Chamber and committees

The Council of Ministers has finalised its position on the proposals, after a prolonged period of negotiation during which the Scottish Government made active representations, including in collaboration with the UK authorities. However, the impact of the new rules will not be felt immediately. Rather, substances will be assessed over the next few years as they come up for review at the end of their approval under the existing authorisation regime. We will lobby the commission so that, when these decisions are taken, they are proportionate and take account of the impact on Scottish agriculture and on food production in general.

Development of new pesticides is primarily a matter for the companies concerned. It is not yet known whether currently-available pesticides will become unavailable in future. afte

Scientific work by the Pesticides Safety Directorate on behalf of the Scottish Government and other UK authorities suggested that a number of pesticide active ingredients, for which there is no conclusive evidence of a risk to human or animal health or to the environment, could nonetheless eventually be banned under the new legislation.

Responsibility for the management of wild sea trout populations lies with District Salmon Fishery Boards and we in government are working with these boards, and local fishery trusts to protect and promote these populations. We are also funding research into the numbers of sea trout and the reasons for their decline through Fisheries Research Services.

The new legislation could adversely affect Scottish crop yields if certain pesticides were no longer available. However, it is not possible at this stage to determine whether the potential impact will actually be felt. This is because decisions will only be taken as individual products are assessed for re-authorisation when their current authorisations expire. This process will take some years, and the decisions will depend, among other things, on whether by that stage alternative products are available.

The over-riding purpose of the Scottish Government is to increase sustainable economic growth. This is growth in all parts of Scotland including our rural communities.

This purpose remains unchanged. In the current economic climate we will redouble our efforts to help every business, irrespective of size, location and sector, endure and grow. Key programmes which will assist many of the small and medium-sized retailers operating in rural communities are being enhanced.

The Small Business Bonus Scheme will be extended from April 2009 with an extra £50 million in support being made available. Regional Selective Assistance has been extended across the whole of Scotland. Businesses can access advice on cash flow and business efficiency issues from the Business Gateway website and directly from Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. Assistance is being provided across all sectors through the six key elements of the Scottish Economic Recovery Programme.

The purpose of the reforms was not to make savings but rather to enable HIE to focus on activities that would have the greatest impact on sustainable economic growth.

With the abolition of the local enterprise companies and the transfer of particular functions and activities to other bodies, the funding requirements for Highlands and Islands Enterprise are necessarily different post-reform for what is now a smaller, more focussed organisation.

Details of the funding for Highlands and Islands Enterprise during the SR2007 period have been published and can be found on the Scottish Government website at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/11/13092240.

A copy of this document is being placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 44076).

The Strategic Transport Projects Review has recommended 29 transport interventions over the next 20 years that will let us plan for the delivery of an efficient, integrated transport network fit for the 21st century.

Included in the scheme to upgrade the A96 to dual carriageway between Inverness and Nairn is a new link connecting the A96 and the A9 (south of Inverness). This new link would provide relief by allowing traffic travelling between the A9 and A96 to avoid the Raigmore Interchange. Economic analysis suggests that it offers good value for money and would contribute significantly towards the strategic objectives of the National Transport Strategy.

While the Scottish Government is aware that road works can have a financial impact on businesses, no estimate of the possible loss of revenue to businesses throughout Scotland has been made. This is because such an estimate could not be afforded any degree of accuracy as there could be a number of factors affecting the trading volumes of businesses of which road works is only one. In addition, road works on local roads are a matter for the appropriate local road authority.

The primary purpose of the advert is to engage the public in Scotland, encouraging them to invite friends and family home and to take part in events themselves. By encouraging them to participate actively in Homecoming, the intention is to help boost domestic tourism. It is also important that people in Scotland are fully engaged with the initiative so that they can provide a true Scottish welcome for those who come home in 2009.

For this reason, the advert is not being played on television or in cinemas beyond Scotland at this stage. However, the advert is being promoted internationally through websites. A link to the advert has been included in VisitScotland''s dedicated Diaspora e-newsletters which are circulated to 2,500 diaspora organisations across the world. In addition, over one million people in over ten countries will have the opportunity to see the advert through VisitScotland''s international e-communications programme and via visits to VisitScotland''s many international websites where the advert is hosted. We are actively considering other opportunities for increasing exposure to the advert, both at home and outside of Scotland.