- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made on the allocation of the £300 million that it committed to tackle NHS waiting lists, which was to be targeted to reduce waiting lists by an estimated 100,000 patients by 2026.
Answer
We remain committed to driving down waiting times. We have increased investment in frontline NHS boards by more than half a billion pounds in the draft Budget. We will continue to target resources to reduce waiting times, particularly for those waiting longest for treatment, through maximising productivity and additional resources.
We are working with Health Boards on detailed annual plans to demonstrate how waiting lists will be managed to see reductions, improved productivity and clear evidence on how this will help free additional capacity.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Ayrshire and Arran regarding the future use of Carrick Glen Hospital, in light of work on the National Treatment Centre having been paused.
Answer
The UK Government did not inflation-proof its capital budget which has resulted in nearly a 10% real-terms cut in the Scottish Government’s capital funding over the medium-term between 2023-24 and 2027-28. The result of this cut is that new health capital projects have currently been paused.
Work is underway to update the pipeline of projects and programmes relating to the 2021 Infrastructure Investment Plan to ensure it is affordable and deliverable and provides best value for money. Our emphasis for the immediate future will be on addressing backlog maintenance and essential equipment replacement.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with private healthcare companies in the last six months in relation to providing NHS elective surgery treatment.
Answer
The Scottish Government is absolutely committed to keeping our NHS true to its founding principles – publicly-owned, publicly-operated, and free at the point of need. Health Boards might arrange treatment for some patients outwith NHS Scotland, including the private sector in exceptional circumstances. It is for local NHS Health Boards to determine how they use the private sector and to agree any contractual arrangements.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government how many of the short-term outcomes in the document, Allied Health Professions Education and Workforce Policy Review Recommendations, published on 24 February 2023, have been met.
Answer
Following the completion of the Allied Health Professions (AHP) Education and Workforce Policy Review, an advisory group has been established to oversee the effective implementation of the recommendations. The group held its second meeting on 4 March 2024 where the group considered the delivery plan.
The delivery plan takes an outcome based approach and the group recognises the complexity and interdependency of how the suite of recommendations contributes to achieving the overarching positive change required.
The group will consider the timescales required to meet the overarching aims at its future meetings, scheduled in June and October 2024.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government how many requests for non-urgent patient transfers to NHS appointments that were made in (a) 2018-19 and (b) 2022-23 were refused.
Answer
The information that has been requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what recent assessment it has made of NHS patient transport.
Answer
The Scottish Government recognises that Transport plays an important role in supporting patients’ health journeys and the Scottish Government has recently prepared a draft Transport to Health delivery plan which has commitments against transport and healthcare across the work of Health Boards, Regional Transport Partnerships, Health and Social Care and Transport Scotland.
All Health Boards should consider patient transport needs when they plan and deliver services and must ensure Patients have access to all information on any relevant patient transport (including community transport) and travel reimbursement entitlement.
The Scottish Government greatly values the Community Transport sector’s work helping older and disabled people to access GP or hospital appointments and live happier, healthier and more independent lives for longer in their own homes and communities.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 8 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government how many requests were made for non-urgent patient transfers to NHS appointments in (a) 2018-19 and (b) 2022-23.
Answer
The information that has been requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 09 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 6 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what cross-departmental work it has undertaken to consider the environmental impact of a ban on single-use vapes.
Answer
The Scottish Government has engaged in extensive cross-departmental and multi-agency work to consider the environmental impact of single-use vapes including working closely to with other nations across the UK.
This work includes commissioning Zero Waste Scotland to conduct research into the topic, published in June 2023; input to the four nations Creating a smokefree generation and tackling youth vaping consultation, which ran from Oct-Dec 2023; engagement across the four UK governments to draft Regulations, and expertise from multiple policy areas, external agencies, business and public bodies to conduct impact assessments and consider draft Regulations.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Submitting member has a registered interest.
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Date lodged: Friday, 09 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 6 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government's announcement that it will ban single-use vapes, what preparations it is making to work with the UK Government to ensure that Scotland can implement a ban on single-use vapes as part of its reported commitment to a four-nation approach.
Answer
On 29 Jan 2024 I wrote to the Convener of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee to confirm the Scottish Government’s intention to progress legislation to prohibit the sale and supply of single-use vapes, with a view of a ban coming into force at the earliest opportunity. This builds upon the research commissioned by the Scottish Government into the environmental impact of single-use vapes that was published in June 2023.
As this is an area of devolved competence, decisions on whether to act in this area rest with the respective Governments in each part of the UK. The Scottish Government intends to bring forward regulations under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to enact a ban on the sale and supply of single-use vapes in Scotland.
The UK Government has confirmed that it also intends to legislate for a ban in England, the Welsh Government has confirmed this intent in Wales. The Northern Ireland Executive has yet to confirm their intention to legislate on a ban due to the Assembly only recently being restored. Officials across the UK are working towards regulations that align as closely as possible, and including a proposed common coming into force date of 1 April 2025, as detailed in the draft Scottish regulations published on 23 February.
My officials also continue to engage with their counterparts within the Resources and Waste Common Framework group in line with the process agreed by all governments of the UK, published and placed before the UK Parliament in December 2021.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom Arthur on 5 March 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what support it is offering to local authorities that report that they may have to reduce speech and language therapy provision.
Answer
The Scottish Government is providing record funding of over £14 billion to local authorities in 2024-25, including £600.6 million of additional revenue funding for day to day services.
Subject to the outcome of the UK Government Spring Budget, the Scottish Government has committed to pass on up to £62.7 million of additional funding directly to local government alongside any consequentials received for increased teacher pension employer contributions.
Local authorities are independent corporate bodies with their own powers and responsibilities and are entirely separate from the Scottish Government. As long as they act lawfully, it is up to each local authority how it manages its day-to-day business and decision making processes. Ultimately, it is for locally elected representatives to make local decisions on how best to deliver services to their local communities.
