- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 15 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what funding support it has allocated to the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council to meet its objectives of promoting access for poorer Scots and those living in rural areas identified in the annual guidance letter of 10 December 2001.
Answer
Our overall aim must be that widening access becomes embedded as a mainstream activity for higher education institutions. I am therefore pleased that as part of its consideration of a new condition of grant the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council is currently considering how to achieve this, in a way which recognises the specific circumstances of individual institutions. Overall funding for the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council for the period 2001-02 to 2003-04 was set out in the guidance letter I sent to the council on 23 November 2000. This noted that overall planned funding for 2001-02 was 5.6% higher in real terms than in the previous year, with the value of the settlement maintained in real terms over the following two years. Over the period, £18 million was specifically earmarked within the council's financial settlement for widening access. In particular, the council was asked to: provide a further 800 fully funded FTE places by academic year 2003, in addition to the 2,000 already allocated in the 1998 review, with these to be targeted in such a way as to maximise their take-up by those from currently under-represented groups;devise a mechanism to provide additional support to institutions which reflects the extent to which they provide for students from under-represented groups, anddevise a scheme to incentivise private sector investment in access initiatives. On 11 December 2000, I subsequently announced that an additional £0.5 million would be made available to the council during 2000-01, which it should use to encourage collaborative development projects to increase the uptake of higher education and Continuing Professional Development in the rural south west.In addition, funding of £21 million has transferred to the council for over the period 2000-01 and 2001-02 in respect of funding for the higher education in the Highlands and Islands via UHI Millennium Institute, designated as a higher education institution on 1 April 2001, and the Open University in Scotland, which has a strong track-record of providing higher education to those in remote rural areas, and whose funding was transferred during 2000-01 to the council. This figure is largely comprised of funds transferred from the Scottish Further Education Funding Council, which previously funded higher education provided by further education colleges in the Highlands, and from the UK Government, which previously funded the Open University in Scotland.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 15 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail any representations which it, Scottish Enterprise or Highlands and Islands Enterprise have made, or plan to make, to (a) the Department of Trade and Industry, (b) the Office of Telecommunications, (c) BT Group plc and (d) Scottish Chambers of Commerce on the receivership of Atlantic Telecom and the economic implications of this for businesses and other customers.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question on 6 December 2001.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 15 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in its discussions to seek to allow businesses to retain their existing telephone numbers following Atlantic Telecom going into receivership.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has no function in relation to telecommunications regulation.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 15 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 11 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are being taken to deal with staff shortages as a result of the three consultants' resignations that have taken place at the Beatson Oncology Unit.
Answer
I refer the member to the answers given to questions S1W-19754 (26 November 2001), S1W-19873 (28 December 2001) and S1W-19874 (28 December 2001).
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 07 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 3 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-18975 by Mr Jack McConnell on 6 November 2001, whether it has yet set a date to announce the results of the information-gathering exercise on the provision of school swimming lessons.
Answer
We are currently pursuing some outstanding responses to the questionnaire issued to local authorities on 16 November. I will report on the outcome of the questionnaire early next year once all responses have been analysed.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 3 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review the number of student radiographer places throughout Scotland.
Answer
The Scottish Executive Health Department takes account of supply and demand indicators for the Professions Allied to Medicine (PAMs) in NHSScotland in order to influence the Higher Education Sector in the allocation of PAMs pre-registration student places. This includes the number of student radiographer places in Scotland.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 3 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what incentives will be made available to attract consultants to the vacant posts at Beatson Oncology Centre.
Answer
All posts are available subject to the terms and conditions of service for consultants employed by the NHSScotland. Dr Adam Bryson and the Management Team will work meticulously through the raft of issues which the consultants and other senior clinical staff within the Beatson Oncology Centre have raised.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 3 January 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many student radiographer places there were at Glasgow Caledonian University in each academic year from 1996-97 to 2001-2002 and how many places are planned for 2002-03.
Answer
Data on radiography student places is not held centrally. However, Glasgow Caledonian University has supplied the following figures (which include diagnostic and therapeutic radiography).
Academic year | No of FTE student places in radiography |
1996-97 | 55 |
1997-98 | 55 |
1998-99 | 55 |
1999-2000 | 55 |
2000-01 | 55 |
2001-02 | 67 |
Academic year | No of anticipated FTE student place in radiography |
2002-03 | 67 |
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 25 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what resources and new equipment have been allocated to the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in the period since 21 March 2001 following the review of imaging facilities.
Answer
I am advised by Greater Glasgow NHS Board that in excess of £3 million has been invested in imaging equipment at Glasgow Royal Infirmary since March 2001. This includes a new ultrasound scanner, a new CT scanner, refurbished X-ray facilities, the replacement of screening equipment and a gamma camera.In addition, the Cancer Plan for Greater Glasgow indicates that almost £1 million capital and £0.4 million revenue of extra resources will be invested in imaging services across the city in 2001-02.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 10 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 24 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what feedback it has had on the effectiveness of the separation of the Access Fund into four discrete areas.
Answer
Since 1990, Access Funds, now known as Hardship Funds, have been allocated to institutions on the basis of the number of students enrolled on further education, higher education and postgraduate courses. The further education allocation is now administered by the Scottish Further Education Funding Council. The funds for higher education students are provided by SAAS. Institutions are no longer allowed to transfer money between their sectoral allocations, to ensure that the Executive's relative priority for support of students in higher and further education is reflected in the actual distribution to students. In addition, from this year, the Mature Students Bursary Fund (MSBF) has been introduced for full-time higher education students. MSBF is separate from Hardship Funds and is targeted, in particular, at students with childcare costs.We have received representations from some institutions seeking greater flexibility in the use of the funds. We are currently considering whether some flexibility should be introduced between MSBF and Hardship Funds for higher educarion students during the period MSBF is being phased in. I have also, in my letter of policy guidance, asked the Scottish Further Education Funding Council this week to consider how the further education student support system might be simplified, to ease administrative burdens, and improved so funds are better targeted to achieve our principal policy objectives of focusing on students in greatest need and aligning as far as appropriate and possible the student support arrangements in further education and higher education.
