Scottish Executive

Fresh Talent Initiative

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what additional measures it will take in respect of its Fresh Talent initiative, in light of Robert Wright’s statement in the Scotecon research report, Population Ageing and Immigration Policy, that "the number of net migrants such a policy is likely to generate falls well below what is required to have a significant impact on population ageing".

Mr Tom McCabe: Long-term population trends like those in Robert Wright’s report are notoriously difficult to predict and, by necessity, are based on a number of assumptions. However, it is encouraging to note that the latest midyear population estimates published by the General Register Office for Scotland on 27 April 2005 reflect, amongst other things, an increase for the last two years in the number of births in Scotland and that we are already attracting more migrants from the rest of the UK and overseas. And, of course, population statistics themselves are not a qualitative measure of the value that migrant labour brings to Scotland.

The Fresh Talent Initiative is a long-term project to address our long-term demographic trends, but we have set no limits on our ambition for numbers of eligible migrant workers under the initiative. I am confident that over time Fresh Talent will help to enrich our cultural diversity and increase our economic competitiveness in the global market place.

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the fee charged for a Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland scheme visa when applied for from outside the European Union, broken down by country.

Mr Tom McCabe: The entry clearance fee for anyone looking to return to Scotland under the Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland scheme, irrespective of their country of origin, is £85.

G8 Summit

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which ministers are directly involved in arrangements for the G8 summit and how many hours officials and ministers have spent preparing for the summit.

Mr Tom McCabe: All Scottish Ministers were involved in preparations for events around the G8 summit. Information about the number of hours spent by Ministers and officials in preparation for the summit is not available because it was not recorded and collected.

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the specific remit is of its G8 International Development in Africa Division and how many staff are employed in the division.

Patricia Ferguson: The unit was set up on a short-term basis to raise awareness of issues around poverty in Africa in the run-up to the G8 meeting and to deliver a range of specific projects connected with the Executive’s international development objectives in relation to Africa. The unit, which has now completed its remit and has been disbanded, consisted of three dedicated staff and also drew on staffing and other resources across the Executive.

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total budget is for the G8 International Development in Africa Division.

Patricia Ferguson: The Division, which supported the wider international development part of the Executive’s International Division in the run-up to the G8 meeting, was not allocated a dedicated budget given its short-term remit but rather drew upon appropriate existing Executive budgets as required.

Information Technology

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people in Scotland have no access to broadband because of their locations and what action it will take to increase broadband availability in rural areas.

Tavish Scott: Our commitment is to ensure every community in Scotland will have access to broadband by the end of this year. This increased access is being delivered through the Executive’s "Broadband for Scotland’s rural and remote areas" procurement and contract award to BT, which will bring ADSL broadband to 378 rural exchanges in Scotland.

BT have themselves committed to try and provide broadband to any UK household served by an enabled exchange. Some people, who live a considerable distance from their exchange, may however experience difficulty in receiving a broadband connection. There is no available figure on the extent of this problem, as it will only be confirmed once customers actually place orders for broadband and their line is tested for broadband connectivity. Nonetheless, we are actively working to ascertain the location of any Scottish communities who are "out of reach" of ADSL technology. In these cases, the Executive will work with BT to identify solutions appropriate to demand.

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it would consider a pilot scheme to set up a wireless network in north-east Scotland to increase access to broadband internet.

Tavish Scott: Our commitment is to ensure every community across Scotland will have access to broadband by the end of this year. This has been taken forward via the Executive’s "Broadband for Scotland’s rural and remote areas" open procurement which was technology neutral and where, ultimately, ADSL technology was judged to provide the best solution for increasing broadband coverage.

Local Government Finance

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-16969 by Mr Tom McCabe on 10 June 2006, whether part of the monies to be released to Comhairle nan Eilean Siar under the Bellwin Scheme will be paid in advance of a final agreed settlement of storm damage costs.

Mr Tom McCabe: Yes.

Non-Domestic Rates

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the projected figures are for non-domestic rate income in 2005-06, broken down by local authority.

Mr Tom McCabe: Local authorities have notified the Scottish Executive of their Provisional Contributable Amounts of Non-Domestic Rate Income for 2005-06 as shown in the following table. These estimated figures will remain provisional until they are audited by local authority auditors and the final amounts are notified to the Executive in February 2007.

Notes:

1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand.

2. The figures given do not include income for all the electricity utilities in Scotland which, under the designated assessors regime, will be billed and collected by South Lanarkshire Council. This is because the valuations are still in the process of being finalised. This income will be picked up in future returns as part of the normal running of the non-domestic rates pool.

Road Safety

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to implement the recommendations of, Parental Attitudes to Road Safety Education.

Tavish Scott: The Scottish Executive provides funding to the Scottish Road Safety Campaign for the development of key road safety education initiatives and publicity messages. Progress on implementing the recommendations in Parental Attitudes to Road Safety Education has been delayed due to vacancies, which have now been filled, in two key posts in the campaign.

In the current financial year, the campaign will review the research and begin preparatory work on taking the recommendations forward.

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to reduce traffic congestion caused by the school run.

Tavish Scott: We are tackling congestion caused by the school run by encouraging walking and cycling to school and promoting road safety initiatives, including funding to local authorities for school travel co-ordinators and for 20 mph zones and other safety-related schemes around schools.

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many deaths and serious injuries there have been to school pupils on their way to and from school in each of the last three years.

Tavish Scott: Data about injury road accidents are collected by the Police and reported to the Scottish Executive using the "Stats 19" statistical report format. For the purpose of these returns, a casualty is only identified as being a "school pupil" if he/she was aged up to and including 16 years of age and was on a journey to or from school at the time of the accident. The numbers of such casualties killed and seriously injured in 2002 and 2003 are given in Table 44 of Road Accidents Scotland 2003, published by the Scottish Executive, copies of which are available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 34523). The corresponding numbers for 2004 are: one killed; 78 seriously injured.

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to reduce deaths and serious injuries to school pupils on their way to and from school.

Tavish Scott: The Scottish Executive is providing additional resources to local authorities for a range of initiatives which contribute to making journeys to and from school safer for school pupils. These include the introduction of 20 mph speed limits around schools; safer routes to school schemes; cycling, walking and safer streets projects; child pedestrian training schemes; and school travel co-ordinator appointments.

The Executive also provides funding to the Scottish Road Safety Campaign for the development of key road safety education initiatives and publicity messages. The campaign is implementing a strategy for road safety education in the school curriculum, the aim of which is to ensure that a core of road safety is taught to all children in Scotland.

Roads

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route will have on the infrastructure costs of, and potential for, commercial and industrial development at Dyce Drive in Aberdeen.

Tavish Scott: The Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route (AWPR) will provide existing commercial and industrial development at Dyce Drive with improved access to the trunk road network and consequently safer and more reliable routes to local and national customers and markets. The road will reduce congestion and allow the development of high quality public transport links to and from the City as part of the modern transport system for Aberdeen. Both of these factors will allow the further development of the area encouraging investment and creation of jobs.

In the absence of the AWPR it is likely that there would be a greater burden on developers in providing infrastructure as part of any planning permission for development.

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking following the accident at "The Wrae" on the A7 north of Langholm on 17 June 2005.

Tavish Scott: The circumstances of this accident have been investigated and discussed with Dumfries and Galloway Police. It has been established that this accident was not caused by any physical characteristic of the trunk road. Therefore the Executive, as trunk road authority, has no plans to take any action.

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will exercise any sanctions against Amey Highways Ltd for any failure to repair serious road defects on the A7 in Langholm.

Tavish Scott: The defects which have appeared on the surfacing scheme carried out by Amey at Skippers Bridge, south of Langholm, are programmed to be repaired overnight on 10 and 11 July. This work will be carried out at no cost to the Executive.

Sports Funding

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether plans by Her Majesty’s Government to provide lottery funding for the 2012 Olympic Games in London will have a displacement effect on Scottish sport and charitable causes funded by the lottery.

Patricia Ferguson: Scottish Ministers have already secured the agreement of the UK Government that Scotland’s contribution to sports Lottery funding for the Olympics of around £25 million will be retained and spent in Scotland on Scotland’s athletes.

The UK Government is hopeful that the introduction of new Lottery games will continue to boost overall Lottery ticket sales which rose by around 3% in 2004-05. Income to the existing good causes is expected to remain close to projected levels until 2009 – the end of the current Lottery licence period – despite the introduction of new Olympic Lottery games.

The National Lottery share for the existing good causes is guaranteed until 2009. Beyond 2009, the UK Government has announced a consultation on the future shape of Lottery funding for arts, film, heritage and sport, with decisions to be announced in June 2006.

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will give a detailed breakdown of the level of funding allocated to the Scottish Institute of Sport in each of the last three financial years, giving the source of funding in each case.

Patricia Ferguson: The Scottish Institute of Sport is funded by sportscotland solely from the Lottery Sports Fund. The Institute’s award for 2003-04 was £3.7 million, for 2004-05 was £4.01 million and for 2005-06 is £4.113 million.