Whether it will continue to support Easterhouse as the location of the Scottish National Theatre.

Yes. The National Theatre of Scotland remains committed to its homebase at the Bridge in Easterhouse and to maintaining and enhancing its relationship with the community there. The lease on the National Theatre’s other offices in Hope Street in central Glasgow is, however, due to expire in October 2008 and the National Theatre will therefore be seeking to replace those offices during the next year. An independent appraisal of the National Theatre’s accommodation needs concluded that its current accommodation is inadequate for its needs.
The National Theatre therefore commissioned Scottish Enterprise to undertake a site search for suitable accommodation to replace the Hope Street offices. Scottish Enterprise have assessed potential properties against the space requirements and criteria developed in the earlier independent appraisal of the National Theatre’s accommodation needs. The search focused initially on Easterhouse and the east side of Glasgow where a total of 16 properties which met the National Theatre’s space requirements were considered against the criteria. Of these properties, 10 achieved a negative score. The remaining 6 achieved a positive overall score, but none scored positively against all the criteria. Scottish Enterprise therefore suggested that a better match for the National Theatre’s requirements could be found elsewhere and recommended that the search be extended to other areas of urban regeneration in Glasgow. I understand that the National Theatre is currently exploring other options identified by Scottish Enterprise as possible replacements for the Hope Street offices.
None of this will affect the National Theatre’s commitment to their homebase in Easterhouse.