SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE
General Questions
Forth Road Bridge (Cables)
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide an update on the condition of the main cables on the Forth road bridge. (S3O-2243)
Investigating the condition of the main cables on the Forth road bridge is a matter for the Forth Estuary Transport Authority. I understand that FETA is confident that the current dehumidification project offers good prospects for slowing down or halting corrosion. However, FETA will not know the answer until the results of inspections that are due in 2011-12 have been analysed.
I was pleased to read a couple of weeks ago and to hear again today that it looks likely that heavy goods vehicles will not be banned from the Forth road bridge. The minister will surely agree that it was perhaps inappropriate that the suggestion that they might be banned found its way into the public domain.
Mr Park makes some important points, but I must stress that responsibility for maintaining the bridge lies with FETA. I will, of course, stand ready to support FETA in its work and, if it is useful, I will be part of the team that will take responsibility for engaging with local communities and explaining to them the future of the bridge. I will not supplant FETA's responsibilities, although I agree with John Park's substantive point.
The minister's reply to Mr Park is interesting, but the matters that he raises are not likely to have any effect for several years. A much more immediate problem for bridge users is that FETA plans to replace the expansion joints on the carriageway next year. Does the minister know how long that work will take and the extent of the delays and disruption that it will cause? What will the minister do to minimise that disruption for my constituents in Dunfermline West?
Clearly, FETA needs to address the condition of the expansion joints to ensure the continued use of the bridge. The opening of a further crossing on the upper Forth will provide some relief, especially for HGVs, given that 80 per cent of HGVs that cross the Forth already use an upper-Forth crossing. I will work closely with FETA to ensure that Transport Scotland and the Government put in place appropriate measures, such as signage, to mitigate the effects of the closures by ensuring that people have adequate notice to plan their journeys. That is in connection with my wider responsibilities for the road network, albeit that FETA is responsible for the bridge.
Will the minister undertake to ensure that any announcement or statement that he makes on the matter will cover not only corrosion and wire breakage within the cables but the condition of the anchorage points at either end of the bridge? I understand that there may be cause for concern with the anchorage points, which were the subject of a perhaps speculative press article some months ago.
As yet, we have no particular reason to be concerned about the state of the anchorage points. Clearly, in looking at the effect of corrosion on the structure as a whole, it is important that we conduct tests to establish whether there are other causes for concern. I am satisfied that FETA is doing the necessary work. We will await the outcome of that research.
I am grateful for the responses that the minister has given, although I think that Jim Tolson was almost expecting the minister to go out and do the work himself.
I am always in the business of chatting with people with whom we work. I talk regularly to members of the FETA board and my officials are in regular contact with them. I am sure that appropriate ways of communicating with the communities that depend on the Forth road bridge will form part of our next chat.
Mosquito Ultrasonic Deterrents
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has given any further consideration to the licensing and regulation of Mosquito ultrasonic youth deterrents. (S3O-2179)
The Scottish Government has not given any further consideration to the licensing and regulation of Mosquito ultrasonic youth deterrents.
Does the minister agree that the indiscriminate use of such devices would penalise all young people, including the great majority who are going about their legitimate daily activities, and that the use of such devices must therefore be controlled, to ensure that it is both justified and proportionate?
Plainly, the use of the devices is contentious. Local authorities are best placed to decide what measures should be taken locally to tackle antisocial behaviour. I would welcome representations from Bill Kidd and any other member who wishes to contribute to the national review of our antisocial behaviour strategy, so that we can build up a consensual approach to tackling that serious matter.
Lewis Wind Farm
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received communications from Western Isles Council seeking an urgent meeting to discuss the Lewis wind farm proposal. (S3O-2251)
Jim Mather met Angus Campbell, vice-convener of the council, on Monday 28 January to discuss economic development in the Western Isles. He could not comment on the specifics of the Lewis wind farm proposal prior to its determination, but he discussed the socioeconomic challenges that the islands face. The Scottish Government wants renewable energy to contribute to the islands' economy, and Jim Mather has agreed to attend an energy summit in Stornoway on 17 March.
I understand some of the complications to which the minister refers. However, trust in the planning process, especially in relation to certain developments, often hangs by a thread. Will the minister assure me that, to ensure transparency and fairness in the process, the same opportunity to meet ministers to discuss the Lewis wind farm proposal will be offered to other interested parties, including local communities?
We await a final determination of the planning application to which the member refers. There has been substantial engagement with a wide range of interest groups on this major development. I am sure that that will continue, as it normally does.
Housing Developments (Flooding Risk)
To ask the Scottish Executive why it continues to allow housing developments without sea defences to be constructed on coastal areas where the Scottish Environment Protection Agency has determined that there is a high risk of flooding. (S3O-2217)
As the member knows, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency provides information on flood risk through its indicative maps and advice on specific planning applications, but it is for those making the decision to take account of that advice and to consider it alongside all other relevant matters when determining whether planning permission should be granted.
I know that Michael Russell is a robust minister who is not afraid to intervene if SEPA has got something wrong. Will he intervene in a similarly robust manner if he agrees with me that the Scottish Government's reporter has got it wrong in the case of St David's bay, where the reporter has approved a development application without requiring that appropriate flood defences be put in place? By doing so, they have put homes and people at serious risk, despite SEPA's view that the area is at high risk of flooding and that there should be no development there.
My robustness is tested in a variety of ways, including by the fact that this is the third time that I have answered the same question from Helen Eadie. I have also had a meeting with her on the subject. I am happy to meet her again and to continue being robust on the matter. I know that she has a strong interest in it, not least because she lives very close to the proposed development. I am happy to discuss the issue with her but, at the end of the day, it is for councils—that included the previous Labour administration in Fife—to make decisions. I will go on being robust in my discussions with the member and I hope that eventually we will reach the end of our dialogue.
Does the minister have information on how many housing developments in areas that are classified as flood plains were permitted during the period 2003 to 2007?
I am happy to provide that information to the member. There were a substantial number of such developments, as there always are. Scottish planning policy 7, which deals with planning and flooding, provides a framework for assessing coastal flood risk, so that planning authorities can include appropriate policies in their development plans. [Interruption.] Members seem to find the concept of planning against flooding amusing. No one who is faced with flooding finds it amusing. It is important that all the relevant parts of the debate are involved, so that the right decisions are made. If that had been the case previously, we would not have some of the difficulties that we have inherited from previous Administrations.
Parkinson's Disease
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to support people who suffer from Parkinson's disease. (S3O-2227)
The Scottish intercollegiate guidelines network is developing a clinical guideline on Parkinson's disease, which will focus on diagnosis and drug treatment. Publication of the guideline is expected in the autumn of next year. NHS Quality Improvement Scotland is developing clinical standards for neurological conditions. I understand that there will be specific standards for Parkinson's disease. Together, those two initiatives will lead to improvements throughout Scotland in supporting people living with Parkinson's disease, their families and their carers.
I am sure that the minister agrees that the work of Parkinson's disease nurse specialists is crucial in managing symptoms and preventing unnecessary hospital admissions. I am sure that she also agrees that there is a national shortage of such nurses, with only 17 covering 10,000 sufferers. Will the minister come back to the chamber with plans to extend that provision, as the current provision is clearly inadequate?
I understand how highly Parkinson's disease nurse specialists are valued by people with the disease. The number of specialist nurses has increased in recent years. I am pleased that recently, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde took on another 3.5 whole-time equivalent Parkinson's disease nurse specialists. That sets a good example to all national health service boards. Another such example is the work of NHS Dumfries and Galloway on developing with the Parkinson's Disease Society a nurse specialist post. Other health boards are looking to do likewise. I encourage all boards to take a lead from boards that are developing nurse specialist posts.
As the minister is aware, I am pursuing the establishment of a specialist neurological nurse post in the Scottish Borders, which would include provision for people with Parkinson's disease. Has the minister been contacted by NHS Borders about the proposal?
I am not aware of any such contact, but I will follow up the matter and find out what progress is being made. As I mentioned, the NHS QIS neurological standards that are being developed provide us with an opportunity to consider the role of Parkinson's disease nurse specialists. I am happy to have further discussions with NHS Borders and the member on how to take forward the proposal.
I thank the minister for the detailed replies that she is giving on this topic. She responded positively to the debate that took place on motor neurone disease—another neurological condition—and said that she hoped that specialist support nurses for neurological conditions generally would be provided. Has she made any progress on that general issue?
The fact that NHS QIS is developing the clinical standards for neurological conditions shows that progress is being made in that direction. However, I am happy to write to the member with more specific details in answer to his question.
Economic Development (South of Scotland)
To ask the Scottish Executive what it will do to support and encourage economic development in the south of Scotland. (S3O-2202)
We place great importance on supporting and encouraging economic development throughout Scotland, including the south of Scotland.
The restructuring of Scottish Enterprise will see the two local enterprise companies in the south of Scotland being incorporated into one structure that will cover the region but have no say in its development and no delegated authority. The local boards meet for the last time in March. Can the minister unequivocally guarantee that a full transition will occur on 1 April, so that economic development will be uninterrupted? Further, does he acknowledge that the new structure cannot simply focus on companies that achieve £1 million extra growth a year? Does he recognise the complexity of the economy and the importance of small businesses to the south of Scotland?
The process is cracking on, and we have every expectation of meeting that 1 April target elegantly. We intend to ensure that we develop the focus that will be required to drive the economy forward. We hope that, in doing so, we will be able to learn from what has happened in other places, which is why we are running the south of Scotland event. For example, in my constituency and in North Ayrshire, we have included lots of other stakeholders and spread the burden. We want to involve business in the regional panels, and that is what we will do, but we will also involve organisations such as the Food Standards Agency, the Forestry Commission, voluntary sector organisations, the National Trust for Scotland, Royal Mail, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage. We want to share the burden as we develop possibilities and ensure that we arrive at an elegant solution.
As Jim Hume said, the responsibility for economic development in the south of Scotland currently rests with the enterprise network. Can the minister tell us what organisation will be—in eight weeks' time—the public sector partner in Katalyst Projects, which is the delivery vehicle that was formed to progress the economic regeneration of the Gretna-Lockerbie-Annan corridor? Will it be Dumfries and Galloway Council or the new south of Scotland regional panel?
If the member had listened carefully to what I said earlier, she would understand that we consider what she is talking about to be silo thinking. We want to bring people together. We want the local authorities and the new Scottish Enterprise south of Scotland region to get together with all the other relevant entities. We are talking about bringing Scotland together, working towards a unifying goal, and using the motivation and the enlightened self-interest of all those organisations to produce a better result for the people of the south of Scotland.
International Sporting Events
To ask the Scottish Executive what value it places on international sporting events being hosted in Scotland and in what way it provides support. (S3O-2220)
International sporting events have fantastic potential to showcase Scotland and all that we have to offer on an international stage. The world-class events that we host—both sporting and cultural—demonstrate that we are a dynamic and modern country, and a great place to visit, live, work, study, do business and invest. That is why we fund EventScotland to co-ordinate and provide leadership and support to the drive to secure major events for Scotland.
The minister will be aware that the world schools orienteering championships are coming to Scotland in April, which is the first time that any world schools event has been hosted in the United Kingdom. He will, therefore, share my disappointment at the failure of all the agencies over which he has responsibility to provide any support for that event's coming to Scotland. Serious financial shortfalls, in the region of £10,000, are now being faced.
We value the work of young people and their involvement in sporting events in Scotland, and we recognise their achievements in representing Scotland in the UK and overseas. That is why we put so much effort into supporting them through sportscotland and local authorities. It is clear that the Government is very interested in hosting international sporting events—that was less so under previous Administrations—but I am not aware of the details of the application process relating to the world schools orienteering championships. [Interruption.]
Order.
The results of that process would clearly go to sportscotland and other bodies, such as the local authorities. [Interruption.]
Order.
However, I am happy to look into the matter and respond to the member with full details as soon as possible.
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