Chamber and committees

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

Matters concerning the Controller are in Clause 28, Part V of the contract which is published on the Scottish Prison Service website at www.sps.gov.uk  and is available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre.

“Change of site” and “new school” are not defined in the Regulations. “Delineated area” is defined in the regulations as “that part of the area of an education authority from which pupils resident therein will be admitted to the school in terms of any priority based on residence in accordance with the guidelines formulated under section 28B(1)(c) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980”.

It is for education authorities to reach a view on the applicability of the regulations in the particular circumstances of any proposal they are making. The interpretation of statute is ultimately a matter for the courts rather than the Scottish Executive.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

The company have not yet indicated to SPS that they have reached conclusions.

I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows: Payments are made in line with the published contract which is on the SPS website at http://www.sps.gov.uk/keydocs/reliance/html/default.asp. Details of individual payments are subject to commercial confidentiality and are not published.

The current completion rate for modern apprentices is 55% and since their inception in 1995, more than 34,500 have successfully completed their training. As for the breakdown by area and subject, this is an operational matter for the enterprise networks. The information is not held centrally.

This is an operational matter for the Enterprise Networks. The information is not held centrally.

The delivery of Business Gatewayis managed by Scottish Enterprise on behalf of partners. Details of the number ofethnic minority staff supporting this role is therefore an operational matter forthe Scottish Enterprise Network.

Scottish Enterprise’scommitment to equal opportunities employment is embedded in its equal opportunitiespolicy. They aim to encourage diversity intheir workplace through policies and practices which promote creativity, talentand results regardless of ethnic origin, colour, age, disability, gender, maritalstatus, religion or sexual orientation.

The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body has not consideredestablishing a budget office in the Parliament to provide an independentassessment of Executive financial estimates.

Suchassessment is already provided by the Finance Committee, whose remit, underRule 6.6 of Standing Orders is:

Toconsider and report on:

(a)any report or other document laid before the Parliament by members of the Scottish Executive containing proposals for, or budgets of, public expenditure or proposalsfor the making of a tax-varying resolution, taking into account any report orrecommendations concerning such documents made to them by any other committeewith power to consider such documents or any part of them;

(b)any report made by a committee setting out proposals concerning publicexpenditure;

(c)Budget Bills, and

(d)any other matter relating to or affecting the expenditure of the ScottishAdministration or other expenditure payable out of the Scottish ConsolidatedFund.

The committee is supportedby an expert adviser and by researchers in SPICe.The committee can also commission research from external sources.

A response to your letter of21 April 2005 was issued on 1 June 2005.

Section 133 of the Criminal JusticeAct 1988 provides that Scottish ministers shall pay compensation in cases wherea conviction is reversed on the ground that a new or newly discovered fact showsbeyond reasonable doubt that there has been a miscarriage of justice. There mayalso be exceptional circumstances that justify compensation in other cases. The amount of compensation paid is determined on the adviceand recommendation of an independent assessor, based on a memorandum prepared bythe Justice Department, compiling information submitted by the applicant, otherrelevant papers and taking account of comments from the applicant. In consideringclaims, the assessor applies principles analogous to those on which claims for damagesarising from civil wrongs are assessed. The assessor also has the power to recommendinterim payments to applicants where they provide evidence of immediate need.

The following information showsthe number of applications at each stage in the process:

Number of Applications:	8
Eligibility Determined:	5
Memorandum Agreed:	3
Interim Payment Applied For:	1
Interim Payment Made:	1
Assessor Determining Final Payment:	3

 

Generally we would expect tosubmit a successful claim for compensation to an assessor within three to four monthsof receipt of an application. Such a target can only be indicative however as thecircumstances of each case vary greatly. The time taken for other stages also variesaccording to the complexity of the case and any delays which arise as a result ofnecessary background documentation being requested from the applicant or their agent.