- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 February 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 7 March 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any acceptable alternatives to the TETRA network are available to the police.
Answer
The TETRA standard is the only technology which currently meets the requirements of the police. Airwave provides, for example, encrypted communication and a very high standard of voice clarity and coverage.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 February 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 7 March 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it envisages supplementing the police's TETRA network with GPRS technology.
Answer
The TETRA system does not support General Packet Radio Service (GPRS). It does, however, support a data transfer service which is similar to GPRS.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 February 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 7 March 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what exchanging capabilities mm02 is contracted to supply to police forces following the roll-out of the TETRA network.
Answer
The term “exchanging capabilities” is not used to describe any of the services provided by O2 to the police.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 February 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 4 March 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made towards incorporating into the Scottish planning system the recommendations in the first Stewart Report on the planning regulations for mobile phone masts.
Answer
In response both to the recommendations of the Stewart Report and of the Transport and Environment Committee’s inquiry into radio telecommunications, amendments were made to the planning legislation and guidance for telecommunications in 2001.
The Executive published National Planning Policy Guideline 19 (Bib. number 15218), Planning Advice Note 62 (Bib. number 16043) and Circular 5/2001 (Bib. number 17462) to accompany these changes.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 31 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 23 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether guidance issued to Scottish Water or its predecessor organisations on sustainable development was made available to the Water Industry Commissioner between 1999 and 2004.
Answer
Guidance issued to Scottish Water and the former Water Authorities on sustainable development was not specifically issued to the Water Industry Commissioner. but was available to him on request.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 February 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 22 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding Scottish Enterprise allocated to research into, and development of (a) organic farming and (b) agricultural biotechnology in each of the last five years.
Answer
This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 31 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 15 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has approached the organisers of London's bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games about the possibility of Scotland hosting Olympic mountain biking events if the bid is successful.
Answer
To remain within the city-based bidding rules of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the only events that a London Olympic Games could possibly stage outside London were the sailing and football competitions. Scotland went through the appropriate channels to be considered for inclusion in the London bid to stage an element of both events and was successful in securing Hampden Park as a venue for some of the Olympic football matches. This was included in the London 2012 candidature file submitted to the IOC on 15 November 2004.
There will also be opportunities for hosting training camps and the staging of other competition events in Scotland in the run-up to the games. The creation ofEventScotland to deliver our major events strategy will have a significant roleto play in this objective. Through EventScotland and its partners we have, forexample, already been successful in attracting the 2007 mountain bike world championship to Fort William which requires a commitment to successfully deliverthe 2005 and 2006 mountain bike world cups in the lead up to 2007. The World Championships at Fort William will be the last major mountain bike Cross Country competition before the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and a key event for all riders and their national cycling federations.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 28 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 9 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is conducting any research into how to improve planning guidance on wind farms in order to minimise the cumulative impact of wind farm developments.
Answer
The Environmental Advisory Forum for Renewable Energy is considering the need for research into the operation and effectiveness of existing renewable energy policies.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 28 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 9 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is consulting local authorities directly about the cumulative impact of wind farm developments and whether improvements can be made to planning guidance to improve the selection process for wind farms in any given area.
Answer
Existing guidance recognises that cumulative impacts may, in particular circumstances, need to be addressed before consent is granted. With the assistance of the Environmental Advisory Forum, we are considering whether there is need for additional policy guidance or advice. Local authorities have two representatives on the forum.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 28 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 9 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-13508 by Ross Finnie on 24 January 2005, in which month it expects to introduce a revised code of practice for the safe use of plant protection products.
Answer
There are some complex issues to be resolved prior to the introduction of a revised Code of Practice and I cannot be any more specific than the answer given to question S2W-13508.
