Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive how many people who have been appointed to government or ministerial advisory groups or task forces since May 1997 are (a) under the age of 26 and (b) under the age of 30, and to which groups or task forces these appointments have been made.
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will place copies of its Action Programme for Youth in the Document Supply Centre; how much money it will invest in the short and long term in the Action Programme and from which budget heading, and whether it will make a ministerial statement.
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive, following the case of Khaliq versus Her Majesty’s Advocate (1984 SLT 137), (a) how many reports have been received by Procurators Fiscal in Scotland relating to offences of culpably, wilfully and recklessly supplying kits and/or substances for the purpose of inhalation, (b) how many of those reports proceeded to trial, (c) how many trials resulted in...
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in relation to improving the range and quality of drug services for young people, particularly under 16s, in the last year and how many more under 16s with drug problems are now receiving an "appropriate service" compared with 12 months ago.
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in relation to increasing access to drug information and drug services for "vulnerable groups" in the last year and how many more "vulnerable" young people are now receiving an "appropriate service" compared with 12 months ago.
Fiona McLeod: Will the minister give way?
Fiona McLeod: As the minister has said, sport can bring us together, as players and participants or as fans and spectators. I regret that this afternoon's self-congratulatory motion will not bring this chamber together. Sport can foster well-being, physically and emotionally, and it brings a sense of belonging. Why, then, are we debating the proposition that sport can be part of social inclusion? By...
Fiona McLeod: I am glad to hear that a private school is opening its doors to the public when it is getting public funding. The point that we return to is that two of the most deprived local authorities in Scotland—both Labour-controlled authorities—were unable to find the match funding to provide significant investment in sports for their deprived communities. All sportscotland awards reveal a similar...
Fiona McLeod: I am interested that two Labour members have now mentioned the top sport scheme. Do they realise that the budget for the scheme for the years 1999 to 2003 is only £700,000? The majority of its budget comes through sponsorship from British Telecom, not through money from the Executive.
Fiona McLeod: One hopes that sportscotland will apply the guidelines correctly. As Mr Monteith told us, the organisations from which it most recently generated applications were the Edinburgh merchant schools, for cricket.
Fiona McLeod: In winding up for the SNP, I will reiterate the welcome given by Nicola Sturgeon and my colleagues to the substance and tone of this debate, and to the minister's opening remarks when he said that he was here to listen and learn and to proceed on that basis. I will highlight a few questions that remain about whether the Government can back its commitment on key areas with the necessary...
Fiona McLeod: As I said, that caused great distress. The reality is that the rhetoric must be backed up by appropriate funding so that no one in East Renfrewshire, or anywhere else, will be put in such a position. We know from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's figures that it costs more money to provide mainstream education for children with special needs. We must, therefore, find that money. I finish by...
Fiona McLeod: The minister said that the second guiding principle behind his statement today was that regulation must be proportionate to risk. However, in his statement he is not meeting the Cullen recommendations that all young people up to the age of 16 should be encompassed in any regulatory framework. I should like to hear the reason for stopping at 14. I press the minister further on the opportunity...
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has changed the waiting time target for first appointments with specialists in child dental health in the last three years.
Fiona McLeod: The blank-sheet approach of the bill gives us an opportunity to tell the minister and the Scottish Executive of the many areas that the Parliament would like to be addressed in the forthcoming regulations. I take the blank-sheet approach as a positive sign that the minister is here to listen to the points that are raised. It is interesting to note that a common theme is beginning to appear....
Fiona McLeod: The minister just has to take the example of Lewis and put it into practice for all children. That is what this debate is about. In two weeks' time, when we consider stage 3 of the Standards in Scotland's Schools etc Bill, we will be putting the presumption to mainstream into legislation. That makes it all the more important that we have in place the structures necessary to identify and...
Fiona McLeod: I refer the minister to the research published at the end of 1999 by two physiotherapists, Mitchell and Wood, which identified what to me—as a layman—appears a very simple test for the detection of dyspraxia. Could that be brought to the national screening committee's attention?
Fiona McLeod: Given Janis Hughes's remarks that young people often are homeless first and become addicts second, will she join me in asking that, when the Deputy Minister for Communities sums up, we hear for the first time something about the work that will be targeted on the young homeless? I am thinking in terms of research to find out the hidden numbers of young homeless who are sleeping on their pals'...
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive what the current national waiting time target is for first appointments with specialists in child dental health and whether it will list any health authorities which are not meeting this target, specifying in each case the actual waiting time for such appointments.
Fiona McLeod: To ask the Scottish Executive how many radiographers have been trained in the use of ultrasound equipment in the last 12 months.
