- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 8 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken within its existing powers to bring fuel prices on Scottish islands closer to levels on the mainland.
Answer
The Scottish Government is concerned about the impact of rising fuel costs on rural communities and on businesses where fuel represent a significant cost burden and on the wider economy.
Ministers have written to the UK Government seeking action to try to minimise the impact of the rises. In particular we have asked the UK Government to introduce differential fuel duty rates for rural areas, and pressed for the introduction of a fuel duty regulator to protect against high fuel prices. We have also introduced a Road Equivalent Tariff pilot study in October 2008 to investigate the introduction of affordable ferry services that will facilitate the social and economic wellbeing of the communities served.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 5 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13235 by Shona Robison on 2 June 2008, whether it is satisfied that the figure provided for those people currently paying prescription charges who would therefore benefit from the abolition of prescription charges is accurate and, if not, how many adults living in families with annual incomes below £16,000 currently paying prescription charges will no longer have to do so.
Answer
The estimated figure given in the reply to S3W-13235 is based on an analysis of the family resources survey data combined with information from various other sources. The estimate assumes that 40% of Scottish adults (1.54 million) live in families with gross annual income below £16,000 and that approximately 40% of people in that group, approximately 600,000, are not exempt from prescription charges on age, medical or income grounds and therefore will benefit from the abolition of prescription charges.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13282 by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 June 2008, whether it will increase the use of short secure tenancies to prevent or stop antisocial behaviour by allowing greater time for evidence of improvement in behaviour before the landlord is obliged to grant a secure tenancy.
Answer
We currently have no plans to change the length of time a Short Scottish secure tenancy (SSST) can be used before it converts into a full Scottish secure tenancy.
We consider 12 months a reasonable period of time to establish whether there is an improvement in behaviour, and during which the landlord must provide support to enable the tenancy to convert to a full Scottish secure tenancy.
If antisocial behaviour recurs after the 12 month period, social landlords can access the full range of powers at their disposal to address antisocial behaviour by any secure tenant. Other forms of SSST, for example the SSST for persons requiring housing support services, can be appropriate for new tenants who need support and these have no automatic conversion to a full Scottish secure tenancy.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients per week are treated by anaesthetists providing out-of-hours cover at the Vale of Leven Hospital.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-15477 on 5 September 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what the weekly cost is of providing out-of-hours anaesthetic cover at the Vale of Leven Hospital.
Answer
Information about the provision of out-of hour''s anaesthetic cover at the Vale of Leven Hospital can be found in the Report of the Independent External Clinical Review of Anaesthetic Services at the Vale of Leven Hospital published on 15 August 2008. The report is available to download at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/924/0064627.pdf.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing could have instituted a full public inquiry into the outbreak of Clostridium difficile at the Vale of Leven hospital without affecting any enquiries by the police or the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.
Answer
Scottish ministers do have powers to instigate an inquiry where particular events have caused public concern. However, the Lord Advocate has asked the Area Procurator Fiscal for Argyll and Clyde to make urgent enquires into the circumstances of the deaths at the Vale of Leven and report his findings to Crown Counsel. It will then be a matter for Crown Counsel to consider what further action is required in light of the circumstances which have emerged. Any decision on whether a public inquiry should take place, and the nature of any such inquiry, can only properly be reached once the Procurator Fiscal has had the opportunity to complete his enquiries and report to Crown Counsel.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 5 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether Scottish students studying at universities in England and Wales are entitled to lesser amounts in student loans than their English and Welsh counterparts.
Answer
The amount of support available to students varies depending on individual circumstances. To establish what support is available I refer the member to the information on student loan amounts available from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland for Scottish students (
www.saas.gov.uk), Student Finance Direct for English students (
www.studentfinancedirect.co.uk) and Student Finance Wales for Welsh students (
www.studentfinancewales.co.uk).
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 4 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what total investment from public funds there has been in housing refurbishment and in building new rented and affordable housing in (a) Clydebank, (b) Milngavie and (c) each parliamentary constituency in Glasgow, since 2003.
Answer
The total investment (actual spend) from the Affordable Housing Investment Programme for the Clydebank and Milngavie areas since 2003 is detailed in the following table. Information is not held at parliamentary constituency level for Glasgow, however I have provided details of the total investment in Glasgow for the same time period. I have also provided details of the investment to Glasgow Housing Association, however it should be noted that this includes revenue grants.
This information provided includes all relevant elements of the AHIP including Housing Association Grant, Rural Home Ownership Grant, Rural Empty Property Grants, Grant for the Physical and Social Environment and Special Needs Capital Grants.
| | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| (Million) |
| Milngavie | £0.053 | £0.045 | £0.000 | £0.169 | £1.679 |
| Clydebank | £4.268 | £3.882 | £0.646 | £0.129 | £1.216 |
| Glasgow City Council | £73.973 | £66.700 | £76.840 | £82.999 | £83.000 |
| Glasgow Housing Association | £34.727 | £49.346 | £52.020 | £57.522 | £63.297 |
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 3 September 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive which communities in (a) West Dunbartonshire and (b) East Dunbartonshire are benefiting from the Cash Back for Communities scheme.
Answer
The young people of East and West Dunbartonshire are benefiting from CashBack for Communities funding: in East Dunbartonshire, Merkland School has participated in Easter and Summer Street Football events whilst Leisuredrome and Kirkintilloch L.C. participated in Bank of Scotland Midnight Leagues. Eight schools in the area are participating in the Soccer One Leagues programme.
In West Dunbartonshire, Dumbarton Academy, Levenvale Primary School and Braidfield Campus have been involved in the Street Football summer programme, and Brucehill Activity Centre hosted a Bank of Scotland Midnight League. Four schools in the area are participating in the Soccer One Leagues programme.
In addition to football, six secondary and 28 primary schools in East and West Dunbartonshire will receive rugby coaching over the next academic year via CashBack. Discussions are underway for Street Rugby to be integrated into the diversionary activity programmes currently on offer in East Dunbartonshire with the initial target area being Hillhead and for the possible introduction of a rugby development officer in West Dunbartonshire.
YouthLink are administering a £3 million local grant scheme funded by the Scottish Government. Successful applicants in East Dunbartonshire consisted of Enable Scotland, with activities across the region, and Twechar Community Action. In West Dunbartonshire, Bonhill, Bellsmyre, Drumry and Faifley benefit from funding awarded to the Community Links Scotland Streetlinks re-CYCLE project, and the Tullochan Trust works with young people in the Whitecrook and Drumry area of Clydebank. The full list of successful applicants can be found on the YouthLink Scotland website:
http://www.youthlink-scotland.org.
- Asked by: Des McNulty, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 August 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 28 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13276 by John Swinney on 3 June 2008, where the two community hubs identified as early projects developed by the Scottish Futures Trust are located.
Answer
The location of the two community hubs identified as early projects for the Scottish Futures Trust will be announced in late autumn 2008.
