- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 29 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 22 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the The Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers in relation to attracting individuals from the public or private sector into the teaching profession.
Answer
The Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) is not a free-standing organisation, but is a forum through which the Scottish Executive, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the teacher organisations can reach collaborative decisions. Negotiations on a range of issues relating to pay and conditions are continuing through the SNCT.In these discussions we are conscious of the commitment of Scottish ministers to attracting a range of talented and committed individuals to the profession, from across the spectrum of Scottish society.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 21 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will grant or seek aid, under article 4 of the EEC Council Regulation No 26 of 1962 on rules of competition in agricultural products in respect of potatoes other than starch potatoes in order to support the potato industry in Scotland and, in particular, in the Montrose area.
Answer
The Scottish potato industry has not sought assistance under this regulation and we have no plans to offer financial support to an industry that has traditionally been self-sufficient.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus MacKay on 20 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the total costs of special advisers to the First Minister were for the financial years 1999-2000 and 2000-01, what the estimated total costs of such advisers are for the financial years 2001-02 and 2002-03 and whether it will provide a breakdown of such costs and estimated costs.
Answer
The total cost for the financial year 1999-2000 is £398,062 and for 2000-01 it is £560,843. Details are:
| | Salary | ERNIC | 16% Pension Contribution | Total |
1999-2000 | £310,530 | £37,847 | £49,685 | £398,062 |
2000-01 | £440,884 | £49,842 | £70,117 | £560,843 |
It is not possible to estimate the total costs for the years 2001-02 and 2002-03 as the number of special advisers in post from time to time is a matter for the First Minister.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 20 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive (a) what the agreed allocation of funding for financial years (i) 2000-01 and (ii) 2001-02 is for each further education college, (b) what the total debt to be serviced by each college and cost of servicing such debt (i) was for 2000-01 and (ii) will be for 2001-02 and (c) what proportion of each college's grant-in-aid remains after any payments have been made in respect of servicing debts.
Answer
The allocation of public funding to individual colleges of further education is a matter for the Scottish Further Education Funding Council. Details of the 2000-01 and 2001-02 grant-in-aid allocation rounds have been made publicly available on the council's website. The council's annual reports also contain an overall summary analysed by college of all funding allocations made during a year. The most recently published annual report by the council is that for 1999-2000. The details of a college's indebtedness and the cost and source of funds to service debt will be set out in the audited annual accounts. College accounts for 2000-01 are required to be laid before the Parliament by 30 April 2002, and those for 2001-02 by 30 April 2003.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus MacKay on 20 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Executive, any local authority enterprise company or other agency or public body have instructed (a) Thompsons Solicitors and Solicitor Advocates or (b) Digby Brown Solicitors to carry out legal or other services and what the (i) nature of instruction and (ii) remuneration paid or to be paid was in each case.
Answer
Neither Thompsons Solicitors and Solicitor Advocates nor Digby Brown Solicitors has been instructed to carry out legal or other services on behalf of the Executive. The procurement of legal and other services by local authorities, Local Enterprise Companies and other public bodies is a matter for the individual body concerned and central records are not held by the Executive.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 20 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what shrieval appointments have been made in each year since l997 of any individuals known to have been members of (a) the Scottish National Party, (b) the Labour Party, (c) the Conservative and Unionist Party (d) the Liberal Democrats or (e) any other political party.
Answer
This information is not collected from candidates for judicial appointments.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus MacKay on 20 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether Fife Council can, on grounds of commercial confidentiality, withhold information concerning any rental income it pays in respect of premises sublet from any MSP's constituency office and whether individuals will have the right to access such information under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Bill.
Answer
Whether Fife Council would decide to release such information, or withhold it on grounds of commercial confidentiality, is a matter for the council. The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Bill would, if enacted, provide individuals with a right of access to information, balanced by provisions intended to ensure that commercially sensitive information is afforded appropriate protection. Consideration of whether information would be disclosed would be made on a case by case basis.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 20 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to increase fees payable to the Registers of Scotland in respect of applications for registration under (a) the Land Register and (b) the General Register of Sasines.
Answer
The fees payable to the Registers of Scotland in respect of such applications and its various information services are the subject of periodic review. The fees applicable to such applications were set in the Fees in the Registers of Scotland Order 1995 (SI 1995/1945) on the basis of an ad valorem scale. That scale bases the fee level for recording and registration on the value of the property transaction, thus maintaining such fee levels in line with the property market and inflation.The fees for recording, registration and information services were the subject of a consultative review in 1998 which led to the Fees in the Registers of Scotland Amendment Order 1999 (SI 1999/1085). That Order left the ad valorem scale for the recording and registration fees in question unchanged.The fees which the agency may charge are set at a level to meet its operating costs, but also to ensure that conveyancing costs in Scotland are kept as low as possible. This policy is consistent with section 25 of the Land Registers (Scotland) Act 1868 which requires that the amount of fees payable shall not be greater than is reasonably sufficient for defraying the expenses of the Registers of Scotland, including the expenses of the improvement of the systems of registration and recording.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 02 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 16 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to the European Commission in opposition to the draft Physical Agents Directive on vibration and place copies of any such representations in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre or, if it will not make direct representations, whether it will make such representations to Her Majesty's Government and place copies of these in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has no functions in relation to the Health and Safety implications in the proposed European Commission's Physical Agents Directive. Therefore representations to the European Commission will be a matter for the UK Government.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 12 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 15 November 2001
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Executive has confidence in the ability of BEAR Scotland Ltd to fulfil its obligations in maintaining and keeping clear roads in the north of Scotland.
Answer
All the private sector companies responsible for trunk road maintenance need to demonstrate that their arrangements meet the detailed and exacting requirements set out in their contracts.Contractors' performance is reviewed and monitored continuously by the Performance Audit Group who report to the Scottish Executive. If the contractors fail to perform there are a range of sanctions that the Scottish Executive could take.
