- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 21 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-3242 by Sarah Boyack on 20 January 2000, whether Scottish guidance on Airport Transport Forums and Airport Surface Access Strategies has now been issued.
Answer
I hope to publish the guidance later this year.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 27 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 17 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-3638 by Sarah Boyack on 24 January 2000, whether it will list, for every year since the enactment of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, the total number of (a) completion notices served by local authorities, (b) completion notices confirmed by the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers, (c) completion notices which have been the subject of appeals to the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers, (d) appeals upheld and (e) completion notices served directly by the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers.
Answer
The information regarding (a) is not held centrally. The other information requested is as follows:
| Category | From May 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | To July 2000 |
| (b) | 2 | 2 | Nil | 2 |
| (c) | 1 | Nil | Nil | Nil |
| (d) | Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil |
| (e) | Nil | Nil | Nil | NIl |
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 10 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether Strathclyde Passenger Transport has submitted a full business case for the Larkhall to Hamilton railway line; whether the details of the proposed Private Finance Initiative scheme have now been concluded, and why there has been no decision on whether or not to progress the project.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has still to receive the Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority's Full Business Case for the Larkhall to Milngavie Rail Route project. I understand this is now expected in September. It will require to be evaluated carefully before a decision can be taken about the eligibility of the project for level playing field support under the public/private partnership arrangements.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 10 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-4256 by Sarah Boyack on 27 April 2000, whether it is now in a position to state the timescale for completion of multi-modal studies on the M8 and M80 corridors.
Answer
The scoping report for the Central Scotland multi-modal studies confirms my earlier estimate that the work programme will take 18 months to complete, reporting in early 2002. This timescale is consistent with similar multi-modal studies currently being undertaken in England.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 10 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has calculated an estimate of the capital value of the non-trunk road network in Scotland, both in aggregate and by road classification.
Answer
No.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 10 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2898 by Sarah Boyack on 20 January 2000, whether a first draft of the guidance to assist with multi-modal corridor studies is now available and when the consultation period will begin and end.
Answer
Consultants were appointed in May to prepare the Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance. The first draft is expected in late September and, following consultation with a small group of likely users, a final draft should be available in November.
A wider consultation involving all potential users of the guidance will take place next year and any further refinements made. The Central Scotland multi-modal studies will provide a useful test for the appraisal methodology, given the range and complexity of the issues involved. The guidance will subsequently be issued in a format that will permit it to be readily updated.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 10 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-665 and S1W-6783 by Mr Jack McConnell on 6 September 1999 and 26 June 2000, what the estimated figure was for special grant for Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive supported rail services paid to each local authority in cash terms and at 1998-99 prices for financial year 1996-97.
Answer
In 1996-97, support for rail services in the SPTA area totalled £111,770,297.20 at 1998-99 prices. Since this predated the letting of the ScotRail franchise in 1997, payment was channelled through the Local Government Finance Settlement as part of the grant-aided expenditure assessment for the 12 constituent local authorities. A detailed breakdown per constituent authority is provided below:
| Local Authority | % | At 1996-97 Prices | At 1998-99 Prices |
| Argyll & Bute | 1.22 | £1,288,320.00 | £1,363,597.63 |
| East Ayrshire | 5.09 | £5,375,040.00 | £5,689,108.13 |
| North Ayrshire | 6.18 | £6,526,080.00 | £6,907,404.37 |
| South Ayrshire | 4.24 | £4,477,440.00 | £4,739,060.60 |
| West Dunbartonshire | 4.42 | £4,667,520.00 | £4,940,247.14 |
| East Dunbartonshire | 5.1 | £5,385,600.00 | £5,700,285.16 |
| City of Glasgow | 28.41 | £30,000,960.00 | £31,753,941.43 |
| Inverclyde | | 4.07 | £4,297,920.00 | £4,549,051.10 |
| North Lanarkshire | 15.01 | £15,850,560.00 | £16,776,721.61 |
| South Lanarkshire | 14.02 | £14,805,120.00 | £15,670,195.67 |
| East Renfrewshire | 4.05 | £4,276,800.00 | £4,526,697.04 |
| Renfrewshire | 8.19 | £8,648,640.00 | £9,153,987.34 |
| Total | | £105,600,000.00 | £111,770,297.20 |
* 1998-99 figures calculated using latest GDP deflators - 29 June 2000.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 20 July 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 10 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-2876 and S1W-4259 by Mr Tom McCabe on 4 April 2000 and 17 May 2000 respectively, whether the new corporate system has now been introduced and when it intends to make available the results of its subsequent study on cost.
Answer
The introduction of the new Corporate system to handle ministerial correspondence was completed on 10 July 2000. The study on the cost of answering ministerial correspondence is under consideration at present and the results will be available later this year.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 June 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 9 August 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2973 by Sarah Boyack on 13 January 2000, whether sufficient consideration of the Dalkeith Bypass has now been undertaken, alongside other emerging priorities, to establish whether multi-modal appraisal will be carried out on the A68 (Dalkeith Bypass) scheme.
Answer
I have nothing to add to the replies I gave to questions S1W-2899 and S1W-2973.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 31 July 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria it uses in determining whether to approve or refuse requests from local authorities to dispose of land or property at less than full market value.
Answer
Section 74(2) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 ensures that council tax payers obtain value for their assets, affords a measure of protection to the authority against charges of discrimination between purchasers and precludes the award of hidden subsidies. Our usual policy has been to grant applications for dispensation under section 74(2) if the intending buyer or lessee is performing some kind of charitable or public service function and where it could reasonably be argued that the buyer could not afford the full market price. The criteria we usually consider for each case is:
- To whom the land/asset is to be leased/disposed
- Details of this organisation:
- Aims and objectives
- Board of Members- Involvement of local people/service users- Whether the organisation is funded by the council (if so details)- Is it a charitable organisation (if so, Inland Revenue details)- Previous year's accounts (if available)- What the organisation intend to do with the land/asset
- Market Value of land/asset/lease
- Size of land to be disposed/leased
- Plan with area of land marked
- Length of lease and details of any conditions
- Justification of the proposal - how does it provide public benefit?
- Details of the current use of the asset/land
- Clarification of whether there is any alternative use for the land/asset
- Whether there is any community opposition or support for proposal
- If there is opposition what is the council's view on this
Where the disposal is to a local authority trust or company the criteria we consider are:
- Capital value of assets to be transferred
- How the Trust/Company is configured - does it comply with the CoSLA and Accounts Commission Guidance Following the Public Pound?
- Contractual basis between the council and the Trust/Company (especially where the Trust/Company is delivering council services/functions), particularly performance monitoring arrangements
- Benefits of Trust/Company arrangement
- If the Trust is to deliver a council service/function how will the provision of the service, in terms of cost and quality, be improved
- Funding/Subsidy arrangements - is it intended to provide a deficit grant, if so, how much is the grant and what is the estimated annual expenditure of the Trust/Company?
- Section 94 implications of Trust - will the Trust borrow capital themselves or will the council act as guarantor and how will any major capital investment be funded?
- Where is the existing debt for Trust held?
- Involvement of public/service users in the Trust/Company and the development of the proposal
Similar criteria are used for disposal of Housing Revenue Account housing/land at less than best price. Such disposals are, in the main, for the provision of housing for affordable rent by registered social landlords or for low cost home ownership.This criteria is not set in stone and the main point considered is whether the public benefit being gained from the disposal outweighs the loss of a public asset.
