To ask the Scottish Executive whether it maintains a list of buildings such as Duff House in Banff which are available to it at no charge and what use has been made of such buildings in each of the last five years.
The Scottish Executive doesnot maintain a central list of buildings which are available to it at nocharge, other than for consumed resources, directly attributable to such use,for conferences and functions.
DuffHouse is available for use by Scottish Ministers for up to eight functions peryear on the basis that the room hire is free but Ministers would have toreimburse all the other costs incurred. Scottish Ministers can only availthemselves of this facility when the accommodation is not in use for any otherpurposes, eg temporary exhibitions, and use would not cause disruption to otherpre-planned events. Use of this facility has to be planned well in advance.
Ourgeneral policy is that, where business meetings, conferences or officialfunctions are hosted by Scottish Executive, the facilities within one of theCore Estate buildings, including Bute House, are used where appropriate. Onlywhere these facilities are either unsuitable or unavailable are “off estate”options considered. Scottish Executive hires such accommodation on the basis ofsuitability for the success of the individual event subject to its normalprocurement procedures and guidelines. Factors such as; convenient location fortravelling attendees, ability to accommodate the planned number of attendeesand the nature of the facilities on offer, are important considerations inselecting a suitable venue for a successful event along with cost.
Noncore buildings available at no charge other than for consumed resources areused where appropriate. The only buildings which are regularly used by ScottishMinisters for the hosting of official Ministerial functions on this basis arethe Royal Apartments at Edinburgh Castle and the Great Hall and Royal Chapel at Stirling Castle. Overthe last five years the use of these buildings for the hosting of official Ministerialfunctions is as follows:
Year | Edinburgh Castle Royal Apartments – Great Hall, Laich Hall and Queen Mary Room | Stirling Castle Great Hall and Chapel Royal |
2001 | 31 | 3 |
2002 | 24 | 1 |
2003 | 25 | 0 |
2004 | 18 | 0 |
2005 | 38 | 2 |
2006 | 10 to date | 2 to date |