Seòmar agus comataidhean

Information on how many times services on the ferry routes requested have been (i) delayed and (ii) cancelled in each year since 2007 in the form requested has been collated and is available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre ( Bib . number 60164).

The data relating to (q) Ullapool to Stornoway and (r) Freight Ullapool to Stornoway services cannot be separated and are reported in the same Ullapool to Stornoway line of the information provided.

Since 2007, there have been 8 new vessels introduced by Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) to the CalMac Ferries fleet operating on the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service (CHFS) network.

The combined gross tonnage of these 8 vessels is 19477 tonnes.

This represents 29.34% of the total fleet, by gross tonnage.

There are currently 31 vessels in the CHFS fleet.

Vessels in CHFS fleet .

From January - August 2018 NHS Ayrshire and Arran has spent £6,563,200 on internal and agency Medical Locum staff. This equates to 0.9% of their overall 2018-19 budget allocation. Temporary staff allow NHS Boards to maintain services during times of planned and unplanned absences including staff sickness, leave and short and longer term vacancies.

Since September 2006 the medical workforce in NHS Ayrshire and Arran has risen by 29.8% which includes a 59.6% rise in the Consultant workforce from 180.9 to 288.8 WTE, a rise of 2.3% (up 6.1) in Doctors in Training and a rise of 37.1% (up 29.7) in other trained doctors which includes Specialty Doctors. GPs have also increased by nearly 5% (up 15) headcount during the last 11 years. Recruitment of permanent members of staff to fill vacant posts remains a priority for the board.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W–19518 on ‎ 7 November 2018. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Frontline communications teams have a dedicated Team Leader per portfolio with all other frontline communications staff expected to work flexibly across all portfolios depending on demand, therefore it is not possible to provide the specific breakdowns requested.

The cost of frontline communications staff/press officers in each year since 2007 to the most recent financial year is available at Scottish Government website: https://beta.gov.scot/publications/cost-of-frontline-communications-staff/

The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) frontline communications staff/press officers is set out in the following table.

Numbers of FTE staff vary throughout the financial year and the figures represent staff numbers on just one day of each year, March 31 st . This means that these figures are a 'snapshot': they do not represent either a total number or average number of staff employed in the year.

As part of its approach to risk management mitigation, Transport Scotland had discussions with Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd on the potential time and cost implications of moving the two new ferries to an alternative location for completion.

As of end of Rail Period 7 - 13 October 2018 the SQUIRe Investment Fund stands at £4,350,997.

The value of spend on each project is commercially sensitive, however the total spend on all projects since the beginning of the current Franchise is £6,531,839.

The Scottish Government is considering the Sustainable Growth Commission recommendations carefully to see what more can be done within our existing powers, while making the case for these powers to be extended.

As set out in the Programme for Government, our Economic Action Plan will demonstrate how we are adapting our approach in response to recommendations from others including the Enterprise and Skills Strategic Board, the Scottish Parliament and the work of the Sustainable Growth Commission.

The Scottish Government firmly believes that access to university should not be based on the ability to pay, however, there is a need to exert a level of control over the higher education budget, which means that the number of students able to access a funded place is not unlimited. In 2018-19 our funding provided for 128,176 funded places across all years of study for eligible students at Scottish universities, an increase of 747 places from 2017-18.

The number of Scottish students successful in getting a place at a Scottish university in 2018-19 increased 2% on the previous year to 33,530.

While that is the case, the Scottish Government does not collect or hold information on the reasons why individual students are unable to access a place at a Scottish university. As autonomous institutions, universities are responsible for setting and administering their own admissions criteria and processes.