Chamber and committees

As announced in theSkills Strategy which we launched on 10 September I am pleased to confirm that wewill implement the conclusions of the MA consultation and in particular we willextend MAs to S/NVQ level 2 (SCQF 5) and phase out the Skillseekers programme. Weshall also seek to embed the SCQF into the MA programme to help participants togain credit for their skills within further study.

The funding of themodern apprenticeship (MAs) programme in Scotland is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The programme is demand led andis reliant on the willingness of employers to recruit, employ and support MAs forthe duration of their training. Although the MoD have decided not to recruit anynew MAs I understand that Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire have assured the MoD thattheir existing MAs will continue to be funded for the duration of their training.

I refer the memberto the answer to question S3W-3259 on 28 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are availableon the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Improving road safetyfor children and reducing the number of children killed or injured on Scotland’s roads is a key priority for the Scottish Government.

Road Safety Scotlandis implementing a road safety education strategy, which aims to ensure that allchildren receive a minimum of road safety education at every stage of their schoolcareer, linked to national education guidelines. Road Safety Scotland has developedroad safety education resources for all age groups from pre-school to upper secondary.Road Safety Scotland is working in partnership with the key road safety organisationsto coordinate efforts in this area.

The Scottish Executivedoes not issue specific guidance on this to education authorities. However, “CrashMagnets”, a resource for upper secondary pupils, and a new resource for childrenwith additional support needs, being developed by Road Safety Scotland, highlightthe need to be alert to the presence and urgency of Fire and Rescue Service vehicles.

Scottish Executivefunding to tackle antisocial behaviour is supporting community wardens in everylocal authority area in Scotland. It is for each local authorityto decide how best to allocate the resulting grant across all their antisocial behaviourservices, including community wardens, based on local needs and priorities.

Funding for antisocialbehaviour services will be considered as part of the forthcoming spending review.

I refer the member to the answerto question S3W-2163 answered on 3 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament's website the search facility forwhich can be found at:http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

The Scottish Executive takesall forms of religious bigotry extremely seriously and is committed tocontinuing to drive the anti-sectarian agenda forward. By building on theachievements which have already been delivered through initiatives like theAction Plan on Tackling Sectarianism in Scotland; engaging with all faith communities; andcelebrating the diversity of modern Scotland, we will ensure that a holistic approach is taken tomeet the needs of faith groups at both government and community level.

I refer the member to the answerto question S3W-2163 answered on 3 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament's website the search facility forwhich can be found at:http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

There are no plan tointroduce an interim National Entitlement Card.