- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 4 April 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive how private sector housing capital allocations will be affected when VAT refunds are no longer available.
Answer
Support for the main local authority non-housing capital programmes, including private sector housing, is included within the single capital allocation. VAT is an issue for local authorities in administering improvement and repair grants for private sector housing. It is not an issue in the formula used to determine the single allocation.
It is for individual authorities to determine how much of their single allocation they spend on grants for private sector housing.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 3 April 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-5027 by Mr Jack McConnell on 17 March 2000, what the standard figure for band D council tax will be for 2000-01, and how that figure was arrived at.
Answer
For 2000-01 the difference between adjusted Government Supported Expenditure and Aggregate External Finance will be £1,209.586 million, an amount equal to £657 per band D equivalent property.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 31 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive how much financial support was given to Victim Support Scotland in 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000 and how much will be given in 2000-01, in real terms.
Answer
Victim Support Scotland has received the following grant aid through section 9 and section 10 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 from the Scottish Executive:
| | Cash Terms | Real Terms (1999-2000 Prices) |
| 1997-98 | £1,431,239 | £1,511,196 |
| 1998-99 | £1,422,610 | £1,454,619 |
| 1999-2000 | £1,534,428 | £1,534,428 |
In 2000-01 the Scottish Executive has granted Victim Support Scotland:
| | Cash Terms | Real Terms (1999-2000 Prices) |
| 2000-01 | £1,598,890 | £1,559,896 |
In addition, the Scottish Executive has also provided increasing levels of funding to Victim Support to enable them to provide a support service to witnesses in the sheriff courts. Up to £2 million has been set aside for this service to be rolled out in 2000-01 and 2001-02.
Victim Support Scotland also receives funding (in cash and in kind) from local authorities, the private sector and others.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 31 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive why the percentage of patients waiting eighteen weeks or more for treatment at Glasgow Dental Hospital and School increased by one third between 1998 and 1999 and what steps it will take to remedy this situation.
Answer
I am advised by North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust that a rise in demand for specific specialist services has resulted in an increase in waiting times.
To address this, a major strategic review of dental services is currently being undertaken by the Trust to explore a number of related issues including staffing. A report on the review's findings and recommendations will then be considered by the Greater Glasgow Health Board and the Trust.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 31 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive why less than half of the patients waiting for orthopaedic surgery in the last year for which figures are available in Lanarkshire and Highland Health Boards were treated with the guarantee period given under the Patients' Charter and what steps it proposes to ensure that all patients requiring orthopaedic surgery are treated within the guarantee period.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has provided £292,000 to Lanarkshire Health Board for orthopaedic services under the waiting lists initiative. This has enabled Lanarkshire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust to appoint an additional consultant and support staff. In the last full year, 64% of orthopaedic outpatients were seen within three months. All patients requiring in-patient or day-case treatment received this within the Charter guarantee throughout 1999.
We have provided £0.5 million to Highland Health Board for orthopaedic services under the waiting lists initiative. This has enabled Highland Acute Hospitals NHS Trust to increase staffing, including staffing at consultant level, and to reduce significantly a backlog of cases that existed until 1999. 64% of people requiring inpatient and day-case treatment and 68% of outpatients are now seen within three months. The Board and the Trust are striving to make further improvements and to bring waiting times to within the Patients' Charter standards. Initiatives include a closer integration of primary and secondary care services in orthopaedics.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 31 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive why the percentage of outpatients waiting more than 18 weeks for their first appointment has increased in 12 of the 15 health boards between 1998 and 1999 and what steps it will take to remedy this situation.
Answer
In the year ending 31 March 1999, the percentage of patients waiting more than 18 weeks for a first outpatient appointment increased in Scotland in 11 of the 15 health boards. This performance has to be set against an increase in the total number of outpatient appointments of over 32,000 (2.4%) in that year.
It is the total waiting time which is of most importance to patients, and that is why we are working with the NHS in Scotland to establish national maximum waiting times, to be delivered from 31 March 2001, in the clinical priorities of heart disease, cancer and mental health. In addition, the establishment of additional one-stop clinics, the introduction of walk-in/walk-out hospitals and the redesign of services to improve the patient pathway will speed treatment and reduce waiting times.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 31 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive why police forces will have to pay non-domestic rates from 1 April 2000; how much it anticipates each force will have to pay and what proportion this will be of each force's budget.
Answer
Police forces will pay non-domestic rates from 1 April 2000 following the abolition of Crown Exemption from non-domestic rates for all properties. Sufficient additional provision was included in the police Grant Aided Expenditure (GAE) settlement for 2000-01 to cover in full the estimated extra cost to each force. The amount that police authorities estimate they will spend in cash terms as a result of this change and as a proportion of their budget, is shown in the table below.
Force | 2000-01 Budget | Estimate for Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) | NDR as % of 2000-01 Budget |
| | £000 | £000 | % |
| Central Scotland Police | 33,132 | 388 | 1.2 |
| Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary | 21,318 | 247 | 1.1 |
| Fife Constabulary | 41,036 | 676 | 1.6 |
| Grampian Police | 62,935 | 1,073 | 1.7 |
| Lothian and Borders Police | 133,752 | 1,580 | 1.2 |
| Northern Constabulary | 38,214 | 574 | 1.5 |
| Strathclyde Police | 352,183 | 3,940 | 1.1 |
| Tayside Police | 57,598 | 854 | 1.5 |
TOTAL FUNDING | 740,168 | 9,332 | 1.3 |
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 31 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive (a) why capital expenditure on the NHS declined from #151,778,000 in 1997 to #94,639,000 in 1998 and to #78,113,000 in 1999, (b) what the capital expenditure on the NHS will be in 2000, (c) what are the implications for the replacement of older hospital facilities of declining capital expenditure and (d) what steps it will take to reverse the decline in capital expenditure in the NHS.
Answer
The capital resources available for investment in the NHS in Scotland, against actual capital expenditure, during the period 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000 totalled £136 million, £136 million and £156 million respectively.
The level of resources available for capital investment in the NHS in Scotland during 2000-01 totals £179 million and will increase to £194 million in 2001-02.
This increasing trend clearly shows a commitment to capital investment in the NHS in Scotland.
In addition, a total of £41.5 million will be spent over the next three years on Health Service Modernisation Initiatives.
The variance between the capital provision and actual expenditure in any one year can be attributed to either the slippage of capital shemes where the planned expenditure in one year falls to be met in the following year or the transfer of capital resources to NHS Trusts revenue allocations to enable minor works to be carried out that do not add capital value to the NHS estate.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 30 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to ensure that all local authorities fulfil their statutory obligations under the Housing (Scotland) Act, 1987 and whether it is aware of any local authorities being in breach of their obligations.
Answer
Local authorities are distinct corporate bodies whose powers and duties are set out in statute. They are responsible for ensuring that they fulfil their statutory obligations, including those under the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 30 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is providing to the engineering industry.
Answer
The Scottish Executive provides support to the engineering sector through a wide variety of general schemes and programmes for industry, administered through the Executive and the Enterprise Network. These support investment and job creation by companies in new projects. Support is also provided for innovation in developing new products and processes. I also refer Mr Gibson to S1W-4864 in the Official Report of 2 March, which announced the publication of Created in Scotland - the Way Forward for Scottish Manufacturing in the 21st Century. This outlines our strong commitment to support the manufacturing sector through a variety of initiatives.
