- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the spin out companies supported by Scottish Enterprise in the last five years have been opened in Renfrewshire.
Answer
This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many Inclusiveness Projects there are in Renfrewshire and how much funding has been allocated to each project.
Answer
There is one Careers Scotland Inclusiveness Project covering the Renfrewshire area. It has been allocated £1.2 million over the period April 2001 to March 2004
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Mary Mulligan on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to improve the health of families in Renfrewshire since 1997 by reducing the incidence of (a) smoking, (b) alcohol misuse, (c) poor diets and (d) mortality rates from coronary heart disease.
Answer
(a) Following publication of the White Paper Smoking Kills in 1998 the Scottish Executive allocated £1 million pounds per year to health boards to provide smoking cessation support to priority groups, pregnant women who smoke, young people and people on low incomes. Additional Health Improvement Funding has also been available for smoking cessation services since 2001. The Argyll and Clyde NHS Board appointed a Tobacco Co-ordinator in February 2000, overseeing a range of cessation services. The total number of clients given support in Paisley over the past two years is 866. Total clients given support in West Renfrewshire and Renfrew is 396. It should be noted that these figures represent the number of people seen for support and not the number of referrals (which is higher).In addition Zyban has been available on prescription since June 2000 and nicotine replacement therapy since in April 2001. (b) The Executive's Plan for Action on alcohol problems, published in January, sets out a range of national and local measures to reduce alcohol-related harm in Scotland. The plan requires Alcohol Action Teams, including the team covering Renfrewshire, to assess needs in their areas and produce local prevention, education and support and treatment strategies to address these by April 2003.(c) There are several food initiatives operating in Renfrewshire which aim to provide access to good quality, low cost fruit and vegetables to the community. These include the Foxbar Healthy Eating Initiative, Fresh Loaf Project, Johnston West Food Co-op and the Renfrewshire Food Federation. (d) The Executive is investing £6 million in Have a Heart Paisley, one of the four national demonstration projects, to reduce the impact of coronary heart disease in the population of Paisley and so suggest action than can be implemented widely to deliver similar benefits throughout Scotland as a whole. The project is taking forward wide ranging activities in many different settings across Paisley, with a particular focus on reducing health inequalities.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the 42,000 young people in Scotland that have gone into jobs from the New Deal were from Renfrewshire.
Answer
Up to the end of June 2002, 2,800 of the 44,300 young people who had gone into jobs from the New Deal for Young People in Scotland, were from Renfrewshire. This represents 6.3% of the Scottish total.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of people in the Renfrewshire Council area have improved their health by (a) reducing (i) smoking and (ii) alcohol misuse and (b) improving their diet and what reduction there has been on mortality rates from coronary heart disease in each year since 1996.
Answer
Mortality rates per 100,000 population from coronary heart disease in the Renfrewshire Council Area 1996-2001:
| | Crude Rate Per 100,000 Population |
| 1996 | 282.8 |
| 1997 | 272.1 |
| 1998 | 257.0 |
| 1999 | 286.1 |
| 2000 | 254.6 |
| 2001 | 242.4 |
Source: General Register Office for Scotland.Notes:1. Rates are calculated using the Registrar General's annual mid-year estimates of population which are being revised following the 2001 census results. The figures for 2000 and 2001 use provisional revisions that have already been made on this basis. Revisions covering 1982-2000 will be made by end-February 2003, so the rates given here will be subject to revision after this time. 2. The rates given are not age-sex standardised.Representative information on trends in smoking, alcohol misuse and diet for Renfrewshire Council area are not available centrally.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage change there has been in recorded crime levels committed against older people in the Renfrewshire Council area in each year since 1996.
Answer
The information requested is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to reduce the proportion of unemployed working age people in the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer
Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government which takes the lead on funding and delivery of the New Deal. In Scotland it does this in partnership with the Scottish Executive and contributing Scottish organisations.The whole range of New Deal programmes are available to all unemployed working age people in the Renfrewshire Council area who meet the qualification criteria. Scottish Enterprise Renfrewshire also offer a variety of training opportunities as part of the Training for Work (TfW) programme. TfW is available on a voluntary basis to those aged 25 and over who have been unemployed for six months or more. It offers short sharp courses relevant to the demands of local employers with the aim of progressing people into sustainable employment, as well as longer courses that can take up to a year. Four hundred and fifty people in Renfrewshire are currently participating in TfW and over 180 former participants have moved into work since April this year. In addition, there are some New Futures Fund projects available in the Renfrewshire Council area.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Iain Gray on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to reduce the number of 16- to 19-year-olds that are not in education, training, or employment in the Renfrewshire Council area.
Answer
A number of initiatives are under way, including:Careers Scotland Inclusiveness projectsPre-vocational programmesWork EnablersGet Ready for WorkNew Deal for Young PeopleNew Futures Fund projectsThe Renfrewshire Inclusiveness project, Positive Futures, aims to develop a strategic approach to improving outcomes for a range of young people 16 to 24 with additional support needs. Central to the project is the development of dedicated key-worker support with a strong commitment to the assessment of needs, tracking and sustainability.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the #0/10/10 million to help fund child care provision in disadvantaged areas, as referred to in Building a Better Scotland: Spending Proposals 2003-2006: What the money buys, will be allocated to Renfrewshire in each year and to what projects.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is currently developing the details of the operation of this new funding. I shall make an announcement in due course.
- Asked by: Ms Wendy Alexander, MSP for Paisley North, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 November 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Margaret Curran on 28 November 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to reduce the proportion of older people on low incomes in Renfrewshire since 1997.
Answer
Since 1997, older people on low incomes in Renfrewshire have benefited from the combined effect of UK Government increases to the Basic State Retirement Pension, the introduction of the Minimum Income Guarantee, and the Winter Fuel Payment. In addition, a range of initiatives will help with levels of disposable income, including free off-peak bus travel, the Warm Deal, and the central heating programme, which is saving an average of £550 on bills.
