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: S5W-33667

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to ensure that women terminating a pregnancy at home in rural locations can access timely care in the event that they haemorrhage.

NHS Boards consider a woman’s access to emergency care in the event that they require hospital treatment if they live in a remote rural area. They will take account of a woman’s location in weighing up the benefits of treatment at home against treatment in a hospital.

The risk of haemorrhage with early medical abortion is normally low, particularly for women having an abortion at an early gestation, and may occur days after the procedure. Access to emergency care in the event of requiring hospital treatment for haemorrhage is the same as for women living in remote and rural areas following other gynaecological procedures, including those who experience a miscarriage at home.

Question reference: S5W-33666

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) call-outs by emergency services and (b) emergency presentations and/or admissions to emergency departments, hospitals, obstetrics/gynaecology units, paediatric units and early pregnancy awareness units in relation to legal abortions there have been since the changes to abortion procedures on 31 March 2020.

Question reference: S5W-33671

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) meetings, virtual or otherwise, and (b) other electronic communications it has had with the British Pregnancy Advisory Service regarding abortion services in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S5W-33674

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how it is ensuring that the voices of women who may have experienced coercion either to continue or to terminate a pregnancy are being represented in its current consultation, Early medical abortion at home.

The Scottish Government is consulting on the future arrangements for early medical abortion at home to allow abortion providers and other health professionals, the general public and in particular women who have experience of abortion services the opportunity to comment and submit evidence. Scottish Government officials have asked NHS Boards to make women receiving abortion treatment aware of the consultation where appropriate so that they can respond to it if they wish.

Question reference: S5W-33668

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the introduction of the telemedicine abortion service has had on the volume of calls to helplines from women undergoing an early medical abortion compared with the period immediately prior to its introduction.

Question reference: S5W-33675

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of women’s experiences of disposal of pregnancy remains following a termination at home, particularly in cases of higher gestations.

Question reference: S5W-33670

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many women have accessed abortion services provided by (a) the NHS and (b) independent providers since the changes to procedures on 31 March 2020.

Question reference: S5W-33665

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many instances of complications or mental health concerns following an abortion were reported in 2019 where a woman took (a) only the second pill at home and (b) both pills at a clinic or hospital.

Question reference: S5W-33669

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 December 2020
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 10 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many women have received a "Pills by Post" abortion kit from British Pregnancy Advisory Service providers since the changes to abortion procedures on 31 March 2020.

Question reference: S5F-04653

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 December 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 December 2020

To ask the First Minister how many staff are employed to answer calls to book COVID-19 tests in Scotland.