- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 06 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 26 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the portrayal of Campbeltown recently broadcast in a BBC documentary, what proposals it has to help regenerate the Kintyre peninsula; what action it proposes to take to improve the environment of Campbeltown; what proposals it has to improve the quality of life for the whole population and, in particular, the younger generation, and whether it has any plans to reclassify appropriate areas of the Argyll and Bute area to island status so that it can achieve a level of funding sufficient to meet the needs of the population.
Answer
The claimant countunemployment rate in the Campbeltown area is currently below the Scottishaverage (South Kintyre ward 2.1% compared with 3.4% for Scotland).
However, the ScottishExecutive’s economic development agency, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, recognises Campbeltown andthe Kintyre peninsula as a fragile area and thus eligible for higher levels ofnetwork intervention to stimulate economic regeneration. There have been anumber of significant interventions including investment of £9 million in abuilding to accommodate the wind turbine manufacturer Vestas Celtic in theCampbeltown area in 2002. The company now employs 200 in Kintyre.
Evidence of the impact ofthese interventions can be seen in the sharp upturn in new business starts. Inthe period from April 1994 to March 2002 the number of new business startsassisted each year averaged nine. During 2002-03, 35 businesses receivedstart–up assistance and this increased to 43 in 2003-04. These are significantnumbers of new starts in an area with a population of 10,000.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 23 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on what training and recruitment opportunities exist in the shipping industry in Scotland and how these will be increased.
Answer
Schemes administered by the Department for Transport and relating to seafarer employment and training opportunities include the Support for Maritime Training Scheme (SMarT) which provides support for the training of officers and ratings. SMarT provided funding for 621 new officer cadets in 2003-04, an increase from 557 in the previous year. 45% of cadets receiving SMarT funding are from Scotland. The tonnage tax features a minimum training obligation which requires each shipping company entering the scheme to recruit and train one officer trainee each year for every 15 officer posts in its fleet, and to give consideration to employment and training opportunities for ratings.
Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd, which is wholly owned by Scottish ministers, is committed to employee training and development to enable staff to contribute fully to the business and progress as far as possible within the organisation. The company also encourages employees to continue personal and professional training, for which financial assistance may be available. Caledonian MacBrayne has a core base of about 1,200 employees and recruits temporary workers as required on a seasonal basis.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 23 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding employment and training opportunities for seafarers in Scotland.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including seafarer employment and training opportunities.Specific discussions have covered the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT)scheme, a Department for Transport initiative which provides support for thetraining of officers and ratings.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Tavish Scott on 22 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the most up-to-date statistical correlation is between households’ income levels and the council tax bands of the properties resided in by households.
Answer
The following table gives for each council tax band the estimated percentage of households in each household income band, based upon the latest data from 2001-02 and 2002-03. For example, an estimated 29% of households occupying a band A dwelling have a gross household income of £150 or less per week, excluding any council tax benefit income.
The council tax band occupied by a household, however, does not equate directly to the council tax bill.Twenty percent of households in Scotland receive full council tax benefit and therefore pay no council tax from their gross income, and many others receive partial council tax benefit.
Gross Household Income Excluding Council Tax Benefit (£ Per Week)
| Council Tax Band | Up to 150 | 150 to 300 | 300 to 450 | 450 to 600 | 600 to 750 | Over 750 | Total |
| Band A | 29 | 40 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 100 |
| Band B | 17 | 34 | 19 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 100 |
| Band C | 12 | 26 | 19 | 19 | 12 | 13 | 100 |
| Band D | 7 | 22 | 18 | 17 | 14 | 22 | 100 |
| Band E | 6 | 14 | 17 | 14 | 13 | 35 | 100 |
| Band F | 15 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 50 | 100 |
| Band G & H | 15 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 57 | 101 |
Note: The percentage of households in each cell has been estimated using data from the Family Resources Survey aggregated over two years – 2001-02 to 2002-03. Where the sample size is insufficient to allow confident estimation, cells have been merged. The income figures reported are gross household income from all sources less any income received as council tax benefit. Percentages are reported to the nearest whole number and may not sum to 100% due to rounding. Care should be taken when comparing these figures with similar figures from previous years as they are based on small samples and subject to sampling variability.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 22 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people are currently employed as seafarers in Scotland.
Answer
The Labour Force Survey cannot provide estimates for the number of seafarers as the Standard Occupational Codes do not identify seafarers as a distinct group. Instead seafarers are mixed with occupations from agriculture. The ScottishExecutive does publish figures on the number of people employed in sea fishing. At the end of 2003 there were 5,276 people employed in sea fishing in Scotland. This is the latest data available and is provided by the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency. Also data from the annual business inquiry employee analysis shows that in 2002, 1,800 people worked in sea and coastal water transport (Standard Industrial Classification 61.1).
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 04 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 18 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many households have (a) one wage earner and (b) two, (c) three and (d) four or more wage earners and whether there are any recognisable trends in the projections of such households over the next 10 years.
Answer
The number of wage earners in a household is not collected. However, the number of people in paid employment in each household can be estimated from the Labour Force Survey. These estimates are reported in table 1. The Scottish Executive does not produce projections on wage earners per household.
Table 1: Number of Households by Number of People in Paid Employment, Scotland, Spring 2004
| | No. of Households |
| 1 person in paid employment | 660,000 |
| 2 people in paid employment | 609,000 |
| 3 people in paid employment | 113,000 |
| 4 or more people in paid employment | 27,000 |
Source: Labour Force Survey, Spring Quarter 2004.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 October 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 16 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any plans to amend fire safety regulations in respect of sub-surface railway stations.
Answer
Fire Safety in sub-surface railways is subject to the Fire Precautions (Sub-surface Railway Stations) Regulations 1989 and additionally, since 1999, the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997. The continued need for these Regulations is being considered in the context of the Fire (Scotland) Bill provisions which, at Part 3, reform the existing fire safety regime.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 16 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many bank arrestments there were for debts relating to (a) council tax and (b) other debts in each of the last three years.
Answer
Data at this level of detail is not collected centrally. Top-line information is collected and published annually in Civil Judicial Statistics. The latest version can be viewed on the Executive website at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/justice/cjs02-00.asp.The Executive is currently reviewing the way the Justice Department collects and provides information and statistics about the civil justice system. A consultation document has been issued. It is available on the Scottish Executive website at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/view/views.asp. Closing date for responses is 17 December 2004.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Tavish Scott on 16 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of council tax debt relates to water and sewerage charges.
Answer
Council tax debt and water and sewerage charge debt are reported separately by local authorities.
As at 31 March 2004, the debt outstanding across Scotland against water and sewerage charges from 1996-97 to 2003-04 was £191.966 million. Over the same period, the debt outstanding across Scotland against council tax was £602.382 million. Water and sewerage charge debt therefore represents 24.2% of the total debt outstanding for the period.
- Asked by: Tommy Sheridan, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Socialist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 16 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers the average level of household income to be; how many households have an income below this average level, and how many people live in those households.
Answer
In 2002-03, the median level of gross household income in Scotland was £18,200 per annum and the mean level of gross household income was £25,300.
Fifty per cent of households will have income below the median (1,120,000 households) and 1,880,000 individuals lived in these households. Sixty-three per cent of households had income below the mean (1,420,000 households); 2,580,000 individuals lived in these households.
These figures have not been adjusted to account for the size or composition of households. As such, it cannot be assumed that a household or individual with household income below the average has necessarily got a lower standard of living than a household or individual with household income above the average.
Figures for 2003-04 will be available in March 2005.
