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: S6W-04392

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 15 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether its commitment to increase the GP workforce by 800 by 2026 will amount to 800 additional whole-time equivalent posts.

The commitment to recruit 800 additional GPs is based on GP headcount and we remain on track to meet that commitment by 2027 as originally set out.

We have taken a number of actions to fulfil this commitment, including increasing the number of medical places at universities, and taking steps to encourage medical graduates to choose general practice. To that end, between 2015-16 and 2021-22 the Scottish Government will have increased the annual intake of medical places in Scottish universities from 848 to 1117 (269 places, a 32% increase). The majority of these new places are focused on general practice.

By increasing the amount of undergraduate curriculum that is delivered in general practice to 25%. We are confident increased exposure to general practice will encourage more students to train as GPs. With an increase of 89 GPs in 2019-20 we are now confident we are starting to see the positive impact of these actions.

Question reference: S6W-04240

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the procurement process was for the NHS Covid Status App; which company was chosen for the design and production of the app; what the cost was of (a) the app's procurement and (b) any initial (i) research, (ii) development and (iii) launch of the app; what the ongoing operational costs (A) have been to date and (B) are estimated to be for the period that the app is operational, including any licence fees or other costs related to the use of the app by it and its agencies.

The full contract notices are published on Public Contracts Scotland. See https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=NOV432052 and https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=NOV432062 . I also refer the member to the answer to question S6W-03620 on 17 November 2021. 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 .

Question reference: S6W-04216

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that not all of the companies, NetCompany, Service Now, Jumio, iProov, Albasoft, Amazon Web Services, CFH Docmail, Microsoft Azure, Gov.uk Notify Service and Royal Mail, are able to access data from the NHS Scotland COVID Status App, even though it is shared, whether it will provide clarification of what this means.

Question reference: S6W-04211

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has had any communication with the Scottish Human Rights Commission regarding its reported concerns about the NHS Scotland COVID Status App, and, if so, whether it will publish any such correspondence and the minutes of any meetings.

Question reference: S6W-03952

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 25 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 6 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government which NHS boards have (a) declared themselves to be Code Black and (b) triggered escalation procedures for Code Black since 1 September 2021.

Each Health Board operates their own escalation policy for the management of inpatient capacity that includes well established processes with locally agreed trigger points for maintaining a safe service and ensuring patient safety. At present, we are only aware of NHS Lanarkshire operating at the highest level of their local escalation - “Black”.

Health Boards across the country are operating under significant pressure due to the direct and indirect consequences of the pandemic, which has been the biggest challenge the NHS has faced in its 73 year existence.

The Scottish Government is in daily contact with all Health Boards to monitor the pressures in the system and continues to support improvement work to minimise delays for patients no matter where they are in the system.

Question reference: S6W-04772

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6W-04719

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 3 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce Down syndrome legislation, similar to that introduced in the UK Parliament.

The Scottish Government wants to improve opportunities, outcomes and support for people with learning disabilities including Down’s Syndrome. To this end, we have committed to introducing a Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Bill as part of the Programme for Government. This Bill will ensure that the rights of people with Down’s Syndrome, among others, are respected and protected.

To help make sure that the new legislation is championed when it is implemented, we will create a Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodiversity Commissioner through the new law.

Question reference: S6W-04618

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 3 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what business expansion grants are available for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Scottish Government provides expansion grants to SMEs primarily through our 3 Enterprise Agencies (Scottish Enterprise, Highlands & Islands Enterprise, and South of Scotland Enterprise) and the Local Authorities. These can be found in detail – including how to apply – on the ‘FindBusinessSupport’ portal which also provides information about what advice, grants and other forms of finance are available to help SMEs. SMEs can also access free business advice – including on the availability of expansion grants - access to market intelligence, and an extensive network of contacts, from Business Gateway which has local offices all over Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-04502

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-04175 by Mairi Gougeon on 12 November 2021, how many applications, following appeal, were (a) approved and (b) not approved, in each year since 2015.

Question reference: S6W-04648

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 3 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to introduce a domestic replacement for the EU school milk subsidy scheme, in light of the rollover of funding expiring at the end of the current academic year, and what plans it has to consult with stakeholders on the details of any new scheme.

Prior to October 2020, Scottish local authorities could claim for subsidy from the EU School Milk Scheme to put towards their local school milk schemes. Following the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, the Scottish Government committed to providing funding to allow Scottish local authorities to continue offering subsidised milk in their schools.

This funding arrangement will continue for the remainder of the 2021-22 school year during which time we will be working with our local authority partners to develop a free school milk scheme which provides for children’s dietary needs. Stakeholder engagement will take place appropriately during that process.