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Typically an experienced primary care dentist seeing mainly NHS patients will have a list of around 2,000 – 2,500 patients. While the total number of dentists includes those in Public and Hospital Dental Service settings, published figures indicate that there are no Board areas with less than 1 dentist per 2,000 of population.

As at 31 March 2025, there are 59.2 primary care dentists per 100,000 of the Scottish population, compared to 56.8 at 31 March 2024. This equates to 0.6 dentists per 1000 patients.

The Scottish Government introduced payment reform changes from 1 November 2023 which has been well received by the profession. This is the main intervention designed to ensure dentists continue to be incentivised to both remain and increase their NHS provision.

Workforce:

2.Payment reform was introduced in November ’23 reducing treatment items from 700 to 45, with almost 4 million courses of treatment delivered between November 2023 and September 2024.

3.A second stage of reform will focus on workforce. Under the First Minister’s NHS Renewal priorities for 25-26 student intake to the Bachelor of Dental Surgery/BDS courses at Aberdeen, Dundee and Glasgow universities will increase by 7%; a new training scheme will support overseas-qualified dentists, who are GDC-registered as dental therapists, to convert to full dentist status at a cost of £1.5M and redesign of a rural incentive scheme funded via the GDS budget.

4.I will continue to lead on renewing four-nation discussions on Provisional Registration, which would allow overseas-qualified dentists to enter the UK NHS workforce immediately while awaiting qualification.

5.The Scottish Government is addressing building capacity, by adopting a multi-disciplinary team approach, giving patients direct access to care via dental care professional (i.e. hygienists, therapists, dental nurses).

6.We continue to offer financial support through the recently revised Scottish Dental Access Initiative and Recruitment and Retention Allowance, supporting NHS dental provision in designated geographic areas to address unmet patient need.

7.The Programme for Government sets out a package of actions to improve the NHS dental workforce now and into the future, and is supported by new funding in 2025-26.

8.We will support the dental workforce pipeline through both the immediate expansion of domestic dental student numbers and the development of an innovative new training package to support international dentists in joining the NHS Scotland workforce.

9.Alongside this, we are also working with NHS Boards to refine the financial incentives in place to support dentists moving to work in rural areas, supporting sustainable access across Scotland.

It is at the discretion of the institutions to select the specific students who should participate in the SEEP test and learn projects.

Inclusion and diversity in all fields of education are a priority for the Test and Learn Project. The Test and Learn Project supports initiatives that promote social inclusion for individuals with fewer opportunities—such as people with disabilities, migrants, rural residents, and those facing socio-economic hardship or discrimination.

Funded projects should help reduce access barriers and foster inclusive, equitable environments that reflect the needs of diverse communities.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. I would further refer the member to the answer to question S6W-37841 on 5 June 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

When applying for funding, colleges and universities submit a projected budget which provides a detailed breakdown of costs relating to the implementation and delivery of the project. However, the information is not recorded in the manner requested.

An external evaluation due to be published later in the summer will provide an analysis of the SEEP projects which will include costs associated with the development and delivery of projects and funding allocated to student mobility.

The Scottish Education Exchange Programme (SEEP) Test and Learn Project was launched in 2023. In year 1 the project did not directly fund any student exchanges. Institutions prioritised staff mobility projects supporting the development of partnerships between Scottish institutions and their international partners.

In year 2, the Scottish Government invested £535,000 in SEEP enabling students from Scottish institutions who would not meet the criteria for Turing Scheme funding to participate in a mobility project. In year 2, 14 projects contained a student mobility element.

An external evaluation of the SEEP is currently underway which will contain further detail on funded projects. The report is due to be published late summer.

Data relating to the Turing scheme is provided by the UK Government. The year 1 (2021-22) figures have been published:

Turing Scheme funding outcomes 2021 to 2022 - GOV.UK.

Under the new model Neonatal Intensive Care will be delivered in three Units - the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Aberdeen Maternity Hospital. The change was recommended in the Best Start report published in 2017 and was supported by a review of evidence carried out by Dr Anna Gavine, Dr Steve MacGillivray and Prof Mary Renfrew of the University of Dundee and published alongside The Best Start.

The approach to high volume neonatal intensive care for the smallest and sickest babies is further supported by the publication in 2021 of the British Association for Perinatal Medicine (BAPM) Framework for Practice.

On the basis of this evidence, and data for Scotland, three units would be the best model for Scotland. The decision on the location of the final three units was based on advice from clinical experts who undertook an options appraisal to identify the units. The appraisal was published in July 2023.

The Scottish Ministers have decided to recall the Lomond Banks appeal as the proposed development raises issues of national significance in view of its potential impact on Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park. Ministers will make the decision on this appeal and will give full and proper consideration to it.

The economic impact of a proposed development is one of several factors considered when determining appeals. In reaching a decision, Ministers are required by law to have regard to the development plan and to all relevant material factors, including all submissions made by parties involved in the case and all representations made.

This remains a live appeal, and it would not be appropriate to comment on the merits of the case, nor on any specific issues that may be involved in the consideration and decision-making process.

This remains a live case and each case is considered on its individual merits.

Scottish Government commissioned Consulting firm RSM UK Consulting LLP to undertake detailed modelling work to fully map the capacity requirements across the system to inform capacity building and implementation of the new model. The report was published on the 29 May 2024.

Each of the three Regional Planning Chief Executives has produced a plan outlining how they will move to the new model of care in their region. The plans are based on the capacity modelling work undertaken by RSM-UK and describe how the units will increase cot capacity to deliver the new model. Wishaw and Glasgow babies are included in the West Region, and are reflected in the capacity building in that plan.

There is no available data on the number of prosecutions for online child sexual abuse that have taken place in each of the past five years.

COPFS uses a live, operational database to manage the processing of reports submitted to Procurators Fiscal by the police and other reporting agencies throughout Scotland. The database is designed to meet business needs in the processing of criminal cases, rather than for statistical analysis, and the information within it is structured accordingly.

Since the publication of the Stroke Improvement Plan, each NHS Board now has a named individual with responsibility for stroke care. The Minister for Public Health and Women’s Health chaired a roundtable meeting with these individuals in October 2024, outlining the Scottish Government’s priorities and expectations regarding stroke care.

A National Stroke Engagement Forum, which met for the first time on 2 October 2024, has been established. This forum, attended by stroke service representatives from every NHS Board, is helping to drive improvement work and facilitate the sharing of best practice across NHS Board boundaries.

An increased focus on rehabilitation is a key component of our Stroke Improvement Plan. We are now asking stroke services in all NHS Boards to offer a formal review to everyone who has had a stroke, taking place six months after the stroke event and allowing re-referral into stroke services where required. In addition, empirical measures of rehabilitation and stroke-specific Patient Reported Experience Measures (PREMS) are being developed and these will further enhance our ability to gauge the delivery of stroke care and rehabilitation.

Since the publication of the Stroke Improvement Plan, NHS Boards are now required to demonstrate adequate provision of psychological support for those who have suffered a stroke, and this is assessed via NHS Board reviews.

In terms of stroke prevention, the Scottish Government has launched the Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Risk Factors programme to improve CVD outcomes with an aim to reduce avoidable CVD death by 20% in 20 years. This work focuses on improving the identification and management of key risk factors which are high blood pressure, high cholesterol, raised blood sugars, obesity and smoking. We have also established a new GP enhanced service from the 2025-26 Reform Fund to support 100,000 patients who are at risk of developing CVD.