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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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

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Question reference: S5W-29056

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 27 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings Ministers held to discuss the Silver Swan pandemic meeting in 2015.

Question reference: S5T-02214

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 May 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will have recruited all 2,000 contact tracers by the end of May.

Question reference: S5W-28936

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £30 million received from the National Lottery Communities Fund has been distributed.

The Scottish Government has not received £30 million from the National Lottery Community Fund, but has been notified by HM Treasury of an estimated £30 million consequentials relating to UK Government grant to the National Lottery Community Fund in respect of England.

The Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government announced additional support for the third sector in Scotland on 18 March 2020 as part of a £350 million package of communities funding, prior to the UK Government announcement of funding for charities.

This funding exceeds the consequentials expected for Scotland from the UK Government.

The Scottish Government funding package includes a £50 million Wellbeing Fund to provide support to third sector organisations, including charities and social enterprises, helping them to work with at-risk people most affected by the coronavirus pandemic. It also includes a Third Sector Resilience Fund, now worth £25 million, to provide an emergency fund for charities, community groups, social enterprises and voluntary organisations working in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-28937

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many local authority care home residents have been tested for COVID-19.

Question reference: S5W-28938

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many independent care home residents have been tested for COVID-19.

Question reference: S5W-28906

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many people received chemotherapy in April (a) 2019 and (b) 2020 for the treatment of (i) breast, (ii) bowel, (iii) lung, (iv) blood and (v) prostate cancer, and what impact it considers the COVID-19 outbreak had on any variation in the figures.

Cancer waiting times data collects information on eligible referrals who started first treatment for the ten main cancer sites that are part of the waiting times standards. This does not include blood cancer. The number of eligible referrals, from any source, who started chemotherapy as their first treatment in April 2019 is shown in Table 1 by cancer site. Information for April 2020 is not available. Therefore, Public Health Scotland has no information on the impact of COVID-19 on these figures.

Table 1 – Number of eligible referrals who started chemotherapy as their first treatment in the month of April 2019:

Cancer site	Number of eligible referrals
Breast	50
Bowel	16
Lung	70
Prostate	0

For Cancer Waiting Times, the definition of first treatment is the treatment or drug that genuinely attempts to begin the patient’s first treatment, including if this is palliative care or supportive care. Cancer waiting times definitions have been formed for performance monitoring and not for clinical outcome purposes. Patients should be included in the standard where a first treatment was attempted, but either not carried out or not completed for clinical reasons.

Question reference: S5W-29055

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many care home (a) staff and (b) residents in the (i) local authority, (ii) charitable and (iii) independent sector have been tested for COVID-19.

Question reference: S5W-28908

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to establish COVID-19-free hospitals specifically dedicated to cancer treatment.

We are working hard to ensure vital and urgent care remains, including the use of the Golden Jubilee and the use of private hospital capacity to treat these NHS patients. By utilising the private sector capacity we are able to provide a COVID free environment for urgent cancer procedures.

Over the coming weeks we will be developing a clinical priorities framework alongside health boards that will help to inform how the health and care system is aligned and managed during the next phase of the COVID-19 response, and beyond. This includes consideration of establishing dedicated “green” specific areas to carry out treatments including cancer.

Question reference: S5W-28903

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) men and (b) women with blood cancer in each age group have (i) contracted and (ii) died from COVID-19, also broken down by how many had received intensive care support.

The Scottish Government does not hold the total number of men or women with blood cancer, in each age group, who have contacted or died from COVID-19. National Records of Scotland have recently published statistics on Deaths Involving Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Scotland, which can be found by following this link: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files/statistics/covid19/covid-deaths-report-week-18.pdf . The Scottish Government also does not hold the intensive care information requested by the member.

Question reference: S5W-28948

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what risk assessments have been carried out by the NHS regarding the potential impact of COVID-19 on the care home sector, and whether the results have been shared with care home residents and/or their relatives.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting every care home in Scotland whether or not an outbreak has been experienced.

Health and Social Care Partnerships developed local mobilisation plans in response to the COVID-19 emergency. These plans, which are generally aligned with emergency planning arrangements of local councils and NHS Boards, identify key risks and challenges posed by COVID-19, including those in the care home sector, and outline appropriate responses to ensure that vulnerable people are protected.

Locally, partners are undertaking risk assessments of individual care homes to ensure that staff and residents are protected. This is being led by the Directors of Public Health who have been asked to provide enhanced clinical leadership working in partnership with the Health and Social Care Partnership and the Care Inspectorate. Local risk assessment work is constantly evolving and residents and relatives will be informed of any relevant actions coming from this work in an appropriate and timely manner.