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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: S2W-05169

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 19 December 2003
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive why NHS 24 has not appointed a new director of nursing given that the post has been vacant for six months.

Question reference: S2W-05332

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 January 2004
Current Status: Answered by Nicol Stephen on 26 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to develop accessible subsidised transport provision for people with disabilities who are unable to access public transport.

The Executive is committedto ensuring that public transport is accessible to people with disabilities.Under the partnership agreement the Executive is committed to assessingimproved public transport concessions for disabled people.

The assessment will, amongother things, look at the barriers to accessible transport for disabled people,enhanced concessionary fares and options for door to door travel. To achievethis we will work with public transport providers, the Mobility and AccessCommittee for Scotland, voluntary and other interested bodies. We are aboutto commence a public consultation on how best to take forward the assessmentand extending the concessionary bus fare scheme to a national off-peak schemefor older and disabled people.

Ministers have also approveda £0.5 million per annum budget to pilot rural demand responsive transportbetween 2004-06 and a further £0.5 million per annum to pilot urban communitytransport/demand responsive transport over the same period.

Question reference: S2O-01112

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 January 2004
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 22 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take in response to concerns raised in the new report from the NHS Information and Statistics Division, Increasing emergency admissions among older people in Scotland.

The reportin question is a working paper commissioned some time ago from Information andStatistics Division by the Health Department. The department is reviewing theinformation presented in the paper. A number of actions to address the issueshighlighted are already under way, both at departmental and NHS board/localauthority level. Examples include use of joint NHS/social care rapid reactionteams to help organise care and treatment of elderly patients at home; and workbeing undertaken by the Centre for Change and Innovation on patterns ofemergency NHS care. The overall aim is to ensure that patients are treated inthe most suitable environment and experience the highest possible quality ofcare.

Question reference: S2W-05377

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 January 2004
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive what the annual (a) actual and (b) additional cost would be of providing free prescriptions to (i) the whole population and (ii) those people who are currently not eligible and who have (1) a terminal illness and (2) long-term health problems.

It is not possible toproduce firm estimates of the actual or additional costs to the NHS ofproviding free prescriptions for the whole population of Scotland orfor the patient groups specified.

The NHS currently receivesaround £47 million per year from prescription charge income. This income wouldbe lost if prescriptions were provided free. In addition NHS spending on GPservices, the drugs bill and pharmacists’ remuneration could rise if peopleobtained on prescription items that they would previously have bought over thecounter. Such increases, though likely, cannot be quantified. Cost reductionsare unlikely to exceed £1 million per year, made up of administrative savingson certain prescription fraud prevention measures, prescription charge refundsand pre-payment certificate services which would no longer being required.

The costs or savings whichwould arise from providing free prescriptions for people suffering from aterminal illness or long-term health problems cannot be estimated. The numberof people that fall into these groups is not known, neither is the numberrequired to pay for their prescriptions under the current prescription chargingarrangements. Consequently, it is not possible to identify and cost the drugsprescribed or the number of prescriptions written for these patients. Peoplesuffering from a terminal illness who are receiving palliative care in hospitalor in a hospice do not pay for their prescribed drugs.

Question reference: S2W-05333

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 January 2004
Current Status: Answered by Ross Finnie on 19 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will extend the transitional relief scheme for water rates beyond March 2004.

Question reference: S2W-05101

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 December 2003
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to address any reduction in the number of experienced speech and language therapists employed in the public sector.

It is for NHS Boards to determine the need for local therapyservices and to provide the services required.

The Partnership Agreementcommits to increasing overall numbers of Allied Health Professionals (AHPs),including speech and language therapists, by 1,500 by 2007. Working groups establishedas part of the AHP strategy Future Directions are already looking at initiatives to improverecruitment and retention and clinical placements. Arange of professional development and leadership opportunities is beingdeveloped to retain the existing workforce. In addition, £1million has been made available for additional student places in priority areasincluding speech and language therapy, funding is available to support a“return to practice” initiative and alternativeroutes to state registration are currently being explored.

Question reference: S2W-05100

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 December 2003
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to increase the number of training places for speech and language therapists.

Question reference: S2W-05073

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 December 2003
Current Status: Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time has been for a first appointment to see a speech and language therapist in each NHS Board area in each of the last five years and so far this year.

Question reference: S2O-01059

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 January 2004
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 15 January 2004

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to address the issue of postcode prescribing for access to drugs for people with Al'heimer's disease.

Question reference: S2W-04378

Asked by: Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2003
Current Status: Answered by Tom McCabe on 22 December 2003

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is considering introducing a nutritional signposting scheme similar to that proposed by the Department of Health.