- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Mary Mulligan on 7 March 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will amend NHS policy whereby adult patients that have not visited their dentist for a period of more than 15 months can be removed from the dental register without prior notification so that such patients can remain NHS patients.
Answer
The Executive has no current plans to amend the NHS (General Dental Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1996 to provide that a dentist must provide patients with notification that their continuing care arrangement is due to lapse where the patient has not attended the dentist within the 15-month registration period.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Mary Mulligan on 21 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made regarding the inquiry into the proposed EU regulations on official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption (COM (2002)377 final).
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-33383 on 14 February 2003. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 13 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 20 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive how many GP referrals to consultants there have been in the Grampian NHS Board area in each of the last five years.
Answer
The specific information requested is not yet available centrally. However, an approximation for the number of referrals from GPs can be obtained from centrally held data relating to first out-patient appointments. Figures are shown in the following table for the number of consultant-led out-patient appointments for Grampian residents referred by a GP in years ending March 1998 to March 2002. These figures exclude appointments where patients did not attend. Many patients who did not attend will be offered and attend subsequent appointments and these subsequent appointments will be counted in the figures in the table. Patients who did not attend and were not offered subsequent appointments because, for example, their condition had improved and they no longer required treatment, are not counted in these figures. The number of such patients is not known so the figures in the table will undercount the total number of referrals.First Out-Patient Appointments: Grampian Residents Referred by a GP
Year Ending 31 March | No. of Appointments1 |
1998 | 84,967 |
1999 | 84,591 |
2000 | 86,506 |
2001 | 82,128 |
2002 | 81,604 |
Source: ISD Scotland, SMR00.Note:1. Referrals by GPs only. Excludes appointments where patients did not attend.Data from the GP practices themselves is being developed under the Electronic Clinical Communication Implementation Programme (ECCI). In future this will allow us to track the number of referrals as they are made by the GPs.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 18 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-33055 by Hugh Henry on 5 February 2003, whether it has ever established a working group on discrimination and whether it intends to set one up.
Answer
The Executive does not have a single working group on discrimination. However, we have established a number of working groups which have considered aspects of discrimination for particular groups. For example, the Race Equality Advisory Forum considered issues of discrimination for minority ethnic communities in Scotland; we have established a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) health discussion forum which is considering access to primary health care for LGBT people, and we recently announced the creation of a new independent group to examine what more the Executive should do to improve opportunities for women.In addition, the Executive is in regular contact with a range of minority groups and equality organisations.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 18 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive why the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency has changed the system of payment for the sale of seed potato plantlets from payment on account to payment up front and what consultation was carried out with seed potato growers in advance of this change.
Answer
I have asked Dr Robert Hay, Chief Executive of the agency, to respond. His response is as follows:The Scottish Agricultural Science Agency has not changed the system of payment for the sale of seed potato plantlets. The usual procedure is for payment to be requested following dispatch of the plantlets, with payment due within 30 days of the date of the invoice. These credit facilities may be withdrawn from customers who do not settle their accounts within a reasonable time.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Ross Finnie on 18 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive why its Environment and Rural Affairs Department has changed the system of payment for services rendered in the inspection of seed potatoes from payment on account to payment up front and what consultation was carried out with seed potato growers in advance of this change.
Answer
The Scottish Agricultural Science Agency is responsible for the operation of the Seed Potato Classification Scheme in Scotland. I have asked Dr Robert Hay, Chief Executive of the agency, to respond. His response is as follows:The Scottish Agricultural Science Agency has not changed its system of payment for seed potato inspection services. The Seed Potatoes (Fees) Regulations 1993 require that all fees relating to seed potato inspections be paid in advance of the inspections. However, to facilitate trade, the agency extends credit facilities for the inspection of seed potato tubers and the provision of seed potato labels to customers who meet certain criteria. These credit facilities may be withdrawn from customers who do not settle their accounts within a reasonable time.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Hugh Henry on 18 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-33055 by Hugh Henry on 5 February 2003, what submissions were made in the Scottish response to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report specifically about links between homophobia and racism.
Answer
No submissions were made in the Scottish response to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report specifically about links between homophobia and racism.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 17 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it will introduce to safeguard GP practices in rural areas on the introduction of the new GP contracts.
Answer
Negotiations on a new GP contract are on-going and at this stage it would be inappropriate for me to comment in detail on what measures might be introduced to safeguard GP practices in rural areas. However, the framework document for the new contract published in April 2002 recognises that special remote and rural arrangements are likely to be needed.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 17 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation it has carried out with rural GPs regarding any proposed withdrawal of the Chapter 10.5 payments scheme for GP practices in rural areas with low list si'es.
Answer
Future funding arrangements for GP practices in rural and urban areas are currently being considered as part of the on-going negotiations over a new contract for GPs. Negotiations are being taken forward on a UK basis by the NHS Confederation, representing the four UK Health Departments, and the UK General Practitioners Committee (GPC). As negotiations are currently on-going it would be inappropriate for me to provide details of what is being discussed at this stage. Any agreed proposals for a new contract arising from these talks will be subject to consultation with all GPs.
- Asked by: Stewart Stevenson, MSP for Banff and Buchan, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 30 January 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 13 February 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-5698 by Mr Andy Kerr on 3 October 2002, whether the Minister for Finance and Public Services has now provided advice to the First Minister on any plans to reduce Executive advertising; whether the advertising budget will be reduced by 25%, and what the cost has been, and is projected to be in total, of each new advertising campaign since 3 October 2002.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-31578 on 3 December 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa. Since 3 October 2002 the following new campaigns have run or are currently projected to run within the remainder of this financial year.New Advertising Campaigns from 3 October 2002 to 31 March 2003
Advertising Campaign Title | Invoiced Cost to Date (£) | Projected Total Cost (£) |
Child Protection on the Internet | 103,201 | 130,000 |
Domestic Abuse | 284,346 | 500,000 |
Healthy Living | 438,569 | 1,140,000 |
Home Reading | 93,031 | 229,000 |
Safer Scotland | 164,298 | 209,000 |
Social Care | 439,948 | 540,000 |
Regional Selective Assistance | 0 | 50,000 |