Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-16024

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 2 May 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its news release of 2 December 2017, RBS branch closures, whether it considers that the bank's recently-announced proposals to reduce mobile banking services breach what it considers the "guaranteed minimum level of service provision for essential banking services" should be, and, if so, whether it plans to discuss with the bank introducing alternative proposals.

The regulation of financial services, including banking remains reserved and the Scottish Government is unable to impose a minimum level service provision for essential banking services. We have, however called on the UK Government to do so.

RBS's decision to further reduce its mobile banking provision in communities already restricted in their access to physical banking services is disappointing. The Scottish Government is particularly concerned at the lack of consultation with communities served by these services in advance of these changes being announced.

The Scottish Government is working with Scotland's banks, including Royal Bank of Scotland, on options to better protect communities' access to services in the future and has had constructive discussions on the banking sector in Scotland. These discussions are continuing.

Question reference: S5W-16023

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 2 May 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its news release of 2 December 2017, RBS branch closures, what it considers the "guaranteed minimum level of service provision for essential banking services" should be, and whether this includes setting a minimum number of (a) days and (b) hours that mobile banking services should offer to areas that have no access to physical branches.

The regulation of financial services, including banking remains reserved and the Scottish Government is unable to impose a minimum level service provision for essential banking services. Nonetheless, the Scottish Government is working with the Scottish banks and has had constructive discussions on the banking sector in Scotland. These discussions are continuing.

The Scottish Government believes that banking is an essential service and that collectively the banks, governments and regulators have a duty to ensure that banking services remain accessible to all. A minimum level of service provision cannot, and should not, be a one size fits all directive. Different communities will have different requirements based on a range of factors including, but not limited to, location, demographic characteristics and relative rurality of tier, population, ease of travel, and availability of alternative local services. As a minimum, the Scottish Government believes that the banks should commit to work with the local communities they serve to establish a range of delivery channels that best meets the needs of their customers, including access to local, physical banking services especially in respect of discussions that require sensitivity, such as financial matters arising from bereavement, family dissolution, redundancy.

Mobile banking services are an essential service for many communities, providing life-line access to banking services in the absence of physical branches. While decisions on timetables and frequency of service are made on a commercial basis, the banks must be mindful of the importance their customers place on these services and should carefully consider the impact of any changes to the provision of such services, actively consulting with their customers before such changes are announced.

Question reference: S5W-15752

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 26 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients have missed the recommended 12-week outpatient appointment standard in (a) NHS Lothian and (b) the rest of the country in the last year.

Question reference: S5W-15768

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 April 2018
Current Status: Answered by Kezia Dugdale on 25 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body which of its services that were provided by external contractors in each of the last 10 years have subsequently been taken in-house; what analysis it has made of the impact that each change had on the (a) level of service provided and (b) cost of providing the service, and whether it is considering taking further services in-house.

Three services were brought in-house in the last 10 years:

1. Guided Tours – brought in-house in 2009

Guided tours started with the opening of the Scottish Parliament building in 2004 and a contract was awarded to an external organisation to provide a team of tour guides. Public tickets were charged for to offset the cost of the service provision and increased from £3.00 to £6.00 within the life of the contract. The effect of this was to bring about a significant reduction in tours take-up and the increase did not cover the costs of the contract.

Bringing this service in-house enabled the SPCB to provide tours free-of-charge to the public as part of the SPCB public engagement activities. Visitor feedback indicates that a free guided tour is a major factor in visiting the Scottish Parliament, and that the tours help reach and inform visitors about the work of Members and the Parliament.

The delivery of the in-house service has been incorporated into the range of Visitor Services’ staff activities.

2. Broadcast Operations - brought in-house in 2011

Bringing the services in-house has helped to develop the in-house team into a multi-skilled team of technical and creative operational staff, and has allowed for greater flexibility and responsiveness in the provision of the services. At the time of bringing the service in house there was a cost reduction of over £100,000. Since 2012 sitting patterns in the Parliament have changed and business has increased but we continue to maintain cost effective delivery of services.

3. Internal Television and Radio Services - brought in-house in 2011

Bringing the television and radio service in-house had no impact on service delivery and building users still retained access to the full range of the Parliament’s television output as well as to a broad selection of public service and commercial television and radio stations throughout the Parliament building. Bringing the service in-house was cost neutral in year one. The only on-going cost is £4,000 for maintenance.

There are no plans at present to bring further services in-house. Options for the delivery of services are considered on a case by case basis.

Question reference: S5W-15750

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 18 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that NHS waiting times for (a) outpatient appointments and (b) A&E departments are recorded accurately.

As a recognised producer of Official Statistics in Scotland, ISD works to the Code of Practice for Official Statistics which is maintained by the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA).

NHS Boards are responsible for ensuring local administrative systems and data recording processes are compliant with waiting times guidance and regulations. Boards are also responsible for ensuring that data extracts, submitted to ISD from local systems for inclusion in the national database, are accurate and timely.

The independent review of NHS Lothian’s A&E departments by the Academy of Royal Colleges (led by Prof Derek Bell), as instructed by the Scottish Government, is expected to report soon.

Question reference: S5W-15749

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 18 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that patients in the NHS Lothian area have been told they will have to wait up to 44 weeks for an orthopaedics outpatient appointment.

I recognise that orthopaedic patients in Lothian are experiencing waits which are too long for orthopaedic outpatient appointments. This is unacceptable in a patient-centred NHS. We made £50 million available to NHSScotland in 2017-18 - with £7.4 million being made available to Lothian. It is likely that this funding will be extended into this year. This additional funding is aimed at building up their capacity and making sure that all patients are seen and treated in a timely fashion. Officials continue to meet with the Board regularly to support improvement in waiting time performance.

The Board are also taking forward a number of actions to improve orthopaedic waiting times for patients, this includes redesigning their musculoskeletal allied health professional service to ensure that patients with foot and ankle and upper limb conditions are seen by the most appropriate health professional in the right place in a timely manner. We also understand that NHS Lothian have recruited two additional consultants orthopaedic surgeons, with both taking up post in January.

Question reference: S5O-01990

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 April 2018
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 April 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve rural bus services.

Question reference: S5W-15175

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 27 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what the average weekly payment is to locum GPs, broken down by NHS board.

There is no set rate for a locum. Locums are self-employed and can agree their own rates. Boards and practices cannot combine to set a rate for locums either nationally or locally. The Scottish Government, through the Statement of Financial Entitlement, directs boards to reimburse practices up to various levels depending on why a locum is required but this does not establish a cap or going rate for locums.

Locum staff are essential to cover periods of planned and unplanned absence and ensure patient safety.

Question reference: S5W-14966

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 05 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 27 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many active golf club members there have been in each of the last 10 years, and what the average club membership fee has been; what analysis it has carried out of how the Barclay Review recommendations on non-domestic rates might impact on fees and clubs, and how any reduced participation because of the closure of clubs if their non-domestic rates rise might impact on health and wellbeing.

Comparable data is only held following the amalgamation of the Scottish Golf Union Limited and Scottish Ladies' Golfing Association Limited in 2015, golf club membership in Scotland has therefore been as follows:

	Financial Year	Total Playing Membership
Scottish Golf	2016-2017	192,533
Scottish Golf	2015-2016	199,244
Scottish Golf	2014-2015	200,364
Scottish Golf	2013-2014	210,009

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the pricing structures of privately run golf clubs, however, sportscotland publishes an annual review of local authority charges for sports participation in Scotland. It is based on a survey of the Scottish local authorities and their associated leisure trusts, covering over 70 different activities and facilities. The full report includes details of charges associated to golf, including golf season tickets and can be found here: https://sportscotland.org.uk/about-us/our-publications/archive/charges-for-sports-facilities/

Our full response to the Barclay review of non-domestic rates was set out in an implementation plan published on 14 December 2017, duly informed by wide stakeholder engagement. http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0052/00529284.pdf

Question reference: S5W-15130

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 March 2018
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 21 March 2018

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the report in The Times on 8 March 2018 that there is "a culture of neglect" at Tippethill Hospital, whether it is aware of similar allegations regarding other NHS facilities and, if so, (a) which and (b) what action it is taking to (i) address these and (ii) prevent these happening again.

The Scottish Government is not automatically notified of whistleblowing allegations but is grateful to all whistleblowers who raise concerns.

It is vitally important that staff feel they can raise any concerns they may have about patient safety and malpractice. All NHSScotland staff are encouraged to raise any concerns they have directly with their Board in the knowledge that these will be taken seriously, investigated thoroughly, and where appropriate, acted upon.

The latest Dignity at Work Survey shows that 65% of respondents feel it is safe to speak up and raise concerns, up by almost 10 percentage points on the last survey in 2015. This reflects our focussed effort over the last few years on supporting and encouraging staff to speak up. This includes having robust whistleblowing policies; introducing an independent confidential alert & advice line; having named whistleblowing contacts as well as non-executive Whistleblowing Champions in each Board. All of this is contributing to an increasingly honest and open reporting culture within our NHS.

Furthermore, we are introducing the role of an Independent National Whistleblowing Officer (INWO). The INWO will, amongst other things, provide a national leadership role in setting whistleblowing standards as well as offering direction, support and guidance to Health Boards with a focus on continuous improvement, early resolution, good practice and reporting. We plan to have this role in place by the end of 2018.

Chamber and committees