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Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S2W-01411

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 July 2003
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 4 August 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the Scottish submission to Her Majesty's Government's consultation document, A Modern Regional Policy for the United Kingdom, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

The Scottish European Structural Funds Forum response to the UK Government consultation A Modern Regional Policy for the United Kingdom is available on the Scottish Executive web site at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/esf. This response, along with other responses to the consultation from Scottish partners, will be published in due course by the Department for Trade and Industry on their web site http://www.dti.gov.uk.

Question reference: S2W-00985

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 June 2003
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 1 August 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) small, (b) medium-si'ed and (c) large businesses' water bills have (i) increased, (ii) remained static and (iii) decreased in each of the last three years.

This is an operational matter for Scottish Water. I have asked Dr Jon Hargreaves the Chief Executive of Scottish Water to respond. His response is as follows:-For the last two years, the way in which changes in charges have affected business customers are shown in the table. Figures for the change between 2000-01 to 2001-02 cannot be provided because of the introduction of a new billing system by one of the former water authorities.

Business Size		2001-02 to 2002-03	2002-03 to 2003-04 ²
Small where	Increased	41095	57429
Charge <=£600	Remained Static ¹	15649	2581
	Decreased	22845	12478
Medium Sized	Increased	42440	59848
Where charge	Remained Static ¹	13289	4471
>£600 but < £100,000	Decreased	15948	14687
Large Businesses	Increased	120	140
Where charges	Remained Static ¹	15	13
>£100,000	Decreased	45	42
Total		151446	151689

^Note:1Includes all bills that changed by less than 3%.²Assumes meter size and volumes consumed in 2003-04 will be the same as for 2002-03.

Question reference: S2W-01326

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 July 2003
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 31 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive for how long the #10 million transitional aid for the fishing industry will be made available.

Question reference: S2W-01324

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 July 2003
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 31 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive Scottish Executive what additional political and scientific steps have been taken following fisheries negotiations in December 2002 in order to make representations to the European Union that the management of cod should be separated from the management of other white fish species and what progress has been made in respect of any such steps.

Question reference: S2W-01327

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 July 2003
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 31 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made on the decommissioning scheme for fishing vessels and what the timescales in respect of the scheme are.

I announced on 10 July the issue of decommissioning grant offers to the owners of 69 vessels. Offers of grant are made to the owners of vessels drawn from a reserve list if offers to those on the original approval list are refused or decommissioning bids are withdrawn and there are sufficient scheme funds available.Owners have 30 working days from the issue of a grant offer letter from the department to decide whether or not to accept the offer of decommissioning grant: and until 31 October to decommission the vessel. Those who are willing to surrender their fishing vessel licence may receive an advance (50%) of decommissioning grant, provided they do so by 31 August.

Question reference: S2W-01325

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 July 2003
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 31 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what management options there are for white fish stocks in respect of replacing the existing days at sea scheme currently under discussion with the European Commission; what the Executive's preferred option is, and when the discussions will be concluded.

The Commission has proposed long term recovery plans for cod and northern hake stocks. Alternatively the type of arrangements operated under Annex XVII to Council Regulation (EC) No 2341/2002, or something derived from them, may be an option.There are issues attached to either of these options. The Executive's position is that measures are necessary to promote the recovery of cod (and hake) stocks: and that the range and detail of such measures need to be fully explored - including taking account of comments and advice from industry.Discussions and negotiations to that end are underway. New arrangements need to be in place for 2004, implying the need for decisions to be taken during the autumn and, at latest, at the December Agriculture and Fisheries Council.

Question reference: S2W-01018

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 June 2003
Current Status: Answered by Patricia Ferguson on 30 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive which joint ministerial committee meetings it has attended; what the subject was of each such meeting; which minister attended, and which meetings it has not attended.

The table provides a complete list of Scottish Executive Ministerial attendance at all JMC plenary and functional group meetings that have been convened since 7 October 1999:

Subject	Date	Venue	Scottish Minister
Plenary	1 September 2000	Edinburgh	First Minister and Deputy First Minister
Plenary	30 October 2001	Cardiff	First Minister and Deputy First Minister
Plenary	22 October 2002	London	First Minister and Deputy First Minister

Europe	1 March 2001	London	Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs and Deputy Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs
Europe	8 November 2001	London	No Scottish Minister was able to participate
Europe	7 March 2002	London	Deputy First Minister
Europe	11 June 2002	London	Deputy First Minister
Europe	27 September 2002	London	First Minister
Europe	22 October 2002	London	First Minister & Deputy First Minister
Europe	30 January 2003	London	Deputy Minister for Education and Young People
Health	7 April 2000	Cardiff	First Minister and Minister for Health and Community Care
Health	5 June 2000	London	Deputy First Minister and Minister for Health and Community Care
Health	16 June 2000	Glasgow	Deputy First Minister and Minister for Health and Community Care
Health	26 October 2000	Belfast	Minister for Health and Community Care
Health	22 October 2001	London	Minister for Health and Community Care

Subject	Date	Venue	Scottish Minister
Knowledge Economy	11 February 2000	Edinburgh	First Minister and Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
Knowledge Economy	26 May 2000	Edinburgh	Deputy First Minister and Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning

Poverty	9 December 1999	London	Minister for Children and Education and Deputy Minister for Communities
Poverty	26 May 2000	Edinburgh	Deputy First Minister and Minister for Communities
Poverty	18 September 2002	London	Minister for Finance and Public Services and Minister for Social Justice

Question reference: S2W-01060

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 June 2003
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 21 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken to ensure that dentists meet any additional expenses incurred as a result of implementing new regulations on disabled access to dental practices.

General dental practitioners are independent contractors to the NHSScotland and it is their responsibility as service providers to comply with all relevant legislation relating to access by disabled people.NHS boards are currently conducting comprehensive access audits of all healthcare premises, including services provided through independent contractors, and the results will be shared with the contractors concerned.£7.3 million has been provided over the last three financial years for improvements to general dental practices, with a further £3 million being provided in this financial year. It is for NHS boards and Primary Care Trusts in conjunction with the dental profession locally to agree how best to target this funding. However, one of the areas that they have been asked to direct funding to is improvements to practices to address the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act.

Question reference: S2W-01205

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 June 2003
Current Status: Answered by Tavish Scott on 17 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what the status is of the agreement between it and the Regional Government of Tuscany, announced in its news release SEfm196/2003 of 19 June 2003, and, in particular, whether there are any penalties associated with non-compliance with any provision of the agreement.

The action plan, signed on 19 June 2003 by the First Minister and President Martini of Tuscany, builds on the Co-operation Agreement concluded with Tuscany in November 2002. The action plan sets out some of the specific areas on which Tuscany and Scotland will co-operate. Neither the action plan nor the agreement is a legally binding document and there are no penalties associated with non-compliance.

Question reference: S2W-00865

Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 June 2003
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 15 July 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive what level of funding has been made available for broadband in each local enterprise area, expressed also per capita; whether any future funding has been, or will be, allocated for this purpose, and, if so, how much, and when, such funding will be available.