I would refer you to the joint CoSLA/Scottish Executive Report It Pays to Pay and to my answer to question S1W-4296 to Des McNulty of 23 February. Individuals who are being pursued by different sheriff officers can arrange payment terms on the consolidated debt.

I would refer you to the joint CoSLA/Scottish Executive Report It Pays to Pay and to my answer to question S1W-4296 to Des McNulty of 23 February. I would encourage anyone having difficulty with their council tax payments to discuss with their council what flexibilities are available.

I would refer you to the joint CoSLA/Scottish Executive Report It Pays to Pay and to my answer to question S1W-4296 to Des McNulty of 23 February.

We attach importance to the provision and availability of targeted access to capital as part of our enterprise review and our social inclusion strategies. A number of schemes of support are available from the Scottish Executive and through the Enterprise Network. These include, for example, the £12 million Business Growth Fund launched last year to provide loan finance to companies unable to access sufficient support from established sources, and the new Invest for Growth scheme replacing Regional Selective Assistance grant for grants below £100,000.

The Scottish Executive, in partnership with other organisations, also wishes to encourage the provision of and access to finance to enable social economy organisations in Scotland to develop, thereby stimulating enterprise and wealth creation in disadvantaged communities. The model to meet this aim is the Social Investment Scotland Fund.

I refer Mr Kenneth Gibson to the answer I gave to question S1W-9407 on 15 September 2000.

The following table shows the number of available staffed beds in NHS Hospitals in each health board area per 1,000 population for the year ending 31 March 2000. The figures, which cover all specialties, are provisional.NHS Staffed Beds per 1,000 Population, Year Ending 31 March 2000

Health Board	Beds per 1,000 Population
Argyll & Clyde	7.62
Ayrshire & Arran	5.74
Borders	6.44
Dumfries & Galloway	6.70
Fife	5.66
Forth Valley	6.71
Grampian	6.82
Greater Glasgow	7.83
Highland	6.82
Lanarkshire	6.37
Lothian	5.80
Orkney	4.40
Shetland	5.20
Tayside	8.00
Western Isles	9.00
Scotland	6.77

Differences in the number of NHS staffed beds per 1,000 population between health boards reflect a number of factors including the healthcare needs of different populations and the fact that some hospitals provide treatment to patients from other health board areas.

For the period in question the information was not collected in the form requested.

It was a condition of the settlement that the terms would not be disclosed and would remain confidential to the parties beyond that the actions had been settled out of court without any admission of liability by the defendants and each party had borne its own expenses.

I intend to issue for consultation a draft national planning policy guideline and draft planning legislation on telecommunications development. A planning advice note containing information and advice on siting and design will be issued to accompany the final version of the new legislation and policy guidance.

The number of employee jobs in Scotland in the textile, footwear, leather and clothing manufacturing sectors is shown in the following table. The leather and footwear sectors have been combined due to confidentiality.

	1995	1996	1997	1998
Textiles	21,300	22,200	19,200	17,700
Clothing	14,000	15,100	13,500	13,700
Leather and Footwear	1,400	1,400	1,200	1,100

Source: Annual Employment Survey, Office for National Statistics.