SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE
Justice and Law Officers
Tobacco (Under-age Purchasers)
To ask the Scottish Executive how many prosecutions have been brought in respect of selling tobacco to under-age purchasers in each of the last three years. (S2O-12199)
In 2003-04, procurators fiscal initiated court proceedings in two cases involving the sale of tobacco to under-age purchasers. The equivalent figures for 2004-05 and 2005-06 were four and three respectively.
It certainly does not seem that the courts are overflowing with prosecutions of this nature. Is that because the current law is being obeyed meticulously the length and breadth of Scotland or, as we suspect, because people are not being caught? Would it not be better to try to enforce the current law before embarking on raising the age for buying tobacco?
Raising the age for buying tobacco is a matter for the Parliament and the Executive more generally, rather than for me as the Lord Advocate. I hope that Mr Wallace agrees that it is not only the prospect of prosecution but the existence of prohibition itself that makes most citizens of this country obey the law.
Question 2 has been withdrawn.
Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Bill
To ask the Scottish Executive when it anticipates that local authorities will be in a position to implement the provisions of the Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Bill. (S2O-12193)
The custodial sentences element of the bill delivers our commitment to end automatic, unconditional early release. The new regime will introduce end-to-end sentence management that will help to tackle reoffending and enhance public protection. The weapons element of the bill permits ministers to introduce a licensing scheme for knife dealers. Both those much-needed elements will come into force as soon as is practicable.
I regret that the minister made no attempt to answer the question other than to describe what the bill is about, and we are all well aware of that.
I hear what Mr Davidson is saying about members understanding the elements of the bill. However, I hope that he also understands the range of reforms that have been introduced in the criminal justice system, including the new community justice authorities, which will take on their full responsibilities from 1 April this year and which are absolutely critical to ensuring the success of the management of offenders both in the prison system and in the community.
Community Police Officers
To ask the Scottish Executive how many community police officers there are in Scotland. (S2O-12202)
The number of police officers involved in community policing duties varies on a daily basis depending on the demands faced by individual forces. As a result of Executive investment, the total number of police officers available to be deployed by chief constables has increased by around 1,500 since 1999.
I thank the minister for her response and also for putting on the record the record numbers of police in Scotland under the Executive.
Of course, I cannot comment on Liberal Democrat policy, which is a matter for that political party. However, I am well aware that many people in local neighbourhoods want more visible policing. They want the police to be there to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour hot spots. That is why we have increased not only the overall number of police officers, but the number of back-room and support staff. We have also introduced community wardens, a measure that some parties do not appear to support—even now, when communities support them.
Obviously, the minister is correct that the deployment of officers is a matter for chief constables, but they can allocate only the officers they have available to them.
As Mr MacAskill rightly says, we increased the funding for Lothian and Borders police to deal with some of the pressures in and around the city centre. However, it would be wrong of me as a minister—and as a politician—to interfere in the day-to-day operational duties of the police and in the work of the chief constable. In some forces, chief constables have taken the decision to ensure that community officers are not routinely taken from their community duties. However, it is important that chief constables have the flexibility to be able to deal with the issues that face them.
HM Prison Low Moss (Replacement)
To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated cost is for the public sector to bid for the right to build and operate the replacement HM Prison Low Moss and whether it will list what that money would be spent on. (S2O-12169)
In 2005, the chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service advised the Justice 2 Committee that the budget allocated was £2 million. It is not possible to say what the final costs will be because the competition has not yet commenced. The money allocated will be spent on meeting the full bid costs: salaries, specialist advice, accommodation and other costs as required.
Is it not the case that the only reason why £2 million is being wasted on bureaucracy is that the Lib-Lab pact is wedded to the discredited Tory private finance initiative policy? Does the minister agree that the Prison Service would be much better using that £2 million to help prisoners get off drugs and to provide basic literacy, numeracy and anger management programmes, educational opportunities and new skills and other training courses so that they can gain employment after their sentences end? Would not all those help to direct people away from crime and reoffending? That would be a much better use of £2 million instead of throwing the money down the PFI money pit.
The bridging the gap project is about examining in detail whether the Scottish Prison Service, which is in the public sector, can put together a bid that would mean value for money for the taxpayer.
Environmental Crime
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to improve the prosecution and detection of environmental crime. (S2O-12188)
Procurators fiscal are provided with appropriate training, development opportunities and guidance material to enable them to carry out their varied duties. That includes specific guidance and training on environmental crime.
I recognise that the Executive has undertaken some work on the area, but its figures show that since 1999 there has been very little change in the number of prosecutions brought by SEPA that have led to conviction.
The member might be aware that in November of last year, the Executive issued to a wide range of organisations the consultation document, "Strengthening and Streamlining: The Way Forward for the Enforcement of Environmental Law in Scotland", which seeks to provide an overview of the key issues relating to the enforcement of environmental law in Scotland, to consider the action that ought to be taken to strengthen the enforcement of such law in Scotland and to invite views on those matters. The closing date for responses was 22 February, although extensions have been granted until the end of this week. More than 40 responses have been received, so there is the prospect of a consensus being reached on how to improve the detection and prosecution process. The sharing of knowledge, together with the development of a risk management-based approach to enforcement, has and will provide the desired improvement.
Tayside Police
To ask the Scottish Executive when it last met the chief constable of Tayside police and what issues were discussed. (S2O-12178)
Scottish Executive ministers and officials meet all chief constables regularly to discuss a wide range of policing issues.
When the minister next meets the chief constable of Tayside police, she might like to ask him why only two out of 32 police stations in Tayside are open to the public 24 hours a day. Does she accept that in some of our smaller communities having a police station open 24 hours a day not only acts as a deterrent to crime, but provides reassurance to a public who are increasingly concerned about rising levels of crime and offences?
I appreciate that the public are concerned about having police available to deal with incidents, to prevent and detect crime and to bring offenders to justice, but I suspect that in any discussions that I had with the chief constable of Tayside police, he would express the view that rather than having his officers in police offices away from, and inaccessible to, the public, he would prefer them to be out on patrol and able to respond to incidents, particularly during the night-time hours. As a result of all the investment that we have made in improving technology—through the airwave radio system, for example—methods of policing have changed, as has the way in which people contact the police. Although I cannot speak for the chief constable, I am sure that that would be the flavour of some of what he would say.
When the minister next meets the chief constable of Tayside police, will she discuss with him his innovative approach to the co-location of police officers in public offices of other agencies, which is extremely welcome in some isolated areas of my constituency? It guarantees a level of police presence in rural communities and improves people's confidence in the police force. If that service is working in one area, would the minister contemplate encouraging the chief constable of Tayside police and other chief constables to roll it out into other rural areas where it would be appreciated?
A number of innovative projects are working in the Tayside area and in other areas. As we move ahead with changes to public services in response to what the public want, it is important to look for instances where we can co-locate people, so that we do not have additional costs to the taxpayer at the local and national level. In addition to the project mentioned by Mr Swinney, I am aware of—and, indeed, have visited, along with Scott Barrie MSP—innovative projects in the Fife area in which the local post office is a contact point for the police, allowing the public to pass on information at a very local level.
Central Intelligence Agency (Rendition Flights)
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will carry out an investigation into CIA rendition flights, in light of the recent report of the European Parliament. (S2O-12186)
Aviation and foreign affairs are both areas that are the reserved responsibility of the United Kingdom Government. The investigation of crime, including the collection of evidence, is a matter for the police. If there is specific, credible information that a crime has been committed in Scotland, it is for the police to investigate. If they secure sufficient evidence for criminal proceedings to be considered, the police will report the result of their investigation to the procurator fiscal.
I thank the minister for that answer, although her response reinforces the part of the report that accuses member states of turning a blind eye.
Again, I stress that it is not for ministers to be involved in the investigation of crime. That is, rightly and properly, a matter for the police. Similarly, the issues around prosecution are, rightly and properly, a matter for our independent prosecution service. In a sense, I commend the tenacity with which Mark Ballard and his colleagues continue to ask the same question on the issue but, because things have not changed, I must give them broadly the same answer. If he and his colleagues have specific and credible information, they should take it to the police, who are the right and proper people to investigate.
In December 2005, the Parliament agreed to a motion on the issue, which I think the minister supported and which I seem to recall encouraged more of a joint approach between Scottish ministers and the UK Government. Will the minister give us a flavour of those discussions, and tell us when they last took place?
I remember those discussions in the Parliament. The issue has not been discussed directly by me and current Home Office ministers—in recent times.
Ah!
I make that important point before people misinterpret what I am about to say.
Loan Sharks
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken through the criminal justice system to tackle loan sharks. (S2O-12217)
We deplore the activities of illegal moneylenders. Trading standards officers and the police have been working together in the Scottish illegal moneylending unit since 2004 to detect and enforce relevant offences. The unit has brought two cases to justice, while six more are pending. An evaluation by the Department of Trade and Industry has identified ways in which enforcement could be further improved. In addition, conventional policing over the two years 2005-06 and 2006-07 has resulted in 28 reports to the procurator fiscal, of which 18 have so far resulted in prosecution.
I appreciate that the subject was debated at some length this morning.
I agree with Cathie Craigie's description of illegal moneylenders. There is clear evidence that there are people who are waiting to prey on the most vulnerable people and who understand how to do so in a way that makes those vulnerable people feel that they are somehow responsible for the situation and cannot go to the police or anyone else for support. It is important that we recognise how unacceptable that conduct is. We know that those activities happen inside communities and that the solutions are inside communities, which is why we have given significant support to credit unions to do more than their core business of saving and lending and to be imaginative in the way in which they reach out to people. That is why money advice exists.
Enterprise, Lifelong Learning and Transport
Crichton University Campus
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will meet the Scottish funding council and the University of Glasgow to discuss the latter's presence at the Crichton campus in Dumfries. (S2O-12159)
The Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning had a discussion with the chair of the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council last week and met the principal of the University of Glasgow on 23 February 2007.
I thank the minister for that answer, but it is a pity that he could not tell us what conclusions were reached at the meetings. Does he share the view of the overwhelming majority of people in Dumfries and Galloway that the presence of the University of Glasgow at the Crichton has been an essential part of the campus's success thus far and should be a vital part of its future success? If so, what steps will he take to ensure that that presence continues?
I understand the strength of feeling on the issue. Allan Wilson and I met a cross-party delegation from Dumfries and Galloway Council and representatives of the Crichton campus. The decision by the court of the University of Glasgow to withdraw its main liberal arts degrees from the Crichton campus is clearly an issue of great concern. I am pleased that the university, along with the other Crichton campus partners and the Scottish funding council, is to be involved in the development of an academic strategy. It is an encouraging sign that the University of Glasgow will continue to offer initial teacher education and social work at Crichton, but that still leaves a significant gap. I gave a clear undertaking to the cross-party delegation that Allan Wilson and I would be involved in discussions with the Scottish funding council, the University of Glasgow and the partners at Crichton to try to arrive at a more satisfactory solution.
I hope that the Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning used his private meeting with Sir Muir Russell to emphasise the views of all interested parties on the importance of the University of Glasgow's continued presence at the Crichton. I seek an assurance from the minister that the round-table meetings between the Executive, the Scottish funding council and the University of Glasgow will be progressed as soon as possible, as promised during the members' business debate on the subject, and that stakeholders will be kept informed of progress, especially any reversal of the decision by the University of Glasgow to suspend student recruitment this year. Staff and prospective students will need to be apprised as soon as possible of any changes of policy by the university.
I realise the urgency of the situation and agree with Elaine Murray that it is vital for us to move quickly on the issue. I am aware that the approach that we have taken to higher education funding in Scotland over the past few years, which led to the establishment of the single Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council and a change in the relationship between the funding council and ministers, means that ministers do not have powers to intervene directly either with the funding council or with the University of Glasgow, but I hope that we can be influential in the matter. In any case, we should be involved. Along with Dumfries and Galloway Council and other elected representatives, we are determined to act urgently. We can all play a role in finding a satisfactory solution to a very difficult problem. Today I make a commitment to do so.
The minister mentioned the academic strategy. Does he agree that, unless the University of Glasgow can be persuaded, cajoled or influenced to reverse its decision not to have an intake of students from the Crichton campus in September, such a strategy will barely be worth the paper that it is written on?
I agree that that is one of the key issues that must be discussed as soon as possible. The fact that the University of Glasgow wishes to be involved in the development of the academic strategy is a good sign; I hope that we can build on that.
Given that the minister understands the issues, appreciates the strength of feeling and has undertaken to discuss and to attempt to resolve the situation, will he tell us whether, following his meetings with the funding council and the University of Glasgow, he expects success or failure? If he expects success, when should we expect an announcement?
I always go into discussions with a positive attitude and determined to achieve a positive outcome.
Enterprise Education
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to increase the involvement of business people, both at a local and national level, in the development and delivery of enterprise education in schools in line with the determined to succeed strategy. (S2O-12218)
Since launching determined to succeed in March 2003, we have worked with Scotland's employers both locally and nationally. The outcome is that, according to local authorities, there are now at least 7,000 school-business partnerships in Scotland, which is well in excess of the target of 2,000 that we set back in 2003.
I thank the minister for his answer and welcome the progress that has been made on this important programme. However, as I am sure he is aware, local and national evaluations of the determined to succeed programme show that the direct involvement of business people in the design and delivery of schools-based programmes is patchy and that a lot more can and must be done in the area. In evidence to committees of the Parliament, business organisations have indicated that they are willing to support the greater involvement of business in the roll-out of the programme. What more can the minister do to increase that type of engagement? Does he agree that there is particular value in young people having direct meetings with entrepreneurs who have set up businesses? Will he take forward such an approach to ensure not only that we teach enterprise skills in schools but that we build a true enterprise culture in Scotland?
I agree with everything that Susan Deacon has said. A key decision that had to be made in the delivery of the original determined to succeed strategy was whether funding should go to education authorities or should be channelled through private sector organisations such as the Confederation of British Industry and the chambers of commerce. On balance, we decided—rightly, in my view—to fund local authorities. Since then, the scale of co-operation and involvement by local authorities and schools throughout Scotland has been considerable. I am not convinced that that would have been achieved if we had decided to channel funding through the chambers of commerce.
What impact does the Executive expect determined to succeed to have on the business birth rate in Scotland? How will it measure the initiative's impact? What steps have been taken with Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the Prince's Scottish Youth Business Trust to facilitate a higher business birth rate of companies that are established by young people?
As Jim Mather knows, we are giving specific support to young people who wish to start businesses. We also give strong support to the Prince's Scottish Youth Business Trust. Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise take the lead in the area, but I believe that the determined to succeed programme will cause more young people to take an interest in establishing businesses. Determined to succeed is not all about new business start-ups; it is about a change of attitude and spirit among young people in Scotland. That change in attitude will be very valuable to the Scottish economy, whatever job or career route young people take. I agree with Jim Mather that it is vital that we continue to lift our business birth rate in Scotland. We still face a significant challenge in that area.
A96 (Dualling)
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made on the dualling of the A96. (S2O-12180)
Transport Scotland, in close partnership with the Highlands and Islands strategic transport partnership and the north-east Scotland transport partnership, is working on a jointly funded multimodal study to examine the needs of the transport corridor between Aberdeen and Inverness. The study will identify a range of options for consideration in the strategic transport projects review, which will report next year.
Does the minister recognise that people in Moray and elsewhere in the Highlands think that the area's economic prosperity depends on the upgrading of its transport infrastructure, particularly the dualling of the A96? If so, he will appreciate their concern about the letter that John Ewing, the head of the transport group, sent last month to Howard Brindley of HITRANS. John Ewing indicated that money may not be available for major projects in the region, including the A96. With reference to the A96 he said:
I absolutely agree that we need ambitious proposals for the transport infrastructure for all modes of transport in the Highlands and Islands, but I do not accept the premise of the question—that there will be no investment. One of Mr Lochhead's colleagues, who is sitting behind him, has been saying in the local papers that there will be and has been no investment in roads in the Highlands and Islands. That is not the case; what the member said is an absolute misrepresentation of the facts. Mr Lochhead may shake his head, but £40 million is currently programmed to be spent on the A96. That shows the beginnings of a real programme to improve a road that needs to be improved.
Although the Conservatives support the upgrading of the A96 and the A9, does the minister agree that the current apology for a trunk road—the A82 Tarbert to Crianlarich route to the Highlands and Islands—must be upgraded well ahead of the proposed programme? If not, it is in grave danger of disappearing—
We are talking about the A96, Mr Petrie. My geography is not all that good, but my guess is that you are on the wrong road.
The minister continues to reject the case for a Nairn bypass, about which the Liberal Democrats locally are very enthusiastic. If we see a greater growth in population in the A96 corridor between Inverness and Nairn than in any other part of Scotland, should not that, of itself, dictate that the A96 be upgraded in the long term to proper dual carriageway status?
I have never rejected the case for a Nairn bypass. I hope that Mr Ewing will not misrepresent my position on that issue, as he always misrepresents my position on roads policy in the Highlands and Islands. I will read the Inverness Courier this weekend, and I will ensure that it adequately reflects my position—if Mr Ewing misrepresents my position, he should be in no doubt that I will correct him, and that I will do so every week between now and 3 May.
Construction and Engineering (Apprenticeships)
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it promotes entry to apprenticeships in the construction and engineering industries by women and ethnic minority people and whether it will provide figures for those categories in those industries, as a proportion of total apprenticeships available. (S2O-12222)
The modern apprenticeship programme is open to all people over 16 who are employed. Employers are encouraged to recruit from as wide a base as possible. Along with the enterprise networks, Careers Scotland and the sector skills councils, we actively promote apprenticeships for women and ethnic minority groups.
Does the minister agree that those figures are nothing to write home about? Will he therefore discuss with the sector skills councils and other stakeholders how the proportions can be improved?
We acknowledge that the proportions are lower than any members want them to be. Therefore, we have put in place a range of initiatives that will attempt to change attitudes to career choices, including the career box programme, which helps to challenge young people's attitudes towards and perceptions of particular occupations, and the step into construction programme, which runs throughout the United Kingdom and helps to recruit adult ethnic minorities and women into the workforce. In the past 12 months, the step into construction programme has trebled the number of women and people from an ethnic minority background who have entered into a modern apprenticeship in Scotland.
Health Facilities (Public Transport Links)
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to improve public transport links to health facilities. (S2O-12229)
We are pushing health boards and regional transport partnerships to work together, involving local authorities, on improvements to public transport links to health facilities.
Is the minister concerned, as I am, about the gross inadequacy of transport links to acute hospitals throughout the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde area? Does he accept that if good public transport links cannot be provided, patients and staff should not be charged for car parking at those facilities?
I agree with Paul Martin's central point about the need for transport links to be available, accessible and affordable to the people who need to travel to attend the health facilities to which he referred. National health service boards are required to work in partnership with our new regional partnerships and to ensure that transport needs assessments are carried out.
Is the minister aware that some of my constituents, particularly those with mobility problems, rely on the ambulance service, which is under pressure, to transport them to routine medical appointments, many of which are missed when ambulances are diverted to attend emergencies? In light of the unacceptable proposal to downgrade Monklands hospital, which can only place the ambulance service under further strain, can the minister update me on what is being done to improve transport infrastructure in the NHS Lanarkshire area?
I am sorry, but I cannot give Elaine Smith a precise answer to her question today. I will be happy to write to her with details from my department, and I will of course check what is happening in other portfolios in relation to the points that she raises. I will do that as quickly as I possibly can.
I call Alex Neil. Extremely briefly, please.
As always, Presiding Officer. Following on—[Laughter.] I will have to wait for the laughter to die down.
I cannot tell Alex Neil today when it will be published. As I said to Elaine Smith, I am not aware of the particular circumstances. I will write to Mr Neil as best I can with the information he requires.
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First Minister's Question Time