Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-22126

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a detailed explanation of what the process will be for selecting the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland.

The Scottish Government is unable to provide a detailed explanation of the selection process. As a Parliamentary Commissioner, the selection of the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland will be a matter for the Scottish Parliament.

Part 2 of Schedule 1 of the Bill states that the Commissioner will be “appointed by His Majesty on recommendation of the Scottish Parliament”. This process is covered by Rule 3.11 of the Parliament’s Standing Orders. Selection will be carried out by a “selection panel” comprising the Presiding Officer, the convener of the relevant Committee and between 4 and 7 other cross-party MSPs selected by the Presiding Officer. Any member of the selection panel may propose that Parliament nominates the person recommended by the panel.

Question reference: S6W-22121

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its implementation of the short-term recommendations from the Independent Review of Audiology Services in Scotland.

There are a number of recommendations that have been made through the Independent Review of Audiology Services in Scotland, many of which are targeted specifically at Health Boards and other partners, as well as the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government is considering all of the recommendations made. Given the broad scope of the recommendations, and the seriousness of the issues raised, it is important that sufficient time is taken to fully plan how any actions will be taken forward.

We will provide an update to Parliament in due course.

Question reference: S6W-22122

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish all correspondence that it had with the British Dental Association Scotland between 1 October 2022 and 5 October 2023 regarding reform of the dental payment system.

Question reference: S6W-22127

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many of the 46 recommendations in the 2018 report, An Investigative Review into the process of establishing, managing and supporting Independent Reviews in Scotland, have been implemented.

Professor Britton’s 2018 Investigative Review gave 46 recommendations regarding the process of establishing, managing and supporting Independent Reviews in Scotland.

We accepted and agreed with the vast majority of her conclusions and recommendations. The recommendations have already been reflected in a number of inquiries and reviews established in recent years. We are also developing guidance to support inquires and reviews that will build upon Professor Britton’s recommendations and hope to publish that soon. The Scottish Government is also working on a handbook that will clarify and enhance the support that government can offer to independent inquiries.

This work has been fully informed and benefited from Professor Britton’s work and recommendations. All reviews and inquiries in recent years have also benefitted from Professor Britton’s work.

Question reference: S6W-21675

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 September 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 5 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether patients in Scotland can now view their bloodwork online, and, if so, for what reason there was reportedly a significant delay to this happening compared with England and Wales.

In Scotland, we have some instances where test results are available for patients already, including for those remote managing a condition through My Diabetes My Way and Patients Know Best (Renal). Learning from these digital tools will inform the development of the Digital Front Door for Scotland. The Digital Front Door is not currently a live service but will provide people with the ability to access, view and monitor their own information including medical records and test results over time. We expect the Digital Front Door to be available by the end of this parliamentary term.

Question reference: S6O-02558

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken any evaluation of the relative economic benefits of small modular nuclear reactors compared with other forms of energy provision.

Question reference: S6W-20792

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 August 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 19 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the reported announcement by the UK Government in June 2023 of funding for the national roll-out of a targeted lung cancer screening programme across England, what plans it has in place for the roll-out of a national lung cancer screening programme in Scotland.

The Scottish Government has welcomed the recommendation of the UK National Screening Committee (NSC) that the UK nations should move towards implementing a programme of lung screening for those between 55-74 with a history of smoking. However, careful consideration and planning is required given the complexities of rolling out such a programme – the complexities of implementation were acknowledged by the NSC and resulted in the establishment of a four nations expert Lung Task Group.

The Scottish Government has now established a Scottish Expert Advisory Group (SEAG), which will assess the specific challenges and opportunities for a Scottish lung screening programme. The SEAG met for the first time in August, and represents an important first step in ensuring that a Scottish programme is developed with long term sustainability and effectiveness at its heart.

We have also provided funding for LungScot, the University of Edinburgh’s study into the feasibility of targeted lung health checks for high risk individuals. This work will support the considerations of the SEAG.

It is important to note that the complexity of the challenge means a national screening programme will take years rather than months to implement. However, lung cancer remains a national priority, which is why we have a dedicated chapter in our £114.5m National Cancer Plan, and last December we redesigned lung cancer diagnostic services to help ensure patients receive faster access to treatment.

Question reference: S6O-02535

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports of significant issues in transporting prisoners from custody to court.

Question reference: S6O-02501

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 September 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported plans by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to reduce the number of community link workers embedded in GP practices in deprived areas of Glasgow by one third, due to Scottish Government funding cuts.

Question reference: S6O-02479

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 August 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has conducted any analysis of how many deaths on the A9 could have been prevented if it had been fully dualled.