Keith Raffan: No, I am not going to give way any more because I am near the end. I have given way a lot-well, all right, I did not realise that it was the fundamentalist; I will give way to the fundamentalist. He is the SNP's internal opposition.
Keith Raffan: Mr Neil would make that point, wouldn't he? Kay Ullrich is sitting next to him; she has quoted Mandy Rice-Davies once already-who am I to quote her a second time? But he would say that, wouldn't he? We made it quite clear that, having looked at the books, we would raise taxes if we thought it necessary. That is the whole point. Our policy position on tax was quite distinct from the SNP's,...
Keith Raffan: Exactly.
Keith Raffan: What plans has the minister for encouraging research and development, and particularly for strengthening the links between our universities and industry?
Keith Raffan: He should ask questions relating to the statement.
Keith Raffan: I welcome the minister's statement and his commitment to openness and a constructive dialogue with Parliament and its committees. I have two points. First, how lengthy and complex does he expect the proposed accountability, budgeting and audit bill to be, and is he satisfied that there will be sufficient time for pre-legislative scrutiny, bearing in mind that we are working to a very tight...
Keith Raffan: rose-
Keith Raffan: I am interested by the interventionist tone of Mr Davidson's speech. Is he aware that Mr Lilley was sacked last week for precisely such a speech?
Keith Raffan: Does the First Minister agree that, while the Executive wants to improve cross-cutting, the onus is also on the parliamentary committees to develop sub-committees and working groups, particularly on the issue of drug misuse? Bearing it in mind that some committees, such as the Social Inclusion, Housing and Voluntary Sector Committee, have a very broad remit, members of such a working group...
Keith Raffan: Will Mr McAveety give way?
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many people in each local authority area were in residential care homes in each of the last five years and were aged (a) 60 to 64 years; (b) 65 to 74 years; (c) 75 to 84 years; and (d) 85 years and over.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many people in residential care homes in each of the last five years were funded by (a) the local authority on a means tested basis; (b) the individuals themselves; and (c) the Department of Social Security through preserved rights; and what were the figures for people aged (i) 60 to 64 years; (ii) 65 to 74 years; (iii) 75 to 84 years; and (iv) 85 years and over.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS patients were waiting to be (a) seen following GP written referral; and (b) seen following referral to consultation, for each quarter since 30 March 1997.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS patients have been waiting over 12 months for their NHS operation and for a breakdown (a) by health board, and (b) by quarter-year from 30 March 1997.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the hospitals in Scotland which have acute beds and in each case the number of (a) intensive care beds; (b) high dependency beds, and (c) other acute beds.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) acute; (b) geriatric; (c) mental illness; (d) learning disability, and (e) maternity beds there were in each health board area in each year since 1994-95.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients (a) had not yet been seen following GP written referral, and (b) were waiting between referral and consultation, broken down (i) by speciality; and (ii) by quarter-year from 30 March 1997.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive what were the numbers of operations cancelled on the day of, or the day after, admission to a hospital, and the numbers of those patients not readmitted within a month, by quarter-year for the last two years for each health board.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients (a) in each health board area, and (b) nationally, were detained past their original discharge date in NHS beds before moving to social service beds in the last year for which figures are available, and whether it will estimate the cost of delayed discharges to the NHS.
Keith Raffan: To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide an estimate of the number of people in each health board area who are currently waiting for an appointment with a consultant following referral by a general practitioner, and whether it will provide a breakdown of the length of time for which those people (a) have already waited, and (b) are expected to wait.
