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The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 enhances the strategic planning role of local authorities by giving them new powers and duties to determine housing need in their areas and to develop strategies to meet that need. Development funding to assist with the provision of affordable housing will continue to be available in Edinburgh, as elsewhere, and the Act provides that responsibility for this funding may pass to local authorities to underpin their strategic planning role.From a land use planning perspective, National Planning Policy Guideline (NPPG) 3: Land for Housing notes that planning authorities may properly take account of the need for affordable housing when formulating their development plan policies. The Executive has no planning policy specific to Edinburgh. NPPG 3 is currently being reviewed.

Details on Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) including budgets, staff numbers and office locations are contained in the annual publication Public Bodies. This document is considered the best means by which to present this type of information in a useful and meaningful way. The current edition of the document is available from www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/quango and the 2001 edition will be published shortly.The number of NDPBs for which each minister is currently responsible is set out in the following table. Implementation of the recommendations contained in Public Bodies: Proposals for Change is continuing and these numbers are likely to change as part of the on-going review process.

Minister	No. of NDPBs
Deputy First Minister and Minister for Justice	401
Minister for Education and Young People	382
Minister for Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning	10
Minister for Environment and Rural Development	18
Minister for Finance and Public Services	2
Minister for Health and Community Care	323
Minister for Social Justice	3
Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport	11

Notes:1. Includes 32 Justices of the Peace Advisory Committees.2. Includes 32 Children's Panels.3. Includes 15 health boards.

The Scottish Executive, in partnership with the Enterprise Networks, VisitScotland and the airport operators, continues to encourage the development of commercial and cost effective air services from Scotland to Brussels and other destinations for the benefit of the travelling public and the Scottish economy. There are currently daily services operated by BMI and British European between Edinburgh and Brussels, and daily services operated by Ryanair between Prestwick and Brussels (Charleroi).

The information requested is not held centrally.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The euro currency was introduced as a formal retailing currency in 12 countries on 1 January 2002. The legacy currencies of each country will be withdrawn from circulation by no later than the end of February 2002.Scotland Europa, in conjunction with HM Treasury, is implementing a detailed programme, including workshops, conferences, publications and a telephone hotline to provide advice to Scottish businesses and raise awareness of the need to make appropriate preparations for the introduction of the currency.UK membership of the single currency is a reserved issue. The Chancellor of the Exchequer set out the government's policy on membership to the House of Commons in October 1997, which was restated by the Prime Minister in a statement to the House in February 1999.

The A90 between the Forth Road Bridge and Barnton is classified as a local road. This is therefore a matter for the City of Edinburgh Council to address.

The Scottish Executive in association with British Airports Authority, Scottish Enterprise, the Strategic Rail Authority and the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions has recently commissioned Sinclair Knight Merz to undertake a study into route options to Edinburgh and Glasgow airports. The study will provide estimates of costs and passenger projections, as well as a detailed economic assessment. It is expected to take eight months to complete. It is therefore too early to say what the outcome will be.

I attended the summit. The discussion was useful in inputting views to the forthcoming Air Transport Consultation Document to be published in 2002. This will address the policy responses which the Executive will wish to consider to meet the aviation challenges of the next 30 years.

The Scottish Executive has not commissioned any such reports, nor has it received any. Officials are aware of a study by Airports Council International, Creating Employment and Prosperity in Europe, published in September 1998, and a Scottish Enterprise study into the economic impact of direct air services in Scotland of the same year.