Chamber and committees

Our statistics on motor vehicle offences reflect associated legal definitions. In the case of deaths, the offences for which statistics are provided are "causing death by dangerous driving" and "causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs". There is no offence of causing death by careless driving and there are currently no plans to disaggregate the statistics on careless driving.

There are five pharmaceutical manufacturers supplying the UK market during the coming flu season. The Executive has been in contact with each manufacturer regarding their flu vaccine programme, and we understand that distribution of the vaccines will take place in Scotland between late September and mid-late October. It is difficult to be precise because, as biological products, vaccines have to undergo independent stringent safety tests before they are able to be released onto the market. However, there are currently no grounds for thinking that there will be shortages.

The current provisions of the Transport (Scotland) Bill would enable Scottish Ministers to require local authorities to make concessionary travel schemes covering inter alia "eligible persons", who are further defined as persons of pensionable age or who suffer from a disability. The Executive propose to amend the Bill to take a power to enable eligibility for bus concessionary fares to be extended to other groups, which could include "carers". However, the considerable costs involved will in practice rule out the use of this power for the foreseeable future.

We have no current plans to do so.

There are existing provisions under section 131 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 giving roads authorities powers, in the event of a failure by a utility company to reinstate the road properly, to issue a notice to the utility company requiring it to carry out remedial works within a prescribed period. In this respect, the road, by definition, includes the pavement. Should this notice not be complied with, the authority may carry out the necessary works and recover the costs reasonably incurred by them in doing so.

Section 130 of the 1991 Act requires that a utility company executing road works shall, in reinstating the road, comply with such requirements as may be prescribed as to the specification of materials to be used and the standards of workmanship to be observed. Failure to comply with section 130 is an offence which, on summary conviction, is liable to a fine not exceeding level 3 (£1,000) on the standard scale.

I am convening a group to determine how the central heating initiative will be implemented. It will include representatives of the power companies and relevant charities. This is one of the issues which will be considered.

The programme will run from 1 April 2001 to March 2006 and will benefit all those who are or will be pensioners during those years and whose homes lack central heating. We have not yet considered arrangements beyond 2006.

Scottish Enterprise has recently met Social Firms Scotland, and is considering ways in which they might facilitate social business development.

Social Firms have a useful part to play in the ongoing consideration of all aspects of the whole person approach to well being, and of education, training and employment opportunities for people with disabilities, mental health problems, or with other support needs. This is of interest to the work of the National Action Group, established in response to the Beattie Report, the Learning Disability Review, and the Mental Health and Well Being Support group.

The Scottish Executive is committed to tackling alcohol misuse and is working towards a comprehensive new strategy for tackling alcohol misuse in Scotland. Service provision, prevention and health promotion will form key components of the emerging strategy.

The Common Repair Working Group, chaired by my Department with representatives from a number of interested parties, has commissioned the preparation of two leaflets for owners and prospective owners explaining their responsibilities in respect of the repair and maintenance of communally owned property. In addition Home Point, the housing information and advice unit in Scottish Homes, has published two more general advisory leaflets for home owners.

In the Programme for Government, published last September, we also indicated that we would seek to improve the house buying process by supporting measures which avoid additional costs for home buyers resulting from multiple surveys and valuations.

Since then we have been monitoring the progress of the two market-led pilots in Scotland and have had a number of discussions with interested parties on how best sellers' surveys might be taken forward in Scotland. In particular, we are liaising with the Scottish Consumer Council which has recently published a report Home Truths which recommended the development of voluntary 'independent' survey schemes, backed by a guarantee for the buyer.