Questions and answers

Question reference: S6O-01293

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what actions it is taking to support the establishment of more publicly-owned bus services.

Question reference: S6W-08752

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Birthrights report, Systemic racism, not broken bodies, on racial injustice and human rights in UK maternity care.

The Scottish Government welcomes the publication of Birthright’s report - Systemic Racism, not Broken Bodies , published on 23 May 2022 - and we are considering its findings carefully, alongside the actions and recommendations from all audit reports and the MBRRACE-UK confidential enquiries. Our expectation remains clear: that mothers and babies receive high-quality, person-centred maternity care, tailored to their needs, with quality and safety central to decision-making.

We are participating in the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists’ Race Equality Taskforce . The Scottish Government’s Senior Medical Officer for Maternity and Women’s Health is a member of the Taskforce, which will make recommendations for actions in maternity services to tackle the inequity in outcomes for pregnant women and babies from minority ethnic communities.

Question reference: S6W-08716

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider standardising testing for coeliac disease by encouraging local audits of blood tests against endoscopies and biopsies.

Question reference: S6W-08717

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the demand on endoscopy services to diagnose coeliac disease.

The Scottish Government remains committed to enhancing diagnosis and care for people with coeliac disease in Scotland. We have developed a Scottish Coeliac Disease Pathway (2020) in partnership with people living with the condition, the charity Coeliac UK and clinicians. This has been shown to accelerate correct diagnosis and access to appropriate treatment (gluten-free diet and lifestyle) as detailed in the Coeliac Disease Pathway Report . It is our expectation that all Health Boards will fully implement this pathway.

We have also invested £70 million in support of our Endoscopy and Urology Diagnostic Recovery and Renewal Plan . This includes a commitment to promote and implement guidelines for non-biopsy diagnosis for coeliac disease, which is expected to reduce waiting times for diagnosis for this condition. This plan will be overseen by the Endoscopy and Urology Diagnostic Elective Care Group (EUDECG) with representation from all key stakeholders to support delivery, including NHS Boards and Endoscopy units across the country.

Question reference: S6W-08821

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to FIVEXMORE's Black Maternity Experiences Survey, in particular the finding that 43% of respondents reported feeling discriminated against during their maternity care.

The Scottish Government welcomes the publication of FIVEXMORE’s [The] Black Maternity Experiences Survey – a Nationwide Study of Black Women’s Experiences of Maternity Services in the United Kingdom , published on 24 May 2022, and we are considering its findings carefully, alongside the actions and recommendations from all audit reports and the MBRRACE-UK confidential enquiries. Our expectation remains clear: that mothers and babies receive high-quality, person-centred maternity care at all times, tailored to their needs, with quality and safety central to decision-making.

We are participating in the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists’ Race Equality Taskforce . The Scottish Government’s Senior Medical Officer for Maternity and Women’s Health is a member of the Taskforce, which will make recommendations for actions in maternity services to tackle the inequity in outcomes for pregnant women and babies from minority ethnic communities.

Question reference: S6F-01175

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2022

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the finding of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine report, Beds in the NHS, that, since 2010, 4,227 hospital beds have been taken out of active service in NHS Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-01166

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Scottish Funding Council in light of the reported ongoing governance concerns at South Lanarkshire College.

Question reference: S6O-01135

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how Historic Environment Scotland ensures that communities are adequately consulted when considering whether a building should be listed.

Question reference: S6W-08003

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 11 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether the next Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey or equivalent will (a) gather and (b) publish data about (i) the use of and (ii) attitudes towards vaping products and e-cigarettes.

There are currently no plans to recommission the Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Attitude Survey (SALSUS).Over the past 4 years, the Scottish Government has been working with local authorities in developing a Health and Wellbeing Census.This Census is currently underway in Scottish schools and contains some key, high-level data which were previously collected in SALSUS.This includes questions on e-cigarettes, with both S2 and S4 pupils being asked about their frequency of use of these products. An additional question on usage and where these products were purchased is also asked of S4 pupils.

Results from the 2021-22 HWC are expected to be published towards the end of 2022.

Question reference: S6W-08004

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 10 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many people aged under 18 are recorded as having been supplied with vaping products in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.

Enforcement of legislation around the sale and purchase of NVP's is carried out by Local Authorities as part of the ETSEP (Enhanced Tobacco (and NVP) Sales Enforcement Programme) overseen by The Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland (SCOTSS), and funded by the Scottish Government. These activities in relation to this are reported annually to the Scottish Government with figures provided on a national basis.

The following table shows verified sales of NVPs to under 18s, following test purchase failures during trading standards activity over the past five financial years.

Financial Year	17-18	18-19	19-20	20-21	21-22
Aberdeen	1	5	7		1
Aberdeenshire		2
Angus	1	9	1
Argyll & Bute	1		1
City of Edinburgh		6	4
Clackmannanshire	0	0	0	0	0
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	0	0	0	0	0
Dumfries & Galloway	0	0	0	0	0
Dundee City		4	1
East Ayrshire		1
East Dumbarton			2
East Lothian	0	0	0	0	0
East Renfrewshire	0	0	0	0	0
Falkirk	0	0	0	0	0
Fife		5
Glasgow City	19	14	11
Highland			2
Inverclyde		2	2
Midlothian	0	0	0	0	0
Moray	2		1		2
North Ayrshire	9		7
North Lanarkshire	7	8	5		6
Orkney	0	0	0	0	0
Perth & Kinross	0	0	0	0	0
Renfrewshire	0	0	0	0	0
Scottish Borders					1
Shetland	0	0	0	0	0
South Ayrshire	1	0	0	0	0
South Lanarkshire	0	0	0	0	0
Stirling [and Clackmannan]	0	0	0	0	0
West Dunbartonshire	0	0	0	0	0
West Lothian	0	0	0	0	0

Chamber and committees