- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 9 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received any representations from any potential new owner of the Ardtoe Marine Farming Unit for assistance; if so, on what date any such request was first made, when it responded, and what its response was.
Answer
The Executive has maintained contact with the principals during the on-going negotiations over recent weeks,in the course of which the possibility of financial assistance being providedby the Executive to prospective new owners was discussed. I informed theparties on 16 August that the Executive did not see a case for providing directfinancial support.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 July 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicol Stephen on 8 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will place a copy of the unpriced trunk road maintenance contracts with BEAR Scotland Ltd and Amey Highways Ltd in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-25884 on 28 May 2002. All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the searchfacility for can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.A generic copy of anunpriced contract document for the South West Unit is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 16573). The terms of each of thefour unit contracts with BEAR Scotland Ltd and Amey Highways Ltd are the sameexcept for references to each unit's trunk roads and the trunk road assetswithin each unit.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 5 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-679 by Cathy Jamieson on 17 June 2003, whether it has made representations to the Ministry of Defence regarding the extension of Operation Youth Advantage throughout Scotland and whether it will place a copy of any correspondence on this issue in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Answer
As I indicated in my earlier answer, Operation Youth Advantage is an initiative run by the British Army Career Service as part of a range of activities aimed at encouraging young men and women to consider a career in the army. Northern Constabulary and Grampian Police have both been involved in the scheme. While I understand that other police forces in Scotland have expressed an interest in participating, I made clear in my earlier answer that it is for individual police forces to decide on the extent of their involvement. As a result, the Executive has made no representations to the Ministry of Defence about extending the scheme.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 5 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure that no auxiliary fire service is terminated without a debate in the Parliament being held on the issue and whether it has any plans to bring forward the proposals previously contained in amendment 59 to section 33 of the Local Government in Scotland Bill, which was defeated in the Stage 3 debate in the Parliament on 8 January 2003.
Answer
The importance which the Executive attaches to the development of the fire service, including the contribution by retained/auxiliary firefighters, was set out in our consultation paper, The Scottish Fire Service of the Future, published in April 2002. The existing statutory framework for the fire service is out of date. Our detailed proposals for modern legislation for a modern fire service - and which will directly increase local decision making to meet local needs in protecting the community - will be set out in a further consultation paper to be published in the autumn.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 5 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to ensure the continued existence of auxiliary fire services, and what representations it has made to joint fire boards on the issue.
Answer
The importance which the Executive attaches to the service provided by retained and volunteer firefighters was highlighted in our policy consultation paper,
The Scottish Fire Service of the Future, published last year.
More specifically, the Executive has given considerable policy and financial support to the development of the auxiliary service in the Highland and Islands.Since 2000-01 the Highland and Islands Joint Board has received £8 million incapital consent, 40% of which has been to assist their auxiliary serviceupgrade programme. This involves new build or improvements to a number ofexisting identified fire stations; providing new equipment – especiallybreathing apparatus and vehicles - and an intensive training programme to bringauxiliary firefighters up to the safety standards required by the Health andSafety Executive.
Grant Aided Expenditure funding for the board has increased from £9.9 million in 2000-01 to £12.2 million in 2003-04, an increase of 22.4%. Ministers also agreed a further £1 million in 2003-04 to assist with the revenue consequences of the upgrade programme.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 3 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive when it first received the report of the Nicholson Committee on licensing; whether it previously received the report in draft and, if so, on what date or dates, and when the report will now be published.
Answer
The report was published on 19 August 2003.Sheriff Principal Nicholson outlined the recommendations likely to be made inthe report to my predecessor prior to the election. The report was received bythe Executive in final form at the end of March, but could not be published atthat time because of the election.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 2 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to reform licensing laws and, in particular, whether it will simplify the number and types of licence and alter the frequency of meetings of licensing boards from quarterly to a less frequent schedule.
Answer
The Nicholson Committee intheir report on liquor licensing law recommended changes in both these areas.Its report, which was published on 19 August 2003,has been issued for consultation until 19 December 2003.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 2 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will maintain the present year's Less Favoured Area Support Scheme payments at the total of #63 million paid out last year; what representations it has received on this issue, and whether it will make an announcement on the matter.
Answer
The current budget of theLess Favoured Area Support Scheme is £61 million per year. An additional £2million was made available in 2003 only, in recognition both of the importanceof the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme to farmers and crofters, and of thedifficulties that they had experienced as a result of foot-and-mouth disease.
No formal representationshave been made about the budget for the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme,although some members of the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme Industry WorkingGroup have indicated that retaining the existing level of expenditure would betheir preference.
An announcement about thechanges required to adapt the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme to anexpenditure level of £61 million will be made in due course.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 1 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to the Ministry of Defence to ensure the continued existence of all six Scottish regiments in view of the social and economic implications of the disbandment of any of these regiments.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to S2W-1830 on 27 August 2003. 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/webapp/search_wa.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 1 September 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received any representations from Highland Council requesting that the headquarters of Forest Enterprise Scotland be located in Inverness; what procedures it will employ when arriving at a decision on this matter, and what the timetable is for such procedures.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-2059 on 19 August 2003,announcing details of the outcome of the review for the location of theheadquarters of Forest Enterprise Scotland. All answers to written parliamentary questions areavailable on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can befound at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.Representations were made byHighland Council during the time of the review.
