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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-35078

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) written communications and (b) meetings it has had with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) regarding written evidence submissions as part of the review of Curriculum for Excellence.

Since the beginning of the Review the Scottish Government National Co-ordination Team has had been in regular communication with the OECD, including weekly meetings which focus on planning and implementing the review, in line with the established OECD guidelines and methodology.

Submissions of evidence have been discussed as part of those meetings, along with all other aspects of planning the Independent Review of Curriculum for Excellence.

Question reference: S5W-34990

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 17 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Air Discount Scheme for islands residents will continue beyond 31 March 2021.

Question reference: S5W-34991

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 15 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the 2021-22 budget will be allocated to the centralisation of air traffic control for Highlands and Islands Airports.

Question reference: S5O-05032

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 February 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports victims of crime in remote and rural communities.

Question reference: S5W-34565

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 3 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that people who employ carers and social care personal assistants using direct payment packages can afford the PPE they require and purchase it without the risk of overspending their package budget.

As at 19 January 2021, over 4.8 million items of PPE had been distributed free of charge via the PPE hubs to unpaid carers and PAs to support the additional need for PPE as a result of pandemic.

The Scottish Government is providing additional funding across health and social care services to recognise the additional costs of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, including in relation to PPE, and ensure safety remains the top priority at all times. If a direct payment holder has concerns about being able to meet the costs of the PPE recommended for those in caring roles during the pandemic within their direct payment, they should contact their Health and Social Care Partnership to discuss.

The Scottish Government (via NHS National Services Scotland (NSS)) is also providing top-up and emergency provision of PPE from the national stock to ensure that staff, PAs and unpaid carers have the PPE they need. This is being supplied through two routes:

1. local PPE Hub(s) in every Health and Social Care Partnership area where providers, PAs/their employers and unpaid carers can access PPE if they cannot get it through their normal routes, and

2. a central social care PPE support centre dedicated to urgent need, that can be accessed in emergency situations.

In order to find out the details of their local Hub and how to access it, people using a direct payment to employ PAs or carers, or PAs and carers themselves, can contact their Health and Social Care Partnership or phone the NSS Social Care PPE Support Centre on 0300 303 3020. This information is also set out on the Scottish Government website .

Question reference: S5W-34462

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 11 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 1 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration has been given to extending the use of concessionary ferry travel vouchers that are due to expire on 31 March 2021, in light of the restrictions on travel due to COVID-19.

Question reference: S5W-32619

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 16 October 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 29 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether so-called long COVID will be a condition added to the respiratory care action plan.

We are committed to taking action to support those experiencing the longer physical and mental health impacts of COVID-19, including those that have developed long-term respiratory problems as a result of contracting the virus.

Work to develop the final Respiratory Care Action Plan for Scotland is underway and it will play a key role in responding to the implications and consequences for many aspects of respiratory care going forward, including pulmonary rehabilitation.

We are prioritising the implementation of the Framework for Supporting people through Recovery and Rehabilitation during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic. The Framework is available to read on the Scottish Government’s website: https://www.gov.scot/publications/framework-supporting-people-through-recovery-rehabilitation-during-covid-19-pandemic/ .

In addition to the Framework we are funding research into the long-term effects of COVID-19 and supported the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), which worked with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the Royal College of GPs to publish a rapid clinical guideline on the persistent effects of COVID-19. The guideline provides clinical definitions of the effects of COVID-19 at different times and is available to view on the SIGN website: https://www.sign.ac.uk/media/1800/sign161-long-term-effects-of-covid19-10.pdf

Question reference: S5O-04978

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 January 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met representatives of Shetland Islands Council, and what was discussed.

Question reference: S5W-34509

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 26 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it has issued to those (a) running and (b) attending schools during the current COVID-19 lockdown, and whether it will offer any additional support in light of any lessons learned during this period.

We recognise that the move to remote learning will have created challenges for many. Therefore, since announcing the introduction of remote learning, we have published and updated supplementary guidance on school reopening arrangements for January 2021 , and I am grateful to Education Scotland for publishing their Guidance on remote learning to support parents and practitioners. These documents draw on our partners’ experiences and learning over the last year, and I am grateful to the education workforce, parents and pupils for their hard work to ensure learning and teaching continue.

Question reference: S5W-34605

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 15 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 22 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the agreement reached with the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers in April 2020, whether further support will be made available for supply teachers.

Pay and conditions of service for teachers are matters for the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT).

The SNCT is currently considering whether further support will be required. The Scottish Government would expect that additional supply teachers will be required to support remote learning and Covid education recovery.

We have already provided £75m to enable local authorities to recruit an additional 1400 teachers and on 13 January £45 million of new funding was announced to further support education recovery.

This new funding will allow local authorities to deploy more support to their schools and families as they deal with the challenges of remote learning during lockdown. The new funding can be used to recruit further staff - which might include teachers, classroom assistants, administrative staff, home/school link workers or other support workers. We would therefore expect more supply teachers to be recruited where they are needed to support education recovery.