³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

The new rolling stock beingfunded by the Scottish Executive will be fitted with 50% increased capacity forcarrying bicycles compared with existing similar stock. Bidders were informedthat the next ScotRail franchisee will be required to make use of these newunits.

In addition to this, bidderswere informed that the new franchisee will, at minimum, be required to maintainthe current capacity for the carriage of bicycles on trains and to ensure thatbicycles are carried free of charge (the new franchisee may operate areservation system, subject to appropriate agreement).

Bidders were also encouragedto consult with key stakeholders, including passengers’ representative groups,in the preparation of their bids.

We are pleased to note theimprovements in the performance of the sector which this report has highlighted,and we are working with the funding council to ensure that the recommendationsmade in the report are implemented to continue these improvements. For example,the new joint corporate plan includes new key performance indicators linked to ministerialpriorities, and Scottish Further Education Funding Council have recentlypublished the first annual report on performance indicators in the furthereducation sector, which includes student satisfaction measures.

The outcome of the Review of Governance and Accountability in the Further Education Sector was announced in March 2003. The consultation process upon which the review was primarily based found general support for existing arrangements, but with scope for modernisation in specific areas. Ministers announced a programme of 14 measures aimed at enhancing standards of governance and accountability in the further education sector.

Most of the measures can be implemented without the need for legislation (mainly through formal guidance by ministers and from the Association of Scottish Colleges).

We will be consulting shortly on the proposals to amend, by order, the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992 in order to reduce the maximum length of board membership, and to relax the current statutory restriction on the appointment of a local authority employee or elected representative to the Chair of a college board.

We will consult separately on the other measures requiring primary legislation – to extend the remit of the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman to further education and higher education complaints, and to give the Scottish Further Education Funding Council the right to attend meetings of college boards.

When announcing the outcome of the review, ministers indicated that they intend to assess the effectiveness of the new arrangements after two years.

Increasing demand for policeforensic science services led to some delays during 2002. Forces have takensteps to address these problems and to improve service delivery whereverpossible.

The provision of policeforensic science services in Scotland is currently under review as part of the widerreview of common police services. A project team led by the Association ofChief Police Officers in Scotland is examining the potential costs and benefits ofrationalisation, including bringing the existing laboratories under a singlemanagement structure. The project team is expected to complete its reportrecommending a future structure for police forensic science services by the endof 2003.

Police forensic science services in Scotland are based at four laboratories in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-3828. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility forwhich can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

COSLA and the Scottish Executive are in regular formal and informal contact about a wide range of issues.The Executive does not hold central records of how many contacts are made inrelation to any specific issue.

Pay and conditions are amatter for employers and this dispute must be resolved between the localauthorities, as employers, and the trade unions. COSLA has informed us that theyhave made it clear to each local authority they need to enter into localdiscussions with the trade unions to arrive at a local settlement.

The Scottish Executive will continue to encourage the local authorities and unions to keeptalking in order to reach a settlement that is fair for the nursery nurses andfinancially sustainable for the local authorities.

The Executive currently hasno plans conduct a central review to determine the cross-flow of maternitypatients between NHS boards. However, the overview report of the expert groupon acute maternity services (2002) states clearly the need for boards to take aregional approach to planning maternity services and consideration ofcross-flow of patients from other board areas should be part of this.

Greater Glasgow Health Boardare currently consulting on their proposals for the future of maternityservices in Glasgow. The overview report of the Expert Group on AcuteMaternity Services (2002) makes it clear that acute maternity services shouldbe planned and commissioned in a regional context and when considering theirfinal proposal I will have to be content Greater Glasgow Health Board haveadhered to this.

I have already emphasisedthe importance of this pan-regional approach when I responded to the proposals madeby NHS Argyll and Clyde.