Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S2W-15820

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 17 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-23705 by Ms Wendy Alexander on 28 March 2002, whether it will publish an updated version of the answer reconciling the total with the data in the answer.

In the time that has elapsed since question S1W-23705 was answered, the following additional payments have been made to the learning providers listed:

Alliance Francaise de Glasgow	£3,374
AMT International	£430
BPP Glasgow	£750
Centro Espanol Lorca	£4,350
Garnethill Centre	£850
Glasgow Caledonian University	£15,903
Informatics Group UK Ltd	£210
Learning and Teaching Scotland	£375
Network Driver Training	£1,500
Scot-Train	£10,956
Scottish Screen	£1,325
Scottish Training and Counselling Services (SCOTACS)	£300
Scottish Yoga Teachers’ Association	£3,000
Share	£160
Stow College	£70,929
University of Glasgow – Adult and Continuing Education	£42,679
University of Glasgow – Language Centre	£71
University of Glasgow – Universal Training Solution	£3,200
University of Strathclyde – Centre for Lifelong Learning	£9,032
University of Strathclyde – Centre for Professional Legal Studies	£600

Therefore, the updated data for the full list of learning providers contained in the answer to question S1W-23705 are:

Alliance Francaise de Glasgow	£24,447
AMT International	£5,649
BPP Glasgow	£14,132
British Red Cross Scotland	£360
Catersafe Food Hygiene	£750
Centre for Educational Systems	£1,800
Centro Espanol Lorca	£26,355
College of Holistic Medicine	£4,650
Garnethill Centre	£1,300
Glasgow Caledonian University	£80,416
Glasgow Media Access Centre	£155
Goethe-Institut Glasgow	£14,344
Gosta Training	£701
Harmony Kinesiology College	£655
Informatics Group UK Ltd	£960
International Correspondence Schools	£42,106
Internet Exchange	£30,000
ITC-Skills Ltd	£289,221
Kinharvie	£1,950
Learning and Teaching Scotland	£24,191
Mindstore	£1,350
Netcon-X Enterprise Ltd	£1,200
Network Driver Training	£2,100
PCT Professional Development	£300
Scot-Train	£56,176
Scottish College of Complementary Medicine	£2,400
Scottish Screen	£3,130
Scottish Training and Counselling Services (SCOTACS)	£6,220
Scottish Yoga Teachers’ Association	£4,350
Services to Software Ltd	£600
Share	£2,303
Sports Rehab and Education Services	£857
Stow College	£354,419
University of Glasgow – Adult and Continuing Education	£177,382
University of Glasgow – Language Centre -	£3,599
University of Glasgow – Universal Training Solution	£26,969
University of Strathclyde – Centre for Lifelong Learning	£49,805
University of Strathclyde – Centre for Professional Legal Studies	£28,600
University of Strathclyde – Languages for Business	£600

The total value of payments to these providers is: £1,286,502.

As in the answer to question S1W-23705, the data for individual learning providers is fully reconciled with the figure for the total value of payments.

Question reference: S2W-16341

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 09 May 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of ambulance calls originates from NHS 24 in each NHS board area.

The information requested has been provided for the month of March 2005 and is set out in the following table:

Ambulance Service Calls Originating from NHS 24 (both Emergency and Urgent)

Health Board area	Calls from NHS 24	Total Calls	% of Calls
Argyll and Clyde	308	4,504	6.8%
Ayrshire and Arran	374	3,966	9.4%
Dumfries and Galloway	149	1,448	10.3%
Greater Glasgow	594	10,540	5.6%
Lanarkshire	724	6,095	11.9%
Tayside	333	3,577	9.3%
Fife	262	3,536	7.4%
Forth Valley	242	2,582	9.4%
Lothian	592	8,159	7.3%
Borders	86	1,102	7.8%
Highland	180	2,853	6.3%
Grampian	393	4,583	8.6%
Western Isles	16	309	5.2%
Orkney	0	131	0.0%
Shetland	7	128	5.5%
Scotland Total	4,237	52,945	8.0%

The passing of calls between NHS 24 and the Scottish Ambulance Service is a two-way process and the number of calls which the ambulance service passed to NHS 24 to manage during March was 364. The 4,237 calls passed to the ambulance service represents 2.8% of the calls handled by NHS 24 during this month.

The roll-out of NHS 24 across Scotland has caused no noticeable negative impact on the use of the ambulance service and their response times. The ambulance service regularly monitors the calls received from NHS 24 to ensure that these calls are being appropriately transferred.

It should be remembered that NHS 24 is not an emergency service – the clear advice to the public is that in emergencies callers should dial 999. That only 2.8% of the calls handled by NHS 24 are passed to the ambulance service suggests that most people make the right choice in these circumstances.

Question reference: S2W-16059

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 10 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-15083 by Mr Andy Kerr on 17 March 2005, when it will write to me with the information requested.

Question reference: S2W-16057

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 10 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-15081 by Mr Andy Kerr on 17 March 2005, when it will write to me with the information requested.

Question reference: S2W-15815

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Jim Wallace on 10 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-2711 by Mr Jim Wallace on 1 October 2003, whether it will publish an updated version of the answer reconciling the totals with the data in the table.

The totals in table 1 of the answer to question S2W-2711 are accurate. However, the table should have been issued with footnotes explaining that the figures were rounded to the nearest thousand and that the totals may not necessarily equal the sum of the individual components due to rounding.

For example, if the number of NEET (not in education, training or employment ) males is 18,300 then this would be rounded to 18,000 and if the number of NEET females is 20,400 then this would be rounded to 20,000. The total NEET would be 38,700 and this would be rounded to 39,000 which means that the rounded estimates for the males and females would not add to the rounded total. This is why the male and female figures do not sum to the total figure for March 2000 to February 2001.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) carry out the Labour Force Survey (LFS) from which these figures are sourced. ONS stipulate that estimates from the LFS are rounded to the nearest thousand.

The table is reissued with the footnotes that were omitted in the answer to question S2W-2711.

Table 1: 16 to 19 Year Olds Not in Education, Training or Employment (NEET) in Scotland, by gender

NEET	March 1996 to February 1997	March 1997 to February 1998	March 1998 to February 1999	March 1999 to February 2000	March 2000 to February 2001	March 2001 to February 2002	March 2002 to February 2003
Total	36,000	34,000	36,000	38,000	39,000	39,000	36,000
% of age group	15%	13%	14%	15%	15%	15%	14%
Males	20,000	18,000	19,000	21,000	18,000	21,000	20,000
% of age group	16%	14%	14%	16%	14%	17%	15%
Females	16,000	16,000	17,000	17,000	20,000	18,000	16,000
% of age group	13%	12%	14%	14%	16%	14%	13%

Source: Labour Force Survey, Office for National Statistics

Notes:

1. Estimates are rounded to the nearest thousand.

2. The total may not equal the sum of the individual components due to rounding.

Question reference: S2W-16058

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 10 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-15082 by Mr Andy Kerr on 17 March 2005, when it will write to me with the information requested.

Question reference: S2W-16060

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 10 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-15084 by Mr Andy Kerr on 17 March 2005, when it will write to me with the information requested.

Question reference: S2W-15809

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 9 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how many radiographers are currently eligible for retirement at 60 and, of these, how many could retire in each of the next three years, broken down by NHS board.

Question reference: S2W-15798

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 9 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how many hospital doctors are currently eligible for retirement at 60 and, of these, how many could retire in each of the next three years, broken down by NHS board.

Centrally held information does not explicitly identify those staff eligible to retire at 60. However, information on the ages of staff in post (in five year age bands) in NHS Scotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.

National workforce planning takes into account a number of factors including the age distribution within staff groups.

A number of recruitment and retention initiatives are underway with others under consideration to ensure that NHSScotland continues to attract and retain the staff it needs.

Question reference: S2W-15805

Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2005
Current Status: Answered by Andy Kerr on 9 May 2005

To ask the Scottish Executive how many paramedics are currently eligible for retirement at 60 and, of these, how many could retire in each of the next three years, broken down by NHS board.