Chamber and committees

I have no plans to do so.Schedule 2 of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992 requires that not less than half of the total number of the board must be appointed by the board from among persons, not being members of the staff or full-time students at the college, appearing to them to have experience of, and to have shown capacity in, industrial, commercial or employment matters or the practice of any profession. One such person must be a person nominated by the local enterprise company for the area in which the college is located.Accordingly, the board is expected to fill a vacancy, other than those places reserved for the Principal and for representatives of staff and students, by deciding which persons appear to them to be most suitable in terms of their experience and capacity to contribute to the management of the college.College boards have a statutory duty to manage their colleges and to ensure that they provide suitable and efficient further education to students of their colleges. They have powers to remove members from office in particular circumstances. Scottish Ministers also have powers to remove any or all members of a board if it appears to them that the affairs of the board have been or are being mismanaged.The Scottish Further Education Funding Council is responsible for ensuring that the highest standards are in place across all colleges' activities, including the efficient management of colleges. I look forward to receiving shortly a report commissioned from the council following a review of the Management of Scottish Further Education Colleges. I shall consider carefully the council's findings and recommendations.

I refer the member to my answer to question S1W-6962.

Scottish Ministers have no locus to intervene in such matters.Relations with its staff trade unions are entirely a matter for the Board of Management of Coatbridge College. A college board has a statutory duty to manage the college and to provide suitable and efficient further education to students of the college.

European funding will continue to be available from the new Structural Funds programmes to be introduced later this year. As I announced to the European Committee on 4 pril, arrangements are in preparation to provide bridging finance for vulnerable projects in the voluntary sector which are at risk of serious financial difficulties during the hiatus between the closure of the existing Structural Fund programmes and the issue of grant awards under the new programmes.

This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise and I have asked the Chairman to reply to the member. A copy of the reply will be placed in SPICe.

The report of the Transport and the Environment Committee's inquiry into the proposals to introduce new planning procedures for telecommunications developments was published on 29 March. The report is currently under consideration and the Executive's response will be announced in due course.

There is no central record of services to assess the needs of men who have been the victim of sexual abuse in childhood or sexual assaults as adults.

However the Framework for Mental Health Services in Scotland which was published in 1997, assists staff in health, social work and housing agencies to develop a joint approach to the planning, commissioning and provision of integrated mental health services. Thus, health boards and NHS Trusts are expected to develop services for the treatment and rehabilitation of psychological disorders based on the assessment of needs. This would include psychological and post-traumatic therapies for a wide range of emotional, psychological and psychiatric presentations, for example, as a result of trauma, assault, and childhood sexual or physical abuse. This framework sets the context for service provision for such victims which is then a matter for the local health board to determine, with its service partners, and to specify in its Health Improvement Programme.

Whilst there are considerable difficulties in ascertaining the prevalence of such abuse, the Scottish Executive funds Victim Support Scotland to provide practical and emotional support to all victims of crime. Specially trained volunteers provide specific help to victims of rape and sexual assault, irrespective of gender.

A Framework for Economic Development in Scotland is currently being devised. The process involves wide-ranging and inclusive consultation with interested groups and individuals across the Scottish economy. The formal consultation period ended on 6 March and all responses will be given careful consideration. The framework is intended to provide an over-arching and coherent structure within which all policies affecting Scottish economic development can be considered. It is unlikely to include detailed initiatives relating to data monitoring.

It is for the police to investigate any incident of fraud reported to them. There is no arbitrary financial limit which triggers an investigation. Decisions on subsequent prosecutions are a matter for the Procurator Fiscal concerned.

I can confirm that the Scottish Executive has received representations from the Cardiac Risk in the Young Campaign about the introduction of population screening for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.I intend to write shortly to CRY about the advice received from the UK National Screening Committee on the subject.