- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 July 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Frank McAveety on 29 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the projected budget is for the marketing of, and income from, this year's Museum of Flight Airshow.
Answer
This is an operational matter for the National Museums of Scotland. However, I have contacted the Director. His response is as follows:-
The 2004-05 marketing budget for the Museum of Flight is £80,000. The budget was increased from 2003-04 levels to support National Museums of Scotland’s strategy to promote the Museum of Flight and its unrivalled aviation collections to a wider audience, raising the profile of both the Museum of Flight as a year round family day out (with Concorde G-BOAA as a central part of the visitor experience) and the Airshow as an event. The strategy aims to increase visits to the Museum of Flight from about 60,000 each year to 120,000 each year, over the next three years. In the three month period April to June 2004, visits to the museum increased by 62% (13,751 to 22,321).
The projected income from the 2004 Museum of Flight Airshow is £111,000.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 July 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Frank McAveety on 29 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent on marketing costs for the Museum of Flight Airshow in 2003.
Answer
This is an operational matter for the National Museums of Scotland. However, I have contacted the Director. His response is as follows:-
The sum of £45,000 was spent on marketing the Museum of Flight in 2003-04. Marketing expenditure was planned to promote the museum year round, with the 2003 Airshow as the major event for the year. Expenditure included brochures, tickets, signage and radio and press advertising.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 July 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 28 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many civil servants it expects will retire in each of the next five years.
Answer
The answer to this questioncan be found in the following table:
Scottish Executive CoreDepartments
Number of Projected Retireesby Financial Year (Headcount)
| Year | Total |
| 2004-05* | 46 |
| 2005-06 | 57 |
| 2006-07 | 109 |
| 2007-08 | 122 |
| 2008-09 | 117 |
| 2009-10 | 117 |
* 1July – 31 March.
These figures have beencalculated using Scottish Executive staff employed as at 1 July 2004. Theyare based on the current Scottish Executive retirement age of 60. Staff can beretained beyond this age providing they meet certain criteria, includingsatisfactory performance, attendance and conduct and a requirement that thepost occupied remains or that another one can be identified. The ScottishExecutive retirement age policy is currently under review.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 July 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 28 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what directives that are (a) binding and (b) advisory have been issued to (i) hospitals, (ii) NHS boards, (iii) schools, (iv) housing associations, (v) police forces and (vi) fire brigades in each of the last five years.
Answer
The Scottish Executive is inregular contact both directly and indirectly with the bodies listed. Thiscontact takes a number of different forms, such as Health Department Letters,Police Grant Orders, letters to education authorities etc. As there is nocentral logging of such information it is not possible to provide theinformation requested.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 July 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 28 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average age is of civil servants.
Answer
As at 1 July 2004 theaverage age of permanently employed staff in the Scottish Executive core departmentswas 41.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 June 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 28 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-8682 by Mr Andy Kerr on 15 June 2004, what steps it is taking to ensure that evaluations by the Scottish Assessors of non-domestic properties valued with reference to cost, as opposed to those valued with reference to rent, produce a like-for-like valuation with comparable premises in England, given that the Valuation Office Agency bases cost valuations on the cost of building a comparable modern building while the Scottish Assessors base valuations on the cost of constructing exactly the same building as is being evaluated.
Answer
The Scottish Assessors,who act independently of central and local government, base their valuations onthe cost of constructing a comparable modern property that provides the samestandards of quality, services and space as the property to be valued. In thecase of properties already of “modern construction”, valuations can thereforebe based on the generally recognised level of cost of constructing exactly thesame property as being valued. In the case of commonly occurring propertiesfrom an earlier era, costs are based on the comparable modern property.
In both cases, the same costbasis is used i.e. the cost of constructing a comparable modern property. Thiscost is estimated by reference to reliable average unit cost rates derived fromthe analysis of actual costs. The approach used is in harmony with ValuationOffice Agency practice and there is an established exchange of relevant costinformation and analyses between the Scottish Assessors Association and theValuation Office Agency to provide consistent cost bases.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 June 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Tavish Scott on 27 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-8934 by Mr Andy Kerr on 23 June 2004, what council tax collection rates were assumed by each local authority for 2002-03 and what the actual council tax collection rates were for that year.
Answer
The collection rates assumedfor 2002-03 are set out in the following table. The collection rate assumptionis the amount a local authority will expect to collect specifically relating tothat billing year, including payment of arrears relating to that year. Totalactual collection rates in respect of 2002-03 are not yet available but thetable also shows the level of tax collected by the end of 2002-03 and by theend of 2003-04. The assumed rate is set with reference to data from previousyears and should be a reasonably accurate reflection of the amount of counciltax a local authority will eventually collect.
| Authority | 2002-03 (1) | Actual 2002-03 (2) | Actual 2002-03 (3) |
| | Collection Rate Assumption | Collection Rate | Collection Rate |
| | | as at 31st March 2003 | as at 31st March 2004 |
| Aberdeen City | 97.00% | 90.20% | 93.10% |
| Aberdeenshire | 98.50% | 94.00% | 96.50% |
| Angus | 96.00% | 94.70% | 96.40% |
| Argyll and Bute | 94.60% | 93.00% | 94.70% |
| Clackmannanshire | 96.50% | 90.20% | 92.80% |
| Dumfries and Galloway | 96.67% | 93.30% | 96.10% |
| Dundee City | 96.50% | 85.70% | 90.00% |
| East Ayrshire | 95.00% | 88.30% | 91.70% |
| East Dunbartonshire | 97.00% | 93.60% | 95.10% |
| East Lothian | 96.00% | 94.50% | 96.10% |
| East Renfrewshire | 97.00% | 94.70% | 96.80% |
| Edinburgh, City of | 95.00% | 90.70% | 92.90% |
| Eilean Siar | 96.00% | 91.10% | 93.60% |
| Falkirk | 97.50% | 94.00% | 96.10% |
| Fife | 97.00% | 91.90% | 94.80% |
| Glasgow City | 93.00% | 83.70% | 86.90% |
| Highland | 95.00% | 92.60% | 95.80% |
| Inverclyde | 96.50% | 88.00% | 91.70% |
| Midlothian | 96.50% | 93.10% | 94.90% |
| Moray | 97.50% | 92.70% | 95.10% |
| North Ayrshire | 95.50% | 88.80% | 92.70% |
| North Lanarkshire | 96.00% | 92.20% | 94.20% |
| Orkney Islands | 97.00% | 97.70% | 98.50% |
| Perth and Kinross | 97.50% | 95.00% | 96.40% |
| Renfrewshire | 95.16% | 93.50% | 94.80% |
| Scottish Borders | 98.00% | 95.80% | 96.70% |
| Shetland Islands | 95.25% | 96.60% | 98.30% |
| South Ayrshire | 97.00% | 93.50% | 95.60% |
| South Lanarkshire | 96.00% | 93.50% | 94.70% |
| Stirling | 97.25% | 95.80% | 97.40% |
| West Dunbartonshire | 95.50% | 87.00% | 87.90% |
| West Lothian | 96.00% | 91.40% | 94.40% |
| Total | 95.95% | 91.30% | 93.70% |
Source: (1) CTAS return 2002.
Source: (2) CTRR return 2003.
Source: (3) CTRR return 2004.
Notes:
1. Theassumed rate is the amount of council tax that councils expect to collect for2002-03 in the fullness of time.
2. The actual collection rate is theamount of council tax that councils have collected in respect of 2002-03.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 June 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Tavish Scott on 27 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-8934 by Mr Andy Kerr on 23 June 2004, what proportion of the assumed council tax collection rates for each local authority consists of arrears from previous years.
Answer
The information requested isnot held centrally.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 July 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 26 July 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what costs for civil service redundancies it has made budgetary provision for in each of the next three years, in light of the ministerial statement on effective government on 24 June 2004.
Answer
The budget for the staffing costs of the Scottish Executive in 2004-05 and 2005-06 does not include provision for redundancies. The budget for 2006-07 and 2007-08 will be set as part of the spending review process.
- Asked by: Mr Brian Monteith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 17 June 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 30 June 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-2984 by Mr Jim Wallace on 13 October 2003, how many front-line staff who deal with the public worked in the public sector in each year from 1990 to 1996, broken down by profession.
Answer
The information requested is not held centrally.
Statistics on the number of people employed in the public and private sector in Scotland from 1994 to 2003 are also contained in Numbers in Public and Private Sector Employment by Industry in Scotland, a copy of which has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 33095). This document is an updated version of document Public/Private sector Employment by Industry (Bib. number 29537), referred to in answer to parliamentary question S2W-2984 answered on 13 October 2003.
Data prior to 1994 is not available as information classified for public and private sector is only available for 1994 onwards.
Information contained in Numbers in Public and Private Sector Employment by Industry in Scotland (Bib. number 33095) has been revised compared with the information referred to in parliamentary question S2W-2984. In Spring 2004 all Labour Force Survey information was revised to reflect the results of the 2001 census.
