- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 20 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects 2010 rates revaluations appeals to be concluded.
Answer
2010 Revaluation appeals must be disposed of by the Valuation Appeal Committees no later than 31 December 2013, although in practice many will be resolved well in advance of that date.
In addition, in certain circumstances, appeals may be referred to the Lands Tribunal for determination.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 20 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive what processes are in place to address delays in repayments of non-domestic rates by local authorities.
Answer
The Scottish Government engages regularly with a range of ratepayers and business organisations on the operation of the business rates system.
As part of that engagement, at a rate payers forum meeting on 16 December 2010 involving a range of rate payers and business organisations it was agreed that the Scottish Government would remind local authorities of the need for prompt repayment, particularly when the rates liability reduces as the result of a successful valuation appeal. This led to the issue of Local Government Finance Circular No 15/2010 on 20 December 2010.
As set out in that finance circular, the Scottish Government considers that any repayment of business rates should be made as soon as possible, particularly in the current economic climate.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 20 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive what length of time would constitute prompt repayment of non-domestic rates, as referred to in Local Government Finance Circular No. 15/2010.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-38707 on 20 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 20 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive what processes are in place to assess the timeliness of local authorities’ repayment of non-domestic rates.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-38707 on 20 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 20 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it publishes comparisons of non-domestic rates repayments broken down by local authority area.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-38707 on 20 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 19 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the number of jobs created by retailers since 2007.
Answer
There is no information held centrally on the number of jobs created in Scotland. However, data are available on the net change in jobs over time. Data on the number of workforce jobs by broad sector are available on a quarterly basis. Table 1 shows the number of workforce jobs in wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles.
Table 1: Workforce Jobs, Scotland, Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles
| Date | Jobs |
| 2007Q1 | 378,000 |
| 2007Q2 | 379,300 |
| 2007Q3 | 382,500 |
| 2007Q4 | 391,700 |
| 2008Q1 | 390,800 |
| 2008Q2 | 394,900 |
| 2008Q3 | 392,600 |
| 2008Q4 | 381,000 |
| 2009Q1 | 383,700 |
| 2009Q2 | 388,100 |
| 2009Q3 | 387,800 |
| 2009Q4 | 382,100 |
| 2010Q1 | 358,400 |
| 2010Q2 | 359,400 |
| 2010Q3 | 355,300 |
Source: Office for National Statistics, Workforce Jobs.
Data are seasonally adjusted and rounded to the nearest 100.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 14 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the amounts raised from businesses through Business Improvement District levies came from retailers.
Answer
This information is not held centrally. Amounts raised through Business Improvement District (BID) levies are a matter for each BID company.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 January 2011
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 14 January 2011
To ask the Scottish Executive what the budget is for each Business Improvement District (BID) project, showing (a) amounts raised from businesses by BID levies and (b) grants.
Answer
This information is not held centrally. Business Improvement District (BID) companies are organisations which are independent of the Scottish Government. Projects, including the budgets and funding for these, which individual BID companies take forward are therefore a matter for each company.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 December 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Adam Ingram on 23 December 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of looked after children entered into a higher education course in the last year.
Answer
The School Leavers Destination Publication (1 December 2010) indicates that 2.1% of school leavers, identified as being Looked After during their final year at school, were in higher education approximately three months after leaving from the academic year 2009-10.
- Asked by: Jeremy Purvis, MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 November 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 25 November 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-36987 by Michael Russell on 11 November 2010, within what budget it aims to keep the set-up costs of the Scottish Education Quality and Improvement Agency.
Answer
Set up costs will be met from within the Education and Lifelong Learning budget as published in Scotland''s Spending Plans and Draft Budget 2011-12 on 17 November 2010.
