Chamber and committees

The National Goose Forum completed its work in December 1999, with the presentation to Ministers of a detailed report containing 34 recommendations.

The work of the forum was financed by the Scottish Office and, following devolution, by the Scottish Executive. Total expenditure on the forum, including publication in February of the final report and the subsequent public consultation (payments for which fell within the current financial year), amounted to:

1997-98	£658.13
1998-99	£3,103.63
2000-01	£4,229.87
TOTAL	£7,991.63

I refer the member to my answer to question S1W-10890 on 3 November.

Wholesale milk production (butterfat adjusted) for the Southern Isles ring-fenced area between 1 April 1999 and 31 March 2000 was 54,244,000 litres. Direct sales totalled 698,201 litres during the same period.

The total number of staff employed by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) rose by 152 during the last three years. Staff costs during the same period, including social security and pension contributions, increased by £4.1 million.

These additional staff are employed across the full range of the agency's activities. This includes the development and implementation of national and European legislation and the carrying out of statutory regulatory duties.

This is a matter for Scottish Natural Heritage. The information requested is not held centrally.

The cost to the Scottish Executive of the initial court action brought by the RSPB totalled £19,446.25. Following the appeal, which overturned the decision by the Lord Ordinary in favour of Scottish Ministers, liability for the petitioners' expenses fall to Scottish Ministers. These remain to be determined.

The work being undertaken on Islay is part of a national study, which seeks to measure the value which society attributes to geese and to quantify the economic costs in terms of agricultural damage. The commissioning of an economic study designed to measure the benefits to society from the presence of geese was a recommendation of the National Goose Forum.

The total cost of the study is estimated at £81,560 over the two-year lifetime of the project. A total of £22,860 was spent in 1999 and a further £58,700 is projected to be spent this year.

The incidence of shellfish poison contamination is making it necessary for scallop fishermen and processors to make changes to their operations and to seek opportunities for diversification. I have advised the industry that my department is willing to discuss ways of helping the scallop sector to make changes to take account of this problem.

The shellfish sector has considerable potential despite these problems. Scallop landings in 1999, the first year of major closures, were valued at £16.4 million. This was higher than the average value of landings in the period 1992-98 of £15.3 million.

I have already made provision for a licence relaxation to allow a number of Category C licensed scallop vessels to fish for west coast nephrops.I have also given an undertaking that resources will be available from the Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG) to assist with suitable projects within the scallop industry. I have sought to encourage the industry to develop projects, principally in the areas of diversification or market/product development.

The Scottish Ambulance Service, as part of its "Beyond 2000" initiative, is reviewing the deployment and operation of the Accident & Emergency service across Scotland. Many islands such as Lismore will be dependent upon the first response to medical emergencies being provided by a General Practitioner or Community Nurse. Where there is an urgent need for Ambulance Service support and transfer to hospital, then the Air Ambulance Service, including the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service, may be used. The Scottish Executive has invested significant additional resources in the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service in the past few years, extending the flying hours and the clinical capability of the aircraft.