Chamber and committees

Approximately 4.3 miles of the A75 trunk road is dual carriageway in one direction.

There are approximately 3,500 permanent warning signs on the A75 trunk road.

The Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR), commissioned in 2007, gave thorough consideration to the strategic transport infrastructure needs of Dumfries and Galloway. STPR was the first nationwide, multi-modal, objective led and evidence based review of the existing performance and future requirements of Scotland’s national strategic transport networks. This considered 20 strategic transport corridors across Scotland, including the following four which are within or pass through Dumfries and Galloway :

Glasgow to Stranraer and SW Scotland (A77 Corridor);

Stranraer to NW England and beyond (A75 Corridor);

Glasgow to NW England and beyond (A74(M) Corridor); and

Edinburgh to NW England and beyond (A7 Corridor).

Over the past 8 years, we have invested over £65m in a major road improvement projects to improve safety and journey times on the trunk road network in Dumfries and Galloway.

The forestry summit at Moffat was attended by a broad cross section of the industry who shared their views on how best the Scottish Government can assist them in growing the £1 billion sector. Topics covered included planting targets, transport, skills and the Future of Forestry in Scotland consultation.

A similar summit to explore opportunities and barriers is being held with the forestry sector in the north of Scotland on 24 October 2016.

The discussions at these summits will help inform how we drive forward the rural economy. I intend to hold further meetings next year to discuss progress.

The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 was put in place to ensure that all children and young people with additional support needs receive the support they require to achieve their potential.

The Act places strict duties on local authorities to meet the additional support needs for all children for whose school education they are responsible, and to tailor provision according to their individual needs.

The "Supporting Children’s Learning" code of practice explains these duties, providing guidance to local authorities on the Act's provisions as well as on the supporting framework of secondary legislation.

The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 places strict duties on local authorities to meet the additional support needs for all children for whose school education they are responsible, and to tailor provision according to their individual needs.

The "Supporting Children’s Learning" code of practice explains these duties, providing guidance to local authorities on the Act's provisions as well as on the supporting framework of secondary legislation. Chapter three of the code of practice, "Meeting Additional Support Needs", focusses on the assessment of children with additional support needs.

Between 2008 and the end of March 2016, £1,037,636 of CashBack activities funding has been invested in the Dumfries and Galloway area, delivering 52,728 activities and opportunities for young people. Information on the organisations in Dumfries and Galloway who have benefited from this investment is available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 58209).

Support has also been provided for facilities. Dumfries and Galloway Council were awarded £600,000 of CashBack facilities funding in 2012 to procure and construct three 3G pitches at Dumfries High School, Stranraer Academy and Annan Athletic. These projects are now managed and operated by three community clubs through service level agreements with the Council. £45,000 of CashBack facilities funding was also awarded in 2012 to Dumfries Saints Rugby Football Club to enable the 3G pitch at Dumfries High School to be suitable for rugby.

The Scottish Government's approach is to ensure cross border arrangements for railway policing offer a seamless service to all operators, passengers, goods and staff. We continue to work with the UK Government, BTP, BTPA, Police Scotland and other key stakeholders to deliver this objective.

The following table contains details of the personal injury accident statistics on the A77 for the latest five full calendar years (2011 – 2015).

Transport Scotland has continued to implement road safety improvements on the A77. In Cairnryan Transport Scotland has worked with the community and recently installed traffic calming measures, along with speed monitoring equipment on the A77 within the village. Transport Scotland is developing a programme to work with hauliers and the ferry company to further improve driver behaviour, particularly for those vehicles using the ferry ports in the area. Also, from Girvan to Symington over £1 million has recently been invested in upgrading the average speed cameras to ensure that the improved safety performance continues on the route.

I met the A7 Action Group in Parliament on 15 June 2016 to discuss their Action Plan, which set out its aspirations for the route. I committed Transport Scotland to undertake a review of the Action Plan and engage directly with the A7 Action Group regarding this review. The review has now been completed and has identified a range of items within the Action Plan that we will consider further. This will be done alongside on-going maintenance and improvement programmes on the route. We will also continue to monitor road safety on the A7 and through this approach will identify the need for any further road safety investigations or improvements.