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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-12020

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 17 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to pet owners to help prevent them from having to relinquish pets to charities, in light of the rising cost of living and of reports from Cats Protection of a 19% increase in relinquishments due to financial reasons.

Question reference: S6W-11668

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 21 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 16 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the reported freeze of Modern Apprenticeship funding on the childcare sector.

Question reference: S6W-12021

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 16 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will fund a dedicated space to address Scotland's colonial and slavery history, in light of recommendations by the Empire, Slavery and Scotland's Museums Steering Group. R

The Scottish Government is actively considering its response to the Empire, Slavery and Scotland's Museums steering group recommendations. Discussions to help inform our response are continuing with, amongst others, representatives from Museums Galleries Scotland, and members of the steering group themselves, to make sure the complexities and challenges involved are fully understood. After these discussions have concluded, a formal response will be issued in due course.

Question reference: S6W-11894

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Creative Scotland regarding funding for cultural organisations during the cost of living crisis.

The Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture and I meet regularly with Creative Scotland to discuss our shared priorities, including funding for cultural organisations during the cost of living crisis which was discussed at the most recent meetings in June and October.

The Scottish Government is in regular dialogue with the sector, and will continue to work with it to identify barriers to immediate and long-term recovery, and to do everything within our powers and resources to help those most affected by current economic challenges.

The Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture and I hosted a virtual roundtable with public bodies and representative groups on 10 November. The Scottish Government will be hosting further roundtable discussions with the sector this winter.

Question reference: S6W-11951

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 07 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11340 by Neil Gray on 19 October 2022, what it considers "reasonable costs associated with the super sponsor scheme" to be.

The Scottish Government has not set a prescriptive list of “reasonable costs” for welcome arrangements.

Local Authorities are best placed to determine how best to provide support to the Ukrainian people in their areas arriving under the Scottish Super Sponsor Scheme and the Scottish Government is committed to reimbursing them as delivery partners for any reasonable costs incurred in providing that appropriate support.

Question reference: S6W-11878

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 04 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the amount currently being spent by the NHS on agency staff is an acceptable level of spending, and what the reasons are for its position on the matter.

While the Scottish Government provides the policies, frameworks and resources for high quality healthcare, we fully expect NHS Board's to utilise funding, facilities and staff while taking account of national and local priorities to meet local health needs.

We expect NHS Boards to plan their facilities and workforce to deliver these services, ensuring the provision of safe, effective and high quality patient care, delivered by the right professional at the right time.

Spend on agency is around 2% of the total NHS expenditure. The majority of temporary staffing in NHS Scotland comes from staff banks; these are NHS staff, working on NHS terms and conditions.

The pandemic has had an impact on bank, agency and locum spend. The rising spend is not unanticipated.

Although bank and agency staff play a crucial role, it is important that we continue our long term investments to attract and retain permanent staff.

Question reference: S6W-11503

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 8 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what support it can provide to healthcare assistants who wish to become qualified nurses.

The Scottish Government supports our healthcare support workers (HCSWs) to train to become registered nurses while remaining in the workforce in their local NHS Board area. The Open University offer this pathway and Scottish Government provides £10,000 backfill funding to NHS Boards per student for each of the three years of study. For the 2022-23 academic year, the Scottish Government has increased the target number of Open University places by 12% to 123 places.

The Scottish Government also provides support to enable HCSWs to undertake a HNC Healthcare Practice programme by providing £8,000 in backfill funding to NHS Boards per student per year. Completion of the HNC programme can lead students to progress to nursing or allied health pre-registration degree programmes, on which there may also be the opportunity for advance entry to year 2.

On behalf of the Scottish Government, and as part of their review of career pathways, NHS Education for Scotland have produced a Development and Education Framework for Bands 2-4 nursing, midwifery and allied health professional HCSWs. The framework is available at the following link: https://www.nes.scot.nhs.uk/our-work/health-and-care-support-worker-development-programme/

This ongoing work has focused on a national framework as a ‘Once for Scotland’ approach which outlines the knowledge, skills and behaviours required to enable HCSWs to deliver safe, effective and person centred care. The framework also provides information on how to progress into a registered practitioner role, including as a nurse.

Question reference: S6W-11248

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 October 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce waiting times for cataract operations.

Question reference: S6W-11247

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 October 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support people who are waiting for cataract operations whose livelihoods are threatened by the condition in the meantime.

To provide patients with some reassurance around the possible length of their wait, the Scottish Government have launched a new online platform, which is available at https://www.nhsinform.scot/waiting-times . Developed in conjunction with NHS 24 and PHS, the platform provides patients with information on planned care waiting times by giving an indication of how long patients typically waited over the last quarter. This includes information on the number of patients admitted for treatment as well as the typical wait experienced by people during this time period.

We recognise the impact that long waiting times can have on a patient’s mental health, so the platform also includes information for patients to keep as fit and healthy as possible while waiting for treatment. In addition, the Healthy living | NHS inform page provides advice and tools which includes information on mental wellbeing.

In an effort to reduce the waiting time for patients awaiting cataract surgery, Health Boards across NHSScotland are undertaking additional cataract surgical sessions and independent sector contractors are providing additional support, within NHS facilities, to increase the number of cataract procedures delivered. This will reduce the overall number of patients waiting for surgery as well as their length of wait.

In tandem with this – and in line with guidance from the Royal College of Ophthalmologists - Scottish Government clinically led peer reviews are taking place across all Health Boards. Supporting teams to adopt more efficient ways of working in order to increase the number of patients that can be treated within each cataract only surgical session forms part of these reviews.

Sequential bilateral cataract surgery is also undertaken by some surgeons, particularly in remote and rural areas and where patients’ ability to work has been affected. This prevents duplication of effort across the patient’s journey, as well as reducing the carbon footprint.

The Scottish Government has also commissioned the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD) to support an increase in theatre productivity, including the development of a national Blueprint which will outline how Health Boards can increase efficiency across the cataract surgical journey. This will be disseminated to all Health Boards in the coming weeks.

Question reference: S6O-01490

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 October 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to small businesses through the cost of living crisis.