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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-12118

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

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S6W-05371 and S6W-05373 by Humza Yousaf on 10 January 2022, and the reference to a "regular tripartite forum" that has a focus on junior doctors, what progress has been made in addressing the concerns raised in the BMA Scotland report, Supporting Junior Doctor Wellbeing – Now and for the Future.

Question reference: S6W-12108

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

To ask the Scottish Government what the total number of whole time equivalent staff working for NHS 24 was in the financial year (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21 and (d) 2021-22, including a breakdown by (i) call handlers and (ii) nurse advisers.

The requested information on how many whole time equivalent staff working for NHS 24 in the financial year (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21 and (d) 2021-22, including a breakdown by (i) call handlers and (ii) nurse advisers is not centrally available.

Information on how many whole time equivalent staff working for NHS 24 since 2012 can be found in the following link: NHSScotland workforce | Turas Data Intelligence

Question reference: S6W-12111

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

To ask the Scottish Government how many people who are awaiting inpatient appointments to access orthopaedic procedures have been waiting for over (a) two years, (b) two years and six months and (c) three years.

Table 1 presents the latest published number of patients covered by the Treatment Time Guarantee (TTG) that were waiting within an inpatient or day case setting in Scotland at 30 June 2022, and the number waiting over two years (104 weeks), 2 years and six months (130 weeks), and 3 years (156 weeks) for an Orthopaedics procedure.

Table 1 - Number of patients waiting for an inpatient or day case admission for Orthopaedics by length of wait in NHSScotland, at 30 June 2022

Patient Type	Number On list	Waiting over two years	Waiting over two years and six months	Waiting over three years
Daycase	16,898	759	251	22
Inpatient	25,303	1,850	673	71
Total	42,201	2,609	924	93

Question reference: S6W-12100

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

To ask the Scottish Government whether the £400 million from health and social care funding that was repurposed in the Emergency Budget Review is recurring, or will only apply in the current financial year.

Question reference: S6O-01629

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what work it has undertaken to help Homeless Project Scotland find premises in Glasgow.

Question reference: S6W-12012

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 23 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what COVID-19 mitigation measures will continue in health and social care settings until the end of the current financial year, and what the estimated cost is of these.

Health and Social care settings are expected to follow the National Infection Prevention and Control Manual when caring for individuals who have been diagnosed with or suspected of having COVID-19.

Guidance on infection control measures across health and social care settings is determined by, and kept under constant review in light of, new and emerging evidence. While reduced prevalence of the virus and hospitalisation rates has resulted in an easing of the previous infection and prevention control (IPC) measures, and a consequent reduction in costs, various mitigations remain in place.

These includeongoing symptomatic testing for staff working in face-to-face roles with patients and service users in health and social care settings and extended use of face masks and face coverings in hospitals, primary care and wider community healthcare. As well as ongoing support measures including the Social Care Staff Support Fund (supporting staff whilst they self-isolate), financial support arrangements relating to testing in care homes and staff vaccinations, and PPE Hubs remaining available in case of emergency PPE being required and for unpaid carers and personal assistants.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with NHS Boards and Integration Authorities to manage Covid expenditure within the 2022-23 budget and is considering the on-going cost of measures as part of the 2023-24 budget process.

Question reference: S6W-12014

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 23 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will confirm whether it plans to reduce COVID-19 testing and the provision of PPE in health and social care settings as a result of the reported reduction of the budget for COVID-19 measures by £116 million, as part of the reprioritisation of spending within Health and Social Care as announced in the emergency budget review on 2 November 2022.

Reduced prevalence and hospitalisation rates has resulted in an easing of the previous infection and prevention control measures which has contributed, in turn, to a reduction in expenditure levels.

There are no plans to reduce COVID-19 testing in health and social care settings as a result of the Emergency Budget Review. In line with the Test and Protect transition plan, testing remains in place to support patient treatment and care, protect those in highest risk settings, monitor prevalence and the risk of new variants, and respond to outbreaks. Testing policy and protocols are kept under regular clinical review.

Similarly, PPE provision continues to be informed by infection prevention and control guidance. NHS NSS currently hold sufficient pandemic PPE stock to supply NHS Scotland well into 2023-24 based on current usage rates. Social Care PPE provision continues to be available in case of emergency PPE being required and for unpaid carers and personal assistants.

Question reference: S6W-12013

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 23 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the reported reduction of the budget for COVID-19 measures by £116 million, as part of the reprioritisation of spending within Health and Social Care as announced in the emergency budget review on 2 November 2022, what consideration it gave to any impact on equality and fairness resulting from potentially exposing clinically-vulnerable patients to the disease who may be at a greater risk of infection.

The Scottish Government recognised the unprecedented nature of the changes required in the Emergency Budget Review and also published analysis of the equality and fairness impacts of the most substantive in-year adjustments. Given the exceptional circumstances and time constraints under which the Review was undertaken, the summary evidence was necessarily presented at a high level and focused on the most substantial changes.

In the case of the £116m reduction in Covid-related spending, this covers a range of actions on vaccinations, test and protect, PPE and additional capacity to drive down additional costs. It is important to note that the spending reduction is a consequence of reduced prevalence and hospitalisation rates resulted in evidence-based easing of infection prevention and control measures.

However, the impact on inequalities continues to be a focus, and includes measures to ensure uptake rates and activity aimed at reducing vaccine inequalities are not negatively affected.

We will continue to develop equality evidence, as well as mitigations wherever possible for negative impacts, including building on the evidence on inequalities in relation to COVID vaccination, testing and surveillance, for example as set out in the equality impact assessment for the Coronavirus (COVID-19): Strategic Framework update (February 2022).

Question reference: S6W-12445

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6W-11995

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 18 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how the Childsmile programme is delivered to children under the age of five.

The Childsmile Programme is designed to help improve the oral health of children in Scotland and is delivered through a range of measures. The Childsmile Core Programme is available throughout Scotland and is introduced to families by their Health Visitor. Every child in Scotland is provided with a dental pack containing a toothbrush and toothpaste on at least six occasions by the age of five and can receive twice-yearly applications of fluoride varnish from the age of 2.

Childsmile School and Nursery ensures that all 3 and 4 year old children attending nursery are offered free, daily, supervised toothbrushing. Those children in the 20 per cent most deprived areas of Scotland are also able to receive an additional twice-yearly fluoride varnish applications by Childsmile dental teams in nurseries and schools until at least primary 4.

More information on the Childsmile programme can be found at: https://www.child-smile.org.uk/index.aspx .