- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 14 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to the supplementary question to question S1O-5128 by Lewis Macdonald on 2 May 2002, whether the whole net surplus of #174 million from the Scottish Transport Group pension schemes will be paid out to pensioners, and, if not, what sum will be withheld from pensioners and to whom that sum will be paid.
Answer
As at 22 March 2002, the Report and Accounts of the Scottish Transport Group pension schemes showed the total value of the surplus as £174 million net of tax. HM Treasury will retain £50 million, and have agreed following representations from Scottish ministers to provide £118 million for the Scottish Executive to disperse to pensioners. Scottish ministers will make further representations to HM Treasury to retain the additional surplus (£6 million at 22 March) for disbursement to the former Scottish Transport Group pension scheme members.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 27 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 13 June 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to his answer to question S1W-18874 on 1 November 2001, whether the design and specialist cladding services work provided by Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Limited is being used in the final cladding contract or contracts and whether it will detail the amount or value of these services provided by Flour City which is not being used.
Answer
I understand that all the design work done by Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd has been used.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 27 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 13 June 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will list all those present at the meeting on 4 September 2001 at which John Tang of Flour City International and his senior officials were present and whether it will place in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre a copy of any memorandum, notes or other documents relating to this meeting.
Answer
I am informed by the Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group that in attendance on 4 September 2001 were John Tang, Chairman of Flour City International; senior site based representatives of Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd; the Managing Partner of Flour City International's investment banker; Bovis Lend Lease Project Director; representatives of the Bovis Lend Lease Commercial team, and members of the Holyrood Project Team. The Parliament has received legal advice that documents should not be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre while the SPCB's rights and entitlements are still being evaluated, as they may form part of the productions in any litigation which may follow.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 27 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 13 June 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer, what specialist cladding services were carried out by Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Limited and how much they were paid for these.
Answer
Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd undertook design works in association with stone, precast concrete and stainless steel cladding, glazing and blast resistant secondary support structures to the various cladding components on the MSP block. The Convener of the Holyrood Progress has confirmed that the company was paid £854,067 for these services.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 27 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 13 June 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to his answer to questions S1W-19252 and S1W-20308 on 16 November and 7 December 2001 respectively, on what date the technical information from Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Limited should have been provided; what the information was which was "considerably overdue"; to whom the concerns by EMBT/RMJM were expressed; whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will place in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre a copy of the whole document or documents in which such concerns were expressed; in the event that any of this information is deemed to be commercially confidential, whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) will state on what basis and why and whose interest would be damaged by its disclosure, and whether the losses emanating from the insolvency of Flour City are deemed to fall within the category of force majeure on the risk register.
Answer
Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd were due to produce control samples for the oak windows in June 2001. I understand from the Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group that concerns arose during a routine project meeting between the Design Team and project personnel in May 2001 when it became clear that there might be a delay. However, assurances were given that recovery measures were in place. The Parliament's position on the disclosure of commercially confidential material has not changed and is set out in my answer of 19 September 2000 to question S1W-9469. It remains the case that documents should not be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre while the SPCB's rights and entitlements are still being evaluated, as they may form part of the productions in any litigation which may follow. Costs emanating from the insolvency of Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd fall within the category of force majeure on the risk register.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 10 June 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 13 June 2002
To ask the First Minister whether sufficient measures have been taken to prevent any recurrence of the foot-and-mouth disease epidemic.
Answer
We are implementing a whole series of measures that will minimise any chance of another outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 05 April 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 6 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to include in its housing policy proposals similar to those operating in Norway, where the state provides a level of loan for housing based on meeting certain criteria for example in providing benefits to the environment.
Answer
The Executive has no plans at present for the introduction of such loans.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 6 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what its estimate is of the cost of reducing the non-domestic rates poundage to 43.7p and how this estimate is computed.
Answer
The Scottish Executive's current estimate, based on the first estimates of non-domestic rate revenue for 2002-03 received from local authorities, is £149 million. This figure represents the difference between the amount of non-domestic rates that local authorities estimate will be collected in 2002-03 at the poundage currently in force of 47.8p (£1,740 million) and the proportionately lower amount that would be collected if the poundage were reduced to 43.7p (£1,740 million x 43.7/47.8 = £1,591 million). The 2p poundage discount available for small properties and the various reliefs offered to ratepayers would also have some impact on the cost of reducing the poundage, but insufficient information is available to quantify these effects.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 6 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many staff in the Highland NHS Board area have reported an assault; how many of these cases were subsequently reported to the procurator fiscal; in how many of these cases criminal prosecutions were subsequently raised, and how many of these resulted in a conviction, in each of the last two years.
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 the 2001-02 data is currently on-going. Quality assurance of the 2000-01 data has started and once completed will be made available through the Information and Statistics Division of the Common Services Agency. The information will be at NHS board and trust level.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. The board in question may however have this information locally.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 May 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Simpson on 5 June 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports the provision of a local CCTV system in Grantown-on-Spey and, if so, how such a scheme can be funded; what budget lines are available for the funding of such schemes, and whether its policy on this matter will be reviewed in order to ensure that CCTV schemes are available to towns such as Grantown-on-Spey.
Answer
On 31 October 2001 we announced details of a new community safety award programme to supersede both the CCTV and Community Safety Challenge Competitions. The new scheme gives all local authority-led Community Safety Partnerships a share of £12 million over the next three years for local community safety initiatives. The funding available for 2002-03 is £4 million - £1 million more than the combined annual Challenge Competition awards for previous years. The same sum will also be available to Community Safety Partnerships in 2003-04 and 2004-05. For 2002-03 the Highland Wellbeing Alliance Community Safety Partnership has been allocated a total community safety award of £139,501. A similar sum will be awarded to the partnership in both 2003-04 and 2004-05. The programme allows Community Safety Partnerships to secure, for the first time, sustained mainstream funding to be used solely for the purposes of taking forward local priorities identified within their community safety strategies and action plans. Funding can be utilised for both capital and revenue funding including CCTV. Decisions on local community safety priorities are therefore a matter for the local Community Safety Partnership.
