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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: S6W-09534

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 01 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place in Dumfries and Galloway for the early detection of blood cancers.

The Scottish Government is committed to finding cancer early, when the chance of survival and even cure is higher. NHS Dumfries & Galloway established Scotland’s first Early Cancer Diagnostic Centre in May 2021. The Centre provides primary care with a new referral route for patients with non-specific symptoms suspicious of cancer, such as weight loss, fatigue and nausea – this is often how blood cancers present.

In addition, we continue to invest in our £44m Detect Cancer Early Programme which adopts a whole-system approach to diagnosing and treating cancer as early as possible across Scotland. The NHS Recovery Plan, published August 2021, commits an additional £20m for the Programme.

Question reference: S6W-09559

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will introduce a flexible educational approach and adopt modern apprenticeships for podiatry in order to attract higher numbers to the profession and address the reported ageing workforce.

Question reference: S6W-09533

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 01 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients in Dumfries and Galloway are currently diagnosed with blood cancers.

Question reference: S6W-09603

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-03190 by Humza Yousaf on 18 October 2021, whether it will provide an update on how many additional GPs (a) have subsequently been recruited each year and (b) it expects to recruit in each of the next six years.

We remain committed to increasing the number of GPs working in Scotland by at least 800 by 2027. We have taken a number of actions, including launching our GP recruitment marketing campaign last month, increasing the number of medical places at universities, and taking steps to encourage medical graduates to choose general practice. To that end, between 2015-16 and 2021-22 the Scottish Government will have increased the annual intake of medical places in Scottish universities from 848 to 1117 (269 places, a 32% increase). The majority of these new places are focused on general practice.

By increasing the amount of undergraduate curriculum that is delivered in general practice to 25%. We are confident increased exposure to general practice will encourage more students to train as GPs. With an increase of 89 GPs in 2019-20 we are now confident we are starting to see the positive impact of these actions.

Number of GPs working in Scotland since 2017

	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021
All GPs	4,918	4,987	5,044	5,121	5195

Question reference: S6W-09733

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the minutes of all meetings of the industry advisory group for talent.

Question reference: S6W-09732

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government who sits on the industry advisory group for talent.

Membership of the Industry Advisory Group for rUK Talent Attraction comprises:

Shona Artale; Q 2 Solutions (Life Sciences); Justin Black; Hays (Recruitment); Craig Clark; Space Scotland (Space Sector); Mark Cowan; Scottish Leather Group (Advanced Manufacture: Mechanical); Shona Darroch; Diodes (Advanced Manufacture: Electronic); Steven Grier; Microsoft (UK) (Tech Sector); Colin Halpin; Scottish Financial Enterprise (Financial Services); Gordon McGuinness; Skills Development Scotland (Skills Agency); Julie Morrison; Scottish Enterprise (Enterprise Agency); Sarah Ronald; Nile HQ (FinTech); Greig Rooney; Valneva (Inward Investment); Ross Tuffee; Digital Technology Skills Group (Tech Sector); and Morag Watson; Scottish Renewables (Renewables).

Question reference: S6W-09734

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government on what dates the industry advisory group for talent has met, and when it is next due to meet.

Question reference: S6W-09735

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 July 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in connection with the industry advisory group for talent, what locations in the rest of the UK have been identified as places to seek to attract talent from, and which specific skills it is seeking to attract from each of those locations.

Question reference: S6W-09359

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 27 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what the current timelines are for (a) delivering the vessel concept design and (b) the award of the first vessel construction contract in the Small Vessel Replacement Programme.

Question reference: S6W-09346

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 25 July 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-08743 by Jenny Gilruth on 14 June 2022, whether it will provide the information requested regarding when it will replace the 25 Class 43 HSTs in the ScotRail fleet; whether it will confirm whether Transport Scotland's position remains that such replacement will occur only when "Network Rail has completed the electrification of all or most of the routes they serve", as reported in The Herald on 21 May 2022; when it anticipates that "the electrification of all or most of the routes they serve" will be completed, and for what reason it did not provide this information in its answer.

The replacement of train fleets in Scotland, including the HSTs, is aligned with the phases of the Decarbonisation Action Plan, a link to which is provided here:- Rail Services Decarbonisation Action Plan | Transport Scotland

This timescale is of course subject to continuous review in line with delivering the decarbonisation of the rail network in Scotland affordably and practicably and any other relevant developments, including recommendations arising from the Steering Groups considering the recommendations of, and subsequent analysis from the recent RAIB report into the Carmont accident.