Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-10710.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-10710.

The Scottish Executive has established a Joint Scrutiny Forum (JSF) to consider the organisation and implementation of the scrutiny of Best Value in Scottish local authorities.

The JSF aims to support inspection systems (where relevant) and procedures which co-ordinate the Best Value scrutiny of Scottish local authorities to avoid duplication between Inspectorates, the Accounts Commission and Scottish Executive Departments. The JSF also encourages the development of methods for joint working and robust scrutiny processes to ensure that Best Value is rigorously appraised.

The members of the JSF are HM Inspectors of Schools, Social Work Services Inspectorate, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary, HM Inspectorate of Fire Services, the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate, Scottish Homes, Audit Scotland (for the Accounts Commission for Scotland) and the Scottish Executive Development Department.

The JSF will meet on a quarterly basis. Further information, including newsletters, can be accessed at the Best Value website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/bestvalue/.

The Scottish Executive is working in partnership with local authorities and others to further develop Best Value in local government.

The Accounts Commission has recently completed its first audit of Performance Management and Planning (PMP) in local authorities. It found that the majority of services scrutinised were making progress in developing effective PMP systems. The Commission will continue its support of authorities. The Executive and local authorities are also facilitating a number of seminars on PMP and Best Value in particular service areas.

The Scottish Executive expect that improved PMP and performance information systems in local authorities will assist councillors and service managers in focussing available resources on key service priorities.

Local authorities publish annual Public Performance Reports (PPR). These reports provide councillors, officials and members of the public with key information about the council's performance in the different service areas. PPR are a key part of Best Value, showing performance against key indicators. The need for PPR was agreed between the then Secretary of State for Scotland and CoSLA in July 1998, and set out in Scottish Office Development Department circular 5/99. The Best Value Task Force issued guidance on the development of PPR systems in June 1999.

The Scottish Executive is encouraging local authorities to adopt benchmarking processes as part of their wider development of PMP systems. A number of benchmarking standards are being utilised by authorities.

Best Value is central to the Executive's drive to modernise local government. Best Value is about ways of working which improve local authority service delivery. These include linking budgets and other resources to key service priorities, ensuring that decision-makers receive full and accurate information about service performance, and seeking out benchmarking partners.

The long-term aim is to achieve the quality and range of services local residents and businesses want at prices they can afford. Best Value reviews should include mechanisms for consultation with customers and council tax payers, and for being open about performance outcomes in priority services.

In better aligning demand for and supply of services, we expect Best Value to be a useful tool in establishing where funds are being applied to little effect and could be better recycled within the authority. The Executive's consultation paper, Best Value in Local Government: Next Steps, suggests that councils' plans should include an estimation of the resources they intend to release and redistribute through implementation of Best Value. The paper suggests a floor target for this of 2% of total budgets each year.

I refer the member to the answer I gave to question S1W-10710.

GPs have for some time been encouraged to prescribe generically, unless there are good clinical reasons for proprietary products to be prescribed. Increasing use of local formularies and GP computing systems; the development of practice-based prescribing protocols, and enhanced pharmacist input into prescribing review and audit have resulted in excellent progress having been achieved in this area and the current rate of generic prescribing is now over 70%. The remaining identified potential savings from greater generic prescribing are comparatively low at approximately £2 million (0.3% of the overall cost of prescribing in Scotland).

None. Automatic generic substitution would not always be clinically appropriate.

Data is regularly made available to health boards and Primary Care Trusts to identify recurring potential savings which might be achieved by further generic prescribing by practitioners in their area.

Under the current SPCB policy on Smoking in the Workplace, smoking is not permitted at any time in any of the buildings in the parliamentary complex except in a designated smoking area. At the moment, the central courtyard behind PHQ is the only designated smoking area.

The SPCB has recently commissioned a survey of all members and staff to see whether or not designated smoking areas should be provided for in our new complex at Holyrood. The outcome of this survey will inform its decision on this issue.