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: S4W-20093

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 25 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether (a) other public sector workers and (b) Police Scotland employees will be afforded the same protections in relation to whistleblowing as NHS staff.

The Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA) 1998 amended the Employment Rights Act 1996 and gives all workers who raise genuine whistleblowing concerns protection from detriment by any act or any deliberate failure to act by their employer.

There are robust protections for whistleblowers in NHSScotland. The Scottish Government and NHSScotland continue to work together to make sure that staff are protected when raising concerns.

It is for individual public bodies, as employers, to develop appropriate policies to support whistleblowing and to enhance existing legal protections afforded to their staff.

Question reference: S4W-20099

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 21 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government how many schools are involved in the Pathways process for looked after children.

The Scottish Government does not keep statistics on how many schools are involved in the Pathways process for looked after children.

The Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill defines who will be corporate parents, including schools and their duties in respect of looked after children and care leavers. Guidance on corporate parenting will be written after consultation with stakeholders and interested parties. Moreover, the Scottish Government continues to fund Who Cares? Scotland to provide corporate parenting training to local authorities and elected members.

Local authorities will be responsible for preparing and publishing a plan for how they propose to exercise their corporate parenting responsibilities. This should include how school and other agencies will work together to meet the interests of the young people in their care including support through a young person’s pathways journey.

Question reference: S4W-20100

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 21 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government which schools in North Lanarkshire are involved in the Pathways process for looked after children.

The Scottish Government does not keep statistics on the number of schools in North Lanarkshire involved in the Pathways process for looked after children.

The Supporting Young People Leaving Care in Scotland Regulations and Guidance 2003 sets out local authorities responsibilities in respect of looked after children leaving care and states that social work departments and education should work together to meet the interests of young people. All schools who have a corporate parenting responsibility for looked after children leaving care could be involved in the Pathways process.

Question reference: S4W-20092

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 20 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government when protections will be put in place to protect NHS whistleblowers.

Robust protections for NHSScotland whistleblowers are already in place.

Each health board has a whistleblowing policy based on the national model Implementing and Reviewing Whistleblowing Arrangements in NHSScotland PIN Policy, published in December 2011. This encourages and supports staff to raise any concerns they may have about practices in the NHS, and sets out minimum requirements for local policies, including the protection afforded under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 to those employees and ex-employees who raise a genuine whistleblowing concern.

Additionally, in April 2013, the Scottish Government introduced the NHSScotland confidential alert line. This service, run by an independent whistleblowing charity, provides a safe space where staff, who feel they may be victimised as a result of whistleblowing, can raise concerns about patient safety and malpractice and, where appropriate, have these concerns passed to the health board or appropriate regulatory body on their behalf.

This service is currently being reviewed and an announcement on the future of the service will be made shortly.

Question reference: S4W-20094

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 20 March 2014

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that any public sector worker's correct reporting of inappropriate conduct by their employer should be protected in the same way that NHS whistleblowers are to be protected.

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 amended the Employment Rights Act 1996 and gives all workers who raise genuine whistleblowing concerns protection from detriment by any act or any deliberate failure to act by their employer.

There are robust protections for whistleblowers in NHSScotland. The Scottish Government and NHSScotland continue to work together to make sure that staff are protected when raising concerns.

It is for individual public bodies, as employers, to develop appropriate policies to support whistleblowing and to enhance existing legal protections afforded to their staff.

Question reference: S4W-19688

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 10 February 2014
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 28 February 2014

To ask the Scottish Government when the Scottish Crime Campus at Gartcosh in Coatbridge and Chryston will be operational.

Question reference: S4O-02798

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 January 2014
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 January 2014

To ask the Scottish Government what importance it places on the provision of low vision aids.

Question reference: S4W-17861

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 October 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 12 November 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on reports that it has not considered over 4,000 responses to the consultation on the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill and whether it will provide an analysis of these responses to the Equal Opportunities Committee prior to it completing its stage 1 report.

We have written to the Equal Opportunities Committee about this matter. Our letter is available on the Parliament’s website at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_EqualOpportunitiesCommittee/General%20Documents/13-10-11_SG__MCPBill.pdf

We have advised Scotland for Marriage that the problem appears to stem from a technical error in their email system. We have consistently told them that we are prepared to consider any points not already drawn to our attention.

Question reference: S4W-17380

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 7 October 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how the £9.9 million reduction in the Clean Hospitals/MRSA Screening Programme budget in the 2014–15 draft budget will affect NHS patients; what the reason is for the reduction, and how it will affect hospitals in Lanarkshire.

This budget reflects a rolling programme, where a number of major investments have already been made to embed good practice across NHS boards, as demonstrated by the very significant reductions in cases of healthcare associated infection (HAI) that have been achieved in recent years.

As a result, direct funding is not needed on practices that are now embedded and already in place. For example, the Scottish Government provided £6.9 million to NHS boards in 2011-12 to support the transition to the new national MRSA screening practice, and a further £2 million in 2012-13 to ensure the practice was embedded sustainably across NHS Scotland as “business as usual”. There is absolutely no suggestion that MRSA screening has become any less important. It remains a key component of the widespread work to reduce hospital infections which takes place on a daily basis across Scotland.

We have also invested substantially (£5.8 million between 2011-13) in research into HAIs. This money is now in place and will support a range of research projects.

We continue to work with the National HAI Task Force and stakeholders to develop the programme of interventions to reduce HAIs and to support health boards deliver improvements for patients. As and when new interventions are identified which require additional resources, the Scottish Government will prioritise these appropriately. And investment in reducing HAIs goes far wider than this budget. Scotland’s world leading Patient Safety Programme is also delivering substantial results.

NHS Lanarkshire, as is the case in boards throughout Scotland, will continue, as usual, to receive funding for key infection control personnel and additional cleaners, this is not affected. There should be no impact on patients in Scotland or on hospitals in NHS Lanarkshire, or elsewhere in Scotland, from changes to this budget.

Question reference: S4W-17208

Asked by: Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 September 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 26 September 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is giving to Lanarkshire hospitals following recent reports of increased mortality rates.

As announced on 27 August Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) has been commissioned by the Scottish Government to lead a review to look at the reasons and causes behind NHS Lanarkshire’s pattern of Hospital Standardised Mortality Ratios.

The Scottish Government, HIS and NHS Lanarkshire are committed to working together to ensure patient safety in each of these hospitals.

It is reassuring that NHS Lanarkshire already have a plan in place to make improvements. However, in light of the latest statistics it is the right time to offer more enhanced support. The review will identify whether any additional action needs to be taken, or whether any aspects of the action plan need to be strengthened or accelerated. The report of this review shall be published.