- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 2 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made about the education system in advance of the current General Agreement on Trade in Services negotiations on trade in services and whether it consulted (a) Universities Scotland, (b) the National Union of Students and (c) the Association of University Teachers before making any such representations.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on the GATS as it relates to education services. Universities Scotland, the National Union of Students and the Association of University Teachers have all been consulted by the Executive and we expect to consult these bodies further throughout the process. The Department of Trade and Industry intends to publish in early October a public consultation document on the GATS. Copies will be sent to each of these bodies and others with an interest in education in Scotland.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 2 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what input it will have to the meeting of European Union ministers in Berlin in 2003 to discuss harmonisation of higher education; whether any minister will lead a delegation there; what evidence it intends to submit to the meeting, and what research it has done to assist in gathering evidence to present.
Answer
The Berlin conference will take place in September 2003 and the agenda has not yet been set. Discussions between the UK Government and the devolved administrations on which ministers will attend for the UK will take place nearer the time.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 2 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what effects the European Union's Sorbonne/Bologna process will have on tertiary education.
Answer
The Bologna Process was initiated by a small group of European Education Ministers in Paris in 1998 and taken forward by a larger group of ministers in Bologna in 1999 and is not a formal EU process. It is an inter-ministerial process of agreed action between 33 signatory countries, including the UK, with the aim of creating a European higher education area by 2010. This will mean having readily comparable higher education systems across Europe. With its existing Bachelor/Masters structure and the development of SCOTCAT and the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework, the Scottish higher education system already fits well with the Bologna model.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 2 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken, or is taking, to meet the recommendations of the Lisbon/Bologna seminar of April 2002 on the harmonisation of higher education.
Answer
The UK Government signed up in 1997 to the Council of Europe/UNESCO Lisbon Convention on promoting transparency in mutual recognition of academic qualifications. The conference in April 2002 was held to mark five years since that convention was drawn up and to recognise the progress that has been made. The National Academic Recognition Information Centre for the United Kingdom (UK NARIC) provides information and advice to UK higher and further education institutions on all issues relating to the mutual recognition of UK and international qualifications.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 2 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what involvement it has in the tuning of the Dublin descriptors on higher education following the Amsterdam/Bologna seminar of May 2002.
Answer
The Tuning project is a two-year project led by the Universities of Deusto and Groningen and sponsored by the European Commission. The work has been taken forward by academics from universities throughout Europe and there has been no direct ministerial involvement.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 1 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many chief constables were consulted about the plans for neighbourhood wardens announced in its press release SESJ055/2002.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-29387. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can 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: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 1 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish the social justice annual report 2002 and how the milestones, indicators and baselines will vary from the 2001 report.
Answer
The social justice annual report 2002 will be published by the end of the year. There will be no changes to the milestones and baselines. There will be some additions to some of the indicators, for example new gender analysis, which will be detailed in the technical report.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 1 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what it understands to be the definition of "liberalisation" under the General Agreement on Trade in Services proposals on trade in services as it will affect nursery education.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-29654 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can 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: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 1 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the current General Agreement on Trade in Services negotiations on trade in services will limit its ability to bring forward legislation affecting education.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-29654 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can 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: Friday, 20 September 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 1 October 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what it understands to be the definition of "liberalisation" under the General Agreement on Trade in Services proposals on trade in services as it will affect secondary education.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-29654 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.
