Angus MacKay: To ask the First Minister whether the plans outlined this week by the Strategic Rail Authority are adequate to deal with any problems facing rail passengers in Scotland.
Angus MacKay: To ask the Scottish Executive when it will implement free nursing and free personal care for older people.
Angus MacKay: Will the member take an intervention?
Angus MacKay: I hope that Mr Swinney will accept, as almost every member and most commentators do, that any PFI or PPP project that goes ahead under the auspices of the Scottish Parliament can do so only if it can be proven that the whole life costs of the project will be cheaper than the traditional public sector alternative. In that respect, the First Minister was absolutely right when he described Mr ...
Angus MacKay: I am very sorry that this is the first subject on which I am making a speech as a back bencher. I am sorry not because of the subject matter, but because of the circumstances in which I must rise to make this speech. I declare an interest as the constituency member for Edinburgh South, in which the Scottish science library sits. In referring to briefings that members have received on the...
Angus MacKay: To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the outcome of the recent consultation on the report of the working group on a replacement for poinding and warrant sale, Striking the Balance: A New Approach to Debt Management , and how it intends to proceed.
Angus MacKay: Since May 1999, one Scottish Executive member of staff in Band B has completed a five-week attachment to the Ministry of the Interior, Department for Regional Development in Helsinki to assist with their contribution to the EU Urban Exchange Initiative. A further member of staff also in Band B has completed a three-month attachment to the same Department in Helsinki to assist with the...
Angus MacKay: Relocation decisions are based on a range of issues including costs, quality and efficiency of service, economic factors such as unemployment, availability and suitability of property and staff, transport issues, and the position of staff concerned. Further criteria to be taken into account will depend on the organisation itself and the nature of the work in question. In my interview I...
Angus MacKay: Local authorities will receive £34,279,000 in the current year and £39,976,000 in 2002-03 in Level Playing Field Support for Public/Private Partnership projects.
Angus MacKay: Since 1 April 1996 only two contracts with a value in excess of £100,000 have been placed with Price Waterhouse, Coopers and Lybrand or PricewaterhouseCoopers. In 1996 a contract was awarded to Coopers and Lybrand to provide financial advice on the Kilmarnock Prison PFI project. In 2000 a contract was awarded to PricewaterhouseCoopers in respect of a feasibility study of broadband...
Angus MacKay: The Scottish Executive has no plans to review the business rate liability specifically for indoor equestrian arenas. All businesses occupying properties with a rateable value of £10,000 or less benefit from a 2p reduction in the poundage this year. For businesses suffering financial hardship, local authorities can grant up to 100% relief from rates. The Scottish Executive pays 75% of the...
Angus MacKay: I am pleased to announce that City of Edinburgh Council is eligible for a payment of £150,792 under the Bellwin Scheme. The scheme was activated on 29 August 2001 following representation from the council on costs directly associated with the immediate aftermath of the severe flooding in April and November 2000. City of Edinburgh Council’s costs were primarily revenue costs for removing...
Angus MacKay: I refer the member to the answer I gave to question S1W-19681 on 19 November 2001.
Angus MacKay: Whether Fife Council would decide to release such information, or withhold it on grounds of commercial confidentiality, is a matter for the council. The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Bill would, if enacted, provide individuals with a right of access to information, balanced by provisions intended to ensure that commercially sensitive information is afforded appropriate protection....
Angus MacKay: Neither Thompsons Solicitors and Solicitor Advocates nor Digby Brown Solicitors has been instructed to carry out legal or other services on behalf of the Executive. The procurement of legal and other services by local authorities, Local Enterprise Companies and other public bodies is a matter for the individual body concerned and central records are not held by the Executive.
Angus MacKay: The total cost for the financial year 1999-2000 is £398,062 and for 2000-01 it is £560,843. Details are: Salary ERNIC 16% Pension Contribution Total 1999-2000 £310,530 £37,847 £49,685 £398,062 2000-01 £440,884 £49,842 ...
Angus MacKay: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-19681 on 19 November. No specific areas of Scotland are targeted, and none are ruled out when office relocations are considered. North Ayrshire will continue to be considered as a potential relocation site.
Angus MacKay: Around 34,000 staff are employed in the range of public services covered by the Scottish Executive’s relocation policy; around two-thirds of these are already located outwith Edinburgh. Two objectives govern relocation decisions. First, the location of organisations should promote efficiency and effectiveness. Second, subject to the first objective, the work of the Scottish Executive and...
Angus MacKay: We have made good progress. The Education and Lifelong Learning Department is now wholly located in Glasgow, the Food Standards Agency has been set up in Aberdeen and the Public Guardian’s Office has been set up in Falkirk. Following my announcement of 1 December last year on the forward programme, the First Minister announced on 6 March that the National Office of the Scottish Commission...
Angus MacKay: Relocation decisions are based on a range of issues including costs, quality and efficiency of service, economic factors such as unemployment, availability and suitability of property and staff, transport issues, and the position of staff concerned. Further criteria to be taken into account will depend on the organisation itself and the nature of the work in question.