- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 30 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken in response to the recommendation in the report by the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones, Mobile Phones and Health, that clearly-defined physical exclusion 'ones be established around base station antennas that delineate areas within which exposure guidelines may be exceeded.
Answer
The Government response to thereport from the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones (IEGMP) said that clearexclusion zones should already be in place around all base station antennas to preventthe public from exposure to radiofrequency radiation above the
International Commission on Non-IonizingRadiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines.
Annex B to Planning Advice NotePAN 62 on Radio Public Telecommunications refers to the need for operators to complywith current Health and Safety at Work legislation and to establish, where necessary,an exclusion zone around each antenna within which people cannot freely pass.
In addition, the Mobile OperatorsAssociation’s Ten Commitments document on self-regulation includes a programme forcompliance with current guidelines on public exposures for all radio base stations.The commitments require inclusion of certification of compliance with public exposureguidelines in all planning applications for base station installation. This is alsoa statutory requirement in Scotland. All indications to date suggest full compliance withthese requirements.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 30 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what the per capita funding for 2003-04 is for (a) NHS Highland, (b) NHS Shetland, (c) NHS Orkney, (d) the Western Isles NHS Board, (e) NHS Grampian and (f) Argyll and Clyde NHS Board.
Answer
Revenue per capita funding allocatedto date for 2003-04 is as follows:
| | £ |
| Highland NHS Board | 1,115 |
| Shetland NHS Board | 1,257 |
| Orkney NHS Board | 1,186 |
| Western Isles NHS Board | 1,651 |
| Grampian NHS Board | 955 |
| Argyll and Clyde NHS Board | 1,070 |
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 30 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether adequate funding is given to (a) Orkney Islands Council and (b) Shetland Island Council for the provision of internal ferry and air services.
Answer
The recent local government financesettlement from Spending Review 2002 gave increases of 6.9%, 4.9%, 3.4% (£3.2 million,£2.4 million, £1.8 million) to Orkney Islands Council and 6.9%, 4.0%, 3.4% (£4.6million, £2.8 million, £2.5 million) to Shetland Islands Council, for 2003-04 to2005-06. It is up to each local authority to make their own spending decisions toreflect local needs and priorities.
Additionally, the Scottish Executive sponsors Highlands and Islands AirportsLtd (HIAL), which is the main airport operator in the Highlands andIslands. In 2002-03, the total support provided by the Executive to HIAL for theoperation of its 10 airports was £24.05 million.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 30 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what the per capita local government funding for 2003-04 is for (a) Orkney Islands Council, (b) Shetland Islands Council, (c) Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, (d) the Highland Council, (e) Moray Council and (f) Argyll and Bute Council.
Answer
Details of how much each authorityhas received in revenue grant can be found in the local government finance circular1/2003 (Bib. number 26534) which is available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 30 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what subsidies are available to ferry operators for freight services serving the Orkney and Shetland Isles and whether these subsidies will be made available to all ferry operators carrying freight.
Answer
Subsidies for general roll-on/roll-offor load-on/load-off freight services serving the Orkney and Shetland Isles werewithdrawn in 1995. However, Tariff Rebate Subsidy (TRS) is paid to eligible shippingoperators wholly or mainly engaged in providing bulk freight services to the Highlands andIslands in accordance with an undertaking, a draft of which has been laid before,and approved by, Parliament. Currently there is one small shipping company in receiptof TRS for bulk freight to Shetland.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 30 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what subsidies are available to ferry operators for livestock services serving the Orkney and Shetland Isles and whether these subsidies will be made available to all ferry operators carrying livestock.
Answer
Under the terms of the Highlands andIslands Shipping Services Act 1960, Tariff Rebate Subsidy (TRS) is paid to eligibleshipping operators wholly or mainly engaged in providing services to the Highlands andIslands in accordance with an undertaking, a draft of which has been laid before,and approved by, Parliament. Currently, only NorthLink Orkney and Shetland FerriesLtd has an undertaking. Other operators are free to apply for admittance to thescheme and their applications would be assessed against the stipulated criteria.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 15 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 29 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans are in place to provide the additional 29 secure accommodation places for young offenders, announced on 24 March 2003.
Answer
Four of the five providers announcedon 24 March are finalising their secure redevelopment plans.
Discussions are continuing withRossie School to consider how we can best achieve an 18-bed secure unit in the north-east.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 29 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what role it will play in revitalising the Post Office network, as referred to in A Partnership for a Better Scotland.
Answer
Royal Mail, post offices andpostal services are reserved issues but the Scottish Executive recognises theimportance of the availability across Scotland of services provided by the Post Office network.
The Deputy Minister for SocialJustice launched a £2 million fund to develop post offices in deprived urban areason 30 December 2002. The objective of this fund is to contribute to the regenerationof deprived urban areas by sustaining and improving post office branches, on themargins of viability, that provide socially important services and facilities andthat can act as an anchor for other retail activity.
The Scottish Executive is represented on Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) interdepartmentalgroup convened to examine strategy for supporting rural post offices after April2006. This group has been convened to help DTI prepare options and advice for theirministers who have responsibility for postal matters. Officials also represent the Executive on Royal Mail’s rural interests group considering the use of funding providedby DTI.
The Executive will continue tomonitor post office developments in both urban and rural contexts and work togetherwith the DTI and Royal Mail to identify options for action that the Executive canpursue within its devolved powers.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 26 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports recommendation 10 of the report of the Scottish Charity Law Review Commission that Scottish charities should receive mandatory 80% relief from water and sewerage charges.
Answer
The Scottish Executive responded in full to
the McFadden Report on 16 December 2002.In our response we indicated that we had already said in the context of the WaterIndustry (Scotland) Act 2002 that we supported the phased withdrawal of relieffrom water and sewerage charges.
Tohelp organisations adjust to the withdrawal of relief, the Water and SewerageCharges (Exemption) (Scotland)Regulations 2002 provide for an exemption scheme run by Scottish Water. Thisexempts from all water and sewerage charges until 2006, organisations whichreceived relief in March 1999, have a net annual income of less than £50,000and are not a retail outlets, have permanent liquor licences or are part of alocal authority. A transitionalhardship fund was also established to assist those organisations who would notqualify for the exemption scheme but who would suffer real hardship as a resultof the withdrawal of relief.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 September 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 26 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the levels of overcrowding at Her Majesty's Prison Inverness referred to in the Scottish Prison Service Annual Report 2002-03.
Answer
I have asked Tony Cameron,Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is asfollows:
As a consequence of the needto manage unprecedented prisoner numbers we have no immediate plans to reducethe prisoner numbers at HM Prison Inverness. However, we recognise the pressure this places onthe establishment and will be monitoring the situation as part of the widerpopulation management.
