Chamber and committees

The intention to establish these four demonstration projects, with the aim of enabling local successes to inform national change in key areas, was set out in the White Paper, Towards a Healthier Scotland. Following due consideration of a large number of proposals from groups across Scotland, appropriate lead organisations for each of the projects have now been identified. It is proposed that "Starting Well" should be delivered by Glasgow Healthy City Partnership, "Healthy Respect" should be delivered by Lothian Health, "The Heart of Scotland" should be delivered by Paisley Local Health Care Co-operative and "The Cancer Challenge" should be delivered jointly by Fife, Tayside and Grampian Health Boards. These organisations, in consultation with their partner organisations and the Executive, are currently undertaking preparatory work to enable the projects to come into operation over the next few months.

Recent guidance to the NHS, local authorities and others on care, management, support and services for those suffering from mental illness including schizophrenia includes:

• A Good Practice Statement for People Affected by Schizophrenia
, 1995, Scottish Executive Clinical Resource and Audit Group;
• Care Programme Approach
, 1996, Scottish Executive;
• Framework for Mental Health Services in Scotland,
published 1997, Scottish Executive;
• Psychosocial Interventions in the Management of Schizophrenia
, 1998, Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network.

Publication arrangements varied and wide distribution to appropriate bodies applied. Copies are available from the source or on the Internet at www.scotland.gov.uk or www.show.scot.nhs.uk

The Clinical Standards Board for Scotland are also developing draft standards focusing on the care and treatment of people with schizophrenia.

Funding for Local Volunteer Development Agencies and for the Millennium Volunteers Projects is offered directly to the organisations concerned. For 2000-01, £1 million has been set aside for the continuation of the Local Volunteer Development Agency (LVDA) Grants Programme and £695,000 for the Millennium Volunteers Programme.

The Executive has offered £90,000 revenue grant to Volunteer Action Dumfries and Galloway to cover the three years 2000-01 to 2002-03 to allow it to continue in its key role of supporting volunteers in the area. 12 other LVDAs also had their support from the Executive renewed for a further three years. The Executive has also issued formal offers of grant to allow two new Local Volunteer Development Agencies, in Moray and East Renfrewshire, to start in 2000-01.

The Executive has awarded £221,000 to 13 new Millennium Volunteers projects for 2000-01.

Scottish Executive Health Department officials met with representatives of the Scottish Ambulance Service as recently as 29 March. The Scottish Ambulance Service have advised that their Joint Working Party is still considering the Working Time Directive and its implications to the service for on-call and relief working and will let the Health Department have their finding as soon as the group completes its deliberations.

The report entitled The Crime and Disorder Act 1998: The Use of section 23 evictions for anti-social behaviour, which also reports on the use of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders was received in March 2000. A copy has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

The Scottish Executive makes no direct financial contribution to organisations such as the Burns Federation. Promotion of cultural tourism in South West Scotland falls under the remit of the local tourist boards, Dumfries and Galloway Council and Enterprise Ayrshire.

On 6 October 1999 I announced a review of the Careers Service with the remit: "To examine the role of the careers service in Scotland, and the scope for change and development of that role in the light of trends and initiatives in education, lifelong learning, and the labour market."

The review committee was asked to specifically consider whether the Careers Service should cover advice to both young people and adults. The independently chaired committee is expected to report by the middle of 2000.

Recycling of sludge to agricultural land is the most sustainable environmental option for disposal or re-use of sludge in most cases. It is controlled under the Sewage Sludge (Use in Agriculture) Regulations 1989 and a supporting Code of Practice. Sludge may be recycled by spreading on land or injection into it, depending on how the sludge has been treated, and the Code of Practice lists acceptable treatment processes, including composting. Sewage sludge contains significant proportions of nitrogen, phosphorus and organic matter and is a fertiliser in its own right. Following a recent agreement between the British Retail Consortium and the water industry which sets even tighter voluntary standards, including ruling out altogether the use of untreated sludge on farmland, we plan to amend the current Regulations to increase further the statutory safety standards.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport are aware that many areas served by low-power relays, such as Langholm, cannot as yet receive Digital Terrestrial Television. They are in contact with the Scottish Executive and with the digital broadcasters about the next stage in the expansion of digital terrestrial TV.

From the academic year 2000-01 the minimum entry requirements to Postgraduate Certificate in Education (Secondary) courses will be increased. Applicants will require within their degrees three teaching subject qualifying courses (TSQCs), with one TSQC at Scottish degree level two or above and one at level three or above. Previously only two TSQCs were necessary and one had to be at Scottish degree level two or above. These requirements are set out in the Memorandum on Entry Requirements to Courses of Teacher Education in Scotland.

The increase in the minimum entry requirements is designed as a contribution to raising standards in the teaching workforce and was the outcome of a working group and a comprehensive consultation with all interested parties including further and higher education institutions, the teacher education institutions and the General Teaching Council for Scotland.