The absence of a signed applicationform does not remove the prospect for prosecution in respect of the scheme. Undersection 83(4) of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 it is an offenceknowingly to provide false information or fail to provide the information requestedin an application for landlord registration. This applies to both online and paperapplications.

If it is found that a landlordhas knowingly provided false information or failed to provide the required informationthen they can be found guilty of so doing by the courts.

Under the Antisocial Behaviouretc. (Scotland) Act 2004, local authorities have a duty to provide applicantsfor registration with general advice on what constitutes good practice in the lettingof houses. If a local authority proposes to refuse an application for registrationor remove a registered person from the register then it can provide further adviceto the applicant or registered person on actions they may be able to take to resolvethe situation including the appointment of an agent to manage the property.

Local authorities also have aduty to provide advice and assistance to tenants where a decision is made to refusean application for registration from a landlord, remove a landlord from the register,or serve a Rent Penalty Notice suspending liability for rent at that property.

Finally, in addition to certainprescribed offences, a local authority can also take into account any other informationit considers relevant in determining whether the landlord is fit and proper to letproperty. This can include complaints from tenants.

The Scottish Government recognisesthat the vast majority of landlords operate lawfully. No applications for registrationhave been rejected yet, but several local authorities are taking enforcement actionwhere there are concerns. This may involve the landlord being invited to an interviewwith a panel of officials to discuss those concerns, or a hearing before the relevantcouncil committee.

The following table shows thenumber of applications for registration by private landlords and letting agentsreceived by each local authority and the number of applications approved, as at7 January 2008. Landlords and agents are required to register in eachauthority where they own or manage property, so these figures include multiple registrationsfor some individuals or organisations.

Local Authority	Registrations Approved	Total Applications Received
Aberdeen City	2,958	8,833
Aberdeenshire	1,316	3,729
Angus	1,520	1,941
Argyll and Bute	1,394	1,966
Clackmannanshire	527	698
Dumfries and Galloway	2,684	2,968
Dundee City	1,116	3,522
East Ayrshire	1,108	1,694
East Dunbartonshire	475	1,027
East Lothian	1,233	1,987
East Renfrewshire	752	938
Edinburgh, City of	12,790	22,854
Eilean Siar	36	375
Falkirk	1,440	1,866
Fife	2,705	6,188
Glasgow City	6,577	12,978
Highland	440	4,435
Inverclyde	496	1,125
Midlothian	443	990
Moray	1,033	1,497
North Ayrshire	579	1,701
North Lanarkshire	1,727	2,611
Orkney Islands	795	829
Perth and Kinross	1,065	3,256
Renfrewshire	1,174	2,071
Scottish Borders, The	2,608	2,769
Shetland Islands	127	276
South Ayrshire	784	1,970
South Lanarkshire	3,849	4,015
Stirling	1,046	2,110
West Dunbartonshire	595	737
West Lothian	1,218	2,485
Total	56,610	106,441

 

No landlords have been prosecutedfor providing false information in applications for registration under the NationalRegistration Scheme for Private Landlords.

Both online and paper applicationsrequire applicants to declare that the information provided is correct. Applicantsare also informed that it is a criminal offence to give false information in anapplication for registration.

If an applicant is found to haveknowingly provided false information or has knowingly failed to provide the requiredinformation in an application form then enforcement sanctions are available to thelocal authority to take action. This may include referring the case to the ProcuratorFiscal or refusing to register the applicant.

The Aberdeen to InvernessMulti-Modal Transport Corridor Study, and the outcome of a design study for a dualcarriageway improvement of the A96 between Inverness and Inverness Airport willfeed directly into the Strategic Transport Projects Review.

The next round of major new investmentin the trunk road network will emerge from the Strategic Transport Projects Review,which will examine the longer terms needs of Scotland’s nationally strategictransport network to develop the investment plan for 2012 to 2022. The StrategicTransport Projects Review is due to report to ministers in summer 2008.

The Scottish Government is workingclosely with NHS boards to develop the pregnancy screening programme to includethe anomaly scan as a matter of routine right across the country. The introductionof fetal anomaly scans however has significant implications for the health servicein terms of resources, workforce, equipment and training.

A Pregnancy Screening PolicyImplementation Group has started work and had a preliminary meeting on 17 January 2008 to takethis work forward. We are hoping to advise boards of resource allocation and likelytimescales for introduction and roll out of the amendments to the pregnancy screeningprogramme in the spring.

The 2007 report of the MobileTelecommunications Health Research (MTHR) programme, found no association betweenmobile phone use and any biological or adverse health effects. Advice from the UK governmentson mobile phone use is provided in their leaflet on Mobile Phones and Health. Thisrecommends “a precautionary approach” to the use of mobile phones, particularlyfor children, including keeping calls short, and not using mobile phones when driving.The need to update this leaflet, and the associated advice on Mobile Phone BaseStations and Health, in the light of the findings of the MTHR programme and otherresearch internationally is currently under consideration. Meanwhile, the advicefrom the UK governments remains as that in the current leaflets.

This information is not heldcentrally. However, all NHS in-patient mental health services provide treatmentfor bipolar disorder and depression along with drug and alcohol detoxification.This treatment may be provided as part of an acute general adult inpatient service,or specialist alcohol, and drugs unit dependent on the area.