IOG: Parliament News, issue 41/dec 2004

Scottish Affairs web site

Events

2 December: publication by the Executive of a Climate Change consultation document outlining options to strengthen Scotland's response to the threat of climate change. The consultation document highlights and seeks views on (amongst other matters):

the 40% renewables target
Emissions Trading Scheme
commitment to spend 70% of transport budget on public transport
Freight Facilities Grant

3 December: Jim Wallace, Deputy First Minister, announced a £6.6 million extension to the Scottish Community and Householder Renewables Initiative (SCHRI) to cover the next three years. Set up in 2002, the SCHRI provides grants and expert advice on small scale renewable projects, such as the installation of solar panels and wind turbines at the likes of community centres, schools and individual households.

3 December: Jack McConnell, First Minister, accompanied Prime Minister Tony Blair and Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair Darling on visits to the Royal Bank of Scotland headquarters at South Gyle and Napier University where Mr Blair made a speech on the economy.

3 December: Hugh Henry, Deputy Minister for Justice, announced that more community warden posts would be created to add to the 400 already in place and another 150 which have been approved. Community wardens can undertake a variety of tasks. Local authorities, together with police, their community planning partners and local communities decide on local priorities and precise duties.

3 December: the fourth annual environmental report Maintaining a Sustainable Working Environment was published by the Executive.

6 December: one hundred and thirty experts from Scotland's blue chip companies, the arts, academia and civic Scotland joined MSPs to look at issues which will affect Scotland in the next ten years and beyond. They were joined in a day-long "conversation" about a possible Futures Forum in Parliament by representatives from the Global Business Network in California, Stanford University, the Office of the Prime Minister of France and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. A report will be made back to the Parliamentary Corporate Body outlining the day's findings and recommendations.

6 December: Nicol Stephen, Minister for Transport, spoke at the Scottish launch of GoSkills, a new body sent up to improve training and skills for the transport industry, saying that the transport industry will have an important role to play in delivering a modern, efficient transport network for Scotland. Its mission is to be the leading authority on skills issues for the passenger transport sector.

6 December: as part of the Executive's Criminal Justice Plan Cathy Jamieson, Minister for Justice, announced new measures aimed at tackling Scotland's high re-offending rates. The plan covers crime prevention, the ongoing threat from illegal drugs, court reform, and the effectiveness of sentences, including the use of electronic monitoring to include a 'community curfew' scheme for selected prisoners nearing the end of their sentences.

7 December: Ross Finnie, Minister for the Environment, outlined Scotland's first energy efficiency strategy. The strategy aims to set up a framework, define objectives and create a more joined-up approach for energy efficiency intervention and is closely linked to the Executive's Green Jobs Strategy due to be published early in 2005.

8 December: Ross Finnie, Minister for Fisheries, restated the Executive's opposition to proposals published by the European Commission of closing areas of the North Sea to fishing activity where there is no evidence of conservation benefit.

8 December: official opening of a new Intellectual Assets Centre set up to help Scottish firms protect and exploit their business know-how and expertise. Intellectual Assets (IA) are the intangible assets which can include brands, employee know-how, trade secrets and technical information. IA also covers Intellectual Property (IP), assets such as patents and trademarks which are formally protected by statute law.

8 December: Tom McCabe, Finance and Public Service Reform Minister, announced details of the funding local authorities will receive in the next three years. Central government funding for local council core revenue expenditure will increase to over £8.5 billion in 2007-08, a total increase of 10.4% over the three year period. Priority has been given to education, health and community care and police, with additional resources also provided for roads maintenance and environmental issues.

9 December: Malcolm Chisholm, Minister for Communities, announced ten new targets aimed at delivering better life opportunities by enhancing the education, health and job prospects of people in Scotland's most disadvantaged communities.

9 December: launch of a new air route from Aberdeen International Airport to Gardermoen Airport in Oslo.

9 December: Jim Wallace, Deputy First Minister, announced extra funding to enable more overseas students studying in Scotland to have work placements with Scottish based companies. Scottish Networks International (SNI) - a joint initiative between the British Council and Scottish Development International (SDI) will receive almost £230,000 from the Executive over the next three years.

10 December: Scotland remains in the top league of education nations according to the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) study run by the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which assesses the reading, maths and science performance of 15 year olds in 41 countries.

10 December: Allan Wilson, Deputy Minister for Enterprise, announced European funding worth £1.6 million to help create jobs and fund new community facilities in the South of Scotland. Mr Wilson said the funding will help tackle unemployment and create new homes for the arts, new opportunities for leisure, and new accommodation to help small businesses grow.

13 December: Peter Peacock, Minister for Education, announced that more than 127,000 users have logged onto the Scottish Schools Online website since its launch in December 2003. The website provides a complete view of the performance of every Scottish school.

13 December: publication of Scotland's first Improving Regulation Annual Report which highlights the fact that most regulations that affect Scottish businesses are generated at either an EU or UK level. The report states that in 2003/4 the Executive completed 30 Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIA) of various policy initiatives and of these only 11 were Scottish initiatives, the rest were from the EU. Jim Wallace, Minister for Enterprise, said the report proved how crucial it was for the Executive to engage constructively at both EU and UK levels to help ensure Scottish issues are taken into account.

13 December: a new Individual Learning Account (ILA) scheme has been funded which will pay up to £200 a year to Scottish learners to pay for courses that will help them get back into work and improve their career opportunities. Initially ILA Scotland is available to people whose income is £15,000 or less.

14 December: publication of the report of The Single Transferable Vote Working Group. This final report concentrates on practical issues involved in implementation particularly for local authorities who will have to administer the new system of elections and adopt new patterns of working to accommodate the change to multi-member wards. The Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 makes provision for the introduction of the Single Transferable vote for local government elections based on three or four member wards.

14 December: consultation began on three key aspects of the future of Scotland's Fire and Rescue Service. The consultation will cover the arrangements for providing strategic policy advice to Ministers, when and for what tasks fire authorities should be allowed to levy charges, and what additional function, on top of their core duties, fire authorities should undertake.

15 December: publication of Input-Output Tables and Multipliers for Scotland 2001 which provide details of the supply and demand linkages that exist within the economy. The tables are used in economic policy making to assess economic development strategies and to predict the knock-on effects of various economic events.

16 December: Jim Wallace, Minister for Enterprise, announced that the USA has become Scotland's biggest single export market, worth £2.5 billion. The EU market for Scotland is worth £10 billion and accounted for 54% of Scotland's total exports in 2003. Germany and France are second and third largest export markets.

16 December: Patricia Ferguson, Minister for Sports, announced that a group of experts from the public and private sector will be formed to ensure Scotland benefits if London succeeds in hosting the 2012 Olympic Games.

16 December: Malcolm Chisholm, Minister for Communities, announced a package worth more than £200 million to build approximately 1,000 new affordable homes in the Highlands. Mr Chisholm welcomed Highland Council on to the Executive's Community Ownership Programme saying it would also write off housing debt, transfer 15,00 council owned properties to a new not-for-profit landlord and help improve and modernise existing homes.

16 December: publication of the Executive's Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland 2002-03 (GERS) report giving information on the estimates of amount of public money spent in Scotland compared to the amount raised.

16 December: publication of the results of the Executive's Stakeholder Survey 2004, the first systematic survey into how well external partners think the Executive engages with them. John Elvidge, Permanent Secretary, said the findings show that almost two-thirds of external partners are satisfied with their dealings with the Executive. The report also highlights areas where they could do better, like joined-up working, being clear to others about priorities and being an innovative and dynamic organisation.

20 December: publication of the report by the independent task group to review the licensing provisions in the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982. The report recommends a number of changes to the licensing arrangements for a range of activities covered by the Act, such as taxis and private hire cars, market operators, public entertainment and late hours catering establishments.

20 December: publication of Audit Scotland's annual report showing that the NHS Boards have produced an overall overspend of 0.2% - £14.1 million from a total budget of £5.8 billion.

21 December: Skye Bridge tolls were abolished with immediate effect. The Skye Bridge was opened nine years ago having been built as one of the first private finance projects. Tolls were in place for all that time until this date.

22 December: EU Ministers reached agreement on fish conservation measures in 2005 after negotiations in Brussels and Ross Finnie, Minister for Fisheries, said the deal restored flexibility to Scotland's fishing industry and shared efforts to protect threatened cod stocks more equitably between European partners. The UK delegations successfully resisted proposals to close large areas of the North Sea and West of Scotland waters to all fishing.

22 December: the Parliamentary Corporate Body issued a statement informing that legal proceedings have been initiated by Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd and another Sir Robert McAlpine Company who are seeking to challenge the process by which the Construction Manager contract for the Holyrood Project was awarded. The statement also informs that if the matter comes to court the case will be vigorously contested as the best defence of the public purse.

23 December: the Parliamentary Corporate Body published detailed information on MSPs' expenditure and allowance for the financial year 2003-2004.

23 December: Malcolm Chisholm, Minister for Communities, announced a revised package of Supporting People funding and allocations to Scotland's 32 local authorities, worth more than £1.2 billion over three years. The new package includes £3.4 million of additional funding over the next three years and slows down the rate at which funding is redistributed between local authorities.

27 December: Tom McCabe, Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform, announced proposals to give local authorities discretion to reduce the current 50% discount on council tax on second homes and long-term empty properties. Local authorities will be given discretion to reduce or retain the discount between 10% and 50%.

28 December: launch of a new website (http://www.localgovernmentfinancereview.org/) providing details of the work of the independent Local Government Finance Review Committee. The website allows people to view the work of the independent committee which was set up by the Executive to review different forms of local taxation, including reform of the council tax.

30 December: Patricia Ferguson, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, met with international aid organisations to discuss their response to the Indian Ocean Tsunami disaster and how the Parliament can help their efforts.

Appointments

7 December: Raymond Young OBE, was appointed Chair of a new public organisation, Architecture and Design Scotland, established to support the cause of good architecture and design.

8 December: Dr Kevin Woods, was appointed the new Chief Executive of NHSScotland and Head of the Scottish Executive Health Department.

20 December: Sir Roy Cameron was appointed by Jack McConnell, First Minister, to act as an independent observer to the process of appointing Queen's Counsel in Scotland.

Bills

17 December: publication of the Smoking, Health and Social Care Bill which aims to improve Scotland's health record by banning smoking in enclosed public places in order to protect people from the effects of second hand smoke.

17 December: Ross Finnie, Minister for Rural Development, announced that he is using powers under the devolution settlement to encourage the UK government to include provision in the Animal Welfare Bill to ensure that Orders banning individuals from keeping animals by English and Welsh courts are enforceable in Scotland.

22 December: the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Bill was passed by Parliament. The Bill makes it a specific offence to assault, obstruct or hinder someone providing an emergency service, or someone assisting an emergency worker in an emergency situation.

A summary of the Bills passed by the Parliament in the 1999-2003 session can be found on the Parliament website at www.scottish.parliament.uk/parl_bus/bills/bill%20summaries.pdf

Committees

10 December: the Environment Committee announced an open call for evidence for its forthcoming inquiry into climate change. The inquiry will examine the Executive's policies on climate change in the context of the UK's international responsibilities.

15 December: the Finance Committee published its report on the Executive's Draft Budget for 2005-06 and made the following recommendations:

there is a need for some form of strategic target related to economic growth;
that the Executive should have been clearer in the presentation of its efficiency savings;
that the Executive examines the impact of low increases in grant support year by year for local government, especially towards the end of the Spending Review period.

17 December: the Health Committee launched a call for evidence on the Executive's Smoking, Health and Social Care Bill. The Bill proposes among other health related measures to include free dental check ups and eye tests, as well as a ban on smoking in public places. The deadline for written submission is 11 February 2005.

20 December: the Enterprise and Culture Committee endorsed the general principles of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Bill. The main purpose of the Bill is to merge the two existing funding councils, Scottish Higher Education Funding Council (SCHEFC) and the Scottish Further Education Funding Council (SFEFC), to create the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council (SFHEFC).

22 December: the Enterprise and Culture Committee announced a call for evidence on what needs to be done to increase the rate of sustainable business growth in Scotland over the next 10 years. The closing date for evidence is 31 March 2005.

Research opportunities

The Scottish Parliament has a budget for commissioning research for Parliamentary committees and holds a database of researchers interested in tendering for committee research. Anyone wishing to be included in the database should complete the on-line form on the Parliament website at www.scottish.parliament.uk/whats_happening/contracts/contract02-01.htm

Scottish Executive Publications

Scottish Executive publications can be accessed on the Scottish Executive website at www.scotland.gov.uk/publications/recent.aspx

Some of those published in the last month include:

Consultation on Reform of Civil Advice and Assistance: Public Consultation on Reform of Civil Advice and Assistance. 3.12.04

Destinations of Leavers from Scottish Schools: 2003/04: national and education authority level information on the destinations of school leavers. 6.12.04

Council Tax in Scotland - A Guide: a general guide to Council Tax in Scotland. 6.12.04

International Review of the Health and Economic Impact of the Regulation of Smoking in Public Places. Summary Report: a summary report of the findings from a study to determine the health and economic impact of smoking bans and restrictions in public places. 13.12.04

Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2003: Initial Report on Scotland's Performance in Mathematics, Science and Reading: a report on Scotland's performance as an independent National Centre in the OECD Programme for Student Assessment (PISA). 4.12.04

Single Transferable Vote Working Group - Final Report: Single Transferable Vote Working Group established by Ministers to report on the practical issues arising in implementing new voting system. 14.12.04

Fair to All, Personal to Each - The next steps for NHSScotland - Executive Summary: Executive Summary of plan for tackling NHS waiting times. 15.12.04

Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland 2002-2003: an annual research exercise on the expenditure and revenue flows of government for Scotland. 16.12.04

Scottish Executive Stakeholder Survey 2004: findings from a comprehensive survey of the Scottish Executive's stakeholders undertaken in Autumn 2004, exploring the effectiveness of engagement between the SE and stakeholders. 16.12.04

A Report by the Task Group Set Up to Review the Licensing Provisions Contained in the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982: review of Licensing Provisions contained in Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982. 20.12.04

Scottish Executive Consolidated Resource Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2004: audited Scottish Executive consolidated resource accounts for year ended 31 March 2004. 20.12.04

Sustainability - Building Our Future: Scotland's School Estate. 22.12.04

Links to other issues of Parliament News

Contact

Should you have any comments or enquiries please do not hesitate to contact Margaret MacPherson at the Institute of Governance.

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