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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: S4W-11245

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 3 December 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comments of Dr Daniel Kenealy of the University of Edinburgh reported in The Scotsman of 15 November 2012, what intelligence sharing arrangements are planned in the event of Scotland separating from the rest of the United Kingdom.

Question reference: S4W-11249

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 28 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of NDM-1 have been detected in Scotland and over what time period.

Question reference: S4W-11251

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 28 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what surveillance is being undertaken to monitor the occurrence of NDM-1.

Microbiology laboratories in Scotland routinely test all Enterobacteriaceae and non-fermenting gram-negative bacteria for susceptibility to carbapenems, and laboratory reports are automatically transferred to Health Protection Scotland (HPS), who monitor carbapenem resistance under the ‘Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) alert surveillance programme’, which monitors a range of microorganisms with particular resistance profiles that pose a threat to public health and/or patient safety (including NDM-1).

HPS alert (on a weekly basis) the NHS boards to any ‘AMR alert organism’ detected through this surveillance programme. When particular resistance levels have been reached isolates are sent to the UK ‘Antimicrobial Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infections Reference Unit’ at Colindale, where further typing and characterisation is carried out (which is how NDM-1 producers eventually are confirmed).

Question reference: S4W-11253

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 28 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what information is being provided to GPs and other healthcare professionals about NDM-1.

Currently healthcare professionals in NHS boards are alerted to specific risks associated with NDM-1 (and other resistant or multidrug resistant organisms) via public Health alerts issued as soon as a risk has been identified or if a particular interest in the public is present. Current notes in ‘Health Protection Scotland Weekly’ are also used to communicate specific risks and public health threats to healthcare professionals.

National guidance on non-prescribing measures to prevent and control carbapenem resistant enterobacteriaceae in hospitals (which includes NDM-1) has been developed and distributed to all NHS boards for consultation in 2012.

Question reference: S4W-11239

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 27 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S4W-09911 and S4W-10794 by Alex Neil on 25 October 2012 and 13 November 2012 respectively, how many doctors have a conviction for (a) a sexual offence or (b) child pornography and for what reason it did not provide this information in the previous answers.

Question reference: S4F-01021

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 26 November 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 November 2012

To ask the First Minister what lessons the Scottish Government has learned from the serious incidents in the NHS reported in the BBC Scotland How Safe is Your Hospital? investigation.

Question reference: S4W-11056

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 12 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 26 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many voluntary severance packages have been agreed by the NHS for 2012-13 and how much these will cost.

Question reference: S4W-11060

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 22 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how the transition for young people with diabetes from paediatric to adult services is delivered.

We expect that every NHS boards should ensure that appropriate local transitional arrangements are in place which meet the needs of their local population.

Transitional arrangements exist in every NHS board area and every NHS board area, where appropriate, now has joint clinics with representation from both adult and paediatric services.

SIGN Guideline 116 on the management of diabetes, published in 2010, noted the limited evidence on the different adolescent transition models.

The Scottish Diabetes Group has appointed an adolescent and paediatric subgroup, supported by national paediatric coordinator for diabetes services. This group and post will help to support an improved and standardised approach to the care of all children and young adults with diabetes in Scotland.

The paediatric subgroup and coordinator now plan to work with NHS boards to build on and strengthen these transitional services.

Question reference: S4W-11066

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 22 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken an audit of diabetes services in each NHS board area.

The annual Scottish Diabetes Survey produced by the Scottish Diabetes Survey Monitoring Group, provides a comprehensive account of the quality of diabetes care across the whole of Scotland. This year, the Survey includes charts that will enable each NHS board and diabetes managed clinical networks to quickly review and compare their local information. The latest published edition of the survey can be found at the following link:

http://www.diabetesinscotland.org.uk/Publications/SDS%202011.pdf

Question reference: S4W-11040

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 November 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 22 November 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the scale of risk of the NHS maintenance backlog of over £1 billion as outlined in the Audit Scotland report, NHS financial performance 2011/12.

The NHS maintenance backlog figure of over £1 billion outlined in the Audit Scotland report covers properties that are to be retained and those designated as surplus for disposal. Around 20% of the current backlog maintenance expenditure requirement is in buildings which are classified as “non-clinical” and will thus have little impact on patient healthcare experience.

My officials are working with NHS boards to reduce the reported backlog maintenance through refurbishment, replacement, rationalisation and disposal of properties.

The scale of risk and associated backlog costs outlined in the Audit Scotland Report, NHS financial performance 2011-12 has been assessed as £194.8 million low risk, £272.3 million medium risk, £289.3 million Significant Risk, £252.5 million high risk.