Events
3 December: Bruce Crawford, Minister for Parliamentary Business, commented on the Queen's Speech, saying:
"The Scottish Government will work constructively with our UK counterparts to take forward proposals which benefit the people of Scotland. However, the UK Government's programme is another illustration of why Scotland's Parliament needs the full range of responsibilities - including economic, financial and borrowing powers - so that we can make our nation fairer and more prosperous. The UK Government's planned £1 billion cut from Scotland's budget shows the real cost of Westminster being in charge of the purse-strings. The impact of this £1 billion cut on our public services would be severe, and Scotland must do all it can to make the government in London think again."
Mr Crawford also confirmed that the Scottish Government will bring forward Legislative Consent Motions in connection with a number of UK bills. These proposed legislative changes will be in addition to the Scottish Government's own legislative programme published on September 3.
3 December: launch of a consultation on permitted development rights which is seeking views on removing red tape for people who want to carry out alterations or minor developments in and around their homes.
3 December: Andris Piebalgs, the EU Energy commissioner, wrote to Alex Salmond, First Minister, praising the Scottish Government for its strong leadership in renewables following the launch of the £10 million Saltire Prize Challenge. The Saltire Prize will be awarded to the team that can demonstrate in Scottish Waters a commercially viable wave or tidal or energy technology that achieves a minimum electrical output of 100 GWh over a continuous two-year period using only the power of the sea.
4 December: Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary of Education and Lifelong Learning, announced that the International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience (IAESTE) scheme is to be extended with additional Scottish Government funding. The scheme arranges global work experience placement for undergraduate students and recent graduates in science, engineering and architecture.
5 December: The First Minister's Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), chaired by Sir George Matthewson, published their First Annual Report. The report sets out the Council's analysis and discussion of the challenges and action required by the Scottish Government to make practical progress in delivering its overarching purpose, as set out in the Government Economic Strategy, to increase sustainable economic growth.
The Council has set out 22 recommendations and a number of additional considerations for the Scottish Government. These include:
• taking a more proactive approach to planning including financially incentivising councils to promote and facilitate sustainable development projects;
• raising the overall level of infrastructure spending in Scotland;
• pursue with the UK Government revisions to the current fiscal arrangements to meet Scotland's overall infrastructure needs and explore new means of borrowing, outside PFI;
• reaching agreement with Universities Scotland on the future scale of the Scottish university system and the balance between various activities;
• improving the quality of Scottish economic statistics in several specific areas so that they meet the needs of government.
Alex Salmond, First Minister, commented on the publication of the report and put on record his thanks for Sir George Matthewson and his colleagues and gave his guarantee that the Scottish Government will consider how to use their recommendations to make Scotland a more successful place.
10 December: Richard Lochhead, Environment Secretary, launched a 'Fishing for Litter' project to clean up the seas around Scotland over the next three years. Scotland's fishermen, who take part in the project voluntarily, are already reporting the benefits of fishing in cleaners seas having removed 117 tonnes of litter from the seabed. The rubbish trawled up as part of normal fishing activities is disposed of on land, and this is achieved by providing large hardwearing bags to the boats so that waste can be easily collected and deposited on the quayside.
12 December: Stewart Stevenson, Infrastructure Minister, outlined the main infrastructure projects identified in the Scottish Government's proposed second National Planning Framework (NPF) for Scotland's development to 2030. The proposed NPF outlines 12 National Developments:
• New Forth Crossing
• West of Scotland strategic rail enhancements
• Airport access enhancements
• Grangemouth Freight Hub
• Expanded port facilities at Rosyth
• Port Developments on Loch Ryan
• Scapa Flow Container Transhipment Facility
• New Power Station and Transhipment Hub at Hunterston
• New non-nuclear baseload capacity at other existing power station sites
• Electricity grid reinforcements
• Metropolitan Glasgow Strategic Drainage Scheme
• 2014 Commonwealth Games facilities
Parliament has 60 days to consider the proposed Framework and respond to Scottish Ministers. It is anticipated that the final NPF will be approved by Scottish Ministers and published in Spring 2009.
18 December: Fiona Hyslop, Education Secretary, welcomed the results of the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) which shows that all Scots universities are involved in 'world-leading' research. Ms Hyslop said that the results reflected the hard work, the efforts of those working in Scotland's universities and the £1 billion a year investment which the Scottish Government is making in the sector.
18 December: Alex Salmond, First Minister, joined Alex Fergusson, Presiding Officer, Ian Gray, Annabel Goldie, Tavish Scott and Margo MacDonald to launch the updated events guide for Homecoming Scotland 2009. The new 48 page printed guide features more than 300 events and festivals linked with the themes of Homecoming: Burns, whisky, golf, great Scottish minds and innovations and ancestry, culture and heritage.
23 December: publication of the latest Energy Trends bulletin showed that renewable energy accounted for a fifth of Scotland's electricity needs in 2007. This is a rise of 18% since 2006, with renewables at their highest ever level.
Appointments
N/A
Bills
No Bills were passed by Parliament in December.
A summary of the Bills passed by the Parliament in the 1999-2003 and 2003-2007 sessions can be found on the Parliament website at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/bills/billsPassed/billsum-s1.htm
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/bills/billsnotInProgress-s2/index.htm
Committees
2 December: the Parliament's Health and Sport Committee launched an inquiry into child and adolescent mental health services with a call for evidence. The committee is interested in how children and adolescents at risk of developing mental health problems are identified by the medical and other professions.
10 December: the Parliament's Finance Committee published its report on the Scottish Government's Draft Budget. The Committee's recommendations included that:
• the committee welcomes the early indications from the Scottish Government on the acceleration of capital spending;
• alongside the six-point plan for economic recovery and bringing forward spending on capital projects, the Scottish Government should ensure that Skills Development Scotland works to identify and fill areas of shortage and that Partnerships Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) teams are adequately resourced to meet any increase in unemployment;
• the Scottish Government should consider what further support can be given to organisations providing advice on money, debt and benefits;
• although inflation is now falling, the Scottish Government should identify any new policy development which cannot be funded or developed because of the impact inflation rises have had on budgets in the last 12 months;
• linking spending to outcomes is complex but crucial and the Scottish Government should undertake further work in this area, reporting progress to the Committee.
15 December: publication of a report from the Parliament's Health and Sport Committee which recommends that direct elections to health boards should be piloted alongside alternative public participation schemes if public involvement in health board decision-making is to be improved.
16 December: the Parliament's Finance Committee published its report on its inquiry into the methods of funding capital investment projects. The report recommends that the Scottish Government improve the way it costs and assess all options for capital investment projects.
18 December: the Parliament's Equal Opportunities Committee launched an inquiry into female offenders in the criminal justice system. The inquiry will cover the background of female offenders, their experience in prison and the extent to which prison prevents women from re-offending.
18 December: the Public Audit Committee published a report calling for the Scottish Government to ensure that all costs associated with the delivery of free personal and nursing are accurately monitored and reported from now on to ensure that long term funding needs are identified.
19 December: the Parliament's Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change Committee called for views on legislation which sets ambitious targets for reducing Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions over the next 40 years. The Committee is encouraging all individuals and organizations with an interest in climate change to provide their views on the Climate Change (Scotland) Bill published earlier in December.
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
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/corporate/recruitment/extResearcher/index.htm
Publications
Scottish Executive publications can be accessed on the Scottish Executive website at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/publications/recent.aspx
Some of those published in the last month include:
2 December: A Consultation on the Next Generation of National Qualifications in Scotland: Consultation Responses: responses to the consultation which set out a range of proposals designed to ensure that National Qualifications fully reflect Curriculum for Excellence and equip Scotland's young people for the demands of the 21st Century
5 December: First Annual Report of the Council of Economic Advisers: December 2008.
17 December: Consultation on a Chief Returning Officer for Scotland: consultation paper exploring options to create a post of Chief Returning Officer for elections in Scotland. A key recommendation of the Gould Report into the problems of the 2007 elections was that there should be greater coordination in the planning and delivery of elections, through the creation of a Chief Returning Officer. The Scottish Government accepted the report, and committed to consulting on this and other issues.
22 December: Culture: Culture Delivers: Guidance Advice to Local Authorities, Community Planning Partnerships and other interests on how the arts, culture and creativity can help deliver a wide range of local and national priorities.