- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Monday, 16 July 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 6 August 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-980 by Fiona Hyslop on 3 July 2007, why, if formal statistics of participation in higher education are not available for the whole of the period since the Reformation, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning stated to the Parliament on 13 June 2007: “The age participation index, which measures the proportion of young Scots who are engaged in higher education, has fallen since the graduate endowment fee was introduced from 51.5 per cent in 2001-02 to 47.1 per cent in 2005-06. Believe it or not, for the first time since the reformation, there has been a drop in the share of the population studying in higher education in Scotland.” (Official Report c. 629).
Answer
I was making thepoint that the Scottish education system has been leading by example forcenturies. The Member may be interested in the facts and statistics describedin a book by Prof R.D. Anderson: Scottish Education since the Reformation,Studies in Scottish Economic and Social History No 5, Edinburgh 1997.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 July 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 31 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it provides any financial assistance to local authorities for the provision of staffed public toilets.
Answer
I refer the member to the answerto question S3W-2265 on 31 July 2007. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility forwhich can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 July 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 31 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has carried out or is aware of any research into the importance of providing staffed public toilets in locations visited by high numbers of tourists.
Answer
Decisions concerning theprovision, management and funding of public toilets are for individual localauthorities and not a matter for the Scottish Executive. We have not conducted nor are we aware of anyresearch into the importance of providing public toilets or the views oftourists on such matters.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 July 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 31 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is on the provision of staffed public toilets in locations visited by high numbers of tourists.
Answer
I refer the member to the answerto question S3W-2265 on 31 July 2007. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility forwhich can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 27 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what action Forestry Commission Scotland and Forest Enterprise are taking to protect forests from squirrelpox-infected grey squirrels.
Answer
Forestry Commission Scotland(FCS) and its agency Forest Enterprise Scotland are helping SNH and the RedSquirrels South Scotland project to develop and implement a response plan. FCSis helping to monitor the incidence of squirrelpox virus in the populations ofgrey and red squirrels in the affected area, and it has trained the projecttrappers and some private estate trappers to enable them to carry out greysquirrel control.
FCS and the Executive’sRural Directorate have also proposed measures under the Scottish Rural Development Plan for new targetedgrants for grey squirrel control to help red squirrel conservation.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 July 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 27 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how many children with autism have been diagnosed as having Fragile X syndrome in each year since 1990.
Answer
Children with autismspectrum disorder are most likely to be diagnosed in an outpatient clinic andmanaged in the community or general practice. Diagnostic information forpatients attending outpatient clinics is not available centrally.
On-going research inmolecular genetics and development of the brain should help to establish thenature of the association between fragile X and autism. A SIGN guideline forassessment, diagnosis and clinical interventions for children and young peoplewith autism spectrum disorder was recently published, which identifies andrecommends areas for further research.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Linda Fabiani on 26 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive what commemorations it will hold to mark the 100th anniversary of Winston Churchill becoming MP for Dundee on 8 May 1908.
Answer
The Scottish Government doesnot currently have plans to commemorate this anniversary.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Linda Fabiani on 26 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports the creation of a national Roman centre in Scotland.
Answer
The Scottish Government,through Historic Scotland, is supporting the creation of an Antonine WallInterpretation Centre in the Hunterian Museum, University of Glasgow. This Centre, to be opened in 2008, will providevisual and virtual information on the Antonine Wall and on the Roman occupationof Scotland.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by Linda Fabiani on 26 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports the Antonine Wall gaining a World Heritage Site designation.
Answer
Yes. The Antonine Wallnomination for World Heritage Site status was prepared by Historic Scotland, onbehalf of Scottish Ministers, and submitted to the United Nations Education, Science and CultureOrganisation (UNESCO) by the Secretaryof State for Culture, Media and Sport on behalf of the UKgovernment in January 2007.
- Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 June 2007
-
Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 25 July 2007
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will protect post offices in rural areas from closure and what new services it will offer through post offices to make them viable.
Answer
The Scottish Government willdo all it can within our devolved powers to support a sustainable rural postoffice network. I have written to Post Office Ltd urging them to be transparentin their forthcoming consultation and to consider opportunities for trialservice delivery to enhance the future of rural post offices.
I have also written to the Convention of ScottishLocal Authorities encouraging their pro-active co-operation in localconsultation and consideration of future service delivery in conjunction withlocal post offices.
The text of both letters is available at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2007/07/18115922.
