness.
Answer
The Scottish Government has produced a Code of Guidance on Homelessness to which all local authorities must have regard when carrying out their duties. The code is available on the government''s website at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/housing/homeless/guidance.
Local authorities have flexibilities in how they discharge the duty to provide temporary and permanent accommodation for homeless people but, in respect of temporary accommodation, they must adhere to the Homeless Persons (Unsuitable Accommodation) (Scotland) Order 2004. This order sets out standards which temporary accommodation for homeless households with children and pregnant women must meet.
Such accommodation must provide adequate bedrooms and adequate toilet and personal washing facilities for the exclusive use of the household. Adequate cooking facilities must also be provided. The code indicates that these facilities must meet the local authority''s houses of multiple occupation standards.
This requirement relates to any accommodation used for this purpose “ not just houses of multiple occupation.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 25 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 1 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what support it recommends should be in place for people staying in houses of multiple occupation and whether it believes that such accommodation is the most appropriate means of housing people with complex needs.
Answer
It is for localauthorities to assess the housing needs of individuals and provide suitableaccommodation according to their needs. Any housing support serviceaccommodation receiving Supporting People funding must be registered with the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care and meet the care standardsrequired by the commission.
Other houses in multipleoccupation (HMOs) must be licensed with the appropriate local authority. Beforegranting an HMO licence, the local authority will inspect the property toensure that it is safe and that the accommodation is appropriate for theproposed number of tenants. The local authority will also ensure that thelandlord is following appropriate management standards.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 25 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 1 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what funding was provided to Highland Council to tackle homelessness in each of the last two financial years.
Answer
1. Allocations to Highland Council to tackle homelessness over each of the last two financial years includes specific grant funding from the Scottish Government in the form of the amalgamated Tackling and Preventing Homelessness Fund from 2007-08 (previously the Homelessness Task Force and Furnished Tenancies Grant) and the allocations were as follows:
Specific Grant Funding, Tackling and Preventing Homelessness
| Year | Funding |
| 2006-2007 | £607,697 |
| 2007-08 | £613,606 |
2. The progress report and local outcome agreement received by the Scottish Government Homelessness Division from Highland Council for 2006-07 indicates a number of partnerships with a variety of local agencies in delivering local homelessness services and that a number of different funding streams are sourced in implementing these services in addition to the Tackling and Preventing Homelessness Grant.
3. Highland Council also receives general funding allocated through the core local government finance settlement. It should be noted however that the general provision does not represent actual funding but is used as a means of distributing the core local government finance settlement. The general provision in the core settlement includes Tackling and Preventing Homelessness (formerly Rough Sleepers Initiative) and General Homelessness. The allocations for the past two years were as follows:
| Tackling and Preventing Homelessness | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| Former Rough Sleepers Initiative | 161,000 | 163,000 |
| General Homelessness | 195,000 | 197,000 |
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 25 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 1 November 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has plans to review current legislation on the requirements to be met by developers of large-scale houses of multiple occupation, such as bedsits and hostels.
Answer
Revisedlegislation applying to all Houses in Multiple Occupation was passed by the Scottish Parliament under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006. The Scottish Government expects to consult stakeholdersduring 2008 on whether secondary legislation will be required before bringingthis new legislation into force.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 05 October 2007
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 31 October 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that new crofts will be created in Moray.
Answer
The Scottish Governmentwill be consulting later in 2007 on proposals to designate new areas, includingin Moray, where crofts may be created. I refer the member to the answer to questionS3W-4768 on 1 October 2007. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility forwhich can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.If theconsultation demonstrates support for these new crofting areas the power toextend crofting tenure beyond the crofting counties rests in section 3 of theCrofters (Scotland) Act 1993, as amended by the Crofting Reform etc. (Scotland) Act 2007.
Land in Moraybelonging to the Scottish ministers will be parts of the National Forest estatecurrently managed by Forestry Commission, Scotland who are actively working tofacilitate the creation of woodland crofts on National Forest land, whether inMoray or in other areas where crofting tenure applies. Other public land usebodies will be encouraged to consider whether land they manage is suitable forcrofting.
The Scottish Governmentcannot force anyone to change land to crofting tenure. Land owners will beable to apply to the Crofters Commission for the creation of new crofts withinany areas designated by Ministers. In addition, tenants under the SmallLandholders Acts 1886-1931 may also apply for the conversion of their smallholdingto crofting tenure.
