- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 14 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average total fees charged by a registrar will be (a) for attending a place outside a registry office, including the costs of approving that place, to conduct a marriage ceremony and otherwise processing the marriage application and (b) for authorising a minister of religion to be an authorised celebrant of marriages in Scotland and processing an application for a couple to be married by that minister of religion.
Answer
The fees for the attendanceby a registrar at a place other than a registration office to conduct a civilmarriage, and for the approval of that place for civil marriages are notprescribed by the Registrar General for Scotland or the Scottish ministers. The fees are set by eachlocal authority on a cost recovery basis and vary between local authoritiesaccording to the circumstances of each local authority and the type of place.
The average fee for theattendance of a registrar at a place approved for civil marriages on Mondays toFridays is £154. Similarly, the average fee that would apply to attendance on Saturdays,Sundays and public holidays is £210.
The Marriage (Scotland)Act 2002 allows for either a periodic approval of a place (for up to three years)or a temporary approval for a single wedding. The average fee across 32 localauthorities is £348. The average fee for a temporary approval is £383.
There is no fee set instatute or regulations relating to the authorisation of a minister of religionas an approved celebrant. Nor is there a fee for the authorisation of aregistrar to conduct civil marriages. However, there are fees which applynationally that are prescribed by the Registrar General for Scotland with theapproval of the Scottish ministers relating to the legal formalities that mustbe completed for marriage in Scotland, whether a civil marriage or a religiousmarriage. There is a fee of £20 when each person submits notice of intention tomarry. Also, if the couple wish to have an extract from the marriage register(a marriage certificate), the charge is £8.50 per extract. If the couple wishto have a civil marriage, the prescribed fee for the solemnisation of a civilmarriage by a registrar is £45. A religious celebrant will often charge a feeto cover his expenses for conducting a religious marriage.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7829 by Malcolm Chisholm on 12 May 2004, whether there has been an increase in public funding in real terms for capital expenditure in the NHS since 1997.
Answer
Yes, there has been a real termsincrease of £158 million in public funding for capital expenditure in the NHS since1997.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7791 by Mr Andy Kerr on 10 May 2004, what research and monitoring it carries out to satisfy itself that approved PPP projects are better value for money than a conventional procurement route over the lifetime of the projects concerned.
Answer
Value for money is assessed atOutline business case stage and full business case stage. It is for the procuringpublic sector body to monitor value for money throughout the procurement process.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7789 by Mr Andy Kerr on 10 May 2004, how it ensures value for money in public expenditure in the absence of information on the rate of interest paid to lenders by PPP consortia for the provision of capital.
Answer
I refer the member to the answergiven to question S2W-8343 on 2 June 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for whichcan be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how it has ensured that Her Majesty's Government's representations to the European Union in respect of the General Agreement on Trade in Services reflect the Executive's commitment to retain Scotland's public water services in the public sector.
Answer
The Scottish Executive achieved this outcome by advising the Department of Tradeand Industry of the Executive’s commitment to retaining Scotland’s public water services in the public sector.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7813 by Cathy Jamieson on 11 May 2004, whether the same level of performance information will be available for HM Prison Kilmarnock as for other prisons in Scotland.
Answer
I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:
No. HM Prison Kilmarnock issubject to a separate performance framework set out in its contract. Informationon key performance indicators set out in the SPS annual report will continue tocover both HM Prison Kilmarnock and other prisons in Scotland on the same basis.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7781 by Mr Andy Kerr on 10 May 2004, how it ensures value for money in public expenditure in the absence of information on costs incurred by each local authority on external consultants and advisers for PFI and PPP projects in each year since 1999.
Answer
It is the responsibility of theprocuring public sector body to ensure that the public private partnership procurementroute shows value for money compared to a conventional procurement route, takingall relevant costs and benefits into account.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how the costs incurred in each PFI and PPP project since 1999 compare with the capital costs that would have been incurred had each project been funded through traditional procurement methods.
Answer
I refer the member to the answergiven to question S2W-7791 on 10 May 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for whichcan be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-34819 and S2W-7753 by Iain Gray and Lewis Macdonald on 27 March 2003 and 7 May 2004 respectively, why the information on modern apprenticeships has ceased to be held centrally; when this information ceased to be held centrally, and whether it will now collect the information necessary to monitor the modern apprenticeship scheme.
Answer
This information on modern apprenticeshas never been held centrally. It has been accessed by ministers on occasion inthe past from Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise but the mostappropriate course of action for members seeking this information is to seek itdirectly from the enterprise networks.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 2 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many PFI/PPP projects have been refinanced since 1999.
Answer
Four public privatepartnership projects have been refinanced since 1999.
