- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 22 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail the level of new funding provided to Scottish police forces for the purchase of stab-proof vests.
Answer
Police forces' budgets are set by their respective police authorities. It is for chief constables to decide how to allocate resources on operational equipment such as the provision of stab proof vests.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 22 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail the cost of introducing a priority-based dispatch system for the Scottish Ambulance Service.
Answer
The Scottish Executive announced on 7 March that we are providing the Scottish Ambulance Service with £100,000 to help them investigate whether a priority-based system for answering 999 calls would provide a better and more responsive service for patients. We expect to see the findings of the service's investigations later this year, which will include the estimated costs and timescales, associated with introducing such a system.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 September 1999
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 10 March 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost of West of Scotland Water Authority's centenary launch on 31 October 1999 will be and what the cost of any similar events held by other water authorities in the last three years was.
Answer
West of Scotland Water Authority did not hold a centenary launch on 31 October. But later this month the authority plan a centenary launch of the SS Sir Walter Scott, owned by the authority and which sails on Loch Katrine, which supplies Glasgow's drinking water. WoSWA estimate the average cost of one of the steamer's sailings with catering to be around £1,000-£1,500.There have been no events by the other water authorities of the type referred to above.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 14 February 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Wendy Alexander on 28 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to assist owner occupiers of Orlit homes who are experiencing difficulties in selling their properties due to their inability to obtain prefabricated reinforced construction certificates.
Answer
The Orlit house type was designated as defective under the Housing Defects Act 1984. The Act provided financial assistance for the owners of defective houses bought from a public sector authority before 26 April 1984. The assistance was well publicised and was available for a ten-year period ending on 30 November 1994. No further assistance is available.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 February 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 21 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what level of funding is provided to police forces to ensure that they adequately comply with the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Answer
It is for Scottish police forces to comply with the law, including any relevant provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights, from within the resources available to them.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 February 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sam Galbraith on 16 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it plans to take in order to reduce the time taken for the completion of assessments for special educational needs.
Answer
Current Scottish Executive guidance to education authorities recommends that the assessment and recording process should not exceed 6 months.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Henry McLeish on 8 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive how many disabled students have attended courses at university, higher and further education establishments over the last five years.
Answer
Information on students in Higher Education Institutions in Scotland who have declared a registered or unregistered disability is provided in the table below. This includes all full-time and part-time students regardless of domicile and level of course. Information on disability is not currently collected from students attending Further Education Institutions.
Table 1: Students with a Disability in Higher Education Institutions in Scotland (HESA statistics)
| | 1994-95 | 1995-96 | 1996-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-99 |
| Total | 3,402 | 2,774 | 5,556 | 6,220 | 6,787 |
It is proposed that students attending institutions in Scotland in receipt of the Disabled Students' Allowance paid by the Students Awards Agency for Scotland should be exempt from the Graduate Endowment when the new student support arrangements are introduced in 2001-02. The total numbers in receipt of such an allowance are:
Table 2: Scottish students in receipt of Disabled Students' Allowance in Scotland in 1998-99 (SAAS statistics)
| Location of institution | Higher Education Inst. | Further Education Inst. | other | Total |
| Scotland | 599 | 219 | 12 | 830 |
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 8 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive which health boards and NHS Trusts apply charges for services they provide to local hospices.
Answer
The only item of any significance for which health boards and NHS Trusts apply charges to local hospices relates to pharmaceutical services.There is no uniform approach to the way in which hospices' drug costs are met. The degree to which a health board supports the pharmaceutical element of a hospice's work is a matter for negotiation between health board and hospice when discussing the terms of their service agreement each year.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 8 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1266 by Susan Deacon on 14 September 1999, what percentage of funding is currently provided to each hospice in Scotland by health boards in relation to the overall running costs of each hospice.
Answer
The Scottish Partnership Agency for Palliative and Cancer Care conducts an annual survey of Scottish hospices to monitor the level of NHS funding they receive. With regard to the latest survey, questionnaires were sent to 13 hospices and returns for 1999-2000 were received from 12.
The percentage of funding currently provided to each hospice in Scotland by health boards in relation to the overall running costs of each hospice is as follows:
| Health Board | Hospice | Total Health Board Funding | % Revenue Expenditure from Contracts |
| Ayrshire & Arran | Ayrshire | 888,277 | 39 |
| Argyll & Clyde | Accord | 372,332 | 35 |
| | Ardgowan | 347,786 | 31 |
| | St. Vincent's | 299,758 | 31 |
| Forth Valley | Strathcarron | 927,830 | 40 |
| Greater Glasgow | Marie Curie Hunters Hill | 1,038,197 | 40 |
| | Prince & Princess of Wales | 704,541 | 40 |
| | St. Margaret's* | | |
| Highland | Highland | 384,000 | 32 |
| Lanarkshire | St. Andrews | 864,741 | 58 |
| Lothian | Marie Curie Fairmile | 876,017 | 42 |
| | St. Columba's | 1,105,000 | 36 |
| Western Isles | Bethesda | 113,300 | 50 |
| TOTAL | | 7,921,779 | |
| Av.% revenue cost covered by NHS | | | 40 |
*No return has been received from St. Margaret's Hospice.
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 8 February 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to amend building regulations in relation to the provision of housing for disabled people.
Answer
An amendment to the Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations was laid in the Scottish Parliament on 14 December 1999, to come into force on 17 April 2000, introducing substantial new provisions to give disabled people access to new dwellings.
