- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 17 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will meet the Chief Executive of the Seafish Industry Authority to discuss the level of continuing financial commitment to the Ardtoe Marine Farming Unit; for what period any such commitment will be, and whether it will make representations to the authority that it make a substantial financial commitment.
Answer
The Executive meets with the Chief Executive of the Seafish Industry Authority on a regular basis. The Seafish Board is currently engaged in negotiations with potential new managers for the Ardtoe Unit and they are also considering their forward strategy for aquaculture. Operational matters including the best use of levy funds raised from the wider fishing industry are for the Seafish Board to decide. It would not be appropriate for the Executive to intervene.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 09 June 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 17 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has a policy on the siting of a nuclear waste disposal facility in the Highlands and Islands; whether it is appropriate to dispose of nuclear waste in that area; what its role would be in any plans to dispose of nuclear waste there, and whether any such plans would be open to public consultation.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is committed to the current UK-wide process to establish the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM). CoRWM will consider all options for Intermediate and High Level Waste. No decisions have been taken about what to do with the waste, and so questions about siting at this stage are hypothetical. Openness and transparency is essential in order to inspire public confidence on radioactive waste management issues. Therefore, following CoRWM's recommendations to ministers, there will be a public debate on how to implement the preferred option(s). The management of radioactive waste is a devolved matter, as are the land-use planning and environmental control regimes. Decisions about policy on radioactive waste storage and disposal in Scotland are, therefore, for the Scottish ministers and Parliament.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 16 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-247 by Malcolm Chisholm on 4 June 2003, whether it will place copies of the responses it has received to Towards Better Oral Health in Children, other than those submitted on a confidential basis, in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre and whether it will publish an analysis of the responses showing how many (a) support and (b) oppose adding fluoride to the water supply.
Answer
Copies of the responses have been publicly available in the normal manner at the Scottish Executive library since early March. An independent researcher has been appointed to collate and analyse all responses to the consultation. The report will be available later in the summer.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 16 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive how many staff in the Highland NHS Board area have reported an assault in (a) 2000-01 and (b) 2001-02; whether information held on this matter now includes the number of cases (i) reported to the procurator fiscal, (ii) raised as criminal prosecutions and (iii) resulting in a conviction, and, if it does not, whether there are any plans to include such information.
Answer
The first national collection of data from NHS boards and trusts on violent and aggressive incidents took place in 2001 for the financial year 2000-01. Collection of data for 2001-02 has also taken place. Quality assurance procedures to validate the data are under way.This data was collected as part of the Occupational Health and Safety Minimum Dataset, and it is planned to publish a minimum dataset report on the data collected between 2000-02 this year. The data published will show violence and aggression as a component of the occupational injury rate.Information on the reporting of violent incidents to the procurator fiscal, the number of criminal prosecutions, and number of convictions in NHS board areas is not held centrally. Though there are currently no plans to include this information in the minimum dataset requirements, the information gathered in the Minimum Dataset is reviewed annually. The board in question may however hold this information locally.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 13 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will meet, and make representations to, any interested parties, other than Her Majesty's Government and civil servants, regarding a public service obligation application for the Inverness to Gatwick air link and, if so, which organisations and individuals it plans to meet.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has supported the imposition of protective measures on the Inverness to Gatwick air link. The Secretary of State for Transport indicated at the UK Parliament's Transport Committee on 21 May that this issue will be covered in the forthcoming white paper. There are no plans to meet other parties.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 13 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-25409 by Lewis Macdonald on 9 May 2002, what schemes have been identified for the A82 between Tyndrum and Inverness in the context of its review of the 1995 Route Accident Reduction Plan.
Answer
BEAR Scotland Ltd will submit the Route Accident Reduction Plan (RARP) for the A82 between Tyndrum and Inverness to the Executive before the end of July 2003. The plan will identify measures for inclusion in trunk road programmes. These measures will be considered and progressed in the normal manner.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 13 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what meetings have taken place between ministers and commercial airlines since 1 January 2003; what the subject matter was of any such meetings, and what meetings are planned with such airlines in the next three months.
Answer
Ministers and officials meet airlines regularly and meetings may well take place in the next three months.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 13 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the standard of ground maintenance of the trunk road network in the Highlands Council area is adequate.
Answer
The Executive provides for the same level of landscape maintenance on all Scottish trunk roads and the standard is adequate. The Performance Audit Group (PAG) monitors BEAR's performance and any deficiencies identified will be addressed.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 12 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to question S1F-2580 by Mr Jack McConnell on 13 March 2003, when it will make an announcement on secure funding for mountain rescue teams.
Answer
We are still in discussion with mountain rescue representatives and police forces about this funding stream but intend to make an announcement about revised funding arrangements later this year.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 12 June 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has undertaken on the Norwegian Government's policy of providing a level of loan for housing based on the meeting of certain criteria, such as providing benefits to the environment, and whether it plans to adopt this approach in its own housing policy.
Answer
I have asked Mr Bob Millar, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. His response is as follows:The Executive has not undertaken any research on the Norwegian Government's policy of providing a level of loan for housing based on the meeting of certain criteria, such as providing benefits to the environment, and has no plans at present for the introduction of such loans.
