- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 January 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 22 January 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer what options were available to the Parliament in respect of supporting MSPs and staff with childcare costs, prior to the decision to introduce a vouchers scheme and engage an external organisation to provide this service.
Answer
The SPCB considered a number of options to support MSPs and staff with childcare costs before deciding to introduce a childcare voucher scheme. These were:the provision of an on-site nursery in the Parliament's interim accommodation;the creation of a new nursery outwith the interim complex;a contract with a private nursery, anda childcare voucher scheme.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 16 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 9 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to lower the current age limit of 21 years for those standing for election to local authorities.
Answer
Lowering the age limit for standing for local authority elections is included among the Kerley recommendations, which are currently being considered by the Ministerial Working Group.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 16 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 3 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-4905 by Lewis Macdonald on 15 November 2001, whether it has received any representations from organisations in, or residents of, Stirling, Clackmannanshire or Perth and Kinross regarding its consultation document Review of Strategic Planning.
Answer
Yes. We have received four representations from the Stirling area; two from Clackmannanshire, and five from Perth and Kinross on the proposals in the Review of Strategic Planning consultation paper.All responses are available for viewing in the Parliament's Reference Centre.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Simpson on 13 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost was of publishing, printing and distributing the Scottish Executive's Annual Report on Drug Misuse.
Answer
The Annual Report on Drug Misuse cost £2,366 to publish, £4,373 to print, and £2,173 to distribute, giving an overall cost of £8,912.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-19542 by Jackie Baillie on 26 November 2001, which external consultants were employed to help establish Communities Scotland; what specific help the consultants provided, and whether the consultants gained the contract through open competition.
Answer
I have asked Bob Millar, chief executive of Communities Scotland to respond. His response is as follows:The following consultants were employed to help establish Communities Scotland for the purposes shown: Sunrise Solutions Scotland - To design and create a new web site. Faulds advertising - To develop a name and logo for Communities Scotland. Both sets of consultants were appointed through open competition.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Minister for Education and Young People will consider visiting Bell Baxter High School in Cupar, Fife in the near future.
Answer
I hope that it may be possible to visit the school at some point in the future should the opportunity to do so arise.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-19542 by Jackie Baillie on 26 November 2001, what the breakdown was of the #70,000 spent on establishing Communities Scotland, including payments to outside consultants.
Answer
I have asked Bob Millar, chief executive of Communities Scotland to respond. His response is as follows:The expenditure on establishing Communities Scotland amounted to £69,756.65 made up as follows:
Design and creation of new website | £39,543.00 |
Office signage | £17,738.98 |
Development of name and logo | £12,474.67 |
Total | £69,756.65 |
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 10 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W -13759 by Mr Tom McCabe on 14 March 2001, whether any further meetings have been held or are planned as part of the public meetings exercise involving the First Minister and Deputy First Minister.
Answer
No such "Question and Answer" meetings have been held since Mr McCabe's last response and there are no immediate plans for further meetings of this type. The First Minister and Deputy First Minister as well as other Scottish Executive ministers, nevertheless, will continue to visit communities on a regular basis to meet the people of Scotland.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 10 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-14589 by Mr Tom McCabe on 15 May 2001, whether it has now completed the competitive tendering process for its Question Time events and, if so, which organisations have been successful.
Answer
Scottish Executive officials have sought bids from private sector bodies for a possible series of further Question Time events, but no decision has yet been taken to proceed with this initiative. If such a decision is taken, I shall write to the member.
- Asked by: Mr Keith Harding, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 6 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether incidence of breathing-related illness is higher than the national average in the communities of Ballingry and Lochore in Fife.
Answer
Information about the incidence of breathing related illness specific to the communities of Ballingry and Lochore is not held centrally. However, lung disease represents one of the major elements of the care provided by NHSScotland. Smoking is the greatest single cause of preventable disease in Scotland, including lung disease. The Executive has introduced a comprehensive range of measures to reduce smoking levels.In addition, the Chief Scientist Office, the Health Department body responsible for sponsoring research, is investing £3.5 million in 36 projects related to lung disease.
