$Unique_ID{COW00534} $Pretitle{405} $Title{United Kingdom The Financial Sector} $Subtitle{} $Author{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC} $Affiliation{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC} $Subject{scotland services scottish local health social areas new housing planning} $Date{1990} $Log{Glasgow Garden Festival, 1988*0053401.scf } Country: United Kingdom Book: Scotland Author: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC Affiliation: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC Date: 1990 The Financial Sector [See Glasgow Garden Festival, 1988: Courtesy Embassy of the United Kingdom, New York.] The financial services industry is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the Scottish economy, increasingly attracting investment from overseas, and playing an important part in the regeneration of Scottish enterprise. Scotland's financial institutions have a high reputation internationally, and in a range of services - for example, investment trusts, branch banking, and unit trusts - Scotland has been a pioneer. About one-third of all investment funds in Britain are managed from Scotland, which is also a base for a large number of insurance companies. Edinburgh is regarded as the country's financial centre, and the headquarters of many financial institutions are located there, but Glasgow too has important commercial and banking facilities. There are three Scottish clearing banks: the Bank of Scotland, founded in 1695; the Royal Bank of Scotland, founded in 1727; and the Clydesdale Bank, founded in 1838. While forming an integral part of the British monetary system, these banks have full powers of independent action and have limited rights to issue their own banknotes, which are accepted by banks throughout Britain. The Scottish banks have led with the introduction of new banking technology in Britain, and the Bank of Scotland is participating in the operation of Homelink, an electronic banking service for the home. The banks have offices in London and are also represented overseas, particularly in the United States and the Far East. The Royal Bank of Scotland operates throughout Great Britain. The greatly increased demand for capital generated by offshore oil exploration and exploitation provided a new opportunity for Scottish financial institutions and led to the establishment of a number of indigenous merchant banks. Both they and the clearing banks have invested substantially in North Sea oil and gas and have collaborated in ventures related to oil development. The Scottish Stock Exchange now forms part of a single system throughout Britain known as the International Stock Exchange. There are also centres in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Transport and Communications Transport As in the rest of Britain, car ownership has increased, and in 1985, 53 per cent of households had the regular use of a car, 12 per cent having the use of two or more cars. In 1986 there were over 1.5 million vehicles, including 1.2 million cars (243 per 1,000 population). There are 50,750 km (31,500 miles) of publicly maintained roads in Scotland, of which about 3,130 km (1,940 miles) are trunk roads or motorways. The three main motorways are the M8 Edinburgh-Glasgow-Greenock, the M9 Edinburgh-Stirling and the M90 Forth Road Bridge-Perth. These motorways, together with a good dual carriageway system, link the main industrial areas in central and eastern Scotland with each other. A major priority is the reconstruction of much of the A75 trunk road linking the Northern Ireland ferry ports of Stranraer and Cairnryan with the national motorway system. Further improvements to the motorway and trunk road network are planned, notably upgrading the A74 trunk road (which runs between Glasgow and Carlisle) to motorway standard. The three main estuaries of central Scotland - those of the Clyde, Forth and Tay - are spanned by road bridges, the last two of which are among the largest in Europe. Construction, improvement and maintenance of motorways and trunk roads are financed by the Government: other roads are the responsibility of regional and islands councils. The Transport Act 1985 abolished the system of regulation and state control of bus services. Initial indications are that, while the level of bus services has been generally maintained, many local authorities have achieved substantial savings in subsidies to public transport. There has been a considerable increase in minibus services in towns and cities. The Transport (Scotland) Bill would provide for the privatisation of the Scottish Bus Group, which is responsible for main bus services outside the major cities, and for the transfer of ownership of Caledonian Macbrayne, which runs ferries to the islands off the west coast, from the nationalised Scottish Transport Group to the Secretary of State. The Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive operates local bus services and an underground railway in Glasgow, and acts as the Regional Council's transport policy adviser throughout the Strathclyde area. In some of the less-populated rural areas there are post-bus services combining mail deliveries with facilities for passengers. The Scottish Region of British Rail operates some 4,900 km (3,100 miles) of track throughout much of Scotland. InterCity 125 trains - the world's fastest diesel trains - link Scotland with London (the journey time from Edinburgh to London is now under 5 hours) and other main cities in England and Wales, and a scheme to electrify the main line between London and Edinburgh is in progress, with completion expected by 1991. An 80 million Pounds scheme to electrify services between Glasgow and Ayr, with a branch to Ardrossan, was completed in 1986. Commuter services operate between Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee. A Motorail network allows cars to be transported long distance by train, and freight services by rail are run on behalf of individual firms on scheduled timings, although freight traffic has declined considerably in recent years. Scottish ports provide direct container and conventional services to over 100 countries. East-coast ports trade chiefly with the rest of Europe while west-coast trade is dominated by North America and other deep-sea trading areas. The most extensive port complexes are those on the Clyde and the Forth. The Clyde complex, Clydeport, combines the facilities of Glasgow and Greenock, the deep-water oil terminal at Finnart on Loch Long, the coastal port of Ardrossan and an iron-ore terminal at Hunterston (opened in 1979 and one of the world's finest deep-water harbours). On the Forth there are facilities at Grangemouth, Leith and Granton on the southern side of the Firth and at Burntisland, Kirkcaldy and Methil on the northern side. Cargo traffic on the Forth has increased (from 8.3 million tonnes in 1970 to 30 million tonnes in 1987), much of it related to offshore oil and gas. The first purpose-built terminal for oil from the British sector of the North Sea was completed at Hound Point on the Forth in 1975. The port of Stranraer handles most of the traffic to and from Ireland. Other major port developments undertaken to handle traffic generated by offshore oil and gas include the terminals at Flotta and Sullom Voe. Three of the four jetties at Sullom Voe can handle tankers of up to 350,000 dead-weight tons, and the fourth jetty handles the export of liquified petroleum gases, accommodating vessels with a capacity of up to 75,000 cubic metres. A 54 million Pounds terminal at Braefoot Bay in the Firth of Forth handles tankers carrying natural gas liquids brought from the plant at Mossmorran (Fife). Supply bases for offshore vessels have been built at Leith, Dundee, Montrose, Aberdeen, Peterhead and Lerwick. Passenger and freight services are operated to all the island groups with roll-on/roll-off ferries on most routes. The principal inland waterways open to navigation are the Caledonian Canal, from Fort William to Inverness, and the Crinan Canal through the Mull of Kintyre. Although both are used by fishing and commercial craft, their main use is by pleasure yachts. With the improvement and extension of facilities at Scottish airports (many of these also attributable to oil business), passenger and freight traffic has grown rapidly. Services include direct intercontinental flights; short- and medium-haul flights between Scotland and other parts of Britain, with continental European and other international connections; and local flights to and from the islands. Services are operated by a number of airlines including British Airways, British Midland Airways and Loganair. The main airports are at Glasgow, Edinburgh, Prestwick and Aberdeen, all of which are owned and managed by Scottish Airports Ltd (a subsidiary of BAA plc). Sumburgh airport in Shetland and seven smaller airfields in the Highlands and Islands are controlled by a public body, Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd. In 1986 Scottish airports handled over 7.2 million passengers, of whom 3.1 million passed through Glasgow, 1.6 million through Edinburgh, and 1.5 million through Aberdeen. Communications The telecommunications services sector is one of the fastest-expanding areas of the economy. Following the Telecommunications Act 1984, British Telecom's exclusive privilege of running public telecommunications systems was removed, and Mercury Communications Ltd (a subsidiary of Cable and Wireless plc) was licensed as the second national fixed-link operator. Edinburgh and Glasgow are connected by optical fibre to Mercury Communications' national trunk telecommunications network, and in Edinburgh a local optical fibre network has been installed to enable residents to benefit from direct connection to the national trunk cable. Environment Planning, Housing and New Towns Planning The system of land use planning in Scotland provides a two-tier framework. Structure plans identify broad strategic objectives and are the responsibility of regional and islands councils; they must be formally approved by the Secretary of State for Scotland. Local plans deal with detailed planning on a local basis and are, with some exceptions, looked after by district councils; provided they do not conflict with the objects of the relevant structure plan or involve issues of national importance, they may be implemented without reference to the Secretary of State. An application for planning permission must be made for most kinds of development, other than minor changes such as small alterations to dwelling houses; in enterprise zones, or 'simplified planning zones' (set up under the Housing and Planning Act 1986), advance planning permission is given for specified types of development. There is provision for appeals against decisions of the planning authority and for public inquiries by a small staff of inquiry reporters who are part of the Scottish Office. Housing Scotland's housing stock in 1987 amounted to just over 2 million dwellings, over 100,000 more than the number of households. Since 1981 the rate of private housebuilding has been increasing, while in the public sector the emphasis has shifted from new building to modernisation and improvement, and particularly to the regeneration of large housing estates in urban areas. Home ownership is increasing but, at 43 per cent, is lower than in other areas of Britain, while the proportion of public sector dwellings, rented from local authorities, Scottish Homes and new towns, at 48 per cent, is higher. Under the Tenants Rights etc (Scotland) Act 1980, public sector tenants have security of tenure and are entitled, subject to the satisfaction of certain basic qualifying conditions, to buy their homes on favourable terms. Up to the end of 1987 about 78,000 local authority houses had been sold to sitting tenants since the introduction of the Act. The Housing (Scotland) Act 1988 provides for tenants of certain public sector landlords to transfer, with their existing homes, to a new landlord. This Act has also stimulated the development of more choice in housing by establishing a new housing development agency for Scotland, incorporating the former Housing Corporation in Scotland and the Scottish Special Housing Association. The agency, Scottish Homes, can both provide financial assistance to housing associations and others, and own and manage housing. Voluntary non-profit-making housing associations and societies registered with Scottish Homes extend the choice of housing by providing rented accommodation in new or rehabilitated properties; many cater for the needs of groups such as elderly or disabled people as well as ordinary families. Home improvement grants are available for the modernisation, improvement and repair of substandard houses and for the provision of basic amenities. Local authorities also receive special help, through the Government's urban programme, in tackling urban deprivation. In 1988-89, 44 million Pounds is being spent under this programme on a wide range of projects from social work support to community centres and recreational facilities. For major urban renewal schemes (see p 14) which tackle both economic and social problems, local authorities have support from Scottish Homes, the Training Agency and the National Health Service as well as from central government and the Scottish Development Agency. In 1988 the Government launched four major new initiatives to regenerate the large housing estates on the outskirts of Glasgow, Paisley, Edinburgh and Dundee. New Towns One of the most successful achievements of British planning since 1946 has been the erection of new towns. In Scotland there are five new towns (Cumbernauld, East Kilbride, Glenrothes, Irvine and Livingston), all in the central belt. As well as providing centres for new industry and contributing to the rehabilitation of areas where traditional industries were declining, one of the new towns' major original functions was the re-housing of families from the overcrowded older areas of central Glasgow. As this has been achieved, their primary function is to attract industry and associated employment to their areas and stimulate economic development; some 80 per cent of companies that set up in Scotland choose to do so in new towns. All the towns are strategically placed for access to other industrial centres in Scotland and to ports, container terminals and airports, and their links by road and rail networks have been extended and improved. All are well provided with educational, social and recreational facilities and are designed to provide a harmonious environment for living and working. The combined populations of the new towns amount to some 256,000, and more than 92,000 houses have been provided. The new towns have proved particularly attractive to overseas firms, mainly from North America, but also from the rest of Europe, Japan and Australia. There is a wide range of industrial activity, with particular emphasis on modern technological developments, including computers, electrical and electronic appliances and microelectronic products, as well as light engineering and consumer products such as vehicles, furniture, food and clothing. East Kilbride accommodates the National Engineering Laboratory; Glenrothes is a centre for electronic research; Livingston has become a focal point for industrial research and development; Irvine has developed as a leisure centre; and Cumbernauld, with its excellent communication links, is proving attractive to service industries. The Government is at present engaged on a review of the future of the new towns, in consultation with their development corporations and other bodies (see Reading List, p 42). Conservation and Wildlife The natural beauty of Scotland's rugged and mountainous landscape is enjoyed in increasing numbers by local people and tourists, and conservation has become a matter of considerable public concern, as elsewhere in Britain. Statutory and voluntary organisations co-operate to protect the countryside from inappropriate development, to preserve historic buildings and monuments and safeguard wildlife and natural habitats. The Nature Conservancy Council, established by the Government in 1973 as the successor to the Nature Conservancy, is the statutory body which promotes nature conservation in Great Britain. It gives advice to government and all those whose activities affect wildlife and wild places. It also selects and manages a series of national Nature Reserves, of which there are 68 in Scotland, and identifies Sites of Special Scientific Interest (1,133 in Scotland). The statutory body responsible for advising on landscape conservation and countryside recreation in Scotland is the Countryside Commission for Scotland, set up by the Government under the Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967, with wide-ranging responsibilities for the conservation of Scotland's landscape and for developing provision for its enjoyment. Although there are no national parks in Scotland, four regional parks and 40 'national scenic areas' have been designated, covering a total of 13 per cent of the country's land surface; they are subject to special planning arrangements under the supervision of the Secretary of State. Five farming areas have been designated as `environmentally sensitive areas', and conservation of the environment is also a high priority of the Forestry Commission (see p 15). Four of the seven forest parks in Great Britain lie within Scotland's boundaries and a fifth spans the border between Scotland and England. Local authorities and a variety of amenity organisations are concerned with the conservation of historic buildings. Under the provisions of planning law, buildings of special architectural or historic interest are listed and may not be demolished or altered without planning consent; there are over 35,000 listed buildings in Scotland. There is also provision for the designation by local authorities of `conservation areas' of special architectural or historic interest. Grants are available for the repair and restoration of historic buildings and for the enhancement of listed buildings and conservation areas. Central government grants are made on the advice of the Historic Buildings Council for Scotland. Scotland's countryside contains a rich variety of wildlife, some species not being known elsewhere in Britain. Wild animals found in Scotland include the pine marten, wild cat, mountain hare, red squirrel, roe deer and red deer. Bird species include the ptarmigan, golden eagle, osprey, capercaillie, red grouse and black grouse. Nature reserves, bird sanctuaries and other designated areas provide opportunities for the protection and study of some of the rarer fauna and flora. Among voluntary organisations concerned with conservation, the National Trust for Scotland, founded in 1931, has the statutory duty of promoting the care of fine buildings, historic places and beautiful countryside. It owns or cares for some of the most outstanding scenery and buildings in the country, with more than 100 properties, including castles and other historic buildings and sites, gardens, islands and areas of mountainous country. The Trust negotiates conservation agreements with landlords and has made special efforts to protect unspoiled coastline, particularly in areas under pressure from oil-related or similar development. Other bodies concerned with conservation, wildlife and environmental issues in Scotland include the Scottish Civic Trust, the Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland, the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, the Saltire Society (which, among other activities, makes awards for the restoration of buildings of special architectural merit), the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Social Welfare Health Services In 1948 comprehensive National Health Service was introduced in Scotland, similar to the service adopted for the rest of Britain, but with some differences in the details of administration. Central responsibility lies with the Secretary of State for Scotland, who acts through the Scottish Home and Health Department and is advised on the planning and development of the health service by the Scottish Health Service Planning Council, whose role and functions are currently under review. Responsibility for the provision of most of the services is delegated to 15 Health Boards, each in charge of an area. The Boards co-operate closely with local authorities responsible for social work and environmental and other services. In recent years priority has been given to preventive medicine and to caring for people in the community rather than in institutions, and there have been substantial increases in primary health care staff. Health authority expenditure is financed mainly from general taxation. Most medical treatment under the National Health Service is free to patients, though there are set charges for dental and ophthalmic services (with exemptions for certain categories of patient, such as children and expectant mothers). General medical, dental and ophthalmic services outside the hospitals are provided by independent practitioners. The major teaching hospitals in the cities provide specialised treatment for surrounding areas. A Common Services Agency handles those services which are most efficiently organised on an all-Scotland basis, including ambulance and blood transfusion services, the design and management of major building projects, health education, and management and information services, including computers. The great majority of all cases of illness are dealt with solely by general medical practitioners, most of whom are in the National Health Service and under contract to provide a full range of primary medical care. On average, each general practitioner has about 1,620 patients on his or her list. In the sparsely populated Highlands and Islands arrangements are made to ensure that everyone has a family doctor available reasonably close at hand. There were some 3,300 doctors in practice in 1987. Many doctors work in partnerships or group practices, often as members of a health care team which may also include health visitors, district nurses, midwives and social workers. The team may be based in one of the 213 health centres in Scotland, which provide purpose-built and well-equipped surgeries for a range of health services. Treatment for mentally handicapped people is increasingly taking the form of care in the community and the provision of day hospital facilities. These are also developed for medical care elderly people, and, by 1987, 56 day hospitals under the care of specialists in geriatrics provided 960 places for elderly patients. There are over 300 hospitals in the Scottish health service, with a total of about 55,000 beds and employing some 5,000 doctors. Buildings range from small cottage hospitals in the rural areas to major teaching complexes in the cities, linked with universities. Since 1979, 54 major health building schemes have been completed, providing over 6,200 beds, and a further 32 schemes are under development. Scotland has a long-established reputation in the field of medical education and research, and about 550 doctors graduate annually from Scottish medical schools. The Scottish Hospital Advisory Service provides information and advice on the management of mental and geriatric hospitals. The Scottish Ambulance Service includes an Air Ambulance Service to carry patients from the Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland and from the more remote parts of the mainland to the larger hospital centres. Health education is the responsibility of the Scottish Health Education Group, which provides training and materials on health education and runs publicity campaigns designed to inform the public about good health practice and hazards such as smoking, alcoholism, drug misuse and AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). Social Services An important area of local authority responsibility in Scotland is that of social welfare, and in recent years there has been increasing demand for services for the most vulnerable members of the community, including elderly people, children in need of care, and people with mental illness or with physical or mental handicap. Each local authority's social services are organised under a single social work department, so that individuals, families or groups with a number of separate needs or problems may turn to a single source for help and guidance. The Secretary of State has general responsibility for the oversight of the social work services provided by local authorities and independent bodies and is assisted by the Social Work Services Group of the Scottish Education Department, which undertakes a range of duties in connection with research and training, financial assistance to voluntary organisations and certain other matters. Social work training in Scotland is accredited by the Central Council for Education and Training, a British body, and courses are provided to degree level and beyond. Local authority social workers have close links with the National Health Service (there are over 470 social workers in hospital social work units), with the police, with the housing, planning and education departments of local authorities, and with the many statutory and voluntary bodies. Services offered increasingly reflect the emphasis on caring in the community rather than institutional provision, and are wide-ranging: child care and supervision; care of elderly people and those with a physical handicap; facilities for mentally ill and mentally disabled people; community service by offenders; probation and the after-care of prisoners; work in hospitals; and the social welfare of the community. Closely linked with local authority social work departments is the system of children's hearings, which in Scotland replaced juvenile courts (see p 9). All children up to the age of 16 who are in need of compulsory care (other than those who have committed very serious offences) fall within the scope of the hearings system, and most are allowed to remain at home under the supervision of a social worker. There are some 60 intermediate treatment centres where children in trouble may be helped within their own environment and without the need for residential care. For certain children considered by a children's hearing to require compulsory residential care there are about 18 schools mainly run by voluntary bodies. Children taken into care for other reasons are accommodated in some 260 residential homes, most of which are supervised by local authorities. Local authorities and voluntary bodies continue to develop their services for elderly people living in their own homes, including the provision of home helps and `meals on wheels' (hot midday meals brought by van). Residential care is available in 270 local authority and 233 registered voluntary homes, with a total of more than 16,000 places. There are day-care centres and recreational, social and lunch clubs for the elderly. Services, other than medical, for physically and mentally disabled people include residential homes and day-care centres run by local authorities or voluntary organisations. Local authorities also undertake the adaptation of houses to make them suitable for occupation by disabled people - for example, by the installation of ground-floor toilets, or ramps for wheelchairs. Social work departments are responsible for administering community service by offenders, for the supervision of people placed on probation by the courts, and for giving advice and assistance to those released from penal detention.