- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 19 June 2006
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Current Status:
Awaiting answer
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are taken to ensure that patients who have undertaken genetic testing are advised of progress on their results.
Answer
Awaiting answer
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 08 June 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 19 June 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide an update on the work of the Flooding Issues Management Committee and list its membership.
Answer
An update on the work beingtaken forward by the Flooding Issues Advisory Committee (FIAC) and itsSub-Committees, as well as a full list of members, can be found within the FIACpages of the Executive website at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Environment/Water/Flooding/16919/FIAC.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 08 June 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 19 June 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any plans to introduce individual transferable quotas and, if so, what the reasons are for such proposals and what steps have been taken to consult the fishing industry and assess the likely economic and social impact of such a quota management system.
Answer
Changes to the arrangementsfor quota management in Scotland are being considered jointly with the other threefisheries administrations and with stakeholders under the Quota ManagementChange Programme, which commenced in April 2005. No decisions have yet beentaken on the specific changes needed. Final decisions on any changes to thecurrent quota management system will only be taken after full consultation withindustry, but, at this stage, we are not necessarily convinced that a fullblown ITQ system would benefit the industry as a whole.
An industry ConsultativeGroup met on the 29 March 2006 where Fisheries Administrations’ current thinking onthe central components for the new system were discussed. We will continue to workclosely with Scottish stakeholders to ensure that any changes to the UK wide quotamanagement system are appropriate for the Scottish industry.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 08 June 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 19 June 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas’ proposals in relation to conserving herring and mackerel stocks.
Answer
Advice on the management ofmackerel is due in October 2006.
The current advice on North Sea herring, published on 9 June 2006, is complex and will require careful study before decisions are taken inconjunction with other EU member states and Norway later this year. In itsresponse the Scottish Executive will be guided by its aim of ensuring asustainable, profitable and well managed herring fishery.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 08 June 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 19 June 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting times have been in each of the last three years for (a) assessments and (b) fittings for digital hearing aids (i) nationally and (ii) broken down by NHS board, showing also the number of patients on each waiting list and expressed as a ratio per 1,000 of population.
Answer
This information iscurrently not held centrally. However, as part of the Audiology ModernisationProject, the Scottish Executive has asked the Information and StatisticsDivision of NHS National Services Scotland to establish a national datacollection programme which will provide information for each NHS board onwaiting times for the assessment and fitting of hearing aids. This data will bepublished in due course.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 08 June 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 19 June 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made any submission to the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management’s consultation on the committee’s interim recommendations and, if so, whether it will provide a summary of the submission and also place a full copy in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Answer
The Executive has not madeany submissions to the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) followingthe publication of its draft recommendations on 27 April 2006.
The Executive is a jointsponsor of CoRWM and is looking forward to receiving the Committee’s finalrecommendations next month. It would not be appropriate for the Executive to respondto CoRWM’s recommendations until after these recommendations have been received.A copy of the Executive’s response to CoRWM’s final recommendations will beplaced in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre at the appropriate time.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 May 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 8 June 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made towards developing strategic planning for the emerging offshore wind sector.
Answer
On 24 May, I announced that weshall be undertaking a strategic environmental assessment (SEA) for offshore windgeneration in Scotland.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 May 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 25 May 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the capacity threshold used by HM Inspectorate of Education and other authorities in relation to the viability of rural schools is 60%; if so, what the status is of this figure, what its origins were, what criteria were used in determining it and whether there are any plans to abolish or review this threshold.
Answer
In 1995, the Accounts Commissionpublished
Room for Learning – Managing Surplus Capacity in School Buildings.One of its focuses was on assessing the potential for rationalisation of schoolswhich were less than 60% occupied. At no time though has the commission, HMIE, orthe Executive suggested that this particular figure should determine the viabilityof any school. Indeed in its annual publication of performance indicators comparingScottish councils, the Accounts Commission shows school occupancy levels in fivebands above and below 40%, 60%, 80% and 100%.
In September 2004, the ScottishExecutive issued circular 2-2004 Additional Guidance on Local Authority Proposalsfor the School Estate, Including School Closures. Significant under occupancyof buildings is mentioned as only one of various reasons which might prompt an authorityto consider a school’s future. The circular emphasises the many factors which authoritiesshould take into account before reaching a decision.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 February 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 3 April 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive how many female remand prisoners have been housed at (a) Craiginches Prison and (b) Cornton Vale Prison in each of the last three years.
Answer
I have asked Tony Cameron,Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is asfollows:
This information is notreadily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 17 March 2006
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Current Status:
Answered by Nora Radcliffe on 31 March 2006
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what plans it has to increase the number of fair trade products supplied by the Parliament’s catering services.
Answer
A number of fair tradeproducts are currently supplied and the SPCB is considering extending the rangeof confectionary items available for sale. The SPCB is always on the look outto increase the fair trade range whenever possible but needs to take account oflimitations such as the catering budget, pricing policy and consumer demand. Wewill undertake to actively promote Fair Trade amongst our customers.
