- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 May 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 15 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what services are currently available for young runaways and what plans it has for the future provision of such services.
Answer
Services for young runaways are provided by a wide range of statutory, voluntary and private agencies. The Scottish Executive is helping to tackle many of the underlying problems which can cause children to run away. We are supporting a variety of initiatives focused on the development and well being of children within the family and others are aimed at improving the quality of care for children who are looked after by local authorities. We will continue to keep this under review, taking account of the recommendations of the Aberlour Trust's publication Missing Out - Young Runaways in Scotland and other related work.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 22 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 15 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to undertake a programme to encourage children to study technological subjects at school.
Answer
As stated in my response to question S1W-13460, the Scottish Executive has reviewed the Standard Grade course with the aim of making it more attractive to pupils and revised courses will be available from academic session 2001-02. A number of other measures have been taken to promote technological studies in schools, as outlined in my response to question S1W-12194. In addition, the Deputy Minister will meet with representatives of education and industry to discuss ways in which the profile of technological studies in schools can be raised.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 22 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 15 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-11227 by Susan Deacon on 8 January 2001, why the median waiting time for a first outpatient appointment with a consultant neurologist following GP referral in Forth Valley Health Board has increased from 36 days for the year ending 31 March 1999 to 154 days for the year ending 31 March 2000 and what action it plans to take to address this situation.
Answer
This is a matter for Forth Valley Health Board.Improvements to service provision across the health board area since March 2000 have produced a significant reduction in waiting times. The board reports that all urgent referrals are now seen within seven working days and waiting times for routine neurology appointments have been halved, despite an increase in the number of new outpatients seen.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 15 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to ensure that children identified by a children's panel as being in need of supervision are allocated a social worker within 14 days.
Answer
Local authorities have a legal duty to give effect to supervision requirements made by children's hearings in their area.Inter-agency guidance on national standards for the processing of cases through the children's hearings system sets a maximum target of 15 working days from the issue of a supervision requirement for allocation of a social worker. The Scottish Executive will be monitoring performance against the standards. In individual cases it is for the local authority to be satisfied that it is meeting its statutory obligations.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 27 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 11 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many Glasgow City Council staff it expects to transfer to the Glasgow Housing Association in the event of stock transfer, broken down by current department.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-15312 on 9 May 2001.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 27 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 11 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether a vote of no confidence in a tenants' representative member of the board of Glasgow Housing Association by that individual's tenants' association ensures that person's exclusion from the board and replacement by another tenants' representative.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-15410.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 27 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 11 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria were used in selecting tenants' representatives to serve on the board of Glasgow Housing Association.
Answer
That is a matter for Glasgow Housing Association in line with the provisions of its constitution.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 10 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive why output in the Scottish service sector in the four quarters to the third quarter of 2000, as reported in Lloyds TSB Business Monitor Issue 13-Winter 2001, grew by less than half the United Kingdom average and what steps are being taken to ensure Scotland's service sector grows by at least the UK average.
Answer
he following table gives a breakdown of official Scottish and UK GDP growth rates in the four quarters to 2000 Q3, compared with the preceding four quarters, for the published sectors within services.
Scottish & UK 4 quarter on 4 quarter GDP growth rates to 2000 Q31 | Scotland | UK |
| Total Services | 1.6 | 3.4 |
| Retail & Wholesale | 5.1 | 2.5 |
| Hotels & Catering | -1.0 | -1.6 |
| Transport, Storage & Distribution | -2.6 | 8.0 |
| Financial Services | 5.3 | 2.6 |
| Real Estate & Business Services | 2.4 | 4.2 |
| Public Administration, Education & Health | 1.5 | 1.3 |
| Other Services | 1.2 | 3.3 |
Sources: Scottish Executive, Office for National StatisticsNotes:
1. The data for Scotland were published on 7 February 2001. Revised estimates
were published on 2 May 2001.The Way Forward: Framework for Economic Development in Scotland, published last June, describes the Scottish Executive's approach to improving the performance of the Scottish economy, including the service sector. This has been supplemented by the enterprise strategy set out earlier this year in A Smart, Successful Scotland, which emphasises the central issues for economic success: growing businesses; ensuring Scotland is globally connected, and lifelong learning and skills development.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 9 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what resources have been allocated to the Independent Tenants' Adviser in relation to the proposed Glasgow housing stock transfer to enable the adviser to circulate information to tenants.
Answer
In 2000-01 £2.524 million was made available to Glasgow City Council for tenant consultation, including resources for the appointment of Independent Tenant Advisers.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 April 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus MacKay on 9 May 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what each local authority's general fund balance was, in cash terms and as a percentage of total general fund net expenditure, at the close of each of the last three financial years for which figures are available.
Answer
The information for 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000 is contained in the table.
| Closing Balances | 1997-98 (£000) | % of Total Expenditure 1997-98 | 1998-99 (£000) | % of Total Expenditure 1998-99 | 1999-2000 (£000) | % of Total Expenditure 1999-2000 |
| Aberdeen, City | 6,892 | 2.80 | 3,096 | 1.24 | 1,363 | 0.52 |
| Aberdeenshire | 3,937 | 1.54 | 7,400 | 2.79 | 5,000 | 1.79 |
| Angus | 600 | 0.47 | 3,400 | 2.60 | 3,600 | 2.59 |
| Argyll and Bute | -871 | -0.65 | 401 | 0.29 | 801 | 0.56 |
| Clackmannanshire | -891 | -1.52 | 103 | 0.17 | 970 | 1.56 |
| Dumfries and Galloway | 9,190 | 4.93 | 3,872 | 1.98 | 4,863 | 2.40 |
| Dundee | 2,246 | 1.05 | 2,411 | 1.10 | 1,152 | 0.51 |
| East Ayrshire | 1,684 | 1.14 | 1,984 | 1.30 | 600 | 0.38 |
| East Dunbartonshire | -2,653 | -2.30 | -1,898 | -1.55 | 998 | 0.76 |
| East Lothian | 1,912 | 1.86 | 955 | 0.90 | 412 | 0.37 |
| East Renfrewshire | 0 | 0.00 | 1,232 | 1.25 | 2,300 | 2.18 |
| Edinburgh, City | 2,988 | 0.54 | 8,305 | 1.49 | 13,078 | 2.23 |
| Eilean Siar | 3,608 | 4.95 | 292 | 0.37 | 1,058 | 1.33 |
| Falkirk | -905 | -0.56 | 5,719 | 3.49 | 5,021 | 2.93 |
| Fife | 11,058 | 2.66 | 9,546 | 2.24 | 4,874 | 1.10 |
| Glasgow | 0 | 0.00 | 13,999 | 1.40 | 33,663 | 3.24 |
| Highland | 1,692 | 0.59 | 4,449 | 1.51 | 9,768 | 3.12 |
| Inverclyde | 3,189 | 2.68 | 4,697 | 3.88 | 1,506 | 1.17 |
| Midlothian | 1,730 | 1.72 | 1,037 | 1.01 | 1,618 | 1.52 |
| Moray | 967 | 0.93 | 1,016 | 0.98 | 457 | 0.42 |
| North Ayrshire | -800 | -0.49 | -1,417 | -0.82 | -1,200 | -0.67 |
| North Lanarkshire | 2,322 | 0.59 | 268 | 0.07 | 4,950 | 1.19 |
| Orkney | 193 | 0.47 | 202 | 0.47 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Perth and Kinross | 1,770 | 1.16 | 4,535 | 2.86 | 4,507 | 2.66 |
| Renfrewshire | 6,992 | 3.25 | 6,619 | 3.01 | 4,464 | 1.92 |
| Scottish Borders | 9,610 | 7.34 | 10,578 | 7.76 | 7,216 | 4.98 |
| Shetland | 7,237 | 12.23 | 9,918 | 16.58 | 9,918 | 16.16 |
| South Ayrshire | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 |
| South Lanarkshire | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 523 | 0.13 |
| Stirling | 6,537 | 6.21 | 3,183 | 2.83 | 5,872 | 5.10 |
| West Dunbartonshire | 2,494 | 1.83 | 7,195 | 5.11 | 5,330 | 3.63 |
| West Lothian | 407 | 0.22 | 1,408 | 0.75 | 1,500 | 0.76 |
| SCOTLAND | 83,135 | 1.27 | 114,505 | 1.70 | 136,182 | 1.93 |
Notes :1. Figures are net revenue expenditure which is total expenditure met from council tax, non-domestic rates and government grants excluding loan charges.2. The figures are Provisional Outturn as reported by authorities in the annual Provisional Outturn & Budget Estimate (POBE) return to the Executive.
