Chamber and committees

Network Rail is making good progress with rail enhancements on the line between Aberdeen and Inverness. The project remains on target for completion by March 2019, and within the spending cap.

Network Rail appointed BAM Nuttall as the principal contractor for the Aberdeen to Inverness project in October 2015, with main construction work scheduled to begin later in the year.

With regard to flooding mitigation, Network Rail is working with its industry partners to make Scotland’s rail infrastructure more resilient to the current and predicted weather and climate change impacts across the network. This should help to ensure that efficient and reliable train services are maintained, including those between Aberdeen and Inverness, enabling passengers and goods to travel when required even in more extreme conditions.

Information regarding GP retirals is not published by Information Services Division Scotland or recorded by NHS boards in a standardised way. NHS Grampian is however actively assisting local GP practices to recruit qualified GPs to replace those who are retiring and are undertaking a number of actions to facilitate improved recruitment. This includes a "career start" scheme which gives newly qualified GPs the chance to work for one to two years in a practice which continues to provide mentoring and training beyond the mandatory three year training scheme, as well as developing a number of opportunities for GPs to develop their careers through a programme of training GPs with special interests. NHS Grampian is also working to deliver more sustainable services by training advanced nurse practitioners, physicians, assistants and pharmacists to assist GPs in managing the clinical workload in practices.

Whilst the number of GP’s in NHS Grampian has increased by 9.6% between September 2006 and September 2015, in comparison with the 7.4% Scotland wide increase, the Scottish Government is fully aware that there are ongoing challenges around recruiting and retaining GPs. We are undertaking a number of initiatives that aim to make general practice a more attractive career option; this includes ways to support reducing work load; making returning to GP practice easier; a redesign of how community services are delivered; testing mentor support models and considering how we might improve undergraduate medical teaching to provide increased exposure to working experiences and learning opportunities within primary care.

I have the utmost sympathy for those who have been affected by the recent flooding, having seen for myself in my own constituency the devastation that flood water can wreak. The First Minister and Deputy First Minister have also visited flood affected areas, and we have seen the work that is being done by local authorities, the Scottish Flood Forum and others to help in the aftermath of the floods. Our impression from speaking to householders and businesses is that insurance companies have generally acted promptly and helpfully. It is too soon after the event to determine whether there have been any delays in paying insurance claims, and we are not aware of any concerns that have been raised about insurance payments. However, I would be more than happy to take up any specific concerns with the insurance industry.

Our Digital Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme, backed by £410 million of public and private sector funding, is making fibre-based broadband available to 89.4% of premises across Aberdeenshire. Commercial provision alone would only have reached 25.1% of premises. For small to medium-sized enterprises, this makes business-specific products like Ethernet and access to cloud-based systems significantly more affordable.

For communities beyond the reach of DSSB, the Scottish Government established Community Broadband Scotland (CBS) to develop community-led broadband projects. CBS is actively supporting three community organisations within Aberdeenshire through the various stages of the project planning process and is developing a proposal to connect 1,600 premises in the Cairngorms National Park, which will include areas within Aberdeenshire.

In 2015, we included some of Aberdeenshire's hardest to reach homes and businesses within the UK Government’s market testing programme. This is evaluating options to deliver superfast broadband to the final 5%. In a project in partnership with Avanti Communications, to date, around 100 homes and businesses in the region have gained access to high speed satellite broadband delivered at speeds of 10, 24 or 30 Mbps.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of an effective transport network for economic growth in the north east of Scotland. That is why we are investing £170 million in the line between Aberdeen and Inverness which will deliver significant journey time improvements and greater connectivity for both passenger and freight services operating on this corridor.

As well as the clear benefits to passengers, this investment will support employment and growth by improving access to job opportunities and education facilities providing an economic boost to the communities along the entire length of the route. Furthermore, it will open up access to Inverness Airport and the adjacent development sites, acting as a catalyst for inward investment.

The Inveramsay Bridge improvements will bring huge benefits to local communities through reduced congestion and improved journey time reliability by avoiding the existing bridge and enabling the free flow of traffic.

Construction of the A96 Inveramsay Bridge Improvements is well underway and completion remains on target for spring 2016.

125 requests for recovery of maintenance abroad were sent from 2011 to 2014 and of these 79 are still being processed by foreign authorities.

Information on the average resolution time for cases of recovery of maintenance from someone living abroad is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The table below shows the number of cases transmitted to foreign authorities in each year from 2011 to 2014 in which action has been successful.

The following table shows, for each year from 2011 to 2014, the number of requests for recovery of maintenance from someone living abroad submitted by the Central Authority and International Law Team to foreign authorities.