- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 January 2005
-
Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 20 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what further sections of the A9 it plans to upgrade and whether other sections will be upgraded to dual carriageway status or to "two plus one" on a similar basis to those sections recently completed.
Answer
We are continuing to developour proposals to extend the dual carriageway at Crubenmore by around 2km at a costof £5.4 million, and to provide 4km of additional overtaking opportunities betweenKincraig and Dalraddy, by widening the carriageway to Wide Single 2+1 standard,at a cost of £4.3 million. I expect to publish draft orders for these schemes thisyear. A number of other improvements are planned and work has begun on a route improvementstudy between Perth and Blair Atholl, which will report in the autumn.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2005
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 19 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what recent representations it has made to Her Majesty"s Government regarding payment to the Executive of income from the Crown Estate Commission in respect of salmon farming.
Answer
The Executive has made no representations to Her Majesty’s Government regarding payment to the Executive of income from the Crown Estate. Any Crown Estate surplus is paid in full into the Consolidated Fund, no part of which is hypothecated or ring fenced.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 November 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Tavish Scott on 19 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the relocation of its Central Inquiry Unit to Kinlochleven, whether the unit will move into the premises occupied presently by Database Direct and, if so, when it first considered taking occupancy of these premises.
Answer
The decision to relocate the Central Enquiry Unit to Kinlochleven took account of the fact that suitable vacant property was available. The premises currently occupied by Database Direct were not included in the original property assessment, which was provided to the Executive by the local enterprise company. A final decision on which premises the unit will occupy has yet to be taken.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 January 2005
-
Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 13 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what the rationale is for the provision of free drinking water for school children and whether the provision of free milk would give better nutritional value.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is fully committed to improving the health and diet of young people. As part of this we aim to ensure that all schools take on the recommendations made by the Expert Panel on School Meals, one of which was that fresh free drinking water should be made available in all schools.
Nutritional opinion on the merits of increasing milk consumption, other than low fat milk, is equivocal. However, drinking water or low fat milk is a healthier alternative than sugary drinks.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 06 December 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 23 December 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a calculation of the savings which it expects Scottish Natural Heritage to deliver through "a reduction in time spent travelling between offices", as referred to in Building a Better Scotland: Efficient Government Securing Efficiency, Effectiveness and Productivity.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-12854, answered on 21 December 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 06 December 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 21 December 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a detailed breakdown of the savings it plans to achieve in the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage, as referred to in Building a Better Scotland: Efficient Government Securing Efficiency, Effectiveness and Productivity.
Answer
As stated in Building a Better Scotland: Efficient Government Securing Efficiency, Effectiveness and Productivity, Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage are in the process of developing efficiency plans, and we anticipate more detail will be available in the New Year.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 06 December 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 20 December 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the running costs will be of the proposed Centre for Confidence and Well-Being; whether the Chief Executive and/or the directors will be remunerated and, if so, what the details are of the proposed remuneration and/or expenses; how much funding the centre will receive from (a) the Executive and (b) other sources in each of the three years referred to in the Executive"s news release of 1 December 2004, and in what ways the centre is necessary for the purposes it has been ascribed.
Answer
The Centre for Confidence and Well-Being launched on 2 December is an independent organisation and the remuneration of its chief executive and directors, its running costs and sources of private funding are matters for it.
The Scottish Executive has agreed to provide up to £150,000 a year for three years for projects that the centre will deliver. Full details have yet to be agreed with the centre but priorities will include research into confidence and well-being and training for health care, education and social work professionals. Scottish Enterprise has agreed to provide up to £50,000 per annum for three years to support similar work. This will complement work that the Executive and others are already undertaking to improve confidence across Scotland.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 06 December 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 20 December 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what investment it has made since 1999 in the economy and infrastructure of Nairn.
Answer
The Scottish Executive channels support for business and skills development through Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE). Since April 1999, £4,486,096 has been approved by HIE through its local enterprise company, Inverness and Nairn Enterprise, to assist projects in the Nairn district. These include the expansion of Claymore Dairies, the modernisation of sawmills, and the new Nairn Community Centre. Nairn will also benefit from investment in the surrounding area. The Scottish Executive also allocates funding to local authorities who may investin infrastructure supportive of the local economy.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 22 October 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 17 December 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will break down the figure shown in table 8.02 of Draft Budget 2005-06 into (a) motorways and (b) trunk roads, detailing the total amount paid on each motorway and trunk road project for (i) 2002-03 and (ii) 2003-04; how much it estimates it will spend on such projects in each case in 2004-05, and what plans it has for motorway and trunk road projects in (1) 2005-06, (2) 2006-07 and (3) 2007-08.
Answer
The spending totals shown in Table 8.02 of Draft Budget 2005-06 comprise the entire motorway and trunk road programme for the years shown. Table 8.10 provides a more detailed breakdown of the categories of spending on all road improvement schemes and capital construction projects. The expenditure shown in the following table provides a further breakdown of expenditure on motorway and trunk road projects costing more than £3 million in 2002-03 and 2003-04 and planned expenditure in 2004-05. Expenditure on motorway and trunk road projects individually costing less than £3 million is not broken down but is given as a total.
£000s | 2002-03 Budget | 2003-04 Budget | 2004-05 Budget |
(a)motorways | | | |
M74 Completion | 10.302 | 17.118 | 22.670 |
M74 Maryville-Fullerton | 0.002 | 0.009 | |
M77 Ayr Road Route-residual land compensation | 0.070 | | |
M77 Fenwick-Malletsheugh | 3.605 | 2.900 | 1.570 |
M8 Baillieston-Newhouse and associated improvements | 0.007 | 3.805 | 1.850 |
M8 Newbridge-Edinburgh City Bypass-residual land compensation | 0.105 | | |
M80 Stepps-Haggs (phase 1) | | | 1.099 |
M80 Stepps-Haggs (phase 2) | | | 1.115 |
M80 Stepps-Haggs (phase 3) | | | 1.099 |
(b) trunk roads | | | |
A1 Bowerhouse-Spott | 5.105 | 0.095 | 0.143 |
A! Haddington-Dunbar | 16.460 | 20.275 | 3.626 |
A1 Howburn-Houndwood | 3.804 | 1.526 | 0.049 |
A1 Spott Road-Oswald Dean | | 0.069 | 0.019 |
A68 Pathhead-Tynehead | | 0.009 | 0.316 |
A68 Soutra-South Oxton | | 0.013 | 0.223 |
A7 Auchenrivoch | | 0.050 | 0.311 |
A7 Glenmayne-Yair | | 0.028 | 0.316 |
A7 Hawick Traffic Relief | 0.299 | 0.002 | |
A720 Dreghorn-Lothianburn | 0.180 | 0.010 | |
A720 Edinburgh City Bypass Phase 2 | 0.018 | | |
A74(M) Residual land purchases | 0.618 | | |
A75 Cairntop-Barlae | 0.281 | 0.323 | 0.275 |
A75 Dunragit re-alignment | 0.140 | 0.279 | 0.205 |
A75 Hardgrove-Kinmount | 0.083 | 0.106 | 0.177 |
A75 The Glen | 0.059 | | |
A76 Glenairlie | | 0.011 | 0.246 |
A77Drummockloch-Innermessan | | 0.049 | 0.320 |
A77 Haggstone climbing lane | | 0.063 | 0.320 |
A78 Ardrossan-Stevenston | 0.976 | 14.386 | 20.385 |
A8 Baillieston-Newhouse maintenance project | 1.985 | 17.176 | 3.361 |
A80 Auchenkilns | 1.390 | 4.655 | 9.351 |
A830 Arisaig-Kinsadel | 5.381 | 0.593 | 0.366 |
A830 Arisaig-Loch Nan Uamh | 0.155 | 0.397 | 0.300 |
A876 Kincardine Bridge | | 0.025 | 1.400 |
A9 Ballinluig | | 0.060 | 0.521 |
A9 Helmsdale Phase 1 | 0.609 | 1.106 | 2.520 |
A9 Helmsdale Phase 2 | | 0.632 | 0.200 |
A90 Aberdeen Western Peripheral route | | 0.687 | 5.737 |
A90 Forfar grade separation (Kirriemuir and Glamis) | 3.888 | 0.603 | 0.235 |
A90 Glendoick interchange | 0.100 | 0.057 | 0.050 |
A90 Inchmichael | 0.141 | 0.205 | 0.235 |
A90 Inchture | 0.607 | 0.841 | 0.238 |
A90 Kinfauns | 0.044 | 0.054 | 0.050 |
A93 Preston-Balfarg | 0.668 | 1.431 | 0.100 |
A96 Blackburn-Kintore bypass | 0.791 | 0.158 | |
A96 Coachford climbing lane | 0.146 | 0.569 | 2.050 |
A96 Fochabers and Mosstodloch bypass | 0.327 | 0.360 | 0.200 |
A96 Newtongarry climbing lane | 0.677 | 0.968 | 0.016 |
A985 Kincardine Eastern Link Road | 1.323 | 9.761 | 5.105 |
Small schemes under £3 million | 19.998 | 25.304 | 36.267 |
Notes:
1. It should be noted that the figures quoted above show actual expenditure for previous years and anticipated expenditure and are not in real terms at 2004-05 prices.
2. Further expenditure may be brought forward for projects in 2004-05.
The following major projects are planned to be taken forward between 2005-06 and 2007-08: M74 Completion, M8 Baillieston-Newhouse and associated improvements, M80 Stepps-Haggs, A90 Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route, the new Upper Forth crossing at Kincardine, A96 Fochabers and Mosstodloch Bypass. In addition there are a number of schemes planned on the A77 to improve access to the ferry port at Stranraer, together with schemes arising from route action plans on the A68, A7, A75, A76, A9, A90 and A96. Expenditure on all these projects and their construction start dates is subject to the satisfactory completion of the statutory procedures for each scheme.
A830 Arisaig-Loch Nan Uamh and A9 Helmsdale Phases 1 and 2 are being taken forward in addition to the trunk road programme to take advantage of potential funding from the Highland and Islands Transitional European funding. Construction is programmed to start subject to the satisfactory completion of statutory procedures.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 December 2004
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 16 December 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether responsibility for the maintenance of Kinloch Castle rests with its owners, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and, if so, whether SNH has discharged that responsibility and how much has been spent on (a) repairs and maintenance and (b) other work at Kinloch Castle in each year since the inception of SNH.
Answer
The island of Rum, including Kinloch Castle, is owned by SNH and managed as a National Nature Reserve. Maintenance is therefore an operational issue for SNH to address as part of its overall plans for the island, and I have asked the Chief Executive of SNH to write to the member about this matter.