- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 25 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what the capital consent has been for (a) Argyll and Bute Council and (b) West Dunbartonshire Council in each year since 1997.
Answer
In each year since 1997, Argyll and Bute Council and West Dunbartonshire Council have been issued capital consents for non-housing capital expenditure from borrowing and grants as follows:Argyll and Bute
| £ Million |
| 1997-98 | 14.962 |
| 1998-99 | 11.521 |
| 1999-2000 | 10.693 |
| 2000-01 | 10.936 |
| 2001-02 | 12.463 |
| 2002-03 | 16.564 |
West Dunbartonshire
| £ Million |
| 1997-98 | 4.141 |
| 1998-99 | 5.773 |
| 1999-2000 | 6.650 |
| 2000-01 | 6.439 |
| 2001-02 | 6.213 |
| 2002-03 | 7.587 |
Outwith the local government settlement, Argyll and Bute and West Dunbartonshire receive allocations of around £1.6 million and £5.7 million respectively each year for housing capital expenditure.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 25 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive how much Strathclyde Passenger Transport has been allocated to enable free local off-peak bus travel in its area.
Answer
Funding for concessionary travel is allocated to local authorities as part of their unhypothecated general block grant allocation. Strathclyde Passenger Transport (SPT) has been delegated as the administrator of the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Joint Committee, and allocation of funds to SPT is a matter for the 12 unitary authorities within its area.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 25 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken to improve transport links between Dumbarton and Glasgow since 1999.
Answer
Through Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive we fund rail services between Glasgow and Dumbarton, which have recently benefited from the introduction of new electric trains. We awarded West Dunbartonshire Council over £1 million for improvements to public transport in Dumbarton town centre. We recently announced proposals to re-open the Airdrie to Bathgate railway line, which will create new transport links from Dumbarton via Glasgow to Livingston and Edinburgh.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 24 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24446 by Ms Wendy Alexander on 16 April 2002, what percentage of microcredit loans for start-up businesses go to women.
Answer
While this is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise, I understand that there are currently 19 microcredit groups operating across the Scottish Enterprise area supporting some 149 clients. Approximately 92% of the clients are women.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 24 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27797 by Iain Gray on 19 August 2002, when it will publish the feasibility study undertaken by Paisley Enterprise Research Centre on establishing a National Centre for Women's Enterprise.
Answer
The Executive plans to publish the feasibility study in March 2003.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 24 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has a strategy for promoting businesses run by women.
Answer
Within the framework of A Smart, Successful Scotland, the Executive is strongly committed to encouraging and supporting women in business. A range of new measures was introduced by Scottish Enterprise under its New Approach to Entrepreneurship strategy, launched last year. At a strategic level this includes specific targets for the number of start-ups by women supported by the network, together with practical promotional activity, for example the Executive and Scottish Enterprise jointly funding a brochure promoting successful women entrepreneurs last year.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 24 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27798 by Iain Gray on 19 August 2002, whether it will establish a national centre for women's enterprise to promote new businesses run by women and disseminate best practice.
Answer
The Executive is currently considering the case for a national centre for women's enterprise and I hope to announce a decision on the way forward in March.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 24 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has had any input into the Department of Trade and Industry's Women's Enterprise Strategic Framework due to be published shortly and how it intends to respond to the recommendations in this report.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has provided an input to the development of the Department of Trade and Industry's Women's Enterprise Strategic Framework. The Executive is currently considering the draft framework for Scottish interests.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 24 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the courts are applying drink-driving rehabilitation programmes as part of sentencing procedure and whether it is monitoring uptake of such programmes.
Answer
In 2001, Scottish courts referred 562 offenders to the Drink Driving Rehabilitation Scheme as part of the sentencing procedure. In 2002, this number had increased to 1,487. The scheme itself is reserved under section 34A of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, and it is the Department for Transport which monitors the provision of courses nationally, including the amount of referrals by courts in England, Scotland and Wales, the number of courses run and the total number of offenders completing a course.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 21 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to tackle hate crime against people with learning disabilities.
Answer
The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) has established a newly constituted Race and Community Relations Standing Committee to reflect the importance ACPOS gives to diversity issues. The new committee has several portfolios, one of which is disability/mental health. ACPOS is currently consulting with major stakeholders to ascertain which issues on disability/mental health the committee should consider addressing.
