Chamber and committees

There is no presumption thatcompensation would be payable as a result of the prohibition on scallop dredgingin the Firth of Lorn. My officials will shortly be meeting with the individualslikely to be most affected by the proposed prohibition and will discuss both thelikely impact and whether any steps can be taken to mitigate that impact.

The Habitats Directive placesa number of obligations on Scottish ministers including a requirement to take appropriatesteps to avoid in Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) the deterioration of naturalhabitats and the habitats of species for which the SAC has been designated. In thecase of scallop dredging in the Firth of Lorn we cannot at present be assured thatthese obligations are being met. We propose to carry out research to address this.In the meantime, in light of information and advice from SNH and legal advisors,I have decided to close the site to scallop dredging until the outputs from thisresearch are available.

The EU Habitats Directive placesa number of obligations on Scottish ministers including a requirement to take appropriatesteps to avoid in Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) the deterioration of naturalhabitats and the habitats of species for which the SAC has been designated. the Scottish Executive takes very seriously its obligations under EU legislation. Onthe basis of exchanges with the European Commission and advice from Scottish NaturalHeritage and legal advisers, I have concluded that in the case of the Firth of Lornthere is a need, for the time being at least, for a prohibition on scallop dredgingwithin the area covered by the Special Area of Conservation. The mechanism by whichI propose to put the prohibition in place is an order under section 1 of the InshoreFishing (Scotland) Act 1984. In the terms of that act, I may make an orderfor the purpose of conserving flora or fauna. The making of the order will be subjectto parliamentary procedures.

The Local Government FinanceReview Committee has been asked to look at all aspects of local taxation, includingalternative taxation systems. They are due to publish their final report later thisyear and we will want to give their findings full consideration before making anydecisions on local taxation issues.

VisitScotlandconducts an annual stakeholder research study to gauge stakeholders’ views onits performance. The most recent study carried out, in March of this year, showedthat 95% of stakeholders agreed that the work of VisitScotland makes a positiveimpact on the economic development of Scotland.

The total spent on bilingualsigning during financial year 2005-06 was £191,500.

Transport Scotland hasthe operational responsibility for this area, and can be contacted for more informationif required.

Formal responsibility for themarking of underwater hazards rests with a navigation authority with the appropriatelegal powers. The position is different in freshwater than coastal waters, wherethe Northern Lighthouse Board has statutory responsibility for the maintenance ofaids to navigation in Scottish waters, and where statutory harbour authorities havesimilar responsibilities. The Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authorityis not a navigation authority, however, it maintains informal hazard buoys installedby its predecessor organisations. British Waterways Scotland is the appointed navigationauthority for Lochs Ness, Oich and Lochy, which form part of the Caledonian Canal,and is responsible for the upkeep of navigation marks in these waters. We are notaware of a navigation authority for Loch Awe.

The Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform wrote to the Council Leader, Allan Macaskill on 14 February following publication of the Best Value Audit of Argyll and Bute Council, encouraging him to work closely with the Improvement Service in addressing the Accounts Commission’s findings.

Information on the total amount of physical activity undertaken by school children in and around the school day is not held centrally.

However, in May 2005 the Scottish Executive Education Department asked schools to provide the average curriculum time per pupil set aside in the 2004-05 school year for mandatory, taught physical education within the standard school week. The purpose of this survey was to provide a baseline assessment of the starting position from which progress towards the target of two hours quality physical education for each pupil, every week could be measured. This baseline data will be included in a report on progress towards meeting the recommendations of the Physical Education Review Group. It is intended to publish the report shortly.

The figures provided do not include one-off initiatives such as health week or activity afternoons, optional activities nor specialist provision. Figures are broken down by local authority and by stage, but not by gender.

No information is available centrally that would identify expenditure incurred by the NHS as a result of patients consulting health professionals on matters involving being overweight.