Chamber and committees

Minor changes to OECD procedures for student sampling and test administration were made to enable the 2000 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) to be run in Scotland. These changes would not have had any effect on the validity of the PISA results for Scotland nor on the appropriate use of the figures for comparative purposes. We are agreeing with the OECD the procedures that should apply for PISA 2003.

NHS 24 has recruited 48 full-time equivalent (FTE) nurses for its north of Scotland contact centre and 213 FTE for the west of Scotland centre. Recruitment for the east of Scotland centre will begin in the early part of 2003.

Full details of water authority board members can be found in the annual reports and accounts which have been laid in Parliament. The full list of those who were members of West of Scotland Water Authority is:Prof. Alan Alexander (Chair)John Jamieson (Chair)Ernest Chambers (Chief Exec)Norman BerryMungo BrysonDonald CampbellCllr. Gerald CarrollCharles CornishPatricia CoxSir Robert EastonJohn GoodwinDavid GrayPeter KennedyJohn LavertyJane McKayClIr. Rita MillerCllr. David MunnCllr. Billy PetrieCllr. Robert ReidCllr. Leslie RosinIan SmithCllr. Ian Young.

Yes. However, only after careful consideration and close scrutiny of all the information at my disposal will I take a decision on the proposals flowing from NHS Forth Valley's Acute and Related Services Strategy.Before taking that decision, NHS Forth Valley will have to demonstrate that it has carried out a full, robust and transparent consultation process involving all stakeholders, and that its plans provide the best possible outcome for patients and frontline staff throughout.

Data about injury road accidents are collected by the police and reported to the Scottish Executive using the STATS 19 statistical report form. These returns cover only road accidents in which one or more people were injured: they do not cover damage only accidents.During 2001, there were eight injury road accidents identified in the STATS 19 returns as occurring on the A809 between the junction with the B8050 and the junction with the B821.It should be noted that this figure is based upon the data which are held in the central statistical database and which were collected by the police at the time of the accident and subsequently reported to the Executive. It may differ from any figure which the local authority would provide now, because it does not take account of any subsequent changes or corrections that the local authority may have made to the statistical information, for use at local level, about the location of each accident, based upon its knowledge of the road and area concerned.

This is a matter for Scottish Water. The chief executive's response is:There is no plan to incorporate visitor car parking at the proposed new water treatment plant. However, Scottish Water is committed to working with East Dunbartonshire Council and other local interest groups to improve public access to the existing reservoir. This may include additional parking.

Any alteration to policies contained in the local plan would require to go through a public consultation exercise and possible public local inquiry before being submitted to the Scottish ministers for their consideration prior to adoption. The Scottish ministers would consider intervening only in the most exceptional circumstances, for example where major provisions of a plan were clearly incompatible with a well established national policy, or where there was clear evidence of a significant failure to comply with the proper procedures in drawing up a plan.

The Scottish Executive has commissioned the Scottish Council for Research in Education to evaluate the Classroom Assistant Programme. An interim report published in September 2001 concluded that:most teachers perceive a reduction in the time they spent on preparing materials and resources;classroom assistants allow teachers to concentrate on teaching and planning;teachers are able to spend more time concentrating on individuals and groups while the classroom assistant deals other members of the class resolving minor problems and reducing interruptions of the teacher;a rekindling of a teacher's enthusiasm for teaching where classroom assistants are deployed, andclassroom assistants help to keep pupils on task and ensure their time is spent productively.

The Scottish Executive has commissioned the Scottish Council for Research in Education to evaluate the classroom assistant programme. An interim report was published in September 2001 and the final report is expected to be published by the end of September 2002.

Both NHS Greater Glasgow and Scottish Water were involved in the Incident Control Team (ICT) established to manage matters relating to the detection of cryptosporidium in mains water from Mugdock treatment works. The Chairman of the ICT has been asked to complete the team's report, if at all possible, by two weeks after its final meeting. It is the intention to make this report publicly available.