- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 5 March 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to his answer to question S1W-18874 on 12 October 2001, (a) what the breakdown of costs was for the work undertaken on (i) design and (ii) specialist cladding services which amounted to #854,000 in total and (b) whether all invoices and documents relating to the work undertaken will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.
Answer
A full analysis of the payments made to Flour City Architectural Metals (UK) Ltd, for the design and specialist cladding for the MSP block, has been undertaken. The following detailed breakdown can now be provided:
Description | Amount |
Warehouse facilities & equipment | £24,250.00 |
Site facilities, equipment & supplier visit costs | £56,623.80 |
Design & engineering | £352,500.00 |
Site Management Team | £236,250.00 |
Transport, communications & site housekeeping | £49,136.50 |
Overheads & profit | £161,721.00 |
Sub Total | £880,481.30 |
Less 3% retention | (£26,414.44) |
Total Payments | £854,066.86 |
The Parliament has received legal advice that the documents requested should not be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre while the SPCB's rights and entitlements are still being evaluated, as they may form part of the productions in any litigation which may follow.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by David Steel on 5 March 2002
To ask the Presiding Officer, further to his answer to question S1W-19252 on 14 November 2001, what assurances were provided, by whom and on what dates; whether the documentation regarding these assurances will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre; whether the "recovery programmes" and the "sample delivery dates" will be published, and what work commenced on site in June 2001.
Answer
The Convenor of the Holyrood Progress Group has confirmed that Flour City Architectural Metals (FCAM) (UK) Ltd's Project Manager provided assurances over design information dates to our Construction Manager, on 17 May 2001. FCAM (UK) Ltd also presented a recovery programme, which anticipated delivery of a window sample on 22 June 2001. FCAM (UK) Ltd started work on site in June 2001 that mainly involved design work, surveys, initiating the procurement of materials and assembled units, and issuing installation method statements. The Parliament has received legal advice that related documentation should not be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre while the SPCB's rights and entitlements are still being evaluated, as it may form part of the productions in any litigation which may follow.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 28 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether its position is that local authority licensing boards should have the power to impose a ban on drinking in public designated areas or streets.
Answer
We have no plans at present to amend the provisions in the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 which provides local authorities with general powers to introduce bylaws which, for example, may ban drinking in public designated areas or streets.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Wallace on 28 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will encourage the provision of training for members of local authority licensing boards.
Answer
We shall consider any recommendations the Nicholson Committee might make in this regard.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 08 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 22 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list any headquarters functions of Scottish Natural Heritage that are carried out (a) at Hope Terrace, Edinburgh, (b) at Bonnington Bond, Leith, (c) in Inverness, (d) in Aberdeen, (e) in Battleby and (f) in Clydebank.
Answer
Scottish Natural Heritage carries out a range of headquarters functions at its Hope Terrace, Bonnington, Battleby, Inverness, Aberdeen and Clydebank locations.The following table gives details of the HQ functions carried by out by one or more staff at each office location.
| Hope Terrace | Bonnington | Inverness | Aberdeen | Battleby | Clydebank |
| Secretariat, Press and PR | | | | | | |
| Corporate Planning and Information Unit | | | | | | |
| Finance Services | | | | | | |
| Personnel Services | | | | | | |
| Information Systems Services | | | | | | |
| Common Services | | | | | | |
| Design & Information Services | | | | | | |
| Audit and Review | | | | | | |
| Operational Support Unit | | | | | | |
| Advisory Services | | | | | | |
| National Strategy | | | | | | |
| Chief Scientists Unit | | | | | | |
| Environmental Audit | | | | | | |
| Natura 2000 | | | | | | |
| Directors Support Units | | | | | | |
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 08 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 22 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any deadline has been fixed for the submission by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) of a report costing the options for relocating its headquarters from Edinburgh; which locations are being considered for such a relocation; whether SNH staff will have access to the full report prior to its final submission, and whether any parts of the report will not be disclosed and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.
Answer
It was announced on 19 November 2001 that Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) would undertake a relocation review, as there is a property lease break in one of its Edinburgh offices in 2005. The review will access issues such as costs, quality and efficiency of service, economic factors such as unemployment, availability and suitability of property and staff, transport and environmental issues. Staff and unions will be consulted before decisions are taken on the most suitable location for SNH staff. The target date for completion of the review is mid-2002 and ministers will take a decision on the most suitable HQ location for SNH based on the review findings.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 08 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Allan Wilson on 22 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will obtain a valuation of the land and buildings occupied by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) at Hope Terrace, Edinburgh; whether, should the SNH head office be relocated from Edinburgh, the capital receipt from the sale of the premises at Hope Terrace would be available (a) in whole or (b) in part for relocation costs, and how any partial contribution to relocation costs arising from any such capital receipt would be calculated.
Answer
In accordance with the general principles in undertaking a relocation review, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) will consider issues such as costs, social issues, personnel issues, transport and environmental considerations. A valuation of Hope Terrace, Edinburgh will be obtained to ascertain the potential costs or benefits in relocating. Should the review recommend moving from Hope Terrace, capital receipts of up to £1 million would be available to SNH to cover relocation or other costs: capital receipts of more than £1 million would similarly be available with the consent of the Scottish ministers.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 08 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 22 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Minister for Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning will visit Aviemore and travel along the A95 in order to observe the condition of the road and what assessment it has made of the importance of the road to the whisky industry and the local economy as a whole.
Answer
I visited Aviemore and travelled along the A95 on 11 February 2002.Trunk roads are defined as nationally important routes that serve destinations of importance to industry, commerce, agriculture and tourism. As such the 1996 Shaping the Trunk Road Network report designated the A95 a trunk road in view of its importance to the economically productive Strath Spey valley industries (including the whisky industry) and in order to provide a gateway to the fishing centres along the Moray coast.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 21 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-20422 by Nicol Stephen on 11 December 2001, whether it will take urgent action in order to bring forward the publication of the Review of Educational Psychologists; on what date the report will be published; whether it is impossible for the negotiating group representing educational psychologists to negotiate salary levels until this report has been made available to them; what its position is on the role and pay and conditions of educational psychologists compared with those of teachers, and what steps it will take in order to ensure that no discrimination against educational psychologists arises.
Answer
The Scottish Executive will publish the report of the Review of Educational Psychology Services by the end of February.The Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) is currently considering the issue of pay and conditions for educational psychologists.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 February 2002
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 20 February 2002
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the 10% reduction in the total allocated catch for nephrops in 2001 will be re-instated for 2002.
Answer
At last December's Fisheries Council, the commission proposed reductions in various Nephrops total allocated catch (TAC). In line with the scientific advice, the UK argued successfully for increases on these commission proposals. The outcome for 2002 was a Nephrops TAC in the North Sea restored to 2000 levels, and a Nephrops TAC West of Scotland restored to 2001 levels but lower than the TAC for 2000.
