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-06864

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what contingency plans are in place to protect patients in NHS facilities affected by power cuts.

NHS boards are required to have contingency plans in place as per the current guidance, Scottish Health Technical Memorandum (SHTM) 06-01, which states that resilience should be provided according to clinical risk assessments comprising:

(a) - Secondary sources of supply, for example:

Standby generators

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant.

(b) - Tertiary sources of supply, such as:

Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS)

Battery backup.

Question reference: S4W-06866

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what safeguards are in place to ensure that NHS emergency power systems are operational at all times.

In accordance with current guidance, NHS boards are required to have the following safeguards in place to ensure that NHS emergency power systems are operational at all times:

All fixed theatre operating lamps, including the main unit and any satellite units, should be connected to a battery inverter unit providing three-hour autonomy.

All standby generator plant should be tested on line with the building load every month. The duration of the test should be at least one hour.

Full services tests should demonstrate that batteries can hold their charge state while the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is on bypass. Batteries and UPS should be tested on line with mains disconnected.

Question reference: S4W-06865

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what requirement it places on NHS boards to have emergency power systems at clinical sites.

Where a clinical risk assessment dictates, the following requirements to have emergency power systems at clinical sites are placed on NHS boards:

For clinical areas in general there should be 100% load provision from standby generators.

Supporting engineering services connected to standby generator supplies should have power restored within 15 seconds.

Lighting and life-support equipment should be connected to uninterruptible power supplies or battery packs to restore power within 0.5 seconds of any interruptions.

Question reference: S4W-06869

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether third parties responsible for the management of NHS facilities have the same obligations regarding patient safety as the NHS.

Question reference: S4W-06867

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 2 May 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it provides to NHS boards regarding the maintenance of emergency power systems.

Guidance provided to NHS boards regarding the maintenance of emergency power systems is set out in the Scottish Health Technical Memorandum (SHTM) 06-01 – Electrical services supply and distribution which is published in two parts:

Part A: Design considerations

Part B: Operational management.

Section 6 within Part B is devoted to testing and maintenance procedures required for emergency power systems.

Question reference: S4W-06860

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 April 2012
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 26 April 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made on implementing the recommendations in Review of Fatal Accident Inquiry Legislation: The Report.

The Government intends to bring forward legislative proposals to implement those recommendations which require primary legislation made by Lord Cullen of Whitekirk in the Review of Fatal Accident Inquiry Legislation when an opportunity arises in the legislative programme, but within the lifetime of this Parliament.

Many of Lord Cullen’s recommendations were addressed to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) and these have been largely been implemented already. In particular, COPFS has set up the Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit (SFIU) which now investigates all non criminal deaths which are reported to COPFS, liaises with Crown Counsel and conducts Fatal Accident Inquiries. The SFIU has also assumed responsibility for COPFS policy on deaths and for liaison with external agencies. SFIU is designed to be a discrete and specialist unit within COPFS.

Question reference: S4O-00931

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 April 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 April 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in delivering reductions in class sizes in early years.

Question reference: S4W-06285

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 March 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 4 April 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to introduce a land remediation grant to help release brownfield sites for development.

The responsibility for the remediation of brownfield sites for development sits with local authorities. The Scottish Government currently provides grant to selected local authorities through its Vacant and Derelict Land Fund (VDLF). As set out in our regeneration strategy, Achieving a Sustainable Future, we will work with COSLA to revisit the focus of the VDLF in the future. We have also established SPRUCE, Scotland’s £50 million JESSICA Fund, which is available to support a wide range of regeneration activity, including the remediation of brownfield land, in the thirteen eligible local authority areas. In addition, there are grants available for this purpose via the EU approved Land Remediation Scheme.

Question reference: S4W-05607

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 10 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Bruce Crawford on 13 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what additional (a) administrative, (b) regulatory, (c) legislative, (d) emergency and (e) other powers have been devolved to the Parliament since May 1999.

A variety of additional powers have been devolved to the Parliament since May 1999. The details are contained in orders made under section 30 of the Scotland Act and in primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament.

The Scottish Parliament website lists Sewel Motions and Legislative Consent Motions arising in connection with UK primary legislation. The text of relevant Scotland Act Orders and UK Acts of Parliament can be found at www.legislation.gov.uk.

Question reference: S4W-05402

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 03 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 8 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it met the Sustainable Procurement Action Plan objective that every public body should have a strategy for awarding at least one contract to a supported business or factory by 30 November 2010.

Implementation of the Sustainable Procurement Action Plan is a matter for individual public bodies. The Scottish Government has a number of contracts which assist supported businesses. Capability St Judes was awarded a contract for laundry services 1 April 2009. Remploy are working as a sub-contractor on refurbishment of the Scottish Fire College premises and three business are engaged as sub-contractors on the Scottish Government’s Design Print Printing and Associated Services contract.