- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning has had with the (a) General Teaching Council and (b) Educational Institute of Scotland and other teachers’ unions about workforce planning in the teaching profession and what the outcome has been.
Answer
I have regular discussions with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) and Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) and other teachers'' unions on a wide range of issues including issues around workforce planning in the teaching profession.
Last June, I established the Teacher Employment Working Group (TEWG), which included representation from the GTCS and EIS and other teachers'' unions to assess whether the current teacher workforce planning process was fit for purpose. The TEWG concluded that the workforce planning system at a national level is robust but its report published in October identified some areas for improvement. I have accepted all 12 of the report''s recommendations which will be taken forward with partners, including the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and GTCS. The group''s report is available on the Scottish Government website at the following link:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/242958.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what changes have been made to the management of Transport Scotland since the appointment of its new chief executive and what the financial implications are of any such changes.
Answer
No permanent changes have yet been made.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 23 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Bruce Crawford on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to the second supplementary to question S3F-1446 by Alex Salmond on 12 February 2009 (Official Report c. 15021), whether it will list the 46 SNP manifesto commitments that have been achieved.
Answer
The information requested is given in the document entitled SNP headline manifesto commitments met or exceeded, a copy of which is available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 47825).
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is a financial cost associated with an independence referendum.
Answer
The forthcoming Referendum Bill will be accompanied by a detailed Financial Memorandum which will set out the government''s best estimates of the cost of holding the referendum.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the participants in the meetings that the First Minister will have during his visit to Qatar.
Answer
The timing and content of any ministerial visit to Qatar remains under consideration.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will discuss with the UK Government any implications of the extension of the roles of the Association of Chief Police Officers and Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland on the accountability of police operations.
Answer
Individual chief constables are accountable for police operations in their force. The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland has not sought to extend its role in operational policing matters.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list any outside commercial and financial interests declared by each member of the Scottish Futures Trust board.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-21394 on 9 March 2009. 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning has had with COSLA about reducing class sizes and increasing teacher numbers and when the outcome will be evident.
Answer
I meet on a bi-monthly basis with COSLA to discuss matters arising from the concordat and progress towards meeting the commitments contained in it.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list any commercial interests declared by each member of the Scottish Futures Trust board.
Answer
The information requested is not held centrally. However, the Scottish Government would encourage all devolved public bodies in Scotland to maintain a publicly available register of board members'' interests.
- Asked by: George Foulkes, MSP for Lothians, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 26 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Bruce Crawford on 9 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it proposes to use its slots in the Parliament’s business programme to debate (a) free personal care, (b) the extension of the ScotRail franchise and any conflicts of interest and (c) major capital project funding.
Answer
In proposing the Business Programme to the Parliamentary Bureau, following consultation with Business managers, the Scottish Government ensures that the programme contains debates of importance to the people of Scotland.
