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A comprehensive range of policy measures are in place to ensure that those with disabilities or other special needs can play an effective part in Scotland's economic future, and gain access to education and lifelong learning to improve their employability.

Employment policy is a reserved area. The New Deal is delivered in Scotland in partnership with the Scottish Executive and other Scottish organisations. By the end of August, over 2,300 disabled people had sought help through the New Deal for Disabled People in Scotland and over 600 had found work. A New Deal for Disabled People prospectus was launched on 13 November. This invites bids from the private, voluntary and public sectors for the provision of Job Broker services, as part of a variety of innovative approaches to help disabled people to move from benefits to sustained employment.

We are also committed to widening access to Further and Higher education. The needs of people with disabilities will be a key element in taking forward our current consultation on student support and our commitment to targeting resource on the most disadvantaged students, and unemployed people.

A National Action Group will take the lead in implementing the recommendations of the Beattie Committee Report on the needs of young people who require additional support to make the transition from school to post - school education, training and employment, with an additional £22.6 million made available from the Scottish Executive's Spending Review.

Following consultation earlier this year, I laid before Parliament on Friday 17 November, proposed regulations which would increase the packaging recovery targets which companies with obligations under the packaging recovery scheme have to meet in 2001. These are aimed at ensuring the UK meets the Directive's targets. Subject to Parliament's approval, the Regulations will come into force on 1 January 2001.

The packaging recovery scheme is the means by which the UK complies with the Packaging Directive. It was designed to operate in a unitary way across Great Britain. It is therefore not possible to disaggregate data relating to compliance in Scotland.

Working on the assumption that Scotland's share of the UK obligation is approximately 10% of the total, the Executive is satisfied that Scotland will meet the Directive's targets.

The National Parks (Scotland) Act provides for a minimum of 20% of each National Park Authority to be chosen through direct elections by people on the local government register of electors in the park. Arrangements for such elections are required, under schedule 1 of the Act, to be set out in an order approved by the Scottish Parliament. As a first step towards the drafting of the necessary election order(s), I am today circulating a consultation paper seeking views on the particular arrangements that would be appropriate for elections to a National Park authority. A copy of the consultation paper is available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre. The consultation will close on 12 March 2001, after which we will consider the views expressed and prepare a draft order(s) on which there will be further consultation before seeking the approval of the Scottish Parliament.

The responses have been lodged in the Executive's Library at Saughton House where they can be inspected by the public.

There are facilities for reprocessing recycled plastics in Aberdeen and Dumfries, as well as several smaller plants across the country. A pilot project to investigate the viability of polymer-cracking of plastics has been undertaken at Grangemouth.

There have been a number of local and national surveys in this area, some funded by the Scottish Executive. These have found clear evidence of a marked social class gradient in the prevalence of mental health problems, including suicide, first admissions to hospital for schizophrenia and GP contact rates for depression and anxiety. In particular, surveys have shown that at least 50% of "looked-after" children and young people have significant mental health problems.The range of measures being taken by the Scottish Executive to tackle deprivation, by improving the circumstances and environment in which people live, will help contribute to better mental health. The provision of services, informed by research findings, is increasingly recognising the particular needs of vulnerable groups, including those who live in deprived circumstances. For example, through the Mental Health and Well Being Development Fund, the Scottish Executive now funds four projects, which provide special Child and Adolescent Mental Health services to "looked-after" children and young people.

The Scottish Executive is contributing over £2 million to the Waste Resource Action Programme (WRAP), which is being established in conjunction with DETR, DTI and the National Assembly for Wales. WRAP will investigate and aim to overcome major barriers to recycling in Britain. Plastic has already been identified as a priority for action.

The Executive is also working with DETR and interested parties to explore opportunities specifically to increase the recycling of plastic farm films which form a significant amount of plastics often disposed of on farms.

The Executive also jointly funds the ReMaDe (Recycling Markets Development) project in Scotland. ReMaDe is already working to encourage recycling of several materials and plans to look at opportunities to recycle plastics.In November 1999, Sarah Boyack opened a Materials Reclamation Facility in Polmadie, Glasgow. It was funded by a £2.6 million award from the Scottish Office Capital Challenge Fund. The facility sorts aluminium and steel cans, paper and different types of plastics for recycling. I was pleased to hear that the one-millionth plastic bottle for recycling was processed at the facility during the summer.In addition, the Executive recently hosted a conference on plastics recycling, organised by RECycling Of Used Plastic Containers Ltd (RECOUP). Over 70 people from local authorities and business attended the conference and discussed the problems and possibilities for increasing plastics recycling.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has the statutory duty of exercising its pollution control powers for the purpose of preventing or minimising, or remedying or mitigating the effects of pollution in the environment. It has the duty of promoting the cleanliness of the inland waters of Scotland and generally to promote the conservation of flora and fauna which are dependent on an aquatic environment, to such extent as it considers desirable. Subject to certain exceptions, no poisonous, noxious or polluting matter, or solid waste matter may be discharged into controlled waters without the consent of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and in compliance with the conditions of such consent. The agency has powers to issue notices requiring certain kinds of activities to be carried out to limit pollution.

A copy of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency's report Phosphorus Control in Loch Lomond is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. no. 9510). This document provides estimates on the amount of phosphorus believed to be entering the loch from diffuse and point sources. It goes on to advise on proposals to control, by limits on consent to discharge, the amount of phosphorus being introduced from point sources. The implementation of these controls has changed slightly from those shown in the document following feedback from the water authorities and others on the effect of such controls. It is intended to address diffuse sources of phosphorus through catchment management. In this respect, a report, Loch Lomond Catchment Management Plan, has been published and is also available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. no. 9511). A proactive approach is being adopted to deal with phosphorus, to prevent any serious deterioration of the present general good quality of water in the Loch.Information on phosphorus control measures and algal blooms in other lochs, while not held centrally, is available from the agency. General information on the environmental condition of Scotland's lochs, and the agency's improvement targets, is contained in its report Improving Scotland's Water Environment, which is also available in the Reference Centre (Bib. no. 2964).

A research project is currently underway to identify an appropriate methodology to forecast future traffic levels in Scotland and produce interim traffic and emission forecasts for local air pollutants and carbon dioxide where possible. The current stage of this work should be completed by the end of the year.

Measures to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from transport will be an important element of the Scottish Climate Change Programme that the Minister for Environment, Sport and Culture will announce shortly.

The Executive recognises that the Relatives Association has the potential to play a valuable role in supporting the friends and relatives of people moving into and residing in continuing care establishments. I have asked my officials to meet members of the association in Scotland to discuss how they might take this forward.