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I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her response is as follows:

In each of the last five years the proportion of Communities Scotland Affordable Housing Budget which has been committed for land purchase costs is as follows:

2000-01 Proportion of budget = 8.00%, representing a grant amount of £17.917 million.

2001-02 Proportion of budget = 6.80%, representing a grant amount of £16.790 million.

2002-03 Proportion of budget = 8.50%, representing a grant amount of £18.649 million.

2003-04 Proportion of budget = 7.20%, representing a grant amount of £21.636 million.

2004-05 Proportion of budget = 8.20%, representing a grant amount of £23.852 million.

I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her response is as follows:

The average cost of land prices of housing plots funded through the rural home ownership scheme in each of the last five years was as follows:

2000-01 Average land cost per plot = £12,935.

2001-02 Average land cost per plot = £14,900, 15.2% increase over previous year.

2002-03 Average land cost per plot = £16,387, 10.0% increase over previous year.

2003-04 Average land cost per plot = £16,291, 0.6% decrease over previous year.

2004-05 Average land cost per plot = £19,021, 16.8% increase over previous year.”

The Scottish Executive takes the well being of rural communities very seriously and our Partnership Agreement outlines a commitment to protect and develop rural services through community planning. Key facts are documented by the Environment and Rural Affairs Dept in order to improve the evidence base on rural Scotland and help us move towards our vision of a rural Scotland where everyone matters. We also recognise the need for rural financial inclusion and are co-funding and advising on a research project on “Financial Inclusion and Capability: Deliberation and Diversity in Rural Scotland” conducted by the Scottish Council Foundation. This project aims to explore the experiences of access to financial products and services and the management of personal finances of communities in three rural case studies. It will also make policy and practice recommendations to increase and improve financial inclusion and capability in rural areas.

The Executive has been, and continues to be, in close contact with the Clydesdale Bank and discussion has focussed on ways of alleviating any problems for individuals or business customers resulting from branch closures. I refer the member to the question S2W-18548 answered on 14 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

This is a matter for Scottish Water. I have forwarded your request to Scottish Water's Chief Executive and asked him to write to you.

Meetings between the Prime Minister and the First Minister are held in confidence. Details of the meetings listed in the answer to question S2W-18152 are set out in the following table. That list is not a complete list of all meetings they have had during the period in question; it does not include meetings other than those held under official auspices, such as political or personal meetings, or encounters at larger gatherings.

Meetings Between First Minister and Prime Minister

Date of Meeting	Location of Meeting
30 November 2001	British Irish Council meeting, Dublin Castle
14 June 2002	British Irish Council meeting, Jersey
22 February 2002	Visit to Dundee Technopole
7 May 2002	Meeting and lunch following unveiling of Donald Dewar Memorial Glasgow
16 January 2003	Visit to St Leonards Police Station, Edinburgh and a Q&A event at the Albert Halls, Stirling
3 February 2003	Downing Street
14 February 2003	Visit in Glasgow
27 February 2004	Visit in Inverness
5 July 2004	Downing Street.
3 December 2004	Visit to Royal Bank of Scotland (Drummond House) followed by PM Lecture at Napier University Edinburgh
4 March 2005	Visit to Baxter Glebe Park, Dundee

The Food Standards Agency has advised me that it has recently undertaken a country of origin survey to investigate whether the best practice advice issued in the agency’s guidance document Food Labelling Country of Origin Guidance (published in 2002) is being followed in the market place. The survey sampled own-brand supermarket products and branded top sellers. The report is currently being finalised and will be published in September 2005.

It is also likely that an EC review of food labelling legislation, which is currently underway, will address country of origin labelling. The agency supports an extension of country of origin labelling beyond the range of products covered by vertical Directives. In addition, it is important that this information is not misleading, for example when the origin of product and its primary ingredients differ. The agency recognises some of the difficulties involved in this area and the need to define terms such as “produce of”, “provenance” and “origin”. Furthermore, there is a need for any additional country of origin information to be clear and assessed for costs and benefits before any specific proposals are made.

The Environmental Rural Affairs Department has advised me that they intend to consult shortly on a proposal to require the food service sector to inform consumers about the origin of beef, which they serve.

Following discussions with Dundee University, the Scottish Executive has agreed to put in place a one-off emergency funding package of £4.5 million to support the clinical costs of these students education, including one year NHS vocational training after graduation.

The Scottish Higher Education Funding Council (SHEFC) has provided the following funding for teaching costs of Dentistry Courses at the University of Dundee:

Year	Amount
2003-04	£2,637,145
2004-05	£2,744,480
2005-06	£2,820,500

 

The following NHS Education Scotland funding has also been available in support of clinical education and training at the University of Dundee Dental School:

Year	Amount
2003-04	£4,022,494
2004-05	£4,254,204
2005-06	£4,498,341

 

These figures include the funds for Additional Costs of Teaching (Dental) which are administered by NHS Tayside.

The information is given in the following table.

	FY 2001-02	FY 2002-03	FY 2003-04	FY 2004-05
			£ Million
Year-on-year % change	N/A	N/A	-23%	26%
Consultancy Fees	Disproportionate cost to recover from old SCOAP system	2.1	1.6	2.7

The figures and the breakdown of information are as recorded on the Scottish Executive’s finance and accounting system.

The Scottish Executive has no current functions in relation to introduction of a renewable transport fuel obligation. This is a reserved matter.

We value, and are continually improving, our evidence base for rural areas in order to inform our policies. We document key facts on rural Scotland, including population figures, in our annual Rural Scotland: Key Facts publication:

www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/09/08115837.

We also have a research programme looking at rural services:

www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/08/10104938.

Although no specific assessment has been made regarding the impact of the closure of particular facilities, we are committed to improving access to key services in priority rural areas as we work to maintain strong, prosperous and growing rural communities.