- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 8 April 2024
To ask the Scottish Government whether the M8 Woodside Viaduct repair project will be the largest transport capital project in Glasgow during the coming financial year.
Answer
The M8 Woodside Viaduct is a vital element of Scotland’s motorway network, carrying approximately 150,000 vehicles daily. Installation of the temporary propping system, required to enable permanent repairs, will continue through the 2024-25 financial year. It is anticipated that the project will be Transport Scotland’s largest capital-funded transport project in Glasgow during this period.
Other significant Government-led transport projects in Glasgow in 2024-25 include the East Kilbride rail enhancement project (£54.1m for 2024-25), active travel infrastructure projects and investing in Glasgow’s City Region Deal. This response does not consider projects by other authorities e.g. Glasgow City Council.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 5 April 2024
To ask the Scottish Government whether the submissions to the Wolfson Economics Prize 2021, in response to the problem question, "How would you design and plan new hospitals to radically improve patient experiences, clinical outcomes, staff wellbeing, and integration with wider health and social care?", have influenced Scottish Government policy on the design of healthcare facilities.
Answer
Scottish Government policy for design quality in healthcare (DL(2010)19) looks to ensure that these elements are considered by designers and NHS Boards. This is assessed by the NHSScotland Design Assessment Process (NDAP) provided by NHSScotland Assure in conjunction with Architecture and Design Scotland (A&DS) is the vehicle for assessing design quality in NHSScotland Capital funded healthcare facilities developments and is an integral part of the Business Case process. The NDAP, along with the Sustainable Design and Construction (SDaC) requirements, ensures that a well rounded and measured assessment is made of the requirements of the objectives of each project they review.
This Wolfson Economics Prize competition of 2021 provided numerous innovative submissions in response to the problem question. Each of the runners up and the winner of the prize provided interesting responses to specific strands of healthcare design. The main themes featured in the Wolfson Economic Prize finalists are embeded in the NDAP and SDaC process to ensure sustainable, Person Centred Care.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 27 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government whether it can request that Police Scotland introduces biodegradable barrier tape to mitigate littering of the environment.
Answer
The potential use of biodegradable barrier tape is an operational policing matter for Police Scotland. The Police Scotland Environmental Strategy 2021 sets out the context, pathway and implementation plan for reduction of energy, resource and carbon across the organisation.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 26 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will increase (a) enforcement action and (b) maximum fines to be levied on any road works authorities and undertakers that fail to reinstate street surfaces and associated streetscape to the original standard within the six-month statutory requirement, particularly in cases that scar or damage high-quality municipal public realm surfaces, such as granite paving.
Answer
In 2019 the Scottish Government instituted a period of legal reform for the framework underpinning Scottish road works, expanding and strengthening the range of existing powers roads authorities have.
Since 2023 Scottish Ministers have taken action on enforcement powers, through empowering roads authorities by endorsing a new Code of Practice for reinstatement, which introduced a UK leading six year guarantee for utility works. We have committed to a review of road works Fixed Penalty Notices (the fines to be levied), due to start in 2024.
Authorities already have an existing power to undertake any outstanding work directly and recharge all costs, should the utility fail to act. These are all discretionary powers, and it is for each roads authority to determine whether it is appropriate to use those powers in each situation.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 26 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the fluoride varnish aspect of the Childsmile programme, and whether it plans to continue with this element of the scheme.
Answer
Specific evaluations of the Childsmile programme are undertaken by the University of Glasgow. Publications can be viewed online at https://www.gla.ac.uk/ .
More broadly, the National Dental Inspection Programme (NDIP) monitors the general oral health of children in Scotland. The latest NDIP statistics published in October 2023 showed that 82% of P7 children have no obvious decay, compared with 53% in 2005. In addition, the difference in the percentage of children with no obvious decay in the most and least deprived areas decreased from 26.3 percentage points in 2009 to 16.1 percentage points in 2023.
This shows the success of our flagship Childsmile Programme. Fluoride varnish is a key element of Childsmile and there are no plans to remove this aspect of the programme.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 26 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to a supplementary to question S6O-03191 by Jenni Minto on 13 March 2024, whether the ADHD medication, lisdexamfetamine, may be considered a specialist medicine so that NHS National Services Scotland could potentially explore alternative procurement options within devolved competence through its national procurement service.
Answer
The Scottish Government has no plans to designate lisdexamfetamine (Elvanse ® ) as a specialist medicine or to explore options for commissioning the direct procurement of this medicine through National Services Scotland’s NHS National Procurement.
Manufacturing issues and increased global demand are the main reasons for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medicine supply issues and as such it is unlikely that a central procurement of lisdexamfetamine (Elvanse ® ) or of any other ADHD medicine would offer an effective solution. This is anticipated to be a short term problem.
The regulatory powers on the supply of medicines, are reserved to the UK Government and the Department of Health and Social Care’s Medicines Supply Team are co-ordinating the shortage of ADHD medicines at a UK level. Advice has been issued to healthcare professionals including on the availability of unlicensed imports. In addition, the UK Government has added lisdexamfetamine (Elvanse ® ) to the restricted medicines lists – which means it cannot be exported out of the UK.
The Scottish Government recognises the impact of these global shortages on people living with ADHD and their families. Scottish Government officials continue to engage with the UK Government on this supply issue and other shortages. NHS Scotland has robust systems in place to manage medicine shortages when they arise. Anyone affected by this issue should speak to their clinical team.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 26 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what criteria dental providers must meet to benefit from the Scottish Dental Access Initiative.
Answer
In order to receive a grant under the Scottish Dental Access Initiative, prospective applicants must set out their intention to i) establish a new practice or ii) extend an existing practice within designated geographical areas. Designated areas are defined by Scottish Government with reference to overall availability of General Dental Services. Once granted, SDAI funding is monitored to ensure ongoing compliance with a number of conditions which the grantee agrees to when signing the grant offer letter. These include.
- Maintaining the number of NHS patient registrations at the time of offer of the grant (if purchasing or extending an existing practice);
- Registering, or causing to be registered, at least 1,500 NHS patients per grant-aided surgery, and;
- At least 80 per cent of the practice’s income should derive from General Dental Services.
For further information on all the areas included in the grant and for all other listed conditions, please see attached link here: https://www.scottishdental.nhs.scot/nhs-pcad20232-revised-scottish-dental-access-initiative-25-april-2023/
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 26 March 2024
To as the Scottish Government, further to the financial incentives for dentists to open new practices in remote and rural areas, what support is available for dentists who are already operating in remote and rural areas.
Answer
Dentists operating in rural areas can also apply to the remote areas allowance. The allowance is calculated on their proportion of NHS earnings to total earnings and therefore can be awarded up to £9000 per year. Other allowances are available for dentists as available in the Statement of Dental Remuneration.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 March 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 26 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the response by the Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy to the question on a competitive shipbuilding financing guarantee programme during the ministerial statement on Ferguson Marine on 5 March 2024, whether it will provide a substantive response regarding whether it will introduce a competitive shipbuilding financing guarantee programme in Scotland, similar to that of the Turkish national investment bank, Türk Eximbank.
Answer
The UK Government introduced the Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme in July 2023.
The scheme provides a partial guarantee to a lender making a loan to a ship-buyer or operator, so that new vessels, or refits, retrofits or repairs of existing vessels can be procured from UK shipyards.
It can provide partial guarantees covering up to 80% of the risk to lenders for a maximum repayment period of up to 12 years.
The scheme is in its infancy, and it would be prudent to evaluate its impact in time before considering any potential alternative schemes in Scotland.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 25 March 2024
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 28 March 2024
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government is doing to expedite the restoration of the Glasgow School of Art, in light of it being nearly a decade since the first fire.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 28 March 2024
