Chamber and committees

Informationon the levels of crime recorded by the police in Scotland is published annually through a National StatisticsStatistical Bulletin: Recorded Crime in Scotland. These bulletins show a25% reduction in total crime since 1991.

The ScottishCrime Surveys show that the proportion of respondents worried about becoming avictim of crime has reduced from 52% in the 1993 survey to 48% in the 2000 survey.

TheStatistical Bulletins and Scottish Crime Surveys are displayed on the Scottish Executive website.

The Executive is committedto promoting disabled people’s rights and tackling discrimination andinequality. Our equality strategy provides a framework for this work across departments.

The Executive is also usingthe opportunity provided by the European Year of Disabled People to promotedisabled people’s rights. We have allocated £200,000 for a programme ofactivities to celebrate the theme of the year - promoting rights andparticipation. This has included a major transport conference in September,support for a business start up event in November, activities to raiseawareness of disability with young people and arts activities. A 16 pagenewspaper supplement entitled Promoting Rights and Participation waspublished in January 2003 in order to highlight disabled people’s rights and hasbeen widely distributed since then at a range of events. Copies have beenplaced in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 26033).

In addition, to help us tobetter understand disabled people’s needs, we are providing £250,000 to twonational grassroots disability organisations, Inclusion Scotland and the Scottish Disability Equality Forum. The funding will allow the organisations todevelop the channels and structures for Executive consultation with disabledpeople in Scotland.

I am delighted to statethat, tomorrow morning, at the Scottish Poetry Library in Edinburgh, Ishall launch the 3rd annual report of the National Cultural Strategy. Thisgives a full account of much progress and many important announcements andinitiatives for Scotland’s culture since last November’s report. Key amongstthese are: the announcement that Scotland is to have a National Theatre; theinvestment of £17.5 million to ensure that by 2006, every primary school pupilwill be able to take a year’s free music tuition; a new £30 million strategywill provide a network of high quality sports facilities across the country; publicationof draft legislation to provide secure status for the Gaelic language; and theestablishment of Gaelic development agency, Bòrd na Gàidhlig.

I will also be launching thepilot of the Scotland’s Culture portal. The National CulturalStrategy committed the Scottish Executive to establishing a national “portal”website with information and links relating to Scotland’s culture. The pilotportal seeks to demonstrate potential uses, linking quality website informationfrom key agencies and extending access to the public, educators, pupils andpotential visitors. Initially focusing on the themes of Scottish music andliterature, the pilot offers great potential for future development.

The Executive values thework and commitment of race equality councils in Scotland. As voluntary bodies,it is open to them to apply to the Executive for funding under relevantExecutive grant programmes, such as the ethnic minorities grants scheme.

The Scottish Executive will receivethrough the Barnett formula, a proportion of any additional Government funds providedfor higher education in England, including any in order to meet the costs of increasingcapacity.

It will then be for Scottishministers to allocate these funds, as part of the total Scottish block, to meetScottish priorities.

Anti-social use of cars can takea number of forms ranging from dangerous driving, abandonment and excessive noisethrough to throwing litter from vehicles. The police are responsible for the enforcementof the road traffic law. Local authorities are responsible for dealing with abandonedcars, litter and noise nuisance.

The Executive will consider whetherfurther action to tackle anti-social use of cars is necessary in the context ofour comprehensive strategy for tackling anti-social behaviour.

The first RSA Scotland AnnualReport is published today. A copy has been placed in the Parliament’s ReferenceCentre (Bib. number 29374).

The table shows the number of people employed in the manufacturing industry in their main job, also expressed as a percentage of the total workforce:

Year	Number employed in manufacturing	Percentage of total work force
	(000's)	%
2000	352	15
2001	342	14
2002	326	14

Note:2002 is the most recent year for which data is available.

The Aberdeen/Aberdeenshire drug treatment and testing orders (DTTO) scheme became operational in December 2001 and was the third DTTO project to be set up, after Glasgow and Fife. The number of DTTOs imposed to date in Aberdeen/Aberdeenshire is 65. The scheme is operating effectively and within capacity. The roll-out of new schemes to other areas has built on the successful experience in Aberdeen, Fife and Glasgow.

Increasing awareness of health issues in Aberdeen and the Grampian NHS Board area is the responsibility of Grampian NHS Board's Health Promotion Unit. The unit provides information and advice on a wide range of topics including diet, exercise, smoking cessation, oral health, mental health and well-being aimed at the whole community and also targeted at specific groups where appropriate. The board is planning a men's health month to take place in August this year.Grampian NHS Board should be approached directly for information about their plans and strategies for men's health. The Scottish Executive Health Department is taking forward a number of national approaches which will increase awareness of men's health. We are working with Men's Health Forum Scotland (MHFS) to ensure that men's health improvement is considered as an integral part of health policy. The National Sexual Health Strategy for Scotland which will go out for public consultation in the autumn will look at all aspects of sexual health, including men's health. We are funding Scotland's Health at Work (SHAW) over three years, 2001-02 to 2003-04, to create more health promoting workplaces as part of an integrated occupational health strategy for Scotland. There are four strands to the Executive's occupational health policy agenda: working with the Health and Safety Executive and others to implement the UK agenda; delivering improvements for NHS staff, and raising awareness and practice in the private and public sectors across Scotland. Whilst not targeted specifically at men, these occupational health initiatives will provide further opportunities for men to think about their health and to take measures to improve their health. We will also be developing and piloting a range of innovative programmes including well man clinics.