- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 February 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 3 March 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on whether decisions taken by HABIA apply to Scotland and are binding on companies and businesses based in Scotland.
Answer
This information is not available.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Monday, 31 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 25 February 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-13283 by Nicol Stephen on 24 January 2005, why West Kilbride was omitted from all directional informatory signage on the A78 Three Towns Bypass, other than that referred to in the answer and what action it will now take to ensure that West Kilbride is added to all appropriate signs along the length of the bypass.
Answer
The present level of signing for West Kilbride, as described in the answer to question S2W-13283 on 24 January 2005, is considered appropriate.
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/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Monday, 17 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Rhona Brankin on 28 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what timescale it considers acceptable for a person to wait before receiving non-emergency treatment from an NHS dentist; how many people have not received treatment within this timescale in each of the last five years, and what action it is taking to ensure that people can receive such treatment from an NHS dentist within this timescale.
Answer
Acceptable waiting times for non-emergency dental treatment are subject to individual patient needs and are dependent on a range of factors including patient age, previous dental disease levels and future risks, and existing levels of oral self care.
No information is held on the timescale patients require to wait before receiving non-emergency treatment.
The Executive has introduced a range of measures over the last few years aimed at the recruitment and retention of dentists within NHS general dental services and is currently considering its response to the consultation Modernising NHS Dental Services in Scotland.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 December 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 25 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive what legislation exists regarding the registration and monitoring of tattooing and body piercing establishments and whether such legislation covers all establishments which offer such services, including hairdressers, beauty therapy outlets and women's accessories stores; what qualifications must be held before a person can tattoo or pierce bodies; whether there is a standard qualification and, if so, which body awards it, and what organisation monitors and regulates establishments and individuals who offer tattooing and body piercing services.
Answer
Tattooing, body piercing and other beauty treatments, invasive or non-invasive, are currently regulated by two main pieces of legislation, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Tattooing of Minors Act 1969. There is also some local legislation.
Some local authorities in Scotland operate registration schemes whereby, once premises have been registered, they are routinely inspected by environmental health officers. However, this is not consistent across all local authorities and there are no defined standards.
At present, there are no recognised qualifications for body piercers or tattooists. However, there are professional training courses for beauty therapy, hairdressing and acupuncture in existence, some of which are recognised by professional associations.
In 2001, a consultation was undertaken to assess the need for further controls of skin and body piercing to reduce the risk of transmission of bloodborne and other infections. Following responses to that consultation plans are underway to bring into effect a Scotland-wide licensing regime monitored by local authority environmental health officers and supported by appropriate non-compliance penalties.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Monday, 10 January 2005
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 24 January 2005
To ask the Scottish Executive why West Kilbride has been omitted from directional informatory signage on the A78 Three Towns Bypass and what action it will take to address the position.
Answer
With effect from 19 January 2005, West Kilbride has been signed, both in terms of direction and distance, from the northern section of the new A78 Three Towns Bypass.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 30 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the issue of affordable housing on the Isle of Arran and when such action will result in there being sufficient affordable housing on the island.
Answer
I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her response is as follows:
As part of a substantially increased programme of funding for affordable housing in rural areas, Communities Scotland will invest £1.580 million in the Isle of Arran in 2004-05.
Work is currently underway on a project to provide eight houses for rent, and it is expected that work will start shortly on a further two projects providing a total of 14 houses for rent.
A Rural Home Ownership Grant is assisting a family to construct their own home.
The requirement for affordable housing will be informed by North Ayrshire Council's Local Housing Strategy and currently opportunities are being pursued to acquire sites suitable for future development.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Johann Lamont on 17 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for the installation of a central heating system, from application to completion of all measures, under its central heating programme and whether it considers such a timescale to be acceptable.
Answer
I have asked Angiolina Foster, the Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:
The average waiting time from receipt of a completed application through to installation of the new heating system is five months. This includes a detailed technical survey of each individual property and ensuring that the works are carried out at a time convenient to the tenant or owner. Waiting times, along with all other aspects of the customer service provided by Eaga, who manage the contract on behalf of the Scottish Executive, are kept under constant review.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 November 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 15 November 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it was made aware that approximately 81,000 cubic metres of soil at the site of the Hunterston A nuclear power station had been polluted by radioactive contamination; if so, when it was made aware and by whom; whether the exact volume and level of contamination is known and whether the contamination is confined to the Hunterston site; what action is being taken to remove the contamination, and what the timescale is for the removal and treatment of the contaminated land.
Answer
Any radioactively contaminated land on the Hunterston A site is the result of historic incidents, mainly in the 1970s. The contamination has been widely known about since these incidents, and the Executive was aware of the existence of the contamination.
The figure of 81,000m³ is an estimate - it is not definitive, and I understand that it is based on an assessment of land which could potentially have been contaminated as a result of past activities. The exact volume and level of contamination is not yet known. The timescale for any necessary remediation will depend on the extent and nature of the contaminated land, and will be determined by the site operator’s on-going investigations. I understand that this contamination is confined to the Hunterston A site.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 15 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is acceptable that a patient referred for treatment at the maxillofacial clinic at Crosshouse Hospital has an average waiting period of 18 months before being seen; what the reasons are for such a waiting time; what specific actions are being taken to reduce this waiting time; what length of time is acceptable for a patient to wait for such treatment, and when it expects such a waiting time to be achieved at Crosshouse Hospital.
Answer
I believe 18 months is an unacceptable length of time for a patient to wait for a routine out-patient appointment. That is why the Executive has set the national target to reduce the waiting time for all first out-patient appointments with a consultant to a maximum of 26 weeks by December 2005. All NHS boards must achieve this target.
I understand that NHS Ayrshire and Arran will be appointing an additional clinician to the maxillofacial service in the near future. They also plan to introduce the patient focussed booking system to maxillofacial clinics. This new arrangement involves patients agreeing a mutually convenient appointment time with the hospital and aims to reduce the number of clinic spaces which are wasted due to patients failing to attend. NHS Ayrshire and Arran anticipates that both of these initiatives will result in a significant reduction in waiting times for their maxillofacial clinics.
- Asked by: Campbell Martin, MSP for West of Scotland, Independent
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Peter Peacock on 11 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many schools (a) operate with fewer teachers than required to ensure that every class is led by a qualified teacher, (b) rely on supply teachers to ensure that classes and courses are not cancelled and (c) are experiencing problems recruiting and retaining (i) full-time and (ii) supply teachers; what the reasons are for any such shortages, and what action it is taking to address these issues.
Answer
The information requested is not held centrally. The employment and deployment of teachers in publicly funded schools is a matter for local authorities (LAs).
To teach in a LA school a teacher must be registered with the General Teaching Council for Scotland, the professional body for maintaining standards in the teaching profession in Scotland. To do so they must satisfy the council’s requirements with regards to academic qualifications, professional training and relevant experience.
All schools are likely to rely on supply teachers to some extent to ensure the maintenance of educational provision for pupils when teachers are absent from their normal duties.
The Scottish Executive carries out an annual teacher workforce planning exercise to ensure at a national level there are adequate numbers of teachers for publicly funded schools. From time to time in particular secondary subjects local supply and demand may not always be perfectly matched. As part of the teacher workforce planning exercise to help improve the position, subjects are prioritised for intake to initial teacher education courses with Higher Education Institutions having flexibility to adjust priorities to meet local demand. An element for supply teachers included in the teacher work planning exercise increased in 2004 from 5% to an allowance of 7% in primary education and 6% in secondary.
Information on teacher vacancies by LA is contained in a set of tables Full-time Equivalent Teacher Vacancies in Schools a copy of which has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 32903).
