- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 June 2010
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Current Status:
Awaiting answer
To ask the Scottish Executive what purchases there have been in the last year for government hospitality at (a) Bute House, (b) Edinburgh Castle and (c) elsewhere.
Answer
Awaiting answer
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 June 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 21 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what accreditations or professional memberships heating engineers must have in order to install boilers under its boiler scrappage scheme.
Answer
Installers must be registered with Gas Safe (for gas installations) and a recognised industry body such as the Construction Licensing Executive (CLE), the Scottish and Northern Ireland Plumbing Employers'' Federation (SNIPEF) or the Oil Firing Technical Association (OFTEC). Installation of a microgeneration technology must be carried out by a person accredited under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS).
Members of other industry schemes may also be used and applicants should contact the Energy Saving Scotland advice network on 0800 512 012 if they have any questions about who they can use.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 June 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 21 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is a time limit on the installation of a new boiler under its boiler scrappage scheme.
Answer
To claim the rebate, applicants must return the completed voucher and associated documents to the Energy Saving Trust within 12 weeks. Applicants are only entitled to claim their rebate of £400 when the installation has been completed.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 June 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 21 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the operation of its boiler scrappage scheme favours large engineering companies over small, independent engineers.
Answer
The operation of the boiler scrappage scheme was aimed at companies which are members of a recognised trade association in order to provide maximum protection to householders. We do not believe this need favour large engineering companies given that the majority of membership of, for example, the Scottish and Northern Ireland Plumber Employers Federation (SNIPEF) is made up of small or micro businesses.
This, coupled with the local delivery of the scheme through the Energy Saving Scotland advice network ensured that small, independent engineers can participate in this scheme.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 June 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 21 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what protections are in place for successful applicants to the boiler scrappage scheme if their engineer does not have the required accreditation or professional memberships to install the system under its rules.
Answer
In order to offer maximum protection to applicants under the Boiler Scrappage Scheme, the terms and conditions state that installers must be registered with Gas Safe (for gas installations) and a recognised industry body such as the Construction Licensing Executive (CLE), the Scottish and Northern Ireland Plumbing Employers'' Federation (SNIPEF) or the Oil Firing Technical Association (OFTEC) or in the case of microgeneration installations, the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS).
Any applicants that do not adhere to the terms and conditions to which they agreed will no longer be considered eligible for the scheme.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 May 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 11 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what response it has received from the UK Government regarding release of funds in relation to the Fossil Fuel Levy.
Answer
The UK Government''s programme for government includes a commitment to review the control and use of accumulated and future revenues from the Fossil Fuel Levy in Scotland.
These funds could provide new opportunities to help make Scotland a low carbon leader, and the Scottish Government is working with UK Government ministers and officials to ensure that the levy is released for investment in renewable energy in a way that is additional to the Scottish budget.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 May 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 11 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations (quangos) have been wound up since May 2007; what the total net savings have been; what plans there are to reduce expenditure further on quangos, and what relevant savings are projected.
Answer
Since May 2007 the number of National Devolved Public Bodies has reduced from 199 to 162 and plans are in place to reduce the number further to around 120 by April 2011.
Our Simplification Programme will deliver estimated savings of £123 million over the period 2008-13 and around £38 million per annum thereafter.
Details of the changes to the public bodies landscape are published in the Simplification Programme Tracker available at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/public-bodies/simplification-programme/SimplificationTracker.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 May 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 11 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to abandoning plans for further Homecoming events in view of any losses and the need to curb expenditure.
Answer
No consideration has been given to abandoning plans for further Homecoming events. On 25 May the independent evaluation of Homecoming Scotland 2009 was published by the leading economic and social development consultancy, EKOS. This research showed that Homecoming Scotland 2009 had been a huge success, attracting 95,000 additional visitors to Scotland and generating £53.7 million in additional tourism revenue for Scotland, exceeding the £44 million target by 22 percent. Given the success of last year''s celebrations it makes strong economic sense to repeat the concept and a second Year of Homecoming will be staged in 2014, in the year that Scotland hosts the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup and that marks the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 May 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 10 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has concerns regarding unsustainable palm oil production and, if so, how these impact on any decisions it makes regarding supporting business development with multinational companies in Scotland.
Answer
Many Scottish food businesses are taking steps to ensure that palm oil comes from sustainable sources with the efforts of some companies recognised by bodies such as WWF (World Wildlife Fund). Scottish Government is playing its part by encouraging consumers to look for sustainable products through the Go Greener campaign.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 June 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 10 June 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans there are in relation to the police forensic services provided in Edinburgh.
Answer
The provision of police forensic science services is an operational matter for the Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA). SPSA is currently undertaking a forensic modernisation project looking at all aspects of the service provided to police forces across Scotland and to the Crown Office Procurator Fiscal Service. This project will generate a service model which could have an impact on how the current facilities are used.
SPSA intends to give staff, customers and stakeholders an opportunity to review the recommended service model and provide comment before presenting the proposal to the SPSA Board.
The Scottish Government will consider the SPSA recommendations contained in the service model when they have been provided.
