- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 7 December 2001
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to his answer to question S1W-19252 on 14 November 2001, what concerns were expressed and by whom, and in particular what matter the Design Team expressed concern about in May 2001.
Answer
Concerns were expressed by EMBT/RMJM in May 2001 that receipt of certain technical information from Flour City was "considerably overdue".
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 7 December 2001
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to his answer to question S1W-19315 on 26 October 2001, whether a copy of the valuation made by the District Valuer showing how the land currently being developed in the landscape scheme associated with the new Parliament building at Holyrood was valued will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Answer
Arrangements are being made to place the District Valuer's report in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre shortly.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 7 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the value of the former Scottish Bus Group pension schemes was at 31 March 2001.
Answer
During the debate on motion S1M-2486 on 29 November 2001, I announced that the sum receivable by Scottish Bus Group Limited in respect of pension scheme surpluses at 31 March 2001, after deduction of tax at 35%, is estimated at 拢168 million.The Scottish Transport Group Report and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2001 will be laid before the Scottish Parliament shortly.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 7 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the conditions of consent granted for the planting of genetically modified oilseed rape at Roskill Farm, Munlochy, Ross-shire included any requirement that the genetically modified proportion of the crop be a quarter of the si'e of the control crop; what the reasons are for the position on this matter, and whether any such requirement has any impact on the efficiency of food production.
Answer
The crop of genetically modified oilseed rape comprises just under 15 hectares of the 40 hectare field with the conventional control crop growing in the remainder of the field. The consent which applies to releases of this particular genetically modified crop does not permit more than 15 hectares to be released on an individual site. Identical sampling methods and equal numbers of control points are used in both parts of the field. The farm scale evaluation programme is not concerned with the efficiency of food production. The programme is designed to assess the impact on biodiversity of the agricultural practices associated with growing genetically modified crops.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 16 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 30 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the North of Scotland Water Authority has complied with Annex B, Flood Risk Assessment: A Generic Format and Standard, in particular paragraphs 2, 3, 5 and 10, of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency's document Planning Authority Protocol Development at Risk of Flooding: Advice and Consultation in respect of its flood risk assessment of possible locations for wastewater treatment works at Aviemore.
Answer
In the first instance, this is a matter for the North of Scotland Water Authority (NoSWA) to resolve with the planning authorities and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency as part of the planning process. I understand that you have written to NoSWA's Chief Executive requesting this information and she will respond to you directly in due course.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 26 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what schemes have been implemented for the improvement of maternity services, including the upgrading of maternity units; how much has been spent on the improvement of maternity services in the Highland Health Board area over each of the last five years, and what the breakdown of this expenditure was for each year.
Answer
The Executive attaches a high priority to ensuring that the NHS offers high quality maternity services in all parts of Scotland. Among the comprehensive principles identified in the Framework for Maternity Services in Scotland, published in February this year, were safety, choice, quality and access. Within the guidelines set out in the framework, it is for the NHS locally, working with service users and planning partners, to determine what initiatives and investment are necessary to develop services in their areas. Information about the cost of service developments is not held centrally.Highland NHS Board carried out a review of maternity services throughout the Highlands earlier this year. The review was informed by wide public consultation with local communities. The review report, published in August, made 41 recommendations for developing Highland maternity services in line with the Scottish framework. NHS Highland has started to implement these recommendations, in consultation with service users and planning partners.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 29 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 26 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether, where planning permission for the erection of residential property is granted and there is a privately-owned existing road or pathway, there should be a presumption in favour of a right of pedestrian and vehicular access and whether the law of servitude should be reformed accordingly.
Answer
Planning applications for developments taking access from a trunk road must be assessed on their individual merits. Such proposals are likely to lead to an increase in the amount of traffic entering and leaving the trunk road. Road safety issues are extremely important and I do not accept that a blanket presumption in favour of a right of access in these circumstances would be appropriate. Development proposals that seek to take access from local roads are for planning authorities to consider.Regarding the law of servitude, I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-19442 on 12 November 2001.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 26 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether VisitScotland has made any agreement to make payment of any sum to Mr Rod Lynch; if so (a) what the amount of the sum is, (b) what such money would otherwise have been spent on, (c) with whom the responsibility for any such payment lies and (d) whether there are any precedents of payments being made to an individual appointee to a post in a non-departmental public body or other executive agency who did not go on to take up post.
Answer
VisitScotland has made no agreement to any payment. The other questions do not therefore apply.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jackie Baillie on 23 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to make representations to both Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the local enterprise companies to provide matching funding towards the costs of Volunteering Highland taking on a senior development officer.
Answer
The Scottish Executive provides all local volunteer development agencies (LVDA's), including Volunteering Highland, with generous grant towards their running and programme costs. In 2001-02, Volunteering Highland will receive over 拢41,000 from the Scottish Executive, via Volunteer Development Scotland. In total, Scottish Executive grant funding for the LVDA network in 2001-02 will be around 拢1.2 million. As a condition of grant, each LVDA is expected to secure match funding. It is incumbent on each LVDA to arrange match funding as part of its on-going business.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 19 October 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 23 November 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to extend the programme for digital hearing aids on the NHS as recommended by the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (Scotland).
Answer
The Good Practice Guidance on Adult Hearing and Fitting Services issued to NHSScotland in March 2001 recommends that digital aids should be supplied whenever clinical judgement indicates that they would provide benefit to the patient involved that would not be provided by other types of hearing aid. There are currently 11 different types of digital hearing aid included within the wide range of hearing aids available through central contracts arranged by Scottish Healthcare Supplies for NHSScotland. Having already introduced digital aids onto their contract range, NHSScotland is not involved in the pilot scheme currently being conducted in 20 sites in England. We will, of course, be interested to see the results of the studies as and when they become available.
