Plenary, 11 Jun 2009

Meeting date: Thursday, June 11, 2009

Official Report 824KB pdf

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Question Time

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SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE

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General Questions

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Cabinet Secretary for Justice (Meetings)

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Cabinet Secretary for Justice last met the chief constable of Strathclyde Police and what issues were discussed. (S3O-7319)

I last met Chief Constable Stephen House on Tuesday 2 June, when we launched the strategy for tackling serious organised crime in Scotland, "Letting our Communities Flourish", and I had the pleasure of being able to announce a £4 million funding package over the next two years to boost Scotland's capacity to respond to organised crime.

When the cabinet secretary last met the chief constable of Strathclyde Police, did he discuss the role of the police in supporting the advice, support, safety and information services together—ASSIST—process in ensuring proper risk assessment to inform the domestic abuse courts? Will he clarify whether he expects the police to guarantee participation in partnership working and, more broadly, in working closely with local people—an approach that, of course, underlies any serious attempt to ensure community safety.

After the launch, I had a meal with the chief constable and the director general of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency. Obviously, I do not interfere with operational police matters, but I can assure Johann Lamont that chief constable Stephen House views domestic violence as being one of the most serious matters facing not only Strathclyde Police but Scotland as a whole. He takes that view because it is part of the culture of violence in Scotland. As I have said before in the chamber, if kids grow up in a household in which it is standard for their mother to be abused by her partner, they will view striking out as the way in which they should deal with matters when they are upset or angry, and that behaviour will manifest itself as early as their nursery-school years.

The chief constable has made it clear, from the top of Strathclyde Police, that domestic violence is a serious priority. He has the full support of the Government in that regard.

The last thing I would ask the cabinet secretary to do would be to get involved in the operational matters of Strathclyde Police. However, I would like the cabinet secretary to raise with the chief constable the wider community policing role of the Strathclyde Police pipe band, as its future appears to be under threat, which might result in the loss of a community policing tool as well as a Scottish cultural icon.

As well as domestic violence, the pipe band came up in the pleasurable meeting that I had with Stephen House and Gordon Meldrum.

The matter that Stuart McMillan raises is an operational matter on which the police board has a responsibility to state clearly where it stands.

The question is one of balance. As we know, there are issues around charges for policing in relation to the golf championship at Turnberry. However, the chief constable has been prepared to listen to arguments that there are benefits that go along with that.

Stuart McMillan should raise the matter with the chief constable, as should members of the police board. Pipe bands are appropriate: this is the year of homecoming. Clearly, the police have their own priorities, but as with many issues, where there is a will there is a way, and the truth is often somewhere in the middle.

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Young People not in Education, Employment or Training

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to support young people not in employment, education or training during the economic downturn. (S3O-7352)

As the First Minister made clear to Parliament last month, this Government is determined to avoid another lost generation of young people.

The top priority of our robust more choices, more chances strategy is to help young people to stay in learning after the age of 16, since that is the best way in which to improve their long-term employability. We are doing that by rolling out the 16+ learning choices programme across the country, with the aim of offering every young person an appropriate offer of post-16 learning and support.

We are also boosting provision in order to support the efforts of local partnerships. Last week, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning announced an additional £28.1 million for colleges over the next two years. Last month, we announced new activity agreement pilots in 10 local authorities for unemployed school leavers and, prior to that, we announced nearly £10 million for the inspiring Scotland project, which involves 23 voluntary organisations that are ready to deliver more opportunities and support for particularly vulnerable 14 to 19-year-olds.

I welcome much of the work that is being done by the Government. However, does the minister agree with the Scottish Training Federation that the 16+ learning choices programme lacks a means of engaging effectively with members of the training provider network—particularly work-based learning providers—and that the decision to stop Careers Scotland from handling school-leaver vacancies has left a gap in vacancy matching that must be addressed by, for example, the setting up of an apprenticeship vacancy-matching service and more personalised careers advice for young people who are likely to find themselves not in employment, education or training?

I do not agree with Margaret Smith's first point. The 16+ learning choices programme is extremely effective and has been well received by the partners with whom we have been in discussion. Indeed, it was formulated with their input.

There have been gaps in provision for a number of years, but we are working to address that. The initial response to the 16+ learning choices programme and the input that we have had from partners suggest that those gaps will quickly be filled. Given that we have entered an unprecedented recession, it is a difficult time for the more choices, more chances strategy and the 16+ initiative, but we believe that both projects will be effective in limiting the effect of the recession and in ensuring that young people in the relevant categories are well placed to come out of it with the necessary skills and opportunities.

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Housing (Fife)

To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of the estimated £53.8 million in increased funding in housing investment for Scotland from the United Kingdom budget will be allocated to Fife. (S3O-7320)

Ministers will decide in due course how the consequentials from the UK budget will be allocated.

The minister will be aware of the deep and growing concern of Fife Housing Association Alliance in my Kirkcaldy constituency about the impact of the 2009-10 allocation. There is an overwhelming need to invest in housing in Kirkcaldy and, indeed, in all mid-Fife. We cannot understand why we are seeing a real drop in investment when other areas are seeing real increases. Given the seriousness of the situation, will the minister agree to an urgent meeting with me and representatives from Fife Housing Association Alliance to discuss the matter?

For the record, I point out that there has been a 13 per cent increase in the allocation to Fife housing associations this year, and that a further £1.6 million is allocated through the council house second homes fund for investment in affordable housing in Fife. However, I acknowledge the points that Marilyn Livingstone has made and I am more than happy to meet her and the housing associations to discuss the situation.

The minister is aware of the representations that I have made to him about the housing need and the level of housing investment to housing associations in Fife. I would be grateful for his assurance that he will carefully consider that need and the level of investment that is required.

Also, will the minister take the opportunity to congratulate Fife Council on acquiring last week the first new council houses in Fife for more than 20 years?

I am delighted to take the opportunity to congratulate Fife Council on that wonderful announcement last week. I hope that we will see many more such announcements, not only in Fife but throughout the country, during the rest of the year.

I hear what both Marilyn Livingstone and Tricia Marwick are saying, and I am happy to invite both members to a meeting with the housing associations to discuss the situation.

Question 4 was not lodged.

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Tenant Rights (Eviction)

To ask the Scottish Executive what rights tenants have when facing eviction as a result of their landlord defaulting on a property's mortgage. (S3O-7315)

If a private landlord defaults on a mortgage, the tenant's rights depend on whether the landlord obtained the lender's consent to the tenancy and on the terms of the tenancy agreement. In any case, there is a statutory obligation on the creditor to notify the occupier of the property by recorded delivery that enforcement action is under way. Failure to do so invalidates the action. The creditor must also notify the local authority when it takes steps to repossess the property, to allow the local authority to offer appropriate support or advice to the tenant.

I thank the minister for that full reply. Will he condemn landlords who collect rent, including rent that is paid through housing benefit, but fail to make mortgage payments, thereby exposing families to eviction? Will he investigate abuses of the data protection legislation whereby mortgage lenders are refusing to provide legitimate information to those who seek to help families who are threatened with eviction?

I have every sympathy with the points that Hugh Henry makes. I am aware of a particular case in the Paisley area, which was mentioned in the Paisley Daily Express last week.

The repossessions working group, which reported earlier this week, said that the problem is complex and that there is a need more fully to evaluate it and potential solutions. One option would be to do what happens down south, which would be to guarantee tenancies for a minimum of two months after a repossession. As part of our consideration of the work of the repossessions working group, we will seriously consider the need for further protection of tenants who find themselves in the situation that Hugh Henry describes.

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School Building Programme

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it remains committed to matching the previous Administration's school building programme brick for brick. (S3O-7318)

Yes. More than 150 school rebuilding or refurbishment projects have already been completed since May 2007. That exceeds by some margin the previous Administration's committed schools programme, which, under the partnership agreement for a better Scotland, was to renew 100 more schools by 2009, following on from what had been delivered up to the end of 2006. We anticipate that 250 schools will have been completed by 2011.

Since May 2007, 50,000 pupils have benefited from moving into new, state-of-the-art classrooms, and further investment will lift another 50,000 pupils out of crumbling classrooms in the lifetime of this Parliament.

Next Wednesday, I will make a statement to Parliament about the next part of our school building programme, which will involve working with local authorities to take forward capital investment through the Scottish Futures Trust, as we said we would. I trust that that will be warmly welcomed across the Parliament.

That model will be warmly welcomed, when the cabinet secretary finally comes up with it. She will acknowledge that it will be a public-private partnership hybrid that is closely based on the non-profit-distributing model that was introduced by the previous Administration. Does she still stand by page 19 of her party's 2007 election manifesto, on which it said that it would introduce a not-for-profit trust? I would like a yes or no answer.

In recent times, the Federation of Master Builders, the Scottish Building Federation, the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, the Scottish Council for Development and Industry and the Confederation of British Industry have all condemned the Scottish Futures Trust. To that list we can now add the Scottish National Party councillors and members of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities who have said that the Government's plans "lack substance", that the Government is "not in any position" to fund new projects and that, although it has promised a new way to deliver, it has not yet delivered anything. SNP councillors have said that the Scottish Futures Trust is bust.

Question, please.

Will the cabinet secretary acknowledge that the proposal that she will bring to the Parliament next week will involve a PPP hybrid and that it will not measure up to her party's manifesto commitment?

I think that the statement that I will make next Wednesday will be welcomed. The member is very good at complaining but not very good at congratulating this Government on its £2 billion-worth of investment in schools, which will support tens of thousands of jobs in the construction industry and, more importantly, will give youngsters the opportunity to learn in well-built schools, thereby improving their learning experience.

I look forward to the member's questions next Wednesday. Perhaps he will join us in congratulating the Scottish Futures Trust and COSLA on working with the Government to provide the school estate projects and the school estate strategy that will take us forward in future years.

Does the minister's brick-for-brick commitment extend to the planned new Dunfermline high school? In particular, does it extend to the replacement of the swimming pool that is used by thousands of pupils and members of the public every week?

Quite clearly, decisions about which schools are progressed are for local authorities to take, but we should welcome Fife Council's planned £126 million investment in schools, just as we should welcome the investment in schools by South Lanarkshire Council of £850 million and North Lanarkshire Council of £180 million, and Aberdeenshire Council's planned investment of £130 million.

That is nothing to do with you.

The £2 billion-worth of capital investment that is being provided to local authorities to support capital projects is very much part of this Government's budget. I distinctly remember that Labour rejected it when the Government put forward its first budget.

Does the minister agree that Fife Council's decision to renege on its commitment to a new school in Kirkcaldy east is totally reprehensible? Will she make representations to the council on the need for a new school in what is an extremely deprived part of my constituency?

I am pleased to hear that Fife Council has greatly enhanced the school building programme of its predecessor thanks to the support that this Government has provided. I cannot pre-empt any statements or decisions that any council might make following my statement to Parliament next week, but I think that the prospects for the school building programme in Fife and, indeed, across Scotland will be greatly enhanced by the support that is given by this Government and the Scottish Futures Trust.

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Court Fines

To ask the Scottish Executive what the total amount of fines imposed by Scottish courts was, excluding those paid by civil diligence, in the past three financial years. (S3O-7292)

The total amount of financial penalties imposed by the High Court and sheriff courts in the past three financial years, excluding those cases in which civil diligence has been ordered, was £55 million.

How much of that £55 million of monetary penalties remains unpaid?

The recovery of fines imposed by the sheriff courts has been consistently high. Over the past three years, 83 per cent of offenders have paid. Of the total figure, including civil diligence, 77 per cent has already been collected for fines imposed since 2005. In addition, 6 per cent is in the process of being collected in instalments; 10 per cent was discharged by a sheriff through alternative sentences such as supervised attendance orders or imprisonment; and 7 per cent is in arrears and will be the focus of targeted sanctions by the newly brought-in fines enforcement officers, who have a variety of powers to ensure that fines imposed are paid.

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National Carers Strategy

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish the national carers strategy for Scotland. (S3O-7345)

The Scottish Government expects to publish its carers strategy for Scotland early in 2010.

A carers week survey recently highlighted the shocking number of carers who have been pushed to extreme levels of stress and depression as a result of caring. Almost three quarters of carers say they feel that they have reached breaking point.

One of the specified commitments in the local government concordat is that progress will be made towards the delivery of 10,000 extra respite weeks a year, at home and in care homes. Will the minister quantify the progress that councils have made on that commitment over the past two years? Is she satisfied with the current provision throughout Scotland?

The Government acknowledges the pressures under which carers operate and the enormous contribution that carers make to providing services in Scotland. That is why this Government has attached such a high priority to improving services for carers.

Alison McInnes is right to draw attention to the Government's commitment to provide an additional 10,000 respite weeks. That is a specific commitment in the concordat, and progress is being made. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities will monitor progress in each of the 32 local authority areas and report to the Scottish Government annually on a Scotland-wide basis.

I assure Alison McInnes and other members that the delivery of that commitment is absolutely crucial. We will be keeping a close eye on it, and we will keep Parliament fully updated.

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Legal Aid Rules

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3O-6290 by Kenny MacAskill on 19 March 2009, in which he stated that he would be more than happy to have discussions with representatives of Scotland's law centres, including Paisley Law Centre, whether he has now met with law centre representatives, and, if not, when such meetings will take place. (S3O-7299)

I wrote to Angus McIntosh of Castlemilk Law and Money Advice Centre on 4 June, inviting him and his colleagues from the Scottish Association of Law Centres to meet me. The date of the meeting has not yet been fixed.

I notice that the cabinet secretary wrote after my question was submitted, but I am grateful that that has now happened.

In today's press, Mike Dailly suggests that we have only half the solution unless we deal with the issue of access to legal aid. Civil legal aid is required in repossession cases. Will the cabinet secretary undertake to report back urgently to Parliament on the matter? If Parliament is in recess, will he put the outcome of his discussions into the Scottish Parliament information centre as soon as possible?

This Government acknowledges the problems that many people in Scotland are facing as a result of the recession. That is why we have extended the eligibility criteria for legal aid to record levels—levels that are far superior to anything offered by the Administration of which Ms Alexander was a member, and far superior to what is available south of the border.

This Government is meeting all its obligations to deal with Scots who find themselves in debt and financial difficulties, but we do not have the powers to deal with consumer lending rates. I note that the member does not seem to raise questions with Baron Mandelson. It is scandalous that Scotland remains one of the few jurisdictions in which there is no maximum cap on the lending rate that can be charged. The Government is required to deal with people who suffer through debt and bankruptcy; meanwhile, the Labour Government down south fails to protect people who are targeted by sub-prime lenders or whoever else.

That concludes general questions. Before we come to First Minister's question time, members will wish to join me in welcoming to the gallery His Excellency Iztok Jarc, the ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia. [Applause.]