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The Scottish Government has given reassurances about the continuity of care for service users, and is working in close partnership with COSLA, SCSWIS (Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland) and ADSW (Association of Directors of Social Work) through the National Contingency Planning Group.

The group has been set-up to look at the overall preparedness of statutory agencies in addressing unforeseen circumstances that could lead to the disruption of adult care provision in Scotland. This will include any service disruption or cessation that arises from a business closure, an emergency situation or a public health matter.

Continuity of care is being maintained in respect of Choices Care, there is requirement to make inquiries into the decision by Choices Care to enter into administration.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-02244 on 26 August 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Responsibility for legislation relating to any oversight of the governance of a public limited company, whether for community care purposes or not, would fall within the “regulation of a business association”, and is therefore reserved to the United Kingdom Parliament.

In this regard I have written to the Secretary of State for Health to request that Scottish Government Officials are involved in considering what action may be taken to guard against future risks such as those highlighted in the Southern Cross case.

The view of the Scottish Government is that conditions will apply on the date the conditions come into force although ministers could choose to commence a particular condition in such a way that it applied only to licences granted after a specified date.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-01771 on 5 August 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/MAQASearch/QAndMSearch.aspx.

The Scottish Government measures progress against reducing poverty through its national poverty indicator within Scotland Performs. Information on this can be accessed at:

http://scotland.gov.uk/About/scotPerforms/indicators/poverty.

The source of information is the Department for Work and Pension's Family Resources Survey, Households Below Average Income datasets.

The Scottish Government has also signed up to the UK Child Poverty Act which contains four measures of child poverty. Progress on these measures are reported on in the annual Poverty and Income Inequality in Scotland publication at:

www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/933/0116722.pdf.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-01771 on 5 August 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-01771 on 5 August 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Work to gather statistics in relation to the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 is currently being undertaken and will be published in due course.

The Scottish Government has asked NHS Health Scotland to lead on monitoring and evaluating the implementation and impact of current alcohol strategy in Scotland. A study specifically on implementation of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 was started in January 2010 and is due to finish in March 2013. A first interim report was published in June 2011.