Chamber and committees

The draft Title Conditions (Scotland) Bill, as prepared by the Scottish Law Commission, does contain provisions applicable to shared equity sheltered housing. As it stands, the Bill would provide a power for a majority of the owners to dismiss a manager appointed by a developer after a period of 10 years (or after the sale of the last unit, whichever is the first) and for burdens requiring maintenance of common facilities to be enforced by a majority of owners. The details of these provisions are subject to the consultation exercise for the draft Bill, which was announced in the answer to question S1W-15380 on 1 May 2001.

This is a matter for local authorities and no guidance is issued by the Executive.

All birds are legally protected in the UK. The Scottish Executive and Scottish Natural Heritage work with a variety of governmental and non-governmental organisations to maintain and enhance the status of various species of birds which have shown sustained periods of decline in recent years.Action includes protection and management of migratory and vulnerable/endangered species under the EU Birds Directive, including the classification of Special Protection Areas, together with projects involving re-introduction and species recovery programmes. Biodiversity action plans for those species most at risk throughout the UK are also in place.Measures to improve protection for Scotland's wildlife are included in The Nature of Scotland, published in March 2001 and currently out to consultation.

The original proposals submitted by Fife Council last year were not in accordance with Tourist Signposting Policy. However, revised proposals submitted earlier this year are likely to be approved by Executive officials who will be discussing the final design details and locations with Fife Council in the near future.

The response to question S1W-15057 referred to a particular consultation dealing with draft legislation giving effect to policy which had already been the subject of public consultation and discussion.

The total cost of producing and distributing the document, of all the factors mentioned in the question was about £3,800.

Copies of this consultation were issued by e-mail to all local authorities on 30 March. A number of authorities indicated that, because of technical problems, these were not received on that date but all have confirmed that the documents were received by mid-April. These authorities have been offered an extension to the final date for replies.

The cost of publishing and launching the report was £32,000.

The general capital expenditure section of the Accounts Commission report relates to the use of revenue for capital purposes. While the amount of capital expenditure funded from revenue is a matter for individual local authorities, the Accounts Commission is responsible for ensuring that local authorities observe standard accounting principles when funding capital expenditure from revenue. We would expect local authorities to work with their appointed auditor on accounting issues.

The total cost of publication for Scottish Social Statistics 2001 was £22,971, with a print run of 1,000 copies. The total cost of publication for Scottish Economic Statistics 2001 was £16,689, with a print run of 700 copies.