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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 32170 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-07325

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on any costs associated with mitigating any impact in Scotland of decisions taken by the UK Government in each of the last five financial years.

The estimated costs of "reserved" areas of spend that are being mitigated/supplemented by the Scottish Government are shown in the following table:-

Programme	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22
	£m	£m	£m	£m	£m
Discretionary Housing Payments	47.0	50.1	52.2	73.8	83.1
Promoting Equality and Human Rights	20.3	22.7	24.6	30.2	32.2
Scottish Child Payment				21.0	68.0
Broadband	117.1	22.2	32.9	63.4	102.8
Employability- Fair Start Scotland		14.9	16.4	21.6	27.3
Employability and Workforce Skills			17.2	51.1	22.1
Scottish Veterans' Commissioner			0.3	0.3	0.3
Veterans			0.2	0.5	1.5

Source: Level 4 budgets published alongside the annual Budget Bill.

Question reference: S6W-07219

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government by what date face-to-face antenatal classes that are run by NHS Scotland will resume, in light of the reported resumption of private classes.

Group antenatal classes were able to resume from 31 July 2020. Current guidance for delivery of maternity and neonatal services throughout the Covid-19 pandemic states that antenatal and postnatal group sessions can continue virtually or in person, subject to local risk assessment in NHS Boards.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) delivering maternity and neonatal services through the pandemic: beyond Level Zero - guidance - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Question reference: S6W-07156

Asked by: Fulton MacGregor, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on current considerations regarding advice to NHS boards on the routine use of sapropterin in NHS Scotland.

The first generic version of sapropterin has recently received a Marketing Authorisation from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Healthcare Improvement Scotland are working to provide updated advice to Boards to enable routine prescribing of Sapropterin. We expect this to be in place in April. In the meantime, doctors can request access to medicines that are not generally available on the NHS on an individual case-by-case basis through local health board medicine governance processes.

Question reference: S6W-07052

Asked by: Sue Webber, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 04 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government from where it has located the additional £6 million funding for the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund, which it announced on 25 February 2022.

The additional funding to deliver the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults in 2021-22 has been identified as part of the £120 million Mental Health Recovery & Renewal (MH R&R) Fund to ensure the delivery of commitments set out in the Mental Health Transition and Recovery Plan.

The new Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults was launched in October 2021 with £15 million of funding from the Mental Health Recovery & Renewal budget. The Fund aims to support grassroots community-based initiatives across Scotland which promote good mental health and wellbeing and early intervention for those in distress and tackle the impact of social isolation, loneliness and the mental health inequalities made worse by the pandemic. The Fund is managed locally by Third Sector Interface (TSI) bodies and is designed to support the development of an integrated culture of mental wellbeing and prevention within local communities.

Following a very positive response to the Fund from communities across Scotland, the additional £6 million funding for 2021-22 announced in February has been provided to TSIs to meet the demand for local mental health and wellbeing projects, bringing total funding to £21 million in 2021-22.

Question reference: S6W-07154

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding NHS Scotland has received in value-related rebates from stoma care product suppliers in the last 10 years.

Question reference: S6W-07214

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many deaths were attributed to hospital acquired infections in each year from 1999-2000 until the most recent year for which figures are available, broken down by NHS board.

Scottish Government does not centrally hold data for all hospital acquired infection deaths by Health Board, due to patient identifiable information.

2000 to 2020 data for registered deaths due to Clostridioides difficile infection and MRSA is available from National Records of Scotland (NRS) can be found here and here .

However, it should be noted that although publically available details also broken down by Health Board, the data does not make the distinction between hospital acquired or community acquired infection.

Question reference: S6W-07151

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how it guarantees that the approximately £2 million of funding received by NHS National Services Scotland national procurement from stoma care product suppliers in 2020 is used solely for stoma care specialist nursing services within NHS boards across Scotland, as per agreement NP642/13 (Stoma Community: Tariff Formulary).

Question reference: S6W-07331

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 18 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether any Hikvision cameras are currently installed in or around any Scottish Government building.

Question reference: S6W-07150

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made on the establishment of stoma fora in NHS boards, as recommended by the Stoma Care Quality and Cost Effectiveness Review, in 2016, and the National Stoma Quality Improvement Short Life Working Group, in 2019.

The Stoma Care Quality and Cost Effectiveness Review, in 2016, and the National Stoma Quality Improvement Short Life Working Group (NSQIG), in 2019 recommended that NHS Boards who currently do not have an established Stoma Forum should consider this. The Scottish Government was not represented on the NSQIG and the recommendation was for NHS Boards to consider.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information and we expect individual NHS Boards to consider and implement this recommendation locally.

Question reference: S6W-07220

Asked by: Stephanie Callaghan, MSP for Uddingston and Bellshill, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that all autistic people are made fully aware of any adjustments or adaptations that are available to them in COVID-19 vaccination centres.

I refer the member to the answer to earlier questions: S6W-06594, S6W-06595 on 1 March 2022.

Guidance will be included on vaccination appointment letters, signposting people to additional support should it be required. Additionally, if people need any additional support at their vaccine appointment, they can call the National Vaccination Helpline on 0800 030 8013 to discuss. Information on the COVID-19 vaccine is available in a range of different formats on NHS Inform , including in audio, easy read and large print. Scottish Government continues to engage regularly with key autism stakeholders including the National Autistic Society and Scottish Autism around our approach to managing COVID-19 and its associated harms .

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers