Chamber and committees

In the period May 1999 to date, 830 planning applications have been notified to the Scottish ministers. To extract and examine each file, current and archived, in order to provide the information requested could only be carried out at disproportionate cost.

The following learning providers, based in Glasgow Kelvin parliamentary constituency, have been recipients of Individual Learning Account payments: Alliance Francaise de Glasgow - £21,073AMT International - £5,219BPP Glasgow - £13,382British Red Cross Scotland - £360Catersafe Food Hygiene - £750Centre for Educational Systems - £1,800Centro Espanol Lorca - £22,005College of Holistic Medicine - £4,650Garnethill Centre - £450Glasgow Caledonian University - £64,513Glasgow Media Access Centre - £155Goethe-Institut Glasgow - £14,344Gosta Training - £701Harmony Kinesiology College - £655Informatics Group UK Ltd - £750International Correspondence Schools - £42,106Internet Exchange - £30,000ITC-Skills Ltd - £289,221Kinharvie - £1,950Learning and Teaching Scotland - £23,816Mindstore - £1,350Netcon-X Enterprise Ltd - £1,200Network Driver Training - £600PCT Professional Development - £300Scot-Train - £45,220Scottish College of Complementary Medicine - £2,400Scottish Screen - £1,805Scottish Training & Counselling Services (SCOTACS) - £5,920Scottish Yoga Teachers' Association - £1,350Services to Software Ltd - £600Share - £2,143Sports Rehab and Education Services - £857Stow College - £283,490University of Glasgow - Adult & Continuing Education - £134,703University of Glasgow - Language Centre - £3,528University of Glasgow - Universal Training Solution - £23,769University of Strathclyde - Centre for Lifelong Learning - £40,773University of Strathclyde - Centre for Professional Legal Studies - £28,000University of Strathclyde - Languages for Business - £600The total value of payments to these providers is: £1,116,508.

If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, the Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) will be accountable to the Scottish Executive to spend funding in a manner compliant with the conditions of grant, which will attach to the offer of such funding, to the Executive's agency, Communities Scotland, as the statutory regulator of Registered Social Landlords and to its tenants. Local Housing Organisations will also be accountable as part of their registration requirement with Communities Scotland, and as part of their contractual obligations to the GHA. The GHA will also be accountable to the City Council under terms of the transfer contract and bound to implement all the guarantees set out in the Business Plan.

If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, the city council will retain strategic responsibility for housing in the city. The city council has six nominees on the Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) Management Committee, which has overall responsibility for the GHA and its operations. Individual councillors are already represented on a number of existing housing associations in the city.

SUfI administers the Capital Modernisation Fund support for learning centre development on behalf of the Executive. Funding for the scheme, which closed to new applicants in October, ends on 31 March 2002. The Executive does not plan any further funding thereafter. SUfI does not own or operate the learning centres it has branded, but took a view on sustainability of the centres before they were granted learndirect scotland branded status. I have asked the funding distributors, concerned with the administration of the other funds, to write to you directly.

The Executive's intention is to move to a position where all staff in centres providing childcare and early education for pre-school children either hold an appropriate qualification, are seeking accreditation of skills and experience, or are pursuing on-the-job-training. The Scottish Social Services Council will be responsible for taking much of this forward in due course.In the meantime, from 1 April 2002, the Commission for the Regulation of Care will be expected to require that all managers should be qualified in childcare, teaching or social work and as a minimum, at least half of the staff in any one facility should be qualified in childcare. "Qualified in childcare" is defined as holding any one of the qualifications mentioned in Working With Children.Within this context, staffing structures are a matter for employers.

Childcare services will be registered by the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001. As part of the registration process, childcare providers will be required to obtain a criminal record check on all new employees under Part V of the Police Act 1997. This check will be carried out by Disclosure Scotland (part of the Scottish Criminal Record Office) which will aim to issue the certificates within 10 days of receipt of applications.

The duty on local authorities to provide assistance to a child, does not depend on the identity of the child. We do not expect the absence of official documentation to prove a child's identity, to affect the child's access to local authority assistance.

Scottish University for Industry administers the Capital Modernisation Fund (CMF) support for learning centre development on behalf of the Executive. There are no specific targets aimed at ensuring a diversity of organisations receive CMF. Individual applications are judged on their own merits in relation to the overall objectives of the scheme; these include geographic coverage, provision in socially excluded areas and addressing sectoral or other gaps. The scheme is promoted widely to a variety of organisations, including intermediaries, and all promotional literature makes it clear that any organisation is eligible to apply.The criteria for the selection of projects to be funded by the New Futures Fund are a matter for Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise within the broad guidelines set out by the Scottish Executive. With regard to projects funded through the New Opportunities Fund and the National Lottery these are matters for the organisations concerned.

The Scottish University for Industry administers the Capital Modernisation Fund (CMF) support for learning centre development on behalf of the Executive. CMF applicants who are unsuccessful are advised in writing and given specific reasons. The scheme, which closed to new applicants last October, ends on 31 March 2002 and all remaining unsuccessful applicants will be given feedback by mid-April.The New Futures Fund is managed by Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise and feedback to unsuccessful applicants is an operational matter for them. I understand, however, that feedback will be given on request.Decisions on funding from the New Opportunity Fund and the National Lottery Fund are a matter for these organisations. I have asked them to write to you directly.