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Counter
Fraud Strategy for NHS
A new strategy to tackle
fraud in the NHS has been launched, as it was revealed that anti-fraud
measures already in place have saved the NHS in Scotland more than £2
million a year for the last five years. Counter Fraud Services (CFS),
an organisation set up in 2000, reports that £10.7 million has been
channelled back into NHS services as a result of its activities.
The initial role of CFS was to prevent,
detect and investigate fraud and other irregularities in NHS family
health services, this was subsequently extended to fraud and other
irregularities within and against NHS Scotland as a whole.
The CFS annual report for 2004-2005
highlights cumulative savings of £10.7 million. This money has gone
back into the NHS. The breakdown of the £10.7 million from 2000 to 2005
is:
-
2000/01
- £2,017,242
-
2001/02
- £1,649,216
-
2002/03
- £2,118,538
-
2003/04
- £2,601,091
-
2004/05
- £2,379,431
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SECTION
3 - NOTES ON THIS WEEK’S CHAMBER BUSINESS
WEDNESDAY
begins
with the swearing-in
of the successful candidate in last Thursday's Cathcart by-election, Charlie
Gordon (LAB).
This
is followed by an
Executive debate on Planning
Reform.
Since 1999, the Scottish Executive has been
engaged in an extensive programme of consultations on all aspects of the
planning system. The outcome of these consultations contributed to the
formulation of a comprehensive set of proposals for reform. In June
this year, the Scottish Executive published the White Paper Modernising
the Planning System, setting out the way forward for Scotland's planning
system.
The Executive's legislative programme for
the coming parliamentary session, unveiled last month, therefore contains a
pledge to legislate to reform the planning system. Key legislative
proposals will include:
- Establishing the National Planning
Framework as an instrument for securing the delivery of national
policies and programmes;
- Introducing a new process for the
determination of applications for developments of national strategic
importance, applications for key large-scale development proposals and
for the majority of planning applications which are of local importance;
- Moving to a single tier of local
development plans everywhere, apart from the four largest city regions;
- Introducing standard application forms;
- Introducing new statutory requirements
for pre-application discussions;
- Transferring responsibility of neighbour
notification onto planning authorities;
- Introducing early determination of
appeals which are not well founded;
- A new requirement for more frequent use
of hearings to allow local people to present their views on applications
before their determination; and
- A new framework for ensuring planning
authorities are encouraged to improve their performance.
The
day concludes with a Member's Business debate on the Aberdeen Met Office from
Brian Adam (SNP).
THURSDAY morning
sees two debates from the SNP - on T
he Scottish Economy and a Scottish Olympic Team.
As is usual with
opposition debates,
no motions have yet been published. As always, however, the motions
will be published in Section F of the Business
Bulletin in due course and a full transcript of the debates will be
available in the Official
Report from
08:00
on Friday.
This
is followed by General Question Time and First Minister’s
Question Time.
In the afternoon, following Themed
Question Time (for the featured departments, see Section 1 above), there
is a Ministerial Statement
on Business Rates.
The Executive's current
policy of limiting rate increases to inflation or below has meant that,
compared to England, the burden has been reducing. However, setting out the
Scottish Executive's legislative programme, the First Minister said that the
Finance Minister would shortly "announce the steps to reduce Scotland's
business rate poundage in line with England" - hence this statement.
The First Minister also announced that, to provide further incentives
aimed at giving Scotland a competitive advantage, the Executive will
consider carefully a specific reduction in business rates for Research &
Development intensive companies.
This
is followed by the Stage 1 debate of the St
Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Bill.
A
Member's Bill, put forward by Dennis Canavan (IND), it would, as the name
suggests, create a bank holiday to mark St Andrew's Day.
In
its Stage
1 Report, the Enterprise and Culture Committee supports
the general principles of the bill and is also of the view that, whether or
not the bill is passed, the Scottish Executive should bring forward a
comprehensive set of proposals to enhance the celebration of St Andrew’s
Day both domestically and internationally.
There are, however, concerns over the cost
to the economy. And, as the Committee emphasises that the
establishment of an additional bank holiday does not place a statutory
obligation on employers to grant it as part of employee holiday entitlement,
there are concerns that it would only be a holiday for the public sector and
would not, in practice, be enjoyed by the wider population.
The day concludes
with a Member's Business debate on South of Scotland Structural
Funds from Euan Robson (LD).