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: S1W-10712

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 27 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Peter Peacock on 10 November 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to ensure that key decision makers, including elected members and officials receive full and accurate reports regarding local authority service performance.

Question reference: S1W-10675

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 9 November 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to increase the proportion of generic rather than branded medicines which are prescribed and dispensed.

GPs have for some time been encouraged to prescribe generically, unless there are good clinical reasons for proprietary products to be prescribed. Increasing use of local formularies and GP computing systems; the development of practice-based prescribing protocols, and enhanced pharmacist input into prescribing review and audit have resulted in excellent progress having been achieved in this area and the current rate of generic prescribing is now over 70%. The remaining identified potential savings from greater generic prescribing are comparatively low at approximately £2 million (0.3% of the overall cost of prescribing in Scotland).

Question reference: S1W-10673

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 9 November 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-10242 by Susan Deacon on 18 October 2000, what steps it is taking to collate data on the number of branded prescriptions dispensed where a generic equivalent exists.

Question reference: S1W-10674

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 9 November 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that generic medicines are dispensed when off-patent branded prescriptions are made out.

Question reference: S1W-10678

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by David Steel on 6 November 2000

To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body supports the introduction of a tobacco policy in the new parliament complex at Holyrood which will ensure that the parliament is a "smoke free" public building.

Under the current SPCB policy on Smoking in the Workplace, smoking is not permitted at any time in any of the buildings in the parliamentary complex except in a designated smoking area. At the moment, the central courtyard behind PHQ is the only designated smoking area.

The SPCB has recently commissioned a survey of all members and staff to see whether or not designated smoking areas should be provided for in our new complex at Holyrood. The outcome of this survey will inform its decision on this issue.

Question reference: S1W-10244

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 2 November 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what the total cost, in real terms, was to the NHSiS of prescription medicines in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

The information is set out in the table below. The figures reflect the total gross ingredient cost in real terms of all prescription items dispensed in the community in Scotland.Gross Ingredient Cost of Prescriptions Dispensed in Scotland 1995-96 to 1999-2000

Financial Year	Gross Ingredient Cost (£) in Real Terms¹
1995-96	454,488,477
1996-97	482,614,848
1997-98	513,116,641
1998-99	527,874,654
1999-2000	587,394,186

Notes:

1. The general index of retail prices has been used to deflate the average costs into real terms using 1995-96 as a baseline.

Question reference: S1W-10240

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Susan Deacon on 30 October 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients are currently receiving Beta Interferon on the NHSiS.

Question reference: S1W-10247

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 October 2000
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 30 October 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps the Information and Statistics Division of the NHSiS is taking to improve data collection on individuals suffering from mental health problems based in the community.

Question reference: S1W-09245

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 18 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 30 October 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive how many home help clients there were in each local authority area in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

The following table shows numbers at 31 March 1997, 1998 and 1999. Prior to local government reorganisation in April 1996, figures are only available on the basis of the old local authorities. Figures for 1998 and 1999 cover clients who receive home care purchased or provided by local authorities, whereas figures for 1997 only include home care provided directly by local authorities.

Local Authority	1997	1998	1999
Aberdeen City	4,053	4,391	4,766
Aberdeenshire	2,306	2,384	2,041
Angus	1,885	1,878	1,867
Argyll & Bute	1,033	1,032	950
Clackmannanshire	710	586	601
Dumfries & Galloway	1,869	2,075	1,880
Dundee City	3,762	3,240	2,978
East Ayrshire	1,936	1,512	1,398
East Dunbartonshire	1,275	1,207	1,010
East Lothian	1,456	1,408	1,196
East Renfrewshire	826	881	820
Edinburgh, City of	7,839	7,719	7,261
Eilean Siar	1,126	1,000	870
Falkirk ⁽¹⁾	2,717	2,693	2,420
Fife	9,272	8,167	7,491
Glasgow City	12,425	11,258	10,048
Highland	3,104	2,946	2,999
Inverclyde	1,598	1,314	1,311
Midlothian	1,307	1,253	1,253
Moray	1,045	1,161	1,163
North Ayrshire	2,327	2,167	1,696
North Lanarkshire	2,140	3,133	2,999
Orkney Islands	385	376	492
Perth & Kinross	1,490	1,425	1,479
Renfrewshire	2,672	2,762	2,505
Scottish Borders	1,986	1,563	1,576
Shetland Islands	538	527	514
South Ayrshire	1,734	1,485	1,199
South Lanarkshire	4,047	2,924	2,773
Stirling	1,240	1,427	930
West Dunbartonshire	1,641	1,699	1,760
West Lothian	1,872	1,926	1,812
SCOTLAND	83,616	79,519	74,058

Source: SEHD Community Care Statistics, H1 Return.

Notes:

1. 1997 figure for Falkirk is estimated.

Question reference: S1W-09493

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 August 2000
Current Status: Answered by Iain Gray on 30 October 2000

To ask the Scottish Executive whether any Ministers have met organisations representing older people since the establishment of the Parliament to discuss cases of alleged age discrimination in the NHS and, if so, which Ministers.