Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S2W-29090

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 16 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 10 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what the additional cost to the NHS would be if donepezil, galantamine and rivastigmine were prescribed to those suffering from the mild form of Alzheimer’s disease.

Guidance issued by the NationalInstitute of Clinical Excellence in 2001, and endorsed by the then Health TechnologyBoard for Scotland, recommended the use of donepezil, galantamine and rivastigminefor patients suffering from mild to moderate dementia in Alzheimer’s disease. In2005-06, prescribing data on drugs dispensed in the community showed that £7,470,042was spent on the three drugs. Hospital prescribing data is not included. This costincludes the prescribing of the drugs to patients suffering from the mild form of the disease.

It is not possible to identifyfrom prescribing data the cost attributable to patients suffering from the mildform of the disease. The prescription form does not specify whether the drug isprescribed for a patient with mild or moderate disease. In addition, the costs varydepending on the drug prescribed and the required daily dose prescribed for eachindividual patient.

Question reference: S2W-29093

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 16 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 9 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will undertake a study to compare the outcomes for patients who purchase donepezil, galantamine and rivastigmine privately for mild Alzheimer’s disease and patients who do not receive the drug until they develop moderate Alzheimer’s disease.

The Chief Scientist Office (CSO),within the Scottish Executive Health Department, has responsibility for encouragingand supporting research into health and health care needs in Scotland. TheCSO does not normally commission research but supports research projects of a sufficientlyhigh standard initiated by the research communityin Scotland. This role is well known and advertised throughout thehealth care and academic community in Scotland. Although the CSO is not directly funding any researchinto anticholinesterase inhibitors, donepezil, galantamine or rivastigmine, it wouldbe pleased to consider proposals for research into Alzheimer’s disease which wouldbe subject to the usual peer and committee review.

The Medical Research Council,one of the main agencies through which the UK Government supports medical and clinicalresearch, currently supports two trials looking at the efficacy of anticholinesteraseinhibitors in the treatment of patient groups with moderate to severe Alzheimer’sdisease.

Question reference: S2W-29019

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Hugh Henry on 7 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding has been allocated to each local authority for CCTV in the last three years.

Funding for CCTV is availablefrom a range of sources, including both dedicated CCTV programmes and more genericschemes which include CCTV as one element. The principal sources of funding fromthe Executive for CCTV since 2003 have been provided for flexible response CCTVas part of the Partnership Agreement commitment; funding through the Community SafetyPartnership Award programme and as part of Quality of Life funding. This is setout in more detail in the following tables.

In 2006-07, £780,000 is beingprovided to seven local authorities who successfully bid for funding for flexibleresponse CCTV as set out in the following table:

Local Authority	Funding Granted 2006-07
Aberdeen	£ 49,439
Dundee	£165,746
East Lothian	£104,936
Edinburgh	£ 89,400
Glasgow	£190,000
Highland	£150,000
Renfrewshire	£ 30,000

Over 2003-06, funding as setout in the following table was allocated to local authorities through the CommunitySafety Partnership Awards for a range of community safety initiatives, includingCCTV.

Figures are provided in the followingtable:

Local Authority	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06
Aberdeenshire	£131,954	£133,027	£107,774
Aberdeen	£204,186	£201,982	£174,347
Angus	£ 91,846	£104,848	£ 74,354
Argyll and Bute	£ 78,465	£ 87,732	£ 62,002
Clackmannanshire	£ 90,949	£ 78,739	£ 61,109
Dundee	£154,312	£157,329	£130,646
Dumfries and Galloway	£101,817	£110,607	£ 85,354
East Dunbartonshire	£ 98,508	£ 96,494	£ 71,240
East Ayrshire	£114,775	£115,638	£ 94,196
East Lothian	£ 89,492	£ 89,574	£ 64,797
East Renfrewshire	£ 90,795	£ 86,876	£ 63,528
Edinburgh	£254,189	£259,111	£230,533
Falkirk	£102,607	£107,775	£ 88,716
Fife	£203,381	£200,645	£166,339
Glasgow	£328,717	£322,988	£296,306
Highland	£136,734	£127,860	£106,895
Inverclyde	£116,711	£116,852	£ 86,358
Midlothian	£ 98,442	£101,784	£ 72,719
Moray	£ 96,121	£ 99,425	£ 69,883
North Ayrshire	£122,617	£119,060	£ 93,807
North Lanarkshire	£182,043	£173,472	£156,319
Orkney	£ 40,208	£ 46,426	£ 21,173
Perth and Kinross	£ 95,376	£100,545	£ 81,486
Renfrewshire	£145,433	£143,133	£120,738
South Ayrshire	£114,056	£114,045	£ 81,645
South Lanarkshire	£178,891	£166,301	£143,907
Stirling	£ 89,575	£ 91,352	£ 68,482
Scottish Borders	£ 94,181	£ 96,721	£ 70,515
Shetland	£ 42,188	£ 53,913	£ 26,754
West Dunbartonshire	£122,875	£120,613	£ 98,695
West Lothian	£139,321	£126,845	£105,880
Western Isles	£ 49,236	£ 48,289	£ 23,512

Over2003-06, indicative expenditure on CCTV from the Quality of Life fund is set outin the following table. Where indicated, these figures include other expenditureon Neighbourhood Safety.

Local Authority	2003-04 (£ Million)	2004-05 (£ Million)	2005-06 (£ Million)	Total (£ Million)
Dumfries and Galloway	0.070	-	-	0.070
East Ayrshire	0.180*	0.180*	0.165*	0.525
East Dunbartonshire	0.070	0.120	0.117	0.307
East Renfrewshire	-	0.040	0.040	0.080
Edinburgh, City	0.342	0.422	0.300	1.064
Eilean Siar	0.010	-	-	0.010
Falkirk	0.100	-	-	0.100
Fife	0.100	0.173	0.228	0.501
Highland	0.030	0.030	0.030	0.090
Inverclyde	0.097	0.100	0.100	0.297
Moray	0.020	0.020	-	0.040
North Ayrshire	0.120*	0.120*	0.050	0.290
Renfrewshire	-	-	0.100*	0.100
Scottish Borders	0.029	0.030	0.035	0.094
South Ayrshire	0.024	-	0.042	0.066
Stirling	0.050*	-	-	0.050
Total (£ Million)	1.242	1.235	1.207	3.684

Note: *These figures includeindicative expenditure on CCTV but also cover other expenditure on neighbourhoodsafety. The CCTV element has not been specifically identified in local authorityreturns.

Question reference: S2O-10941

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 2 November 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive how many shop proprietors have been fined for selling cigarettes to under 16-year-olds in the Scottish Borders and nationwide since 2003.

Question reference: S2W-29105

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Robert Brown on 30 October 2006

To ask the Scottish Executivewhat representations local authorities have made, either collectively or individually, in respect of the discharge of their duties to provide additional support for learning for gifted children under the Education Additional Support for Learning (Scotland) Act 2004.

Question reference: S2W-29103

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Robert Brown on 30 October 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has reviewed, or plans to review, the effectiveness and adequacy of provision by local authorities of additional support for learning for gifted children since the passage of the Education Additional Support for Learning (Scotland) Act 2004.

The aim of the act is toensure that all children and young people with additional support needs,including gifted children, are provided with the necessary support to help themwork towards achieving their fullest potential.HMIE are monitoring andevaluating the consistency, effectiveness and efficiency of educationauthorities in implementing the new legislation. An interim report of their findingscan be found on the Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education website at http://www.hmie.gov.uk/, with a final reportof their findings published in autumn 2007.

Question reference: S2W-29104

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 October 2006
Current Status: Answered by Robert Brown on 30 October 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has conducted or commissioned into the extent of provision by local authorities of additional support for learning for gifted children since the passage of the Education Additional Support for Learning (Scotland) Act 2004.

Question reference: S2O-10777

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2006
Current Status: Answered by Robert Brown on 5 October 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide additional resources to local authorities to improve the number, and terms and conditions, of school-based technicians under its national science strategy.

Question reference: S2W-28268

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 September 2006
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 25 September 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what recommendations HM Inspectorate of Education has made about incorporating achievement of secondary school pupils on courses other than those leading to public examinations when national statistics are compiled.

In Improving Scottish Education,published in February 2006, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education reported thatmeasures of attainment should be extended to include the broader achievements ofyoung people. I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-28267 on 25 September 2006, whichmakes clear the work we are taking forward to do this.All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliaments website, the search facilityfor which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Question reference: S2W-28267

Asked by: Euan Robson, MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 September 2006
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 25 September 2006

To ask the Scottish Executive what account is taken when national statistics are compiled of the achievements of secondary school pupils on courses other than those leading to public examinations.

The Scottish Executive is determinedto secure better recognition of wider achievement in school education. As part of the Curriculum for Excellence programme, we are currently considering how best torecognise the wider achievements of all young people across Scotland. Wehave a group currently considering how we can best do this and their work will contributeto a package of proposals which will be published in due course. This will includeconsidering changes to performance measures, including National Statistics publications.