To ask the Scottish Executive how much it expects the UK Film Council to distribute in Scotland in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10, (c) 2010-11, (d) 2011-12 and (e) 2012-13.

Answered by Linda Fabiani (10/12/2008): Scottish Screen has advised that the UK Film Council cannot provide the particular information requested. The UK Film Council provides funding both directly, through targeted funding schemes in areas such as development, production, distribution and exhibition, and indirectly via funded partners such as Skillset and the British Film Institute. In the current financial year, Skillset has awarded £360,911.08 to date in grants to Scotland-based organisations and individuals. In the first nine months of the current financial year £855,818.25 of targeted funding, which is application based, was awarded by the UK Film Council to Scotland.

The UK Film Council announced last year that it had allocated £1.88 million, over three years to 2010-11, to support the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

Scottish Screen and the UK Film Council work together to support the film industry in Scotland, often supporting the same films and projects.

To ask the Scottish Executive how much it expects Creative Scotland to distribute in Scotland in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10, (c) 2010-11, (d) 2011-12 and (e) 2012-13.

Answered by Linda Fabiani (08/12/2008): The total budgets and planned budgets for Creative Scotland proposed to Parliament are £50.2 million in 2008-09, £55.1 million in 2009-10 and £57.5 million in 2010-11. Included in these figures are specific amounts for the Youth Music Initiative (£10 million per year), Cultural Co-ordinators (£2.65 million in 2008-09 and £2.15 million in 2009-10), Arts and Business (£0.4 million each year) and the Edinburgh Festivals Expo fund (£1.308 million in 2008-09, £2.692 million in 2009-10 and £2 million in 2010-11). The budgets include provision for new government priorities such as the Creative Innovation Fund (£2.5 million in each year 2009-10 and 2010-11).

Decisions on more detailed disbursements of Creative Scotland funding are for the Joint Board of the Scottish Arts Council and Scottish Screen, and for Creative Scotland once established, and set out in those organisations'' annual business plans.

Any revisions to Creative Scotland''s budgets each year will be proposed to Parliament in the usual way. Funding levels for Creative Scotland beyond 2010-11 will be announced at the next Government spending review.

To ask the Scottish Executive what strategy is in place to promote the use of the Scots language.

Answered by Linda Fabiani (04/10/2007): As the member forthe West of Scotland will recall, in our pre-election manifesto the Scottish Governmentgave commitments to promote an increased awareness of Scots and its literature,and to actively encourage the use of Scots in education, broadcasting and the arts.

I am currently indiscussion with the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning and theMinister for Schools and Skills about how we may take forward these commitments,but as I said recently at a meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s Education, Lifelong Learningand Culture Committee, I am open to suggestions from individual parliamentarians,committees or cross-party groups on how we may give practical application to ourcommitments.

It may interest themember for West Scotland to know that my colleague Maureen Watt hasaccepted an invitation to attend a meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s Cross-PartyGroup on Scots.