Chamber and committees

The Rural Challenge Fund, Rural Strategic Support Fund and Local Capital Grants Scheme are the three elements which together make up the Scottish Rural Partnership Fund. The Fund is operated by an annual bidding process, and the closing date for applications to the 2002-03 round was 12 October 2001.An analysis of bids received shows no applications from the Clackmannanshire area under any of the three schemes. The following bids have been received from projects in the Stirling district.

Scheme	Project Title	Amount Applied For
Rural Challenge Fund	Lochearnhead Schoolhouse	£34,700
	McLaren Community Crèche	£50,000
	Falls of Dochart Retirement Home	£50,000
	Development of Gartmore House Training Centre	£50,000
	Total Requested	£184,700
Local Capital Grants Scheme	Menzies Hall, Fintry	£40,000
	Gargunnock Community Centre	£6,500
	Kinbuck Village Hall	£30,000
	Total Requested	£76,500
Rural Strategic Support Fund	SVA Rural Satellite Capacity Building Project	£30,486
	Total Requested	£30,486

All bids received are currently being assessed and an announcement will be made early in the New Year.

We are not aware of any policy of this kind and we would not support its adoption. There will be occasions where it may be clinically appropriate to test for pregnancy, however we would expect this to be conducted overtly in line with the guidance A guide to consent to examination, investigation, treatment or operation which was issued to the NHSScotland in 1992. This guidance sets out that a patient has a right under common law to give or withhold consent prior to a procedure being carried out. This is a basic principle of health care and covers all procedures. The guidance does however give examples of where a procedure may be undertaken without first obtaining the patient's consent, for example; for lifesaving procedures where the patient is unconscious and cannot indicate his or her wishes.

Ms Jackson's resignation from the Scottish Arts Council has been a matter for herself and the council. Whilst the terms of the settlement are also a matter for those parties, approval was obtained from Scottish ministers. The costs will be borne by the council's Operating Costs budget.

Ministers or deputy ministers with responsibility for education have not met with representatives of St Mary's RC Primary School, Bannockburn, or St Mary's RC Primary School, Kildean, Stirling on any occasion since 1 July 1999.

Ministers or deputy ministers with responsibility for education have not met with representatives of (a) St Mary's RC Primary School, Bo'ness, (b) St Mary's Primary School, Duntocher, or (c) St Mary's Primary School, Alexandria on any occasion since 1 July 1999.

My predecessor, Allan Wilson, met representatives of Scottish Screen in May and October this year to discuss their programme of work. In addition, the following ministers have met representatives:Rhona Brankin Opening of Scottish Screen offices, discussion of annual corporate plansNicol Stephen Launch of Scottish Screen partnership with Skillset (National Training Organisation)Henry McLeish Launch of Film Locations brochureMs Wendy Alexander Discussion of film studio proposal.This does not count attendance at film events, such as those of the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

At the start of session 2001-02 there were around 1,000 initial teacher education students aged between 25 and 39 years old who, under the existing Salary Placement Regulations, may have been entitled to be placed at some point above the bottom on the main teachers' scale. There were also around 300 students aged 40 or over who may have been able to enter teaching at the top of the pay scale. This is out of a total initial teacher education final year student body of approximately 2,500.In comparison with the most recent pay scale before improvement through the Agreement on a Teaching Profession for the 21st Century, and using the current Salary Placement Regulations, the average pay for a new entrant to teaching aged 25 to 39 would have been £18,030. The corresponding figure for a new entrant aged over 40 was £23,313.Under the proposal which is for consideration by the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers, all probationers would be placed on the probationer point of £16,644 from August 2002. This rises to £17,226 from January 2003 and £18,000 from August 2003.

Ministers will determine the annual recurrent grant for St Mary's Episcopal Primary School, Dunblane, as soon as possible.

The arrangements for Her Majesty's Golden Jubilee are in the first instance a matter for Buckingham Palace. As the then First Minister indicated in the answer to question S1W-16461, on 22 June 2001, The Queen will visit Scotland from 23 to 29 May 2002 and, as previously announced, will attend the opening of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh on 25 May 2002. A further announcement giving details of The Queen's Golden Jubilee engagements in Edinburgh, and elsewhere in Scotland, will be made in due course.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-16294 on 28 June 2001.