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: S5F-01734

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 November 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 November 2017

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the recently published internal staff survey from the Scottish Ambulance Service, which suggests that work pressure had affected the health of more than half of the respondents.

Question reference: S5O-01495

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 November 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 22 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to young people with special educational needs.

Question reference: S5W-12445

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 November 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 November 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme 2017 reports that no NHS board delivers rehabilitation on a needs-led basis, what plans it has to improve stroke rehabilitation services, and when these plans will enable NHS boards to deliver such services on this basis.

We know that early assessment / provision of rehabilitation within the first few days following an acute stroke by multi-disciplinary working achieves the best outcomes for the person. This is why it is included as a priority within the Scottish Stroke Improvement Plan (2014). Each NHS Board reports on progress in the implementation of the Improvement Plan priorities and are supported by the Stroke Improvement Programme Lead and Scottish Stroke Care Audit (SSCA) to further improve, sharing good practice across Scotland and the development of tools and resources to build capacity, knowledge and skills.

Question reference: S5W-11527

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 September 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 October 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that NHS Forth Valley fills vacant consultant posts, and what its response is to reports that some posts have been unfilled for over three years.

Under this Government, the number of consultants in NHS Forth Valley have increased by 49.9%, to 212.8 Whole Time Equivalent. It is normal for fluctuations in vacancies to occur as we expand capacity by recruiting even more staff.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to a sustainable NHS and its workforce, which continues to deliver a consistently high quality healthcare service to the people of Scotland.

While the Scottish Government sets strategic policies for the NHS in Scotland, it is the responsibility of NHS Boards – including NHS Forth Valley – to ensure that the workforce planning arrangements they have in place ensure enough professional staff and facilities are available to provide the best possible care for patients, in a variety of settings.

In June 2017 the Scottish Government published Part 1 of the National Health and Social Care Workforce Plan, which will strengthen and harmonise workforce planning practice, take full account of the future demand for safe and high quality services for Scotland’s people and work to accurately identify gaps in supply, including within the consultant workforce. We continue to work with all major stakeholders across Health and Social Care, including NHS Boards, as we take the Plan forward.

Parts 2 and 3 of the Plan, to be published later in 2017, will examine how to improve integrated workforce planning in social care and primary care settings. These important steps will enable different health and social care systems to move together towards publication of a second full Health and Social Care Workforce Plan in 2018 and beyond.

Question reference: S5W-11469

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 September 2017
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 3 October 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what reassurances it can give to people in the Mid Scotland and Fife parliamentary region regarding the presence of combustible cladding on private high rise flats in the region.

Scottish building regulations since 2005 require that any cladding on high rise domestic buildings must be of non-combustible material or be part of a system that has been rigorously tested. In addition all local authorities within the Mid Scotland and Fife parliamentary region have reported that the material used on the Grenfell Tower (Aluminium Composite Material) has not been used in cladding systems in local authority, Registered Social Landlord or private sector high rise domestic buildings.

Question reference: S5W-11174

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 September 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 26 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to introduce a stroke care strategy, and whether this will include rehabilitation.

Our Stroke Improvement Plan (2014) sets out a comprehensive programme for further reducing the number of deaths from stroke and improving stroke treatment and care across the whole patient pathway including rehabilitation, as well as helping people’s longer-term outcomes in their own communities. In making these improvements, we will continue to work closely with our stakeholders, including health boards, third sector organisations and patients.

Question reference: S5W-11183

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 September 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 26 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it takes to ensure that people recovering from stroke receive a whole care pathway approach that is consistent with international recommended practice.

Our Health and Social Care Delivery Plan published in December 2016 sets out our aim for Scotland to provide high quality services with a focus on prevention, early intervention and supported self-management. It is about ensuring that those who use services get the right care and support whatever their needs, at any point in their care journey.

Our Stroke Improvement Plan (2014); http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2014/08/9114 which aims to improve stroke treatment and care across the whole patient pathway in Scotland, based on the best available evidence.

We expect stroke patients to be provided with rehabilitation care in line with the recommendations in Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) Guideline 118, which focuses on rehabilitation, prevention and management of complications, and discharge planning.

SIGN Guidelines are developed through rigorous processes to review evidence including international sources. The Guideline provides recommendations on best practice in the management of stroke rehabilitation in the first 12 months after stroke.

Question reference: S5W-11169

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 September 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 26 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it takes to ensure that it meets its obligations under article 26 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities with regards to stroke care, and what analysis it has made of how effective it has been in doing so.

The Scottish Government published 'A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People' in 2016; http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0051/00510948.pdf.

This is our Delivery Plan to 2021 which demonstrates our commitment to upholding the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and sets out how we will report on progress.

Our Health and Social Care Delivery Plan published in December 2016 sets out our aim for Scotland to provide high quality services with a focus on prevention, early intervention and supported self-management. The plan sits alongside our National Clinical Strategy, which evidenced the need to change the way services are delivered in order to continue meet the healthcare needs of our population, setting out the framework for developing health services in Scotland for the next 10-20 years, including people living with the effects of stroke.

The Stroke Improvement Plan (2014) recognises the importance of specialist rehabilitation and the need for the delivery of services to support people living with stroke and their families. The Plan includes a priority on Transition to the Community. This emphasises the need for specialist stroke rehabilitation to both reduce mortality and long-term disability. We expect NHS Boards to appropriately resource stroke specialist Early Supported Discharge and Community Teams to optimise patients’ personal outcomes and reduce lengths of hospital stay.

There is also a priority to improve well-being and quality of life for people affected by stroke by ensuring provision of self-management approaches to care, physical activity and services to support people wishing to return to work.

The Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme report published on 11 July contains information on Stroke Improvement Plan priorities and actions; http://www.strokeaudit.scot.nhs.uk/index.html

Progress on the Stroke Improvement Plan is closely monitored by the National Advisory Committee for Stroke.

Question reference: S5O-01285

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 September 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking regarding the charitable status of university commercial activities.

Question reference: S5W-10896

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 August 2017
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 19 September 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to retain (a) shops and (b) businesses in (i) towns and (ii) cities; how it can help them in reducing their bills; what its position is on introducing an extended 12-month period of business rates relief for them, and what specific support it can offer to those that (A) are investing in expansion and (B) source their supplies locally rather than through wholesale distributors.

The Scottish Government acted decisively in light of the 2017 rates revaluation, cutting the rates poundage, limiting application of the large business supplement so that 8,000 fewer properties pay it, and expanding the Small Business Bonus Scheme so that it lifts 100,000 properties out of rates altogether.

Further rates relief was also targeted where it was most needed, including in the hospitality sector and for office space in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, as part of a total package of relief worth around £660 million this year. Local authorities can also further reduce rates following the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015.

The Scottish Government has now responded to the recent Barclay review, and has gone beyond Barclay's recommendations to support business. New properties will only be entered in the valuation roll once first occupied. A ‘business growth accelerator’ will mean no rates for a year for new premises once occupied, and no increases for a year for upgrading or expansion of existing premises. And 'Fresh Start' relief will be increased to 100% and extended to all property types, to incentivise re-use of vacant property. An implementation plan will be published by the end of the year.