Seòmar agus comataidhean

Information is not held in theformat requested. However, sportscotland publishes annually a sports participationin Scotland digest which can be downloaded from its website.

Sportscotland is the national agency for the development ofsport in Scotland. It is also the distributor body for the Lottery SportsFund in Scotland. Its remit extends well beyond football and rugby andchannelling Exchequer funds through sportscotland helps to ensure that Ministerialpolicies and priorities are pursued in an even-handed and consistent manner.

In view of the ongoing CulturalReview, the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA), who regulateappointments to the Scottish Arts Council, has agreed to an exemption from a fullappointments round to recruit the next chair. OCPA has agreed that ministers mayrecruit a new chair from the existing council members, adopting in full the specialarrangements envisaged in para 3.18 of the OCPA Code, which allow for the promotionof a member to chair, for instance in the case of the sudden resignation of thechair. OCPA has approved the process for appointing a replacement chair only foran interim period of up to two years until the Cultural Review is concluded. Atthat point a decision will be taken on the way forward. All existing members ofcouncil must have the opportunity to express their interest, and all candidatesassessed as being suitable must be considered for the post. Candidates will be assessedby a three person appointments panel which will be chaired by a senior civil servant,include the chair of another public body, and also include an independent assessor.The decision on appointment will be made by ministers. These measures representa robust approach which reflects the extent and significance of the appointment.

The Healthy Living campaign, which in its latest phase addresses both diet and physical activity, was first launched in January 2003.

A detailed breakdown of the media used and costs is given below. These figures include VAT.

2002-2003

TV	Radio	Press	Outdoor	Research	Production	Total
£431,885	Nil	£305,895	£269,938	£9,905	£402,702	£1,420,325

 

2003-2004

TV	Radio	Press	Outdoor	Research	Production	Total
£237,214	£181,211	£417,928	£197,303	£50,088	£766,592	£1,850,336

The Executive is committed to policies which will enable it to work towardmeeting those Charter obligations for which it has responsibility, including thosecovered in the recommendations of the Councilof Europe Committee of Experts.

The aims of the Scots LanguageResource Centre, which receives funding from the Scottish Arts Council, relate onlyto one of the recommendations of the Committee of Experts, “to create conditionsfor the use of Scots . . . in public life, through the adoption of a language policyand concrete measures, in co-operation with the speakers of the language”. Thiswill be considered within the context of the Scottish Executive’s National LanguagesStrategy which will be developed in consultation with all relevant interests laterthis year.

he Police Grant Aided Expenditure(GAE) review working group will shortly make recommendations about future allocationsto all police authorities, including how these allocations should reflect any disproportionatepublic order policing pressures in the Lothian and Borders area. Final decisionsabout funding to Lothian and Borders Police, both within and outwith GAE, will betaken after those recommendations have been received.

The Executive provides overalldirection to VisitScotland with regard to its relationship with VisitBritain. Amemorandum of understanding on overseas marketing between VisitBritain and VisitScotlandhas been in place since 1998, and discussions are taking place between VisitBritainand VisitScotland about updating it to reflect the evolving relationship. Thesediscussions primarily involve VisitScotland, VisitBritain and the Wales TouristBoard. In addition, VisitScotland and VisitBritain are in constant contact aboutpractical operational matters on a market by market basis.

The Scottish Executive is supporting the development of both the tram and the heavy rail link toEdinburgh Airport. Each of these schemes will serve different markets.A tram link to the airport would provide fast access from various parts of the city,whilst the heavy rail link has the potential to link Edinburgh airportwith the entire Scottish rail network. The development of both projects is beingtaken forward by Transport Initiatives Edinburgh.

The shortage of social care staff is being addressed on a national basis. We have taken a number of initiatives including a national recruitment campaign, unprecedented investment in social work education, a fast-track scheme for graduates and an incentive scheme to attract qualified staff to hard to fill posts.

There are more qualified social workers in Scotland now than atany time in the past and this year we have seen an increase in applications forundergraduate programmes of 26%. However, demand for social workers remainshigh, especially in the cities. We are committed to providing sustained helpand recently, for example, I confirmed that the fast track recruitment ofsocial workers will be sustained for five years.

The Minister for Education and Young People has announced a fundamental review of social work across Scotland and he will provide more detail about that before the summer recess. The key aim of the review is to enhance the contribution of social work services.

The Scottish Executive is already working closely with tie,the promoters of the Edinburgh tram scheme, in line with therecommendations made in the NAO report. We encourage all those developing lightrail schemes to apply the good practice contained in the report.