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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: S6W-24715

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 January 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many times emergency contraception, or the so-called morning after pill, has been prescribed to prisoners in the (a) female and (b) male prison estate in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S6O-03028

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it sets the priorities for its international offices each year.

Question reference: S6W-24397

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 23 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23865 by Jenni Minto on 21 December 2023, when the policy to distribute condoms in the women's prison estate was introduced, and whether sanitary products are available in the men's prison estate, and, if so, when this policy was introduced.

The provision of condoms in all prisons (male and female) in Scotland has been a long standing health intervention dating back before the publication of ‘Respect and Responsibility: A Strategy and Action Plan for Improving Sexual Health’ in 2005.

All individuals in the care of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) are provided with basic hygiene items and products. This includes clothing such as underwear and socks as well as sanitary products, body wash, shampoo, etc. This is to support the health, wellbeing and dignity of the individual.

Question reference: S6W-24314

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23865 by Jenni Minto on 21 December 2023, whether records are kept of the condoms issued to prisoners on the female prison estate; if so, how many have been issued in each month of the last two years, and for what reason condoms are issued on the female prison estate if conjugal visits are not permitted.

Data on the numbers of condoms issued in prisons is not collected centrally.

Condom provision is one of the most effective harm reduction interventions to control sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV and therefore condoms are available to all prisoners to support health protection in the prison population.

While centralised data is not collected, prison healthcare teams report that women access condoms for home visits and liberation.

Question reference: S6W-23947

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 15 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 16 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the (a) Royal College of Nursing report, The Nursing Workforce in Scotland: Review of Progress, (b) reported concern regarding high nursing vacancy rates across the NHS and social care and (c) most recent NHS statistics showing that 5,400 nursing and midwifery posts remain unfilled.

As set out in our Health and Social Care: National Workforce Strategy we are committed to taking all the appropriate steps to support staffing levels across our Health and Social Care settings.

Since October 2021 we have provided c. £18m funding to Health Boards to recruit 1,250 international nurses, midwives and AHPs by the end of this financial year with over 1,000 successfully recruited thus far.

However, we are not complacent, that is why we have convened the Nursing and Midwifery Taskforce to co-produce tangible and realistic recommended action with its members, including the RCN, to address areas for improvement identified by the nursing and midwifery professions. The Taskforce’s Listening Project is now well underway to gather the views of staff to help shape those recommendations.

Question reference: S6W-23946

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 15 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 16 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address the 11% drop in acceptances onto nursing programmes in Scotland in the last year, as reported by UCAS.

The Scottish Government has been monitoring UCAS figures, which exclude Open University and Honours programmes, and we thank our Higher Education Institutions who have worked hard to promote their programmes by visiting schools, attending careers fairs and promoting the range of opportunities via their social media channels.

The attraction and retention of students into nursing remains a key focus for the Nursing and Midwifery Taskforce - not everyone will begin their career by participating in an undergraduate programme and these are not the sole solution to filling workforce vacancies. That is why we are already considering alternative career pathways, such as apprenticeships and ‘earn as you learn’ routes, that can attract candidates and encourage existing staff to join supported education programmes that enable them to reach registration with the relevant professional bodies.

Question reference: S6W-23527

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 15 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking with NHS boards to review NHS security measures, in light of reports that an individual impersonating a nurse gained access to the medical details of several patients at a hospital in NHS Fife.

The Scottish Government is concerned at this breach of security which has been the subject of an investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office. NHS Fife has introduced a system on the ward for documents containing patient data to be signed in and out of each shift and individuals will not be able to commence their shift until their identification has been verified and cross-referenced. The Information Commissioner’s Office has made further recommendations to NHS Fife and requested a progress report by 6 June 2024. The Scottish Government will ask NHS Fife to also provide a copy of that progress report to it.

Question reference: S6O-02961

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to review the consultation process for energy infrastructure projects.

Question reference: S6W-23980

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 29 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in light of reports that deaths of newborn babies have reached a 15-year high, with 41 neonatal deaths recorded in the three months prior to the end of September 2023.

The recent quarterly increase in the rate of neonatal mortality is concerning.

We have asked Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) to look into the increase in neonatal mortality reported in 2021-2022, and although this report has been slightly delayed, we expect HIS to report early in 2024.

Whilst this report will not examine the cases included in the most recent rise, we expect that the findings of that report will help us understand why neonatal mortality may be increasing, and we will look to act on those findings.

Question reference: S6W-23865

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether condoms are available to prisoners in the women's prison estate.