Questions and answers

Question reference: S1W-03170

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive what is the current amount of council tax arrears in each local authority in Scotland.

The information is set out in the attached table.


Council Tax billed, collected and uncollected as at 30 June1999^{(1) (2)}
			£ thousands
	1993-1994 to 1998-1999
	Net	Amount	Amount
	amount billed	collected	uncollected
Scotland	6,224,730	5,778,866	445,864

Aberdeen City	296,803	279,328	17,475
Aberdeenshire⁽³⁾	270,160	261,712	8,448
Angus	126,578	122,193	4,385
Argyll & Bute	132,224	124,802	7,422
Clackmannanshire	54,677	51,381	3,296
Dumfries & Galloway⁽⁴⁾	171,857	162,596	9,261
Dundee City	174,778	161,648	13,130
East Ayrshire	122,344	111,261	11,083
East Dunbartonshire	170,978	162,090	8,888
East Lothian	121,738	112,848	8,890
East Renfrewshire	127,697	123,472	4,225
Edinburgh, City of	752,995	697,349	55,646
Eilean Siar	26,297	24,977	1,320
Falkirk	143,167	137,409	5,758
Fife	410,017	390,448	19,569
Glasgow City	647,621	543,758	103,863
Highland	257,057	240,556	16,501
Inverclyde⁽⁵⁾	91,755	84,950	6,805
Midlothian	104,900	98,213	6,687
Moray	91,276	87,695	3,581
North Ayrshire	144,899	134,325	10,574
North Lanarkshire	317,239	291,326	25,913
Orkney Islands	18,879	18,548	331
Perth & Kinross	183,017	177,109	5,908
Renfrewshire	216,143	198,597	17,546
Scottish Borders	119,047	115,929	3,118
Shetland Islands	19,545	19,067	478
South Ayrshire	160,139	152,294	7,845
South Lanarkshire	355,404	328,189	27,215
Stirling	111,615	107,714	3,901
West Dunbartonshire	116,315	102,745	13,570
West Lothian	167,569	154,337	13,232

Source: As reported by Councils in statistical return Community Charge, Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rates Receipts (CTRR JUN 1999).

(1) The unitary authorities came into being on 1 April 1996. Of the £5.8 billion collected between April 1993 and March 1999, £3.4 billion was collected by
unitary authorities; £2.4 billion by Regions.
(2) Amounts uncollected are before any provision for bad or doubtful debts, or amounts written off.
Up to 1995-96 the figures for amounts billed and collected include Council Water Charges
Authorities are asked to exclude surcharges from amounts billed, collected and uncollected but not all authorities are able to do this.
(3) Aberdeenshire has supplied estimated figures for amount billed for all financial years and amount received for financial years 1993-94 to 1995-96.
(4) Council tax figures for Dumfries and Galloway as in letter to Scottish Executive dated 14 December 1999.
(5) Inverclyde has supplied estimated figures for council tax billed and uncollected for financial year 1993/94

Question reference: S1W-03169

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to require Local Enterprise Company board members to be accredited by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

We have no plans to bring Local Enterprise Company board appointments under the remit of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. They are private companies that operate under contract to Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the criteria for Board membership are set out in their operating contracts. In making appointments to their Boards, LECs have adopted principles similar to those recommended by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

Question reference: S1W-03162

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2607 by Henry McLeish on 30 November 1999, what is the normal margin of error, in percentage terms, used in Regional Selective Assistance calculations.

Based on past experience of Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) forecasts, the margin of error, in percentage terms, for RSA expenditure is given in the table below:

Forecasting	Typical Margin of error
1 year ahead	3 to 15%
2 years ahead	16 to 22%
3 years ahead	15 to 28%

RSA is a demand led scheme with individual grants ranging in value from several thousand pounds to tens of millions of pounds.RSA is drawn down by companies in instalments linked to their progress in implementing the assisted project.

Question reference: S1W-03160

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a list of all public appointments it makes, including judicial appointments, and which minister is responsible for making each appointment.

The information requested is shown in the tables below. The tables cover appointments to NDPBs sponsored by the Scottish Executive and judicial appointments.

Appointments made by individual Ministers

Responsible Minister	Body
First Minister	Advisory Panel of Economic Consultants
	Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd (Chair only)
	Central Advisory Committee on Justices of the Peace
	Highlands & Islands Airports Ltd (Chair only)
	Justice of the Peace Advisory Committees (32)
	Local Government Boundary Commission (Chair only)
	Parole Board for Scotland (Chair only)
	Scottish Conveyancing and Executry Services Board
	Scottish Homes (Chair only)
	Scottish Legal Aid Board (Chair only)
	Scottish Qualifications Authority (Chair only)
	Scottish Records Advisory Council
	Scottish Transport Group (Chair only)
Deputy First Minister and Minister for Justice	Scottish Law Commission
	Scottish Legal Aid Board (members only)
	Parole Board for Scotland (members only)
Lord Advocate	Scottish Committee of the Council on Tribunals
Minister for Health and Community Care	Health Appointments Advisory Committee
	National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting for Scotland
	Scottish Hospitals Endowment Research Trust
Minister for Health and Community Care (cont.)	Scottish Medical Practices Committee
	Clinical Standards Board for Scotland
	Health Boards (15)
	Health Education Board for Scotland
	National Health Service Trusts (28)
	Post Qualification Education Board for NHS Pharmacists in Scotland
	Scottish Advisory Committee on Distinction Awards
	Scottish Advisory Committee on the Medical Workforce
	Scottish Ambulance Service Board
	Scottish Council for Post Graduate Medical and Dental Education
	Scottish Dental Practice Board
	State Hospitals Board for Scotland
	Scottish Hospital Trust
	The Common Services Agency
Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning	Highlands and Islands Enterprise
	Scottish Enterprise
	Scottish Further Education Funding Council
	Scottish Further Education Unit
	Scottish Higher Education Funding Council
	Scottish Industrial Development Advisory Board (members only)
	Scottish Tourist Board
	Scottish Qualifications Authority (members only)
Minister for Rural Affairs	Crofters Commission
	Deer Commission for Scotland
	Hill Farming Advisory Committee for Scotland
	Scottish Agricultural Wages Board
	Scottish Standing Committee for the Calculation of Residual Values of Fertilisers and Feed Stuffs
Minister for Transport and the Environment	Advisory Committee on Sites of Special Scientific Interest
	Building Standards Advisory Committee
	Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd (members only)
	East of Scotland Water Authority
	North of Scotland Water Authority
	Scottish Environment Protection Agency
	Scottish Natural Heritage
	Water Industry Commissioner
Minister for Transport and the Environment (cont.)	West of Scotland Water Authority
	Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (members only)
	Scottish Transport Group (members only)
Minister for Communities	Advisory Committee on Scotland's Travelling People
	Local Government Boundary Commission (members only)
	Rent Assessment Panel for Scotland
	Scottish Homes (members only)
Minister for Finance	Scottish Valuation and Rating Council
Minister for Children and Education	Community Learning Scotland
	Children's Panels (32)
	National Galleries of Scotland
	National Museums of Scotland
	Royal Fine Arts Commission for Scotland
	Scottish Arts Council
	Scottish Childcare Board
	Scottish Children's Reporter Administration
	Scottish Council for Educational Technology (members only)
	Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum
	Scottish Screen
	Sportscotland
Deputy Minister for Rural Affairs	Electricity Fisheries Committee
	Hannah Research Institute
	Macaulay Land Use Research Institute
	Moredun Research Institute
	Rowett Research Institute
	Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
	Scottish Crop Research Institute
Deputy Minister for Justice	Scottish Advisory Committee on Drug Misuse
Deputy Minister for Culture and Sport	Ancient Monuments Board
	General Teaching Council for Scotland (four members only)
	Historic Buildings Council for Scotland
	Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland

Appointments made by Ministers acting jointly

Responsible Ministers	Body
First Minister and Deputy First Minister	Accounts Commission for Scotland
	Scottish Council for Educational Technology (Chair only)
	Scottish Industrial Development Advisory Board (Chair only)
Minister for Finance and Minister for Communities	Accounts Commission for Scotland (members only)

Appointments made by Her Majesty The Queen on the recommendation of the First Minister

Body

Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland

All Judges and Sheriffs with the exception of the Lord President and the Lord Justice Clerk (see note)

National Library of Scotland (five members only)

Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission

Note: In the case of the Lord President and the Lord Justice Clerk, the recommendation is made to Her Majesty by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister may only nominate someone who has been recommended to him by the First Minister.

Question reference: S1W-03161

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Donald Dewar on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its ministers have met the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

Question reference: S1W-03158

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1208 by Mr Jack McConnell on 29 November 1999, what was (a) the budgeted and (b) the actual cost of acquiring Scotland House.

Question reference: S1W-03157

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2610 by Mr Jack McConnell on 1 December 1999, what estimate is made in the Scottish Executive's forecast budgets for local authorities for the current and each of the next two financial years for (a) pay awards and (b) redundancy costs.

Question reference: S1W-03155

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2605 by Henry McLeish on 30 November 1999, what percentage of forecast Regional Selective Assistance expenditure is already committed in each year from 1999-2000 to 2002-03.

The figures requested are given in the table below :

RSA (gross)	1999-2000	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03
Baseline (£millions)	79.8	71.0	85.0	85.0
Committed (%)	84%	90%	57%	38%

RSA forecasts are calculated quarterly and these figures relate to the amount committed at the start of October 1999. The committed percentages will tend to increase each quarter as new RSA offers are made and accepted. The assessment of committed expenditure takes into account the fact that grants are typically paid over a number of years, and that a proportion of projects will not go ahead as planned.

Question reference: S1W-03156

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 23 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2607 by Henry McLeish on 30 November 1999, what was the (a) mean and (b) median average amount of Regional Selective Assistance provided to projects in Scotland, as a percentage of the total cost of all assisted projects, in each of the last three years.

Regional aid ceilings are defined in terms of NGE (Net Grant Equivalent). The mean and median NGEs for RSA offers accepted over each of the last three years are given in the table below:

Regional Selective Assistance	Net Grant Equivalent (NGE)
	Mean	Median
1996-97	16.2	16.2
1997-98	16.3	16.5
1998-99	16.5	16.8

Note: The NGE represents the grant value of the aid net of tax and after discounting expressed as a percentage of the discounted fixed capital costs of the assisted project.

Question reference: S1W-03035

Asked by: Alex Neil, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 December 1999
Current Status: Answered by Henry McLeish on 21 December 1999

To ask the Scottish Executive how many new ventures have been set up under the auspices of "Technology Ventures" since the initiative was launched; what is the total value of the investment made to date in these ventures, and whether it will provide a breakdown of the sources of funding for this investment.

Chamber and committees