- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 16 July 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Adam Ingram on 9 August 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish the letters sent by Scottish ministers in March and May 2006 to local authorities seeking assurances that all children adversely affected by drugs misuse had been identified.
Answer
The letterswritten by Scottish Ministers in March 2006 and by officials in May 2006seeking assurances about the position of children in Scotland affected byparental drug misuse will be placed on the Scottish Executive website on Monday13 August 2007 in the child protection pages:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/Young-People/children-families/17834.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 18 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 2 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any plans to review the guidelines governing access to NHS fertility services.
Answer
The Scottish Executivepublished
Review of Access Criteria for Infertility Services in Scotlandin March 2007 to inform boards of recommended changes tobe made to the access criteria to funded infertility services.
Guidelines for accessto IVF treatments were developed by the Expert Advisory Group on Infertility Servicesin Scotland (EAGISS) in 2000. The Scottish Government has asked NHS boards andtrusts to work towards full implementation of the EAGISS guidelines. It is up toeach individual NHS board in Scotland to follow and apply the guidance and we willmonitor the implementation of the EAGISS guidelines to ensure consistency of approach.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 11 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Linda Fabiani on 25 June 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the number of public holidays observed by local authorities is uniform across Scotland and, if not, how many are observed by each authority.
Answer
There is noconcept of national “public holidays” in Scotland. There are bank holidays which are set out in the Schedule to theBanking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 and appointed by Royal Proclamation.There are also local holidays which are determined by local authorities basedon tradition, such as trade holidays. They can vary widely even within localauthority areas.
Public holidaysobserved by local authorities are known as “local holidays”. The number oflocal holidays across Scotland is not uniform.
The numbers anddates of local holidays are for local authorities to determine followingconsultation with local stakeholders. They can vary from town to town within alocal authority area. The Scottish Executive does not hold a central record.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 May 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 13 June 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what estimates were made of the number of homeowners eligible for its central heating programme (a) in its original form and (b) since its subsequent extension in 2004 and how many homeowners have taken advantage of the scheme to date.
Answer
The 1996 Scottish HouseCondition Survey was the most recent evidence available prior to theintroduction of the central heating programme (CHP) in 2001. It showed thatthere were 32,000 owner-occupier households over 60 years of age without anyform of central heating in their homes.
The 2002 survey, completedprior to the extension of the CHP in 2004, showed that 14,000 over 80shouseholds had either partial or inefficient central heating.
The number of private sectorhouseholds that have actually taken advantage of the scheme to date is,according to the number of installations between September 2001 and end April2007, 58,000. During the lifetime of the scheme the number of Scottishhouseholds has grown and the age distribution has changed. This figure alsoincludes a significant number of instances where the programme has replaceddefective central heating systems.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 31 January 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers and civilian staff were involved in the operation at HM Naval Base Clyde, at Faslane, on 8 January 2007, including those involved in the processing of those arrested, and what the overall cost was.
Answer
Due to operationalcomplexities the number of officers assigned to this precise operation is notavailable centrally. The organisation of police operations, including theallocation of resources to this operation, is first and foremost a matter forthe Chief Constable of Strathclyde.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 31 January 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what the current estimated total monetary and staff cost is of policing the Faslane 365 protest, based on the stated intention of disruptive protests on a daily basis until 30 September 2007, broken down by police division where applicable.
Answer
Due to operationalcomplexities the costs associated with this precise operation are not centrallyavailable. The organisation of police operations, including the allocation ofresources to this operation, is first and foremost a matter for the ChiefConstable of Strathclyde.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 31 January 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers were assigned to cover the protest at HM Naval Base Clyde, at Faslane, on 8 January 2007, broken down by (a) police division and (b) rank.
Answer
Due to operationalcomplexities the number of officers assigned to this precise operation is notavailable centrally. The organisation of police operations, including theallocation of resources to this operation, is first and foremost a matter forthe Chief Constable of Strathclyde.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 31 January 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how much it cost to provide police officers to cover the protest at HM Naval Base Clyde, at Faslane, on 8 January 2007, also broken down by police division.
Answer
Due to operationalcomplexities the costs associated with the number of officers assigned to thisprecise operation is not centrally available. The organisation of policeoperations, including the allocation of resources to this operation, is firstand foremost a matter for the Chief Constable of Strathclyde.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 December 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by George Lyon on 24 January 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports the recommendation made in A Fairer Way: Report by the Local Government Finance Review Committee that consideration should be given to introducing a discretionary power for local authorities to apply a tourism tax
Answer
The Local Government FinanceReview Committee was charged with looking at a range of options for the futureof local taxation and the pros and cons of each. We are currently giving theirfindings full consideration before making any decisions on local taxationissues, and the Scottish Executive will respond in due course.
- Asked by: Duncan McNeil, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 24 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what work is being done to ensure that the ballot paper which electors will use in the 2007 local government elections to cast their vote is as straightforward and easy to understand as possible.
Answer
The Scottish Executive does notissue fish farm licences and is therefore unable to provide the information requested.
