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Some planning applications by local authorities are notified to Scottish Ministers under the terms of the Town and Country Planning (Notification of Applications) (Scotland) Direction 2007, which is contained within Scottish Executive Planning Circular 5/2007: Notification of Planning Applications. There are no set criteria for the circumstances in which Scottish ministers will call in planning applications, but some general guidance is published in paragraphs 24-27 of Circular 5/2007 and further advice, more specific to local authority developments, is in paragraphs 40-43 of Planning Advice Note (PAN) 82: Local Authority Interest Developments. Both Circular 5/2007 and PAN 82 are available on the Scottish Government's website at:

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Where any planning application has been called in by Scottish ministers, planning legislation requires that it be determined in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise.

The Scottish Governmentstrategy in this and related areas was setout in the action plan for health and safety in Scotland,which was published in May and will contribute to theSmart Successful Scotland agenda, a robust strategy to deliver long-term, sustainableeconomic growth. Companies that have a good track record on health and safety tendto be the most progressive and successful. Further information about the plan canbe found at .The Scottish Government also works closely with otherorganisations such as the Health and Safety Executive, the STUC and employers organisationsto support approaches that address the promotion of health and safety in the workplace,most notably through the Partnership on Health and Safety in Scotland (PHASS) whichis chaired by the Health and Safety Commission.

An important element of the strategyis the Healthy Working Lives (HWL) programme which offers advice to employers inthe public and private sectors on ways to improve the health and wellbeing of theirworkforce. Employers are encouraged to participate in the related award scheme whichrecognises and rewards good practice. Criteria for the Award include actions topromote good mental health. At the first Healthy Working Lives Awards ceremony on15 January, the public sector was well represented amongst those gaining awards.The Scottish Government itself holds the silverlevel of the Scotland Health at Work award (the previous version) and is workingtowards obtaining the gold level of the new award.

I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

We are not aware of any difficultieswith the framework arrangements for prisoner transfer. Prisoners are normally expectedto serve their sentence in the jurisdiction in which they are sentenced. This generalposition applies throughout the world. The UK comprises three jurisdictions: Scotland, Englandand Wales and Northern Ireland. Each jurisdiction has separate legislative sentencingand release arrangements. Transfers between England and Wales are transfers withinthe same jurisdiction and prison service whereas transfers between England and Scotlandinvolve two jurisdictions. Provision is made under the terms of the Crime (Sentences)Act 1997 for the transfer of prisoners from one UK jurisdiction to another. Theprisoner must apply in the first instance to the jurisdiction in which he or sheis detained; both jurisdictions must agree to the transfer before it takes place.Transfer is not a legal entitlement. Each case is considered on its merits takinginto account the published criteria and any compelling circumstances. The linkswhich a prisoner has to the receiving jurisdiction, including family contact, playan important part in the consideration of any application.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-8273 on 17 January 2008. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for whichcan be found at .

The Scottish Government is committedto incorporating the monetary cost of carbon emissions into the policy assessmentprocess using the government’s new shadow price of carbon guidance. It may not befeasible or appropriate to incorporate the monetary cost of carbon emissions inall circumstances if, for example, the impacts can not be reliably quantified orthe policy proposal is not expected to have a significant carbon impact. We aredeveloping guidance that will set out the circumstances under which the monetarycosts of carbon emissions should be incorporated into the policy assessment process.

The Scottish Government is developingguidance, incorporating the government’s new shadow price of carbon, to be usedduring the next budgetary period. This guidance will set out the circumstances underwhich the carbon impacts of future devolved strategies, plans, programmes and policiesare appraised.

Information on the totalareas of sand dune habitats is provided in the answer to question S3W-7761 on 15 January 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions areavailable on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can befound at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.Information on therepresentation of these habitats in SAC in England, Wales and Northern Irelandis provided on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee website http://www.jncc.gov.uk/page-1461.

The information requested isset out in the following table.

Type of Dune Habitat	Area of Extent in Scotland (ha)	Area of Extent in England (ha)	Area of Extent in Wales (ha)	Area of Extent in Northern Ireland (ha)	Present at Foveran Links
2110 Embryonic shifting dunes	90	100	100	5	no
2120 Shifting dunes along the shoreline with Ammophila arenaria	950	780	480	10	yes
2130 Fixed dunes with herbaceous vegetation (“grey dunes”)	14,900	3,900	2,700	800	yes
2140 Decalcified fixed dunes with Empetrum nigrum	375	not present	not present	not present	yes
2150 Atlantic decalcified fixed dunes (Calluno-Ulicetea)	550	190	40	120	yes
2160 Dunes with Hippophae rhamnoides	80 (introduced)	235	introduced	introduced	no
2170 Dunes with Salix repens ssp. Argentea (salicion arenariae)	170	230	230	12	no
2190 Humid dune slacks	1,200	200	390	22	yes
21A0 Machairs	13,300	not present	not present	not present	no
2250 Coastal dunes with Juniperus spp.	20	not present	not present	not present	no

 

The data presented for Scotlandcomes from the most recent dune survey (Dargie, TCD. (2000) Sand DuneVegetation Survey of Scotland: National Report. 2 vols. Scottish Natural Heritage,Battleby).

Dataon representation for all UKhas been compiled by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) in theSecond Report by the United Kingdom under Article 17 of the EC Habitats Directive. JNCC consulted onthe draft report in 2007.

The EU directive onenvironmental liability has not yet been transposed into Scots Law, although Iexpect to consult shortly on legislation which will transpose the directivelater in the year.

Last year’s publicconsultation on principles and policy for transposition, and a summary of theresponses, are published on the Scottish Government website.

The EU directive onenvironmental liability is addressed to member states and the ScottishGovernment is engaged in the necessary process of consulting stakeholders onits implementation in Scotland. Following an initial consultation last year onprinciples and policy, I expect to consult shortly on draft regulations totranspose the directive.