Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-10415 on 9 January 2001.

A reply was issued on Thursday 21 December 2000.

Office bearers of the Scottish Prison Officers' Association were part of a Trade Union Side delegation I met on 10 October 2000.

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

No.

Such an assessment remains premature. While quotas have now been set, we need to reflect fully on the impact of the 2001 quotas on the industry. I intend to discuss these issues with the fishing industry early in the New Year. I have also asked Scottish Enterprise to undertake a project to look at the scope for re-focusing and re-structuring the fishing industry.

I would refer you to my answer to your previous question S1W-10432 on 24 October in which I indicated that the report had been published that day and that a copy had been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre.

A copy of my response to the report was also placed in SPICe together with the main submissions considered as part of this fact-finding exercise to allow those with an interest in this matter to have convenient access to them. I have written to you today with a copy of the report.

I regret the delay in responding to the member for Banff and Buchan. A full response was issued on 25 October 2000.

Training is regarded as an important issue in the development of the Strategy for Scottish Agriculture. The importance of training, and other related issues such as the development of business skills, better use of technology, communication and the transmission of best practice, has been highlighted by a number of organisations and individuals who have contributed to the Agriculture Strategy work. This will be reflected in the final strategy document due for publication early next year. The strategy will also take account of the outcome of the review of training in the major land-based sectors in Scotland which is currently under way.

I replied on 22 November.

The Scottish Executive Rural Affairs Department currently has a £300,000 contract with Lantra, the National Training Organisation for the land-based sector, which aims to promote the uptake of training in agriculture and production horticulture. The training is delivered by a range of organisations registered with Lantra, including colleges, employer-led groups, machinery rings and private training organisations. We fully support the inclusion of machinery rings in the group of training providers and have been encouraged to see the role and activities of rings expand in the past few years with the support of the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society.

Support for a flexible and skilled labour force in rural Scotland is one of many topics being addressed in the development of the new Strategy for Scottish Agriculture. The importance of training, and other related issues such as the development of business skills, better use of technology, communication and the transmission of best practice in the farming industry will be reflected in the strategy.