- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 11 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive to what extent any link has been established between the building of additional roads and bridges and increased car use.
Answer
This issue was addressed in the 1994 report by the Standing Advisory Committee on Trunk Road Assessment: Trunk Roads and the Generation of Traffic. A copy of the report is available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre – Bib number 33938.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many pensioners in (a) each local authority and (b) total were defined as living in poverty in each of the last five years, expressed also as a percentage of the pensioner population and giving the percentage change on a year-on-year basis.
Answer
The table presents the number and proportions of persons living in low-income in Scotland in each of the last five years. Estimates are available at Scotland levelonly, not by local authority area.
Proportion and Number of Pensioners in Low-Income Households, Below 60% of GB Median Income, Scotland (Thousands)
| Ìý Year Ìý | Absolute | Relative |
| Before Housing | After Housing | Before Housing | After Housing |
| Costs | Costs | Costs | Costs |
| % | Numbers | % | Numbers | % | Numbers | % | Numbers |
| 1998-99 | 17 | 150 | 23 | 200 | 21 | 180 | 26 | 230 |
| 1999-2000 | 18 | 160 | 21 | 180 | 22 | 200 | 26 | 230 |
| 2000-01 | 14 | 120 | 14 | 130 | 20 | 180 | 24 | 210 |
| 2001-02 | 10 | 90 | Ìý9 | 80 | 18 | 160 | 20 | 170 |
| 2002-03 | 10 | Ìý90 | Ìý8 | Ìý80 | 20 | 180 | 21 | 190 |
Ìý
The key low-income results, above, are for 60% of both the relative and absolute median thresholds. Estimates on the full range of income thresholds and explanation of how these estimates are calculated are published in Households Below Average Income, 1994/95 – 2002/03, copies of which are available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib number 32212).
The relative low-income measure compares against the median in the same year. The absolute measure compares against the median in the baseline year of 1996-97. Both areas are uprated to remove the effects of inflation.
The figures are estimates based on a sample survey and are therefore subject to sampling variation. As such, small percentage changes are not significant when considered on a year-on-year basis; identification of trends should be based on several years of data.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 8 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-9485 by Hugh Henry on 28 July 2004, how many drug-related deaths there were in 2003 (a) broken down by NHS board area and (b) in total.
Answer
There were 317 drug related deaths in 2003, compared to 382 in 2002. A breakdown by NHS board is as follows:
| NHS Board Area | Number |
| Argyll and Clyde | 27 |
| Ayrshire and Arran | 19 |
| Borders | Ìý2 |
| Dumfries and Galloway | Ìý9 |
| Fife | 12 |
| Forth Valley | 12 |
| Grampian | 37 |
| Greater Glasgow | 107 |
| Highland | 7 |
| Lanarkshire | 25 |
| Lothian | 40 |
| Tayside | 19 |
| Western Isles | 1 |
| Orkney | 0 |
| Shetland | 0 |
| Scotland Total | 317 |
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 7 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many deaths as a result of cold temperatures there were in each of the last five years, broken down by NHS board area and giving the percentage change on a year-on-year basis.
Answer
The information requested onnumbers of deaths is given in the following table. Because of the small numbersinvolved, year-on-year percentage changes have not been presented.
Deaths Resulting fromLow Temperatures1
| Health Board Area | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 |
| Scotland | 31 | 28 | 34 | 33 | 23 |
| Argyll and Clyde | 5 | - | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| Ayrshire and Arran | - | 3 | - | 3 | - |
| Borders | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Dumfries and Galloway | 1 | 2 | - | - | 1 |
| Fife | - | - | 1 | 2 | - |
| Forth Valley | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - |
| Grampian | 2 | - | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Greater Glasgow | 9 | 7 | 16 | 13 | 8 |
| Highland | - | - | - | 2 | - |
| Lanarkshire | 5 | - | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Lothian | 4 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| Orkney | - | - | - | - | - |
| Shetland | - | - | - | - | - |
| Tayside | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Western Isles | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 |
Note:
1. 1999: International Classification ofDiseases, 9th Revision, code E901, deaths from excessive cold (excl. E901.1,excessive cold of manmade origin).
2. 000-03:International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, code X31, exposure toexcessive natural cold.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 5 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish its response to the review of drug rehabilitation services.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to S2W-10713, answered on 29 September 2004. 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/wa.search.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 August 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 5 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what level of investment there was in each prison in each of the last five years.
Answer
I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:
The investment levels are recorded in the SPS Annual Report and Accounts whichprovide the following breakdown by type of expenditure. Disaggregating that expenditureby individual establishment could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
| | Land & Building (£³¾) | Motor Vehicles (£³¾) | Plant & Equip (£³¾) | Comp Equip (£³¾) | Fixtures & Fittings (£³¾) | Assets under Construction (£³¾) | Intangible Assets (£³¾) | Total (£³¾) |
| 1999-2000 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 27 |
| 2000-01 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 24 |
| 2001-02 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 24 |
| 2002-03 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 36 |
| 2003-04 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 34 |
Investments during this periodincluded:
HMP Barlinnie: Upgrade of prisoneraccommodation
HMP Edinburgh: Newprisoner accommodation
HM YOI Polmont: New prisoneraccommodation
HMP Peterhead: Upgrade of prisoneraccommodation.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 5 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will support Seafood Scotland’s activities in the coming year and what support it has provided to Seafood Scotland in each of the last three years.
Answer
In 2002, the Scottish Executive awarded a grant of £145,000 to Seafood Scotland in support of theorganisation’s activities. Applications from Seafood Scotland forthe next round of FinancialInstrument for the Fisheries Guidance (FIFG)awards have just been received and are currently under consideration.
Scottish Enterprise has alsofunded Seafood Scotland activities on a project basis. Seafood Scotlandreceived funding for some of the projects under the 2001 Scottish fish processorsaction plan. Scottish Enterprise Grampian have provided £216,960 support in2002-03, £198,651 in 2003-04 and £26,077 in 2004-05. Support for other projectsare planned for the future.
In addition to the financialsupport awarded on a project basis, the Scottish Executive supports the excellent workof Seafood Scotland in a variety of non-financial ways, for example,through regular attendance at the Seafood Scotland board meetings.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 August 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 5 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the prison officer to inmate ratio has been in each prison in each of the last six months, taking account of vacancies and sickness levels.
Answer
I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:
The information is not available.
There is no predetermined staff to prisoner ration within SPS. The SPS staffing levels are made according to a range of factors including, security classification, design, business need and are subject to risk assessment and safe systems of work.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 17 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 4 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many times each minister has travelled overseas on official duties since being appointed, detailing the destination and date of each visit.
Answer
For the period 1 July 1999 to 31 March 2004, I refer the member to the answers given to S1W-29052, S2W-2904 and S2W-9345 answered on 9 September 2002, 25 September 2003 and 25 June 2004 respectively. Information for the current financial year will be published before the summer recess in 2005.
- Asked by: Richard Lochhead, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 September 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 4 October 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS doctors were employed in (a) each NHS board area and (b) total in each of the last five years.
Answer
Information on NHS staff employed by each NHS organisation is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at .Section A provides information on NHS hospital and community doctors broken downby NHS board. Table A1 provides information on all staff by Whole-Time Equivalentand Table A2 by Headcount.
