Scottish Parliament e-Brief

Issue 69, 4^th June 2001

SECTION 1 - BUSINESS THIS WEEK

THE CHAMBER

Wednesday 6^th June

14:30 - 16:00 Stages 2 & 3 of the Scottish Local Authorities (Tendering) Bill.

16:00 - 16:40 Question Time

16:40 - 17:00 First Minister's Question Time

17:00 - 17:30 Members' Business: Prescription Charge Exemption for Severe and Enduring Mental Illness (Brian Adam (SNP))

Thursday 7^th June

No Parliamentary Business due to UK General Election

IN COMMITTEE

A number of Committees are not meeting. Of the business which is taking place, however, likely highlights are:

• Equal Opportunities hears from Social Justice Minister, Jackie Baillie and Deputy Health Minister, Malcolm Chisholm for its inquiry into travelling people.
• Finance examines the budget reports from other committees.
• Subordinate Legislation looks at delegated powers in the Housing Bill, which has its stage 3 debate the week after the election.
• Justice 1 hears evidence on the regulation of the legal profession, and the proposal for a Human Rights Commission.

SECTION 2 - NEWS

MARKERS IDENTIFIED FOR ALL EXAMS

Sufficient markers have now been identified to ensure that all exam scripts will be marked by qualified and experienced markers, Education Minister, Jack McConnell has confirmed.

He said:

"I am very pleased that on the 1^st of June the focused action taken recently has resolved the marker shortage. I am very grateful to those teachers, lecturers and their employers who have reacted so positively to requests to help. I am also grateful to those SQA staff who have worked hard to recruit markers.

"This is a significant improvement on the position last year and all candidates sitting exams this year can be reassured their papers will be marked to a high standard and on time.

"High quality marking by qualified and experienced teachers will remain a cornerstone of our rigorous external assessment system. That depends crucially on the continued willingness of experienced teachers to act as markers.

"However, it is clear we need to carry out a thorough review of the way markers are recruited. Potential markers should be recruited much earlier, and should be kept better informed of whether they will be required.

"As well as improving recruitment procedures, we are carrying out a thorough review of marker fees. These two actions should ensure that all necessary markers are recruited in good time next year."

Full Story

GARDEN FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND YOUR HEALTH

Deputy Minister for Environment and Rural Development, Rhona Brankin, has urged Scots to take a few simple steps and encourage wildlife into our gardens. She was speaking at the launch of the Garden for Life Initiative which encourages gardeners to enhance the environment whilst reaping health and quality of life rewards from their hobby.

The three year project promotes the introduction of plants which attract wildlife and are kind to the environment. It will be delivered through individual gardeners, community groups and schools as well as through local authorities where it is expected that the local biodiversity officers will provide a focus.

Garden for Life has two core aims:

• To help people enjoy and understand more about Scotland’s biodiversity – the variety of wildlife and places where they live.
• To show how anyone involved in gardening can do something practical to help look after this special natural resource.

Steps the initiative suggests to improve biodiversity include:

• Choosing plants which are attractive to wildlife, as well as providing the benefits of colour, form and scent which gardeners look for.
• Thinking about the other needs of garden wildlife, such as water and shelter.
• Helping the environment through the ways that we look after our gardens, and choosing products and materials which do not damage the environment.

The initiative is a partnership involving Scottish Natural Heritage, the Scottish Executive, Butterfly Conservation, Keep Scotland Beautiful, The National Trust for Scotland, RSPB Scotland, and The Scottish Wildlife Trust.

Full Story

SECTION 3 - NOTES ON THIS WEEK’S CHAMBER BUSINESS

As some of you may have noticed from the odd report in the press, there will be a UK General Election on Thursday. Consequently, the Scottish Parliament has decided not to sit on Polling Day, with all business, including Question Time and First Minister's Question Time, taking place on WEDNESDAY.

The main business of the week is the passing of yet another piece of legislation - the Scottish Local Authorities (Tendering) Bill. Although a very short bill, this debate will be interesting as Parliament will sit as a Committee of the whole house to deal with stage 2 & stage 3 consecutively.

This straightforward bill has a single purpose: to extend the moratorium on Compulsory Competitive Tendering by local authorities. This is achieved by deleting a date – 31^st December 2001 – from the Local Government Act 1988. The extension is to allow the continuing implementation of Best Value.

The only opposition to this bill, which is essentially a technical measure, comes (somewhat unsurprisingly) from the Conservatives. They moved against the general principles at stage 1, arguing that a Best Value replacement should be brought forward at the same time.

For more information, see the Local Government Committee’s Stage 1 Report.

After Question Time and First Minister's Question Time, the week concludes with a Members' Business debate on Prescription Charge Exemption for Severe and Enduring Mental Illness from the SNP's Brian Adam.

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