- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 18 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 1 June 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities have published Best Value plans; whether it will make copies of these plans available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre, and what action is being taken against any local authority that has not published a plan or has published an unsatisfactory plan.
Answer
Scottish local authorities are not required to publish a "Best Value" plan (unlike in England and Wales). However, under the voluntary approach adopted to Best Value to date in Scotland, all local authorities are expected to undertake a rolling programme of Best Value reviews of all their services and to publicise the results of these reviews locally. From April 2000 they were also expected to, and have developed their own Public Performance Reporting frameworks which make information about performance available to those who are recognised stakeholders in local authority activities.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 02 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what arrangements are in place to co-ordinate different programmes designed to help young people in disadvantaged areas.
Answer
The main means of co-ordination is the preparation of Children's Services Plans, which is a requirement of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. The Executive is currently taking forward a review of planning requirements for children's services in conjunction with representatives from ADES, ADSW, CoSLA and the voluntary sector. The Executive has also established an Action Team on Joint Working in Children's Services. The team is to prepare an Action Plan which will detail how organisations could work together to provide integrated services for children and young people. The Action Plan will be produced in the autumn. In addition, the Changing Children's Services Fund, launched by the First Minister last November, will further promote better integration of services.In Social Inclusion Partnerships (SIPs) local agencies combine to focus resources on the problems faced by young people and other excluded groups in areas of deprivation and exclusion.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 24 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that the funding made available to assist businesses affected by the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak is disbursed to those businesses immediately.
Answer
The distribution of resources to assist businesses directly is a matter for the relevant local authority and the Enterprise Networks. Guidance has been issued to all councils on the measures they can take to help businesses with their rates including immediate deferral of payments. Scottish Enterprise Dumfries and Galloway, who have been allocated substantial additional resources to assist businesses recovery, launched a number of new initiatives earlier this week which are available to business now.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 18 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will encourage the establishment of a network of GPs interested in sports medicine.
Answer
Together with the other home country and UK sports councils, sportscotland is funding the National Sports Medicine Institute (NSMI) of the United Kingdom to develop a Register of Exercise & Sports Care: UK (RESCU). RESCU will identify a network of service providers, including GPs across the UK; will raise awareness among users of sports care services about practitioners with appropriate qualifications and experience, and will enable doctors interested in sports medicine to make contact with other practitioners who are also working in this area.RESCU has set clear and objective minimum entry requirements and has also identified suggested pathways for career development. RESCU will also utilise future accreditation schemes, such as any developed by the Inter-collegiate Academic Board of Sport & Exercise Medicine.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus MacKay on 17 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will bring forward guidance to prevent electoral returning officers from appearing in press photographs featuring only one of the candidates in a forthcoming election, or acting in any other way which could be seen to promote an election candidate.
Answer
Arrangements relating to UK, European and Scottish Parliamentary elections are all reserved matters, while arrangements relating to local government elections are devolved matters. The Executive is not aware of any cases which suggest that Returning Officers act in an improper fashion when performing their electoral functions. Accordingly, the Executive does not at present see any need to issue specific guidance to Returning Officers in relation to local government elections.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 16 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide core funding to enable Who Cares? Scotland to appoint national support staff to help local workers in their work with young people in care.
Answer
We have offered core grant of £122,500 to Who Cares? Scotland for the current financial year. The organisation is currently trying to develop a broader funding base. There are currently no plans to provide additional funding for extra staff.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 15 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 14 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider enabling 16-year-olds to continue at school whilst taking up an apprenticeship.
Answer
16-year-olds are eligible for Modern Apprenticeships provided they are in employment and the training leads to a Scottish Vocational Qualification at level 3. There are currently no plans to extend Modern Apprenticeships to non-employment settings, including schools. However, there are vocational opportunities available to 16-year-olds in school including work placement and new National Qualifications.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 10 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to recognise sports medicine as a speciality and treat it accordingly in terms of funding, training and qualifications.
Answer
Matters affecting the regulation of the medical profession, including the definition, recognition and training of medical specialties are matters reserved to a UK and European level under the relevant Directives.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 4 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the experience of the National Advocacy Co-ordinator (NAC) for residential schools, what plans it has to introduce NACs in relation to children and young people for through care and after care, foster care and special needs education.
Answer
We have no such plans at the present time.A network of advocacy services for children and young people looked after away from home is currently provided by local authorities in Scotland through joint working with Who Cares? Scotland and the deployment of children's rights workers. The Scottish Executive provides grant funding to Who Cares? Scotland and additional targeted funding to local authorities to assist with the provision of this service.
- Asked by: Donald Gorrie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 3 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will ensure that continuing funding is provided by national and local government to voluntary organisations to enable them to fulfil their potential in providing services to the community.
Answer
The Scottish Executive's direct support for the voluntary sector now stands at record levels: £35 million in 2000-01, an increase of over 30% on the previous year. In addition, £265 million of support was provided indirectly through public bodies such as Scottish Homes, Health Boards and Local Enterprise Companies. On 30 April we launched a public consultation on the Executive’s direct funding for the sector and on the basis of the responses we receive will be looking at ways in which we can improve upon present funding practice.Local authority support for voluntary and community groups is a matter for each individual council to determine. However, we encourage councils actively to support the vital work of the voluntary sector in their local communities.
