- Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish government whether it has taken action to ensure timely access to COVID-19 vaccination for any Ukrainian refugee who wishes to be vaccinated.
Answer
The Scottish Government has issued guidance to Health Boards setting out our expectation that Ukrainian refugees in Scotland will have access to all primary health care services along with vaccinations including those for COVID-19.
- Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce any impact on patients in NHS (a) Tayside and (b) Fife, in light of the reported rising number of unscheduled closures of community pharmacies.
Answer
While pharmacy closures can occur, this on the whole represents a small proportion of the network and is often limited to a small proportion of the required model hours. The Scottish Government continue to work with all Health Boards and community pharmacies representatives who are responsible for the provision of local pharmaceutical care services to ensure that any challenges faced by community pharmacies in providing the safe and effective dispensing of treatments are discussed with the local Health Board to minimise impact and risk to patients. Health boards can take a range of actions in response to any breach of terms by a pharmacy contractor.
- Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what arrangements it has made to ensure that Ukrainian refugees have access to local dental treatment and GP practices.
Answer
The Scottish Government has issued guidance to Health Boards setting out our expectation that Health Boards will ensure Ukrainian refugees have access to local dental treatment and GP practices.
- Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider running a public health campaign to provide anyone at risk of infection from the monkeypox virus with accurate information and advice.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-10233 on 29 August 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers
- Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Submitting member has a registered interest.
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Date lodged: Monday, 15 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Ash Regan on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, following publication of its consultation analysis of legal services regulation reform, whether it plans to introduce legislation on legal services regulation reform to the Scottish Parliament, and, if so, when it will do so.
Answer
Delivering on our 2021 Programme for Government commitment, the Scottish Government consulted on proposals for legal services regulation reform. An independent consultation analysis report was published in July 2022.
The report highlighted that all respondents, regardless of affiliation, shared as a common aspiration, the need for any future model to be transparent, open to public scrutiny and efficient to ensure that justice remains accessible to all.
The Scottish Government will respond to the consultation analysis report later this year. We continue to engage with stakeholders to collaboratively consider reform of the regulation of legal services, to provide for a modern regulatory framework for Scotland that will best promote competition, innovation and the public and consumer interest in an efficient and independent legal sector.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 15 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what recent assessment it has made of the impact of (a) alcohol misuse and (b) obesity on liver disease mortality rates, in the West Scotland region.
Answer
We know that alcohol misuse and obesity are the two main risk factors (together with blood borne viruses) that cause liver disease.
Research by the British Liver Trust shows that alcohol-related liver disease accounts for 60% of all liver disease. The latest alcohol-specific deaths statistics published by National Records of Scotland in August 2022 show that in 2021 alcoholic liver disease caused 795 deaths which is an increase of 36 compared to the previous year.
Living with obesity or being overweight is also linked with an increased risk of developing a non-alcohol-related fatty liver disease (NAFLD). According to the 2019 Scottish Health Survey , two-thirds of adults in Scotland were living with obesity or being overweight. Obesity prevalence in Scotland has remained relatively stable since 2008.
The Scottish Government has not carried out a specific assessment of the impact of either alcohol misuse or obesity on liver disease mortality rates in the West of Scotland.
However, we are determined to address Scotland’s problematic relationship with alcohol and unhealthy diet. We are in the process of reviewing the Minimum Unit Price and Alcohol Brief Interventions policies with an intention to consult on a range of potential alcohol marketing restrictions as we continue to implement the 2018 Diet and Healthy Weight Delivery Plan .
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 22 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Ash Regan on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the prioritised recommendation of the United States Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report that Scotland, in particular, must "vigorously prosecute and convict suspected traffickers".
Answer
Any form of human trafficking is completely unacceptable.
Action Area 2 of the Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy is led by Police Scotland’s National Human Trafficking Unit and membership includes a range of law enforcement partners, including the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. The group is focused on the identification of human trafficking and exploitation perpetrators with the intention of disrupting their criminal activity. Key areas of focus include the development of local, national and international intelligence sharing and utilising all available powers at the disposal of prosecuting authorities to bring offenders to justice.
This includes the National Human Trafficking Unit within Police Scotland enhancing its investigative capability and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service maintaining its internal structure of local lead human trafficking prosecutors as well as reviewing and updating training for prosecutors and case preparers.
Decisions in relation to prosecution are taken independent of Government by the Lord Advocate and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, in line with the published Prosecution Code. The guilt of accused persons is determined by a Sheriff or Jury having heard and considered all of the evidence in each case. Sentencing in any given case is a matter for the independent court.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 11 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Ash Regan on 29 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle human trafficking, in light of the findings of the US State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report July 2022.
Answer
The Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015, passed unanimously by the Scottish Parliament, gives police and prosecutors greater powers to detect and bring to justice those responsible for trafficking as well as strengthening protections for survivors.
Scotland’s first Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy was published in 2017, focusing on the identification of and support for victims; disruption of perpetrators and addressing the underlying conditions which foster human trafficking and exploitation.
Working in partnership, significant action has taken place and continues to be delivered across each of these strands and this is set out in more detail in the published annual progress reports, with the most recent published in January 2022 - Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy – Fourth Annual Progress Report (www.gov.scot) .
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 26 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the
Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board's work, including when it
anticipates that the board will publish its findings.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-10282 on 26 August 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 12 August 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 26 August 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board has adapted to deal with any different
issues that farmers may be facing compared with when it was first commissioned.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-10282 on 26 August 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers