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The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the Home Office on a wide range of Internet crime related issues.

Training on Internet Crime, including action to tackle "grooming" by paedophiles on the Internet, is already provided by the Police Service and by the Crown Office and both organisations are working together to identify further training needs in this area. Responsibility for ensuring that adequate police resources and training are applied to these tasks is primarily an operational matter for Chief Constables, who are fully aware of the importance of effective action. In taking action, Chief Constables will be able to draw on the increased funding we have made available to forces generally.

None. However, the Scottish Police Service is in regular contact with the National Hi-tech Crime Unit and Scottish forces have access to a team within the Unit dedicated to tackling computer related child abuse.

Representations have been made specifically on the legislative requirements for Scotland. The Scottish Executive and the Crown Office have been consulted at all stages in the drafting of this Convention. This consultation is continuing.

National 5-14 Guidelines for information and communications technology (ICT) and associated Guides for Teachers and Managers emphasise the need for education authorities and schools to ensure that appropriate measures for the safe use of ICT are in place and that personal safety programmes for pupils cover this important area. The Guides refer education authorities and schools to the Scottish Executive publication, ClickThinking, which provides detailed advice on using the internet safely. The Guides also advise that parents are engaged as partners by schools in the development of ICT for teaching and learning purposes including safe use of ICT.

The Scottish Executive is aware of the potential risks to young people that can arise from the disclosure of personal information in e-mails and chatrooms. All schools were issued with an information pack "ClickThinking - Personal Safety on the Internet" in 1999, which encouraged effective risk assessment. The expert group that Jack McConnell established in March is reviewing this document to make sure that it reflects the latest technology and will report shortly.

Information in the form requested is not readily available. At least one judge but not more than three judges are allocated to commercial business in any one week during term.

Results from the Scottish Household Survey, for the first quarter of 2001, show an estimated 31% of people in Scotland aged five years and older had access to the internet for personal use. When disaggregated by age, 27% of 5 to 10-year-olds are estimated to access the internet for personal use. The corresponding figure for 11 to 18-year-olds is 51%.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-19202. The Scottish Executive is committed to encouraging applications for judicial appointments from groups which are under-represented on the judicial bench.

The Scottish Executive is committed to making the judicial appointments process a more transparent and fair system for all who are interested in becoming Judges or Sheriffs. The appointment process which took place during the summer was the first in which Court of Session vacancies were publicly advertised and candidates were interviewed by a selection panel. Advertisements for the Chair and lay members of the Judicial Appointments Board appeared in the press on 12 October 2001 and I expect the board to be in operation early next year. Part of the board's remit will be to consider ways of recruiting judges, sheriffs principal and sheriffs who are as representative as possible of the communities they serve, while always maintaining the principle of appointment on merit. I shall give guidance to the Board on the importance of attracting applications from groups which are currently under-represented on the judicial bench.