- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by George Reid on 11 December 2003
To ask the Presiding Officer whether the allegations reported in the Scottish Daily Mail on 1 December 2003 that a company that won a multi-million pound contract for the Holyrood Project has admitted funding a party for staff of the construction managers who are stated to have recommended the company for the contract should be investigated by the Auditor General.
Answer
It is for the AuditorGeneral for Scotland to decide which aspects of the Parliament buildingproject should be audited. I can assure you that for the forthcoming audit,announced as part of the Fraser Inquiry, the auditors will have access to allrelevant Parliament papers and personnel.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by George Reid on 11 December 2003
To ask the Presiding Officer whether EMBT/RMJM have completed the services to be provided under their contract with the Scottish Parliament and, if not, what work remains to be completed, with particular reference to any design work.
Answer
The convener of the HolyroodProgress Group has informed me that EMBT/RMJM has not yet completed thecontract for architectural services and continues to provide those services stillrequired on a day to day basis. The architect is required to verify all work onsite; to certify it complete, comment and approve trade contractor detaildesign drawings and resolution of complex interfaces, as well as carry out siteinspections to determine that all the work undertaken meets the requiredspecification. This will continue until practical completion of the building.Any outstanding design work relates to finalising detailed design issues withinthe remaining work packages in discussion with Bovis Lend Lease and the relevantcontractors.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 10 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been made available to promote walking and cycling and to reduce traffic accidents in the Highland Council area and which projects have received funds under this allocation.
Answer
The Executive has allocated£1,493,000 to Highland Council over the period 2000-06 for safer routes to schooland cycling, walking and safer streets projects. The council has used itsallocations for the period 2000-04 to develop safer routes to school at 72schools. A further sum of £1.214 million was allocated to the council over theperiod 2003-06 to implement 20 mph zones round schools and related safetyprojects. The Executive is currently identifying a number of sites in the areawhere 20 mph zones around schools can be implemented. It is expected that theimplementation of such zones will be commence before April 2004.
In2001-02 some £310,000 was made available from the accident investigation budgetto contribute towards improvements at Dochfour Bends and Tullochroam on the A82as well as upgrading the layout at the A9 Ballinluig Junction. As part of the annual programme of accident investigation studies and improvements afurther £438,000 was made available from the 2002-03 budget for sites withinthe Highland Region. The largest proportion approximately £325,000 wenttowards junction improvements along the A9 corridor between Perth and Inverness. Other significant expenditure went towards upgradingthe bends in the vicinity of Glengarry Guest House on the A82 as well asinstigating a study of the route between Tyndrum and Inverness ata cost of £25,000.
The current financial yearhas seen a further £238,000 made available so far for accident investigation work.This is in addition to £132,000 towards the provision of upgraded signing andgateway treatments at townships on the A9 north of Inverness.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 10 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide assistance to the shopmobility Highland bus service for local disabled people in Inverness and Dingwall under the Rural Community Transport Initiative and, if so, whether funding will be provided prior to the end of the current financial year.
Answer
Shopmobility Highland didnot submit a funding application to the latest round of the Rural CommunityTransport Initiative (RCTI). No funding can be made available in the currentfinancial year, but Shopmobility may apply to the next round of the RCTI inspring 2004.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 10 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-3668 by Mr Jim Wallace on 14 November 2003, which public limited companies have had their registered offices in Scotland as a result of commencing trading in each year since 1997.
Answer
I have asked Claire Clancy,the Chief Executive of Companies House, to respond. Her response is as follows:
Companies House is aRegistry, and as such information held on record on public limited companiescan be accessed either from our website www.companieshouse.gov.ukor from our contact centre on 0870 33 33 636. There is a charge for someinformation, although some is free.
The information requested onthe names of the 128 public limited companies incorporated in Scotland inthe financial years 1996-97 to 2001-02 is given in a table New Scottish PLCs,a copy of which has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib.number 30159).
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 10 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2O-715 by Allan Wilson on 13 November 2003, what appropriate measures it is taking to bring stability to the European salmon market and reduce the risk of a recurrence of dumping.
Answer
The Executive and the Departmentof Trade and Industry are presently considering the case for “safeguardmeasures” under the terms of EC Regulation 3285/ 94 and 519/84 (the SafeguardsRegulation).
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 20 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 9 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the First Minister was due to officially open the Arisaig bypass section of the A830; on what date or dates it had been planned for him to officiate at the opening; whether he will officiate at the opening ceremony on a future date; and when the Executive will announce any decision on the upgrading to twin track of the remaining single track section of the A830.
Answer
I am exploring the possibility of attending a ceremony in the spring to acknowledge the achievement of constructing the recently completed section of the A830 between Arisaig and Kinsadel. The First Minister has not planned to attend.
Planning for the improvement of the section of the A830 between Arisaig and Loch Nan Uahm is continuing. If good progress is made on resolving environmental impacts, draft orders will be published in the spring.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by George Reid on 5 December 2003
To ask the Presiding Officer what the floor area is of each MSP office in the MSP block of the new Parliament building at Holyrood.
Answer
The Convener of the HolyroodProgress Group has informed me that the floor area in each MSP office in theMSP block measures 15m². In addition, there is 12m² of adjacent floor spaceearmarked for researchers.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andrew Welsh on 5 December 2003
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to the answer to question S2W-3575 by Mr Andrew Welsh on 19 November 2003, whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will place in the Scottish Parliamentary Information Centre the monthly reports on the work of the Scottish Parliament staff member based in Brussels.
Answer
The monthly reports from the Scottish Parliament staff member based in Brussels to the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body are made available every month on the External Liaison Unit’s pages on SPEIR
http://intranet/speir/services/elu/elu-hd-reports.html.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 3 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made written representations to HM Customs and Excise regarding Audit Scotland's VAT status and, if so, whether copies of such representations will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Answer
Audit Scotland isa statutory body independent of the Scottish Executive. The Executive does not haveresponsibility for VAT matters relating to Audit Scotland. Such questions shouldbe addressed to the Auditor General for Scotland.
