- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 August 2009
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Current Status:
Awaiting answer
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the new chair of the public inquiry into Clostridium difficile, following the announcement on 25 June 2009 by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing that Lord Couslfield had stood down.
Answer
Awaiting answer
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 12 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to increase the number of Changing Places toilets for people with profound and multiple disabilities in light of research by the University of Dundee that identified the requirement for such facilities.
Answer
The Scottish Government was involved in the review of the UK good practice document, British Standard (BS) 8300: 2009, which addresses delivery of inclusive buildings, to provide design guidance on Changing Places toilets. Introducing this information within an established UK reference document assists both the awareness of the need for such facilities and the design of practical solutions.
Whilst not mandated, Changing Places toilets are promoted as a further good practice issue within the introduction to standard 3.12 (sanitary facilities) of the Scottish Building Standards non-domestic technical handbook.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 12 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of its stated commitment to community participation and active citizenship for all, how it will work with supermarkets, hospitals, shopping and other large cultural and community centres to help them to provide Changing Places toilet facilities for people with profound and multiple disabilities.
Answer
Organisations providing goods, facilities and services to the public must take steps to ensure that disabled people can access the services offered. Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, organisations must make reasonable adjustments to enable disabled people to access the goods, facilities and services offered.
In 2006, the Scottish Government published a Planning Advice Note (PAN) 78: Inclusive Design to promote awareness of the benefits and means of delivering a more inclusive, accessible built environment. This document outlines roles and responsibilities in this respect and identifies sources of information, including British Standards (BS) 8300, which can assist in this process.
The Scottish Government was also involved in the development of guidance on the provision of Changing Places toilets that now forms part of BS 8300: 2008, and remains involved in the ongoing development of this document and other sources of good practice guidance on accessibility of the built environment.
Provision of Changing Places toilets is identified as a further good practice issue within the 2007 Scottish Building Standards. Whilst there is no statutory obligation to provide such facilities under building regulations, such information is highlighted to developers and owners for consideration in the planning of facilities within buildings.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 12 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how it monitors the implementation of the disability equality duty.
Answer
The Scottish Government is not responsible for monitoring the implementation of the disability equality duty. It is for individual organisations to ensure that they comply with the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) and disability equality duty. The Equality and Human Rights Commission is the body responsible for enforcing the DDA and the disability equality duty.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 12 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what it has done and what it plans to do to persuade commercial companies to adhere to the revised British Standard 8300, which includes design guidance for Changing Places toilet facilities.
Answer
In 2006, the Scottish Government published a
Planning Advice Note (PAN) 78: Inclusive Design to promote awareness of the benefits and means of delivering a more inclusive, accessible built environment. This document outlines roles and responsibilities in this respect and identifies sources of information, including British Standard (BS) 8300, which can assist in this process.
Provision of Changing Places toilets is identified as a further good practice issue within the 2007 Scottish Building Standards. Whilst there is no statutory obligation to provide such facilities under building regulations, such information is highlighted to developers and owners for consideration in the planning of facilities within buildings.
The Scottish Government was involved in the development of guidance on the provision of Changing Places toilets that now forms part of BS 8300: 2008, and remains involved in the ongoing development of this document and other sources of good practice guidance on accessibility of the built environment.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 12 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that equality impact assessments are applied, as outlined by the disability equality duty, to ensure that the needs of all disabled people are taken into account appropriately in the planning process of local authorities.
Answer
All public bodies are subject to the requirements of the public sector duties set out in equalities legislation. It is expected therefore that councils will have due regard to the promotion of equality and elimination of discrimination in developing their strategic plans, but it is for councils to decide how they meet the duties.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 13 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 3 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what legal advice it has received in relation to the validity of its policy on minimum pricing of alcohol.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-15628 on 9 September 2008. 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: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 13 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 3 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has undertaken an economic impact assessment of its policy on minimum pricing of alcohol.
Answer
A regulatory impact assessment will be published alongside any proposed legislation put before the Scottish Parliament.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 13 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 3 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost was of the legal advice it received on the policy of minimum pricing of alcohol.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not disclose the source of legal advice and therefore how any such advice was paid for.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 13 July 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 3 August 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has estimated the cost of minimum pricing of alcohol to the Scotch Whisky industry.
Answer
A regulatory impact assessment will be published alongside any proposed legislation put before the Scottish Parliament. Representatives of the alcohol industry, including the whisky industry, will be consulted on the development of an impact assessment.
