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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: S5W-02081

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 August 2016
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 September 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had with representatives of (a) Highland and Universal Land Limited, (b) Highland Global Transport Limited and (c) Gloag Investment Properties Limited; who was in attendance, and what was discussed, in each of the last two years.

Question reference: S5O-00115

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 August 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 September 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will take action to prevent NHS Lanarkshire from closing trauma and inpatient orthopaedic services at Monklands Hospital.

Question reference: S5W-01259

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 July 2016
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 19 July 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the minute of the meeting between Transport Scotland and Orchard Brae Ltd and their agents on 26 January 2016 and what information it has on the meeting hosted by North Lanarkshire Council Planning and Roads officers and attended by NLC, Transport Planning Ltd and CBRE on 24 March 2016.

No formal minutes were taken at either meeting and we are therefore unable to publish the details.

The second meeting was held on 13 April 2016 and was hosted by North Lanarkshire Council Planning and Roads officers with attendance from Transport Scotland officers, Transport Planning Ltd, CBRE and Scott Gillespie, who we understand to be a director of Orchard Brae Ltd. The developer’s team outlined the emerging Euro Park proposals and their proposed approach to consultation and assessments to support a planning application. Transport Scotland officers outlined the standard approach to consideration of strategic transport impacts in line with the published transport appraisal and assessment guidance.

Question reference: S5W-01140

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 18 July 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the First Minister on 28 June 2016 (Official Report, c. 4), on what date it will publish the full minute of the meeting between the First Minister and the President of the European (a) Parliament and (b) Commission.

On 28 June 2016 the Scottish Government received a clear mandate from Parliament to pursue all options to protect Scotland’s relationship with the EU. Acting on this, the First Minister met the Presidents of the European Parliament and European Commission on 29 June 2016. These meetings were not seeking decisions or conclusions but rather ensuring that Scotland’s voice was heard and that both presidents understood Scotland’s position.

The Scottish Government is committed to regularly reporting progress on its EU engagement to Parliament including through regular engagement with relevant committees. However, the Scottish Government has no plans to publish minutes of meetings, in view of the need to protect diplomatic conversations.

Question reference: S5W-01139

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 18 July 2016

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the First Minister on 28 June 2016 (Official Report, c. 4), whether it will publish the terms of the discussions that it is seeking to have with the member states of the EU, and whether these will be discussed in advance with leaders of the other parties in the Scottish Parliament.

The First Minister has committed to explore all options to protect Scotland’s relationship with the EU. On 28 June 2016 the Scottish Parliament provided a clear mandate for Scottish Ministers to engage with EU member states to pursue this outcome, and to ensure that Scotland’s voice is heard.

The Scottish Government will communicate progress to Parliament including through engagement with the relevant committees. The First Minister has also committed to a close dialogue with party leaders. However, as with all diplomatic discussions, there may be some aspects that cannot be shared in full without compromising our ability to best deliver Scotland’s interests.

Question reference: S5O-00086

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 June 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to the implications of the Trade Union Act 2016 on workers in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-00523

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 20 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) consultants, (b) registrars, (c) junior doctors, (d) physiotherapists and (e) nurses provide orthopaedic services in each hospital in NHS (i) Lanarkshire and (ii) Forth Valley.

Information on how many (d) physiotherapists and (e) nurses provide orthopaedic services is not held centrally.

The following tables show, in whole time equivalent (WTE) terms, the number of consultants and doctors in training in NHS Lanarkshire and NHS Forth Valley with a specialty of trauma and orthopaedic surgery in September 2006 and March 2016. This information is held at board-level only. Specific local information will be available from NHS Lanarkshire and NHS Forth Valley.

Table 1. Number (WTE) of consultants and doctors in training with a specialty of trauma and orthopaedic surgery in NHS Lanarkshire.

	Sep-2006	Mar-2016	% change Sep-2006 to Mar-2016
Consultants	10.0	20.7	107.0%
Doctors in training	4.0	11.0	175.0%

Source: Scottish workforce information standard system (SWISS).

Notes: Doctors in training include the grades registrar, senior registrar, specialist registrar and specialty registrar.

Although the question asks for the number of (a) consultants, (b) registrars, (c) junior doctors that provide orthopaedic services, the information shown is for trauma and orthopaedic surgery which is the full name of the general medical council (GMC) specialty. All staff working in this specialty have been/are being trained in both trauma and orthopaedics.

Table 2. Number (WTE) of consultants and doctors in training with a specialty of trauma and orthopaedic surgery in NHS Forth Valley.

	Sep-2006	Mar-2016	% change Sep-2006 to Mar-2016
Consultants	8.0	10.0	25.0%
Doctors in training	0.0	5.0	0.0%

Source: Scottish workforce information standard system.

Notes: Doctors in training include the grades registrar, senior registrar, specialist registrar and specialty registrar.

Although the question asks for the number of (a) consultants, (b) registrars, (c) junior doctors that provide orthopaedic services, the information shown is for trauma and orthopaedic surgery which is the full name of the GMC specialty. All staff working in this specialty have been/are being trained in both trauma and orthopaedics.

Question reference: S5W-00513

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 16 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to (a) build and (b) commit resources to build a railway halt in the village of Plains.

The proposal to progress a railway station at Plains is being taken forward by North Lanarkshire Council. An appraisal, in line with Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) is been undertaken to ascertain the most appropriate transport intervention for the area.

On 16 February 2016 STAG Part 1 was received from the council and on 27 May 2016, Transport Scotland provided comments on the STAG Part 1 report and these comments are with the council for consideration.

Question reference: S5W-00515

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 16 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had since May 2011 and with whom to consider the case for a railway halt in the village of Plains.

Transport Scotland met with North Lanarkshire Council and Strathclyde Partnership for Transport to discuss aspirations for a station at Plains in February 2013 and December 2014 and, as a result of these meetings, North Lanarkshire Council agreed to undertake an appraisal in line with Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG).

On 16 February 2016 STAG Part 1 was received from the council. Transport Scotland provided comments on the STAG Part 1 report on 27 May 2016 and the comments are now with the council for consideration.

Question reference: S5W-00526

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 June 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 June 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many orthopaedic (a) inpatients and (b) outpatients have been treated in each hospital in NHS (i) Forth Valley and (ii) Lanarkshire in each of the last five years.

The following tables show the number of orthopaedic inpatient/daycases and outpatients that have been treated in NHS Forth Valley and NHS Lanarkshire by hospital for the last five calendar years.

Table 1 - Number people treated under orthopaedic specialty in inpatient/daycase setting in NHS Forth Valley and NHS Lanarkshire health boards of treatment by hospital for calendar years 2011-15

Number of Episodes

Hospital	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
Forth Valley Royal Hospital	2,974	3,933	3,927	4,513	4,661
Stirling Community Hospital	1,449	-	-	5	-
Hairmyres Hospital	3,650	4,108	3,690	3,645	3,635
Monklands District General Hospital	2,716	2,830	2,772	2,400	2,795
Wishaw General Hospital	2,959	3,046	3,128	3,492	3,389

Source: SMR01, Information Services Division Scotland

Table 2- Number people treated under orthopaedic specialty in outpatient setting in NHS Forth Valley and NHS Lanarkshire health boards of treatment by hospital for calendar years 2011-15

Number of Attendances

Hospital	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015^p
Clackmannanshire Community Healthcare Centre	243	75	-	-	93
Forth Valley Royal Hospital	8,558	10,774	11,294	12,689	12,557
Stirling Community Hospital	2,686	718	192	-	145
Hairmyres Hospital	17,152	15,695	15,194	12,344	9,786
Monklands District General Hospital	19,852	18,145	18,335	15,126	11,952
Stonehouse Hospital	1,612	173	31	347	582
Wishaw General Hospital	17,416	17,105	17,200	16,073	11,106

p - provisional

Source: SMR00, Information Services Division Scotland