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This is a reserved matter. We remain in regular contact with the oil and gas industry on a wide range of issues, in particular through PILOT, of which I am Vice Chair. We will continue to work with the industry and with the UK Government through PILOT, to strengthen and sustain the oil and gas industry in the UKCS.

We are in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including the oil and gas industry.

The information requested is not held centrally. Under Paragraph 34 of Schedule 1 of the National Health Service (General Dental Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1996, a dentist is permitted to charge patients who do not turn up for their appointments.

The information is as follows:

Fire Brigade	1999-2000		2000-01		2001-02
	FA	%	FA	%	FA	%
Central Scotland	2,602	51.4	2,537	48.4	2,699	46.9
Dumfries and Galloway	784	40.3	657	31	764	36.7
Fife	3,159	46	3,096	46	2,926	42.6
Grampian	3,135	39	3,342	41.1	3,181	39.4
Highland and Islands	1,953	41.6	2,187	40	2,116	41.5
Lothian and Borders	9,399	46.8	10,209	47.7	10,695	47.7
Strathclyde	25,165	44.2	26,179	42.9	27,146	43.8
Tayside	3,943	43.4	3,915	43.4	4,297	43.5
Scotland Total	50,140	46	52,122	43.8	53,824	44

Notes:FA: The number of false alarm incidents attended by each brigade in the financial year.%: The number of false fire alarm incidents attended by brigades as a percentage of all incidents. These figures include well-intentioned calls and faulty apparatus as well as malicious calls.

Information on patients who did not attend a hospital appointment is available only for first out-patient appointments. The number, and percentage, of patients who did not attend (DNA) their first out-patient appointment, for the years ended 31 March 2000, 31 March 2001 and 31 March 2002, by NHS board, is given in the following table.There are many reasons why patients might fail to attend a hospital appointment. Work is currently under way to examine ways of reducing the number of patients who do not keep appointments, to identify and disseminate good practice, and to consider the development of targets to drive improvements in performance. The group is expected to report before the end of 2002.NHSScotland: Number and Percentage of Patients That Did Not Attend Their First Out-patient Appointment, by NHS Board of Residence. Years Ended 31 March 2000, 31 March 2001 and 31 March 2002^P

	Year Ended 31 March 2000		Year Ended 31 March 2001		Year Ended 31 March 2002P
NHS Board	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage
Argyll and Clyde	14,031	11.6%	13,947	11.5%	10,817	12.3%
Ayrshire and Arran	10,791	10.2%	10,708	10.4%	11,653	11.4%
Borders	1,730	6.3%	1,666	6.3%	1,679	6.2%
Dumfries and Galloway	2,166	6.8%	2,189	6.9%	1,766	7.2%
Fife	9,827	9.9%	9,979	10.1%	9,975	10.2%
Forth Valley	6,761	9.2%	6,913	9.5%	6,897	10.4%
Grampian	9,277	8.0%	9,912	8.8%	10,318	9.0%
Greater Glasgow	45,883	15.5%	42,402	14.9%	46,615	16.8%
Highland	3,968	7.2%	3,856	7.1%	3,758	6.9%
Lanarkshire	20,096	13.0%	19,120	12.7%	18,451	13.9%
Lothian	22,966	11.4%	23,001	11.6%	21,103	11.5%
Orkney	129	4.0%	149	4.6%	154	5.7%
Shetland	210	4.1%	243	4.6%	157	3.4%
Tayside	13,956	10.2%	13,714	10.3%	13,305	10.4%
Western Isles	497	7.3%	556	8.0%	440	7.9%
Scotland	162,288	11.3%	158,357	11.3%	157,088	12.0%

^PProvisional.Source: SMR00, ISD Scotland.

I have referred the question to the Scottish Arts Council asking that a response be made directly to the member.

This is an operational matter for the enterprise networks.

Regulations can be revoked or simplified both by specific instruments addressing these regulations and by elements contained in more wide-ranging instruments. It is therefore not possible to give figures for reductions in bureaucracy. The Executive works to ensure that all regulations are necessary and proportionate. In particular, for regulations which impact on business, charities and the voluntary sector, the use of the Regulatory Impact Assessment and the Review Regulatory Impact Assessment should guarantee that regulations are proportionate, necessary and fit for purpose when they are introduced and remain so over time.

The available information is given in the following table. The category of "drug" crimes recorded by the police only includes crimes involving the importation, cultivation, supply or possession of drugs. Other types of crime e.g. crimes of dishonesty to fund the purchase of drugs or crimes committed under the influence of drugs may be "drug related" but cannot be separately distinguished in the recorded crime statistics.Drug Crimes Recorded by Police Force Area per 10,000 Population and as a Percentage of Total Crime, 1999 to 2001

	Drugs Crimes as a Rate per 10,000 Population			Drugs Crimes as a Percentage of all Crimes
Police Force area	1999	2000	2001	1999	2000	2001
Central	47	46	71	7	8	12
Dumfries and Galloway	48	31	45	8	6	8
Fife	43	36	47	6	5	6
Grampian	50	44	50	5	5	6
Lothian and Borders	57	58	63	6	6	7
Northern	55	39	58	12	8	12
Strathclyde	76	81	89	8	9	10
Tayside	51	42	53	6	5	7
Scotland	62	61	71	7	7	9

The latest available information on the number of consultant vacancies in each acute trust, is shown in the following table. Information at hospital level is not held centrally.Consultant Vacancies in Acute Trusts in NHSScotland: Headcount at 30 September 2001

	Establishment	In Post	Total Vacancies	Length of Vacancy		Vacancies as a % of Establishment
				< 6 Months	6 Months or More	Total	6 Months or More
Argyll and Clyde Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	164	151	13	8	5	7.9	3.0
Ayrshire and Arran Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	138	136	2	2	-	1.4	-
Borders Acute Hospital NHS Trust	49	47	2	2	-	4.1	-
Dumfries and Galloway Acute and Maternity Hospitals NHS Trust	69	68	1	-	1	1.4	1.4
Fife Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	129	116	13	1	12	10.1	9.3
Forth Valley Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	112	110	2	1	1	1.8	0.9
Grampian University Hospitals NHS Trust	308	295	13	11	2	4.2	0.6
North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust	469	462	7	2	5	1.5	1.1
South Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust	211	209	2	2	-	0.9	-
Yorkhill NHS Trust	115	112	3	3	-	2.6	-
Highland Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	102	102	-	-	-	-	-
Lanarkshire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust	226	207	19	8	11	8.4	4.9
Lothian University Hospitals NHS Trust	445	437	8	1	7	1.8	1.6
West Lothian Healthcare NHS Trust1	85	80	5	2	3	5.9	3.5
Tayside University Hospitals NHS Trust	270	262	8	8	-	3.0	-
Orkney Health Board2	3	3	-	-	-	-	-
Shetland Health Board2	9	7	2	-	2	22.2	22.2
Western Isles Health Board2	15	12	3	1	2	20.0	13.3

Source: ISD(M)4 Medical and Dental Census ISD Scotland.Notes:West Lothian Healthcare is an integrated trust providing acute and primary care services. It is not possible to provide separate data for each of these services.Orkney Health Board, Shetland Health Board and Western Isles Health Board are special health boards providing acute and primary care services. It is not possible to provide separate data for each of these services.