Questions and answers

Question reference: S3W-12123

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 April 2008
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 May 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it estimates the student population in Scotland as a whole would pay under the proposed local income tax.

Question reference: S3W-12119

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 April 2008
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 May 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive what evaluation has taken place on the proposed local income tax and its effect on students.

Question reference: S3W-12096

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 April 2008
Current Status: Answered by Michael Russell on 1 May 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive, following the Minister for Environment’s statement on snaring 20 February 2008 (Official Report c. 6079), when it will provide further detail of its proposals to regulate snaring.

Question reference: S3W-11856

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 April 2008
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 24 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people aged (a) under 18 and (b) 18 and over have been prosecuted for the offence of proxy purchase of alcohol for supplying it to people aged under 18 in each of the last three years, broken down by local authority area.

The available information is given in the following table:

Persons Proceeded Against in Scottish Courts for Purchasing Excise Liquor for Consumption by Person Under 18¹, by Approximate Local Authority Area², 2003-04 - 2005-06

Local Authority	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06
Aberdeen City
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	-	-
Total	1	-	-
Aberdeenshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	3	-	-
Total	3	-	-
Angus
Under 18	-	-	1
18 and Over	2	4	2
Total	2	4	3
Argyll and Bute
Under 18	1	-	-
18 and Over	3	2	3
Total	4	2	3
Clackmannanshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	-	2
Total	-	-	2
Dumfries and Galloway
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	3	5	6
Total	3	5	6
Dundee City
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	2	-	1
Total	2	-	1
East Ayrshire
Under 18	1	-	-
18 and Over	2	1	3
Total	3	1	3
East Dunbartonshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	2	2	2
Total	2	2	2
East Lothian
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	-	1
Total	1	-	1
East Renfrewshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	-	-
Total	-	-	-
Edinburgh, City of
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	2	-	3
Total	2	-	3
Eilean Siar
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	1	1
Total	-	1	1
Falkirk
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	3	3
Total	1	3	3
Fife
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	2	-	1
Total	2	-	1
Glasgow City
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	7	6	12
Total	7	6	12
Highland
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	5	11	5
Total	5	11	5
Inverclyde
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	-	1
Total	-	-	1
Midlothian
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	-	1
Total	1	-	1
Moray
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	4	2	1
Total	4	2	1
North Ayrshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	-	1
Total	1	-	1
North Lanarkshire
Under 18	-	-	1
18 and Over	1	1	10
Total	1	1	11
Orkney Islands
Under 18	-	1	-
18 and Over	-	1	-
Total	-	2	-
Perth and Kinross
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	2	-	1
Total	2	-	1
Renfrewshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	-	4
Total	-	-	4
Scottish Borders
Under 18	1	-	1
18 and Over	3	4	4
Total	4	4	5
Shetland Islands
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	2	-
Total	-	2	-
South Ayrshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	2	-	6
Total	2	-	6
South Lanarkshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	6	6
Total	1	6	6
Stirling
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	3	3	2
Total	3	3	2
West Dunbartonshire
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	-	-	1
Total	-	-	1
West Lothian
Under 18	-	-	-
18 and Over	1	-	-
Total	1	-	-
Scotland
Under 18	3	1	3
18 and Over	55	54	83
Total	58	55	86

Notes:

1. Where the main offence is under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 1976 Section 68(3).

2. Incorporates an approximate mapping of sheriff courts into local authority areas. Some sheriff courts will deal with cases from more than one local authority area. Some local authority areas, including East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian and North Ayrshire, do not contain a sheriff court.

Question reference: S3W-11082

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2008
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people aged (a) under 18 and (b) 18 or over have been prosecuted in each of the last three years for supplying alcohol to those aged under 18, broken down by local authority area.

The available information is given in the following table.

Persons Proceeded Against in Scottish Courts for Selling Alcohol to Underage Persons¹by Age² and Approximate Local Authority Area³, 2003-04 to 2005-06

Local Authority Area	2003-04		2004-05		2005-06
Local Authority Area	under 18	18 and over	under 18	18 and over	under 18	18 and over
Aberdeen City	-	2	-	-	-	3
Aberdeenshire	-	-	-	-	-	-
Angus	-	-	-	-	-	-
Argyll and Bute	-	-	-	-	-	-
Clackmannanshire	-	-	-	3	-	1
Dumfries and Galloway	-	2	1	2	-	6
Dundee City	-	5	-	-	-	-
East Ayrshire	-	3	-	5	-	4
East Dunbartonshire	-	-	-	2	-	-
East Lothian	-	-	-	-	-	2
East Renfrewshire
Edinburgh, City of	-	3	-	5	-	5
Eilean Siar	-	-	-	-	-	-
Falkirk	-	4	-	2	-	4
Fife	-	5	-	1	-	-
Glasgow City	-	3	-	7	1	6
Highland	-	-	-	1	-	2
Inverclyde	-	1	-	-	-	-
Midlothian	-	-	-	2	-	1
Moray	-	1	-	-	-	-
North Ayrshire	-	1	-	-	-	-
North Lanarkshire	-	-	-	-	-	1
Orkney Islands	1	2	-	-	-	-
Perth and Kinross	-	-	-	-	-	1
Renfrewshire	-	5	-	3	-	-
Scottish Borders	-	-	-	2	-	4
Shetland Islands	-	-	-	3	-	-
South Ayrshire	-	4	-	-	-	9
South Lanarkshire	-	1	-	8	-	17
Stirling	-	2	-	3	-	2
West Dunbartonshire	-	2	-	-	-	1
West Lothian	-	-	-	-	-	-
Scotland	1	46	1	49	1	69

Notes:

1. Where this is the main offence. Includes the offences of Sale of drink to person under 18 and Wholesaler selling liquor to person under 18, the figures do not include those prosecuted for the offence of proxy purchase under section 68(3) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 1976

2. Excludes a small number where age is unknown.

3. Incorporates an approximate mapping of sheriff courts into local authority areas. Some sheriff courts will deal with cases from more than one local authority area. Some local authority areas, including East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian and North Ayrshire, do not contain a sheriff court.

Question reference: S3W-11085

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2008
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it provides to medical professionals on the use of complementary therapies, such as diet control, to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Diet control is not considered to be one of the complementary therapies. Accordingly guidance on diet control is not provided in this context.

The Scottish Government recognises that complementary or alternative medicine may offer relief to some people suffering from a wide variety of conditions and leaves it open to NHS boards to provide these therapies based on their assessment of needs in their areas. Treatment options, based on individual care assessments, are a matter for clinical decision in consultation with all relevant professionals and the individual. Guidance to NHS boards in August 2005, available at http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/ drew further attention to this care option.

Advice including dietary management regarding the treatment and care for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder sufferers is provided by the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidance Network in SIGN 52 - Attention Deficit and Hyperkinetic Disorders in Children and Young People. NHS Quality Improvement Scotland has undertaken a review of the implementation of SIGN 52. The findings will be published on 25 April.

Question reference: S3W-11083

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2008
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been prosecuted in each of the last three years for illegally selling alcohol, broken down by local authority area.

The available information is given in the following table.

Persons Proceeded Against for Selling Alcohol Illegally¹ by Approximate Local Authority Area² 2003-04 to 2005-06

Local Authority	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06
Aberdeen City	3	-	3
Aberdeenshire	1	1	-
Angus	-	-	-
Argyll and Bute	-	-	-
Clackmannanshire	-	3	1
Dumfries and Galloway	2	3	6
Dundee City	6	-	-
East Ayrshire	4	8	6
East Dunbartonshire	-	2	-
East Lothian	-	-	2
East Renfrewshire	-	-	-
Edinburgh, City of	3	5	8
Eilean Siar	-	-	-
Falkirk	5	2	4
Fife	5	1	-
Glasgow City	4	7	7
Highland	-	1	2
Inverclyde	1	1	-
Midlothian	-	2	2
Moray	3	-	-
North Ayrshire	1	-	-
North Lanarkshire	-	-	6
Orkney Islands	3	-	-
Perth and Kinross	-	1	1
Renfrewshire	5	5	-
Scottish Borders	-	3	4
Shetland Islands	-	3	-
South Ayrshire	4	-	11
South Lanarkshire	2	8	18
Stirling	3	4	3
West Dunbartonshire	2	-	1
West Lothian	-	-	-
Scotland³	57	60	87

Notes:

1. Where main offence.

2. Incorporates an approximate mapping of sheriff courts into local authority areas. Some sheriff courts will deal with cases from more than one local authority area. Some local authority areas, including East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian and North Ayrshire, do not contain a sheriff court.

3. Includes courts which could not be mapped to approximate local authority areas.

Question reference: S3W-11102

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 March 2008
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive through which government bodies the additional money for wheelchair and seating services announced in the spending review will be distributed and what allocations these government bodies will receive.

The additional funding of £16 million from the 2007 Spending Review (£4 million in 2008-09, £6 million in 2009-10 and £6 million in 2010-11) will be distributed through NHS boards to the five rehabilitation technology centres in Scotland.

The funding will be subject to the submission of business cases for approval by the Wheelchair and Seating Services Project Board, which meet the objectives and recommendations of the report Moving Forward: Review of NHS Wheelchair and Seating Services in Scotland.

Question reference: S3W-11084

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2008
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 10 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been prosecuted in each of the last three years for driving under the influence of drugs, broken down by local authority area.

Figures for driving prosecutions involving drugs alone are not available. However, the number of persons proceeded against for drink or drug driving offences in the years 2003-04 to 2005-06 is given in the following table.

Persons Proceeded Against for Drink/Drug driving Offences^1,2 in Scottish Courts, by Approximate Local Authority³, 2003-04 to 2005-06

Local Authority Area	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06
Aberdeen City	66	73	68
Aberdeenshire	20	31	27
Angus	25	18	27
Argyll and Bute	13	20	25
Clackmannanshire	8	6	9
Dumfries and Galloway	35	48	46
Dundee City	58	36	23
East Ayrshire	41	46	44
East Dunbartonshire	-	-	-
East Lothian	25	14	10
East Renfrewshire	-	-	-
Edinburgh, City of	87	94	91
Eilean Siar	8	9	6
Falkirk	48	38	33
Fife	74	84	58
Glasgow City	222	220	224
Highland	78	87	79
Inverclyde	30	30	20
Midlothian	-	-	-
Moray	21	20	15
North Ayrshire	-	-	-
North Lanarkshire	44	47	34
Orkney Islands	7	5	5
Perth and Kinross	28	45	33
Renfrewshire	44	45	60
Scottish Borders	24	23	21
Shetland Islands	7	2	3
South Ayrshire	42	43	30
South Lanarkshire	78	89	113
Stirling	27	21	24
West Dunbartonshire	48	59	48
West Lothian	48	32	51
Scotland⁴	1,256	1,285	1,228

Notes:

1. Where main offence.

2. Includes the offences of driving motor vehicle while unfit through drink or drugs, in charge of a motor vehicle while unfit through drink or drugs, failure to provide a breath specimen at the roadside, and failure to provide a breath, blood or urine specimen at police station.

3. Incorporates an approximate mapping of sheriff courts into local authority areas. Some sheriff courts will deal with cases from more than one local authority area. Some local authority areas, including East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian and North Ayrshire, do not contain a sheriff court.

4. Includes courts which could not be mapped to approximate local authority areas.

Question reference: S3W-11421

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 March 2008
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 8 April 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive what sentencing guidelines are issued to judges for murder convictions.

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