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Wendy Alexander will be making a statement on the Executive's plans for Best Value on 8 June.

We have agreed that CoSLA will take the lead in promoting organisational learning as part of the development of Best Value.

The Executive has allocated £2.856 million of New Housing Partnership funding to Glasgow City Council in connection with the development of its stock transfer proposal, £1.01 million of this is for consultation with tenants. The council has submitted a further bid for NHP funding which is being assessed by the New Housing Partnership Steering Group.

Scottish Enterprise Glasgow, Glasgow City Council, and the Greater Pollok Social Inclusion Partnership are already taking a number of specific measures to reduce unemployment in Greater Pollok. These measures include: the development of strategic sites for both indigenous companies and inward investors to create new jobs for local residents; facilitating access to employment for Pollok residents through a variety of training, counselling, and work experience schemes including the Glasgow Mentoring Network, Glasgow Works, the Glasgow Employment Zone, the New Deal, Skillseekers and Training for Work; removing barriers to employment through improving childcare provision; supporting the development of the Social Economy as a provider of services and employment; promoting a culture of lifelong learning through initiatives such as the the creation of a Real Learning Centre in Pollok Library; and the establishment of a local economic development company "Invest in Greater Pollok" which will manage the delivery of a wide range of economic development services.

In July 1999, the Office for National Statistics claimant count system shows there were around 1,500 people claiming unemployment-related benefits in the Glasgow travel to work area who were seeking work in construction trades. At this time, the usual occupation of around 1,400 unemployed claimants was in the construction industry. Latest figures, from April 2000, show that there are now 1,400 claimants in the Glasgow travel to work area seeking work in construction trades, and 1,200 with previous experience in construction. All people claiming unemployment related benefits must be currently available for work.

No information is held centrally on all Glaswegians looking for work in construction, the type and level of skills these people have.

Local authorities provide match funding from within their overall section 94 resources to access capital grants from the European Union. On receipt, the grants automatically enhance a local authority's section 94 capital allocation.

RSG is one element of aggregate external finance (AEF), the total central government grant available to local authorities. AEF allocations will increase for 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 from £5,331.557 million to £5,344.734 million, also in real terms.RSG is the balancing factor that makes up each council's share of AEF after specific grants and non-domestic rate income have been allocated. Non-domestic rate income is forecast to increase by up to £190 million in 2000-01 causing a corresponding drop in RSG. Revenue support grant (RSG) for these two years, expressed in real terms using the March 2000 GDP Deflators with base year 1998-99, is therefore £3,443.140 million and £3,252.191 million respectively. Such savings in RSG will remain in the Departmental Expenditure Limit as a provision to cover requirements for additional RSG arising from the impact of NDR appeals, and for other adjustments.

Based on the most recent information available, it is estimated that around £1,500.163 million will be raised in non-domestic rates for 1999-2000. We estimate that £1,550 million will be raised in 2000-01, the same in real terms as 1999-2000 after taking into account expected losses from appeals and transitional relief.

The amount of lottery funding received by parliamentary constituency during the 12 months to 31 December 1999 is as follows:

Constituency	Amount (£)
Aberdeen Central	702,290
Aberdeen North	901,741
Aberdeen South	38,505
Airdrie & Shotts	464,740
Angus	1,126,507
Argyll & Bute	1,483,290
Ayr	641,494
Banff & Buchan	312,289
Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross	1,432,524
Carrick, Cumnock & Doon Valley	369,107
Central Fife	223,553
Clydebank & Milngavie	302,852
Clydesdale	3,543,253
Coatbridge & Chryston	220,621
Cumbernauld & Kilsyth	763,986
Cunninghame North	811,149
Cunninghame South	556,482
Dumbarton	415,807
Dumfries	1,006,490
Dundee East	317,254
Dundee West	596,273
Dunfermline East	150,089
Dunfermline West	532,057
East Kilbride	130,473
East Lothian	2,104,878
Eastwood	148,515
Edinburgh Central	6,027,193
Edinburgh East & Musselburgh	2,318,536
Edinburgh North & Leith	1,495,753
Edinburgh Pentlands	630,009
Edinburgh South	611,536
Edinburgh West	781,262
Falkirk East	896,763
Falkirk West	842,305
Galloway & Upper Nithsdale	1,177,049
Glasgow Anniesland	1,375,066
Glasgow Baillieston	246,216
Glasgow Cathcart	898,071
Glasgow Govan	548,381
Glasgow Kelvin	5,977,378
Glasgow Maryhill	624,651
Glasgow Pollok	133,095
Glasgow Rutherglen	308,012
Glasgow Shettleston	1,256,235
Glasgow Springburn	286,462
Gordon	370,131
Greenock & Inverclyde	1,347,344
Hamilton North & Bellshill	64,965
Hamilton South	472,122
Inverness East, Nairn & Lochaber	1,608,783
Kilmarnock & Loudoun	1,917,246
Kirkcaldy	1,354,966
Linlithgow	627,262
Livingston	931,738
Midlothian	1,080,757
Moray	1,624,507
Motherwell & Wishaw	1,695,370
North East Fife	557,361
North Tayside	1,007,063
Ochil	3,545,518
Orkney & Shetland	935,093
Paisley North	1,207,914
Paisley South	912,036
Perth	1,120,419
Ross, Skye & Inverness West	1,320,647
Roxburgh & Berwickshire	1,057,847
Stirling	1,501,671
Strathkelvin & Bearsden	297,346
Tweeddale, Ettrick & Lauderdale	2,631,941
West Aberdeenshire & Kincardine	535,287
West Renfrewshire	2,718,141
Western Isles	2,203,241
Constituency Not Indicated	6,491
Total Amount Awarded	80,383,399

I refer you to my answer of 11 February 2000 about Scottish Executive support for Neighbourhood Watch and other initiatives. Many of the major crime prevention initiatives undertaken by the Scottish Executive are evaluated for their effectiveness. However, some benefits are indirect and others may take several years to feed through to making a direct impact on other parts of the criminal justice system.