- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 March 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-10509 by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008, whether the Scottish Police Services Authority consulted the chief constables of the relevant police areas when preparing its business case for the merger of the forensic laboratories in Aberdeen and Dundee.
Answer
The Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA) has consulted interested parties including staff, unions, police authorities, Chief Constables and regional procurators fiscal about its proposal to build a new forensic laboratory in Dundee replacing existing facilities in Aberdeen and Dundee. The chief constables of both Grampian and Tayside Police are members of the SPSA Board and the Chief Constable of Northern Constabulary has also been consulted. There are no plans for the Scottish Government to carry out a separate consultation exercise in considering the business case which SPSA has put forward.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 March 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-10509 by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008, whether ministers will consult chief constables of the relevant police areas when considering the business case submitted by the Scottish Police Services Authority.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-11133 on 14 April 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 March 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-10509 by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008, whether ministers will consult the general public prior to making a decision on the business case submitted by the Scottish Police Services Authority.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-11133 on 14 April 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 March 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-10509 by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008, whether the Scottish Police Services Authority consulted regional procurators fiscal in the relevant areas when preparing its business case for the merger of the forensic laboratories in Aberdeen and Dundee.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-11133 on 14 April 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 March 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 April 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-10509 by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008, whether ministers will consult all relevant forensic service staff when considering the business case submitted by the Scottish Police Services Authority.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-11133 on 14 April 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 February 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has for future development of the Aberdeen forensic laboratory of the Scottish Police Services Authority Forensic Services.
Answer
Police forensic services and development of forensic science laboratories are operational matters for the Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA). Following a facilities review of police forensic science, SPSA has recently submitted a business case, for approval by the Scottish Government, proposing the merger of the laboratories currently situated in Aberdeen and Dundee to a purpose built facility in Dundee. The Scottish Government recognises the need for investment in police forensic science facilities and is currently assessing the SPSA business case. In reaching a decision, careful consideration will be given to the impact on staff and the service provided to police forces, along with the potential efficiencies and service benefits a new facility could deliver.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 February 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to strengthen partnership working between Scottish Police Services Authority Forensic Services and front-line officers in Grampian Police and Northern Constabulary.
Answer
There is a strong working relationship between the Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA) Forensic Services and police forces. There are Service Level Agreements (SLAs) in place governing both the relationship and workloads and the SLAs are regularly reviewed through liaison meetings at operational and management level. SPSA Scene Of Crime Officers are directly tasked by police forces. At a strategic level, ACPOS has established a forensic science advisory group, chaired by the Assistant Chief Constable of Grampian Police, which includes membership of the SPSA Director of Forensic Science.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 February 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 6 March 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether work on the further development of the Aberdeen forensic laboratory of the Scottish Police Services Authority Forensic Services has been suspended and, if so, for what reason.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-10509 on 6 March 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Friday, 21 December 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Maxwell on 29 January 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what funding might be available to support the development of a youth academy as part of a football stadium redevelopment or new build.
Answer
The Scottish Government, in partnershipwith the Scottish Football Association, local authorities and support from thelottery have committed to the Action Plan for Youth Football with a total fundingpackage of £31 million over 10 years.
The Scottish FootballAssociation employs six Scottish FA regional managers and 46 FootballDevelopment Officers based around Scotland.The role of the regional managers is to deliverthe Action Plan for Youth Football, co-ordinating the local planning and deliveryof initiatives and assisting other partner groups to deliver opportunities for increasedparticipation and volunteer support.
Any additional funding to supportthe development of a youth academy would be a matter for the Scottish FA to considerin conjunction with the implementation managers.
- Asked by: Lewis Macdonald, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Friday, 18 January 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 January 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the meeting of Grampian Joint Police Board on 11 January 2008 and the report in the Press and Journal on 12 January 2008 that the Chief Constable of Grampian Police stated that, as a consequence of police pensions underfunding, “the worst case scenario could be a reduction in police numbers”, what adjustment it will make in projections of police numbers in Grampian; what it anticipates the shortfall in police pension funding will be for Grampian in each of the next three financial years, and whether it will make a ministerial statement on the matter.
Answer
The recruitment and deploymentof police officers in Grampian is a matter for the Chief Constable of Grampian Policeand it is for him to consider the projections of police numbers in Grampian withthe Grampian Joint Police Board whose convener has announced that the force is ontrack to have unprecedented numbers of officers.
As the Cabinet Secretary forFinance and Sustainable Development announced in his statement to Parliament on13 December, funding for police pensions is included within the local authorityfunding settlement under the concordat with COSLA. It is for police boards to negotiatebudgets with their constituent local authorities.
