SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE
General Questions
Pay Dispute (University of Aberdeen)
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to assist students of the University of Aberdeen to graduate with the awards to which they are entitled. (S2O-9764)
Clearly, ministers are very concerned about the potential effects of the current pay dispute on students in all our universities. I know that the University of Aberdeen has in place contingency plans to minimise the effects of the dispute on student examinations and has published advice and guidance for students. However, ministers are not in a position to intervene in the internal management of any university. The resolution of the current dispute is clearly a matter between the institutions and their staff.
I, too, have seen the documentation that the university is using to inform its students of the difficulties that they may face. Is there not a role for the Executive in the dispute? Could it not act as an arbiter? It would not take sides but would try to facilitate the coming together of two groups of people in a dispute in which the innocent victims—indeed, hostages—are the students?
It is important to emphasise that the negotiations that have been taking place on the issue are at the United Kingdom level. Representatives of the universities and unions in Scotland are involved.
Carbon Dioxide Emissions
To ask the Scottish Executive what the annual emissions of carbon dioxide are from electricity generating stations in Scotland. (S2O-9790)
Sectoral carbon dioxide emissions are reported in "Greenhouse Gas Inventories for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland 1990-2003", a copy of which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament information centre. Emissions from electricity production are recorded in the public electricity and heat production category which, in 2003, accounted for 18,031 gigagrams—equivalent to around 18 million tonnes—of carbon dioxide in Scotland.
That is a lot of carbon dioxide from a little country. I find it disappointing that the Liberal Cabinet minister is not answering questions for which he is responsible.
I am not going to get into an argument about which minister answers questions.
Does the minister agree that CO2 emissions at the point of generation are not the only emissions that should be taken into account when assessing nuclear electricity generation? Does she accept that whole-life-cycle emissions make nuclear power about as climate friendly as efficient gas-fired electricity generation? Will the minister give the chamber an assurance that full-life-cycle CO2 emissions will be taken into account in any decisions on nuclear power generation?
I thought that I had made that clear in my earlier answer. I reiterate the importance of taking a balanced view of the contribution that nuclear makes to meeting our climate change commitments in a sustainable way, including consideration of the wider environmental impacts.
Given that renewables are the major alternative to conventional generation, is the progress towards forms of renewable energy other than onshore wind not far too slow?
As the member knows, we are committed to developing a range of renewable energy technologies. We are reviewing the situation. It is important to get the balance right and to ensure that the maximum number of opportunities is taken up in Scotland.
The minister referred to lifetime carbon emissions, as did Shiona Baird in her question. Does the minister acknowledge that wind-generated energy has a greater lifetime CO2 emissions factor than nuclear generation has? That is the case particularly when we look at the installed capacity and output of wind generation.
I am sorry to disappoint Mr Gallie, but I will not get into a broader debate on the issue. It is important for us to have a range of renewable energy sources in Scotland, of which wind is an important one.
Tay and Forth Bridge Tolls
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it can give a further update on when the examination of the economic, social and environmental impact and cost of retaining or removing tolls from the Tay and Forth bridges is likely to be concluded. (S2O-9759)
We are preparing detailed proposals for the examination and we intend to inform Parliament about the matter next week.
It is certainly a comfort to know that, after seven weeks, the minister can tell MSPs more about when the review is taking place than that it is taking place "as soon as possible". Can he now tell the chamber when he expects the review to conclude and when ministers will take a decision? Will he also announce today that, until the review is concluded, work on relocating tollbooths will be halted?
I assume that, in her final question, Tricia Marwick was referring to the Forth road bridge. I cannot give her that assurance, nor will I. We have to ask some fundamental questions about congestion on and around the Forth bridge and I hope that Tricia Marwick and her colleagues will do so too. One of the questions that we need to ask is how it is good for the Scottish economy if the tolls are removed and congestion increases. I am sure that that is one of the issues on which she and many others will want to comment.
In light of the comments that were made by the Secretary of State for Transport about road pricing, does the minister favour road pricing as opposed to tolls for any of the bridges in Scotland?
Yes, I do. I was very encouraged by the speech that the new Secretary of State for Transport made in London this week. It made an important contribution to this central debate on how we value and charge for space across the trunk road network in the UK. I believe that the matter should be taken forward on a UK-wide basis. However, I must add two important caveats. First, there must be clear and demonstrable improvements in public transport services and people must be able to use those services. Secondly, if we take forward such a policy, the user of the road—whether that is the freight industry or Mr Davidson or me using our motor cars—must see a consequential reduction in other forms of taxation. Those are issues that the Department for Transport is considering at the moment.
Out-of-hours Health Services<br />(Highland Perthshire)
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any concerns in respect of the provision of out-of-hours health care services in the highland Perthshire area. (S2O-9765)
My concern will always be that patients have ready access to the services that they need. The new contract for general practitioners enables them to withdraw from out-of-hours services. Where they do so, responsibility transfers to national health service boards. In remote and rural areas, NHS boards have adopted a range of models to ensure out-of-hours cover is provided.
I appreciate the minister's interest in the provision of care in remote and rural areas. Does he share my further concern that, in a recent GP call-out for a suspected meningitis case, ambulance cover took more than 40 minutes to arrive, which highlights the weakness of the current arrangements and the potential danger to patient safety? Does he agree that it is important that NHS Tayside should reconsider the arrangements that it has put in place to ensure that adequate out-of-hours health care cover is in place in the Rannoch and Tummel area?
Of course, I am concerned that patients should receive the best possible service from our national health service. A meeting will take place in Kinloch Rannoch on 15 May, at which NHS Tayside, NHS 24 and the Scottish Ambulance Service will discuss the service with the community. The out-of-hours service was opted out of on 1 May, but GP cover and a rapid response unit are available in Aberfeldy. I understand that Aberfeldy is 30 to 40 minutes' travel away. The situation is new and arose on 1 May, but plans have been put in place and are working. I am sure that the board will be happy to hear from the community about the efficacy and safety of those services. I look forward to hearing again from John Swinney on the issue.
As the minister knows, I have similar problems in the rural part of my constituency around Killin, which adjoins John Swinney's area. The particular problem is how the accident and emergency ambulance service, which has been working for some time, is dealing—or not dealing—with some emergencies. Will the minister please consider improvements or alternatives to the present system, so that constituents' faith in out-of-hours health provision can be restored?
We have restored massively the confidence in our ambulance service, which now has more trained paramedics and receives more investment than ever before. Although NHS 24 still has challenges that patients quite correctly put before it, the turnaround times in the service have nonetheless also been transformed. Our overall investment in the health service is delivering a huge return for patients. The member raises specific matters about a local community, which is my concern, too. She has written to and met me and we are to meet again on the issues that she raises. I am always happy to pass on challenges to boards and to ensure that they are met robustly. Let me reassure patients about the quality of services. Our investments are delivering a first-class health service in Scotland.
Osteoporosis
To ask the Scottish Executive when it last had discussions with the European Union about osteoporosis. (S2O-9786)
We have not had such discussions, as European Union institutions have no remit for the planning of health care for specific chronic conditions.
Does the minister share my concern that the annual EU-wide cost that arises from fractures that result from osteoporosis is estimated to be more than €30 billion and that the figure is expected to double in the next 10 years? As many of us are aware, osteoporosis is known as the silent killer, as the disease is often far advanced before people know that they have it. What steps have the minister's officials taken to create a co-ordinated data collection system to monitor osteoporotic fractures? Is the Executive co-operating with the new World Health Organisation approach, which is believed to represent a more accurate way of identifying those who are at risk of osteoporotic fractures?
This is a speech.
Are the minister's officials aware of, or were they party to, the most recent meeting of the International Osteoporosis Foundation consultation panel, which was held in Bavaria, at which one of the key speakers, Professor Johnell, said that in Europe osteoporotic fractures cause more lost years of healthy life than do many other major diseases, including breast cancer and colorectal cancer?
Helen Eadie raises important issues, so I am happy to reply to her supplementary points. We share the priorities in the World Health Organisation approach and recognise the importance of a risk assessment as the best way in which to act. The Scottish intercollegiate guidelines network guideline on osteoporosis acknowledges that the development of a validated tool for risk assessment would be a useful addition to the assessment of the condition. We are keen to learn from the continuing work of the WHO on the matter.
I have given the minister notice of my question. As he knows, one fracture leads to another. The SIGN guidelines state that patients who have already suffered a fragility fracture should be a priority target. However, a Scotland-wide audit that was published in 2005 showed that, although in the Western infirmary in Glasgow, nearly everybody in that category received treatment, only one fifth—21 per cent—of such people in Aberdeen, Inverness, Livingston and East Kilbride received it. Does the minister agree that that is unacceptable and that the disparity in standards of treatment throughout Scotland desperately needs to be reduced?
I agree that those matters are important. I am glad that Mr Ewing's question was heard courteously by members throughout the chamber—that is a good model for dealing with such serious issues.
Scottish Water (Highlands and Islands)
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Scottish Water in respect of the connection of properties in the Highlands and Islands. (S2O-9743)
The Executive has on-going discussions with Scottish Water on a variety of topics that relate to the delivery of its investment programmes.
Is the Executive putting pressure on Scottish Water to take on more connections, so as not to hold up urgent projects in the Highlands and Islands? Will the Executive and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency insist that Scottish Water take on connections from private properties when installing new sewage works in areas such as Connel and Taynuilt in Argyll, where the continued discharge of raw sewage into the sea loch Loch Etive is a threat to the Food Standards Agency's classification of the water quality? A downgrading of that classification would prevent the harvesting of mussels in a designated shellfish-growing area that at present produces 40 per cent of all the mussels that are grown off mainland Scotland.
Scottish Water is required to meet the strategic capacity requirements of all estimated new development. On the Loch Etive issue, the member will be aware that Scottish Water's duty to connect properties to the public network is limited by a caveat on reasonable costs. Scottish Water's duties extend only to provision that can be done at reasonable cost. To fulfil its duties, Scottish Water's current policy is to make a reasonable cost contribution or to undertake work up to a predetermined figure. It is our understanding that Scottish Water has connected all properties that fall within that reasonable-cost guideline. I am happy to discuss the issue further with the member, if he requires that.
What plans does the Executive have to ensure the robustness of Scottish Water's systems in the Highlands and Islands, given last week's water supply failure in Acharacle and Kilchrenan, which led local schools to send children home and forced local businesses to close?
It is up to Scottish Water to work closely with Highland Council. There have been several meetings with the council and I expect Scottish Water to work to resolve the issues. Again, I am happy to provide an update if the member requires one.
National Entitlement Card
To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the extension of the national entitlement card to local and national concessionary rail travel and what discussions it has had with current providers of concessionary rail travel schemes regarding the maintenance of existing provision. (S2O-9810)
Where existing local concessionary schemes offer additional transport modes such as rail, those remain the responsibility of the local authority. The Executive has agreed with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities a fair split of resources, to ensure that those local authorities continue to be resourced for concessionary travel on modes other than bus. There are currently no plans to introduce national concessionary rail travel.
In Falkirk East, over-60s and disabled people no longer have access to concessionary rail travel because of a council cut. I urge the minister to think again about a national scheme.
As I said, the national scheme that we have introduced relates to bus and is seen as a tremendous improvement throughout Scotland. I appreciate that specific issues may arise for the council in Cathy Peattie's constituency, but I am sure that she is pursuing those with considerable vigour in that part of the world.
Scottish Water (National Sludge Strategy)
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it agrees with the conclusions and recommendations of Scottish Water's draft national sludge strategy. (S2O-9741)
The draft strategy is Scottish Water's. Scottish Water has undertaken a public consultation on the strategic environmental assessment of its draft sludge strategy but has not yet published its conclusions or recommendations following that consultation.
As the minister will be aware, £63 million of investment will be required to bring sewage treatment plants and other infrastructure up to an appropriate level to implement the draft strategy, which, as she said, is out to consultation. Does the Scottish Executive intend to contribute to the cost or to otherwise ensure that the cost will not be passed in its entirety to already hard-pressed charge payers?
Once the Scottish Executive is in receipt of Scottish Water's recommendations, we will consider what action is required.
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