Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-22908 on 8 May 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

The review of England’s cancer screening was commissioned by NHS England and is expected to culminate in recommendations about future commissioning and delivery of cancer screening programmes in England. The independent review is being conducted by Professor Sir Mike Richards and is expected to report in Summer 2019. The Scottish Government has not had any direct involvement in the review of England's cancer screening.

The Scottish Government is advised on all aspects of screening by the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) and the Scottish Screening Committee. Both Committees will consider any recommendations which come from the review, and advise Scottish Government on any implications for cancer screening services in Scotland.

I refer the member to the answer to S5W-22808 on 7 May 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

I refer the member to the answer to S5W-22808 on 7 May 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

I refer the member to the answer to S5W-22808 on 7 May 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

I refer the member to the answer to S5W-22808 on 7 May 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

The Scottish Government is clear that we need to ensure we appoint the right person for what will be a complex and important review. As there will be an emphasis on engaging widely, the review will have to get to the heart of differing opinions so that the real issues can be fleshed out and then considered on an evidence-led basis. The Chair therefore will provide strong leadership and will have demonstrated that they are an effective strategist and a good networker. We are also looking for someone who can give a clear sense of direction and who is able to communicate clearly to a wide and varied audience. The Chair will have senior level experience, knowledge and understanding of legislation and/or human rights.

A short-life working group will support the review and will be drawn from areas of interest. We expect to have representatives from legal, psychiatry, social work, nursing and service management backgrounds as well as those with lived experience. It will be for the Chair to determine how they take forward this review but the views of people with lived experience of compulsory care and treatment, their families and representatives must be central to the work of the review.

This information is not collected or held centrally to the level of detail requested. It is for NHS Boards to determine spend on drugs and other blood cancer treatment services from their unified budget in accordance with the needs of their resident population and based on clinical decisions. This will vary from Board to Board and Region to Region.

Treatment, particularly for cancer, can be complex and often involves the use of a combination of medicines. Many of the drugs can be used for treatment of other cancer and non-cancer conditions, which makes it difficult to calculate the cost of drugs for specific treatments such as blood cancer.

This answer responds to S5W-22808, S5W-22809, S5W-22810, S5W-22811 and S5W-22812 on 7 May 2019. The Scottish Government Chief Scientist Office (CSO) does not target funding towards any particular condition through its research grant schemes but supports research funding opportunities across a very broad health remit that neither advantages or disadvantages funding towards any particular health area. This allows consideration of research applications to address the widest range of NHS, health and care challenges rather than to focus funding in certain areas and consequently deprioritise others. Applications submitted to CSO are funded following independent expert assessment of the quality of the research projects proposed with funding recommendations made by an independent expert committee.

The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) does not provide funding specifically for physical or mental health research. It is for Universities to decide whether they undertake such research using SFC grants.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

The Scottish Government has funded access to free sanitary products in schools, colleges and universities since August 2018 and as yet we do not yet have a complete data set.

Based on available data from 20 (out of 24) colleges in Scotland, 856,550 sanitary products were purchased by colleges between September 2018 and February 2019.

And available data from 17 (out of 18) universities in Scotland shows 1,756,618 sanitary products were purchased by universities between September 2018 and February 2019.

With reference to schools, we do not yet have confirmed data from local authorities.

Provision of free sanitary products in hospitals is a matter for NHS Scotland Health Boards and we do not hold data on this centrally.