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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.

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Question reference: S4W-09871

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 10 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government whether staffing shortages are having an impact on cancer screening.

Question reference: S4W-09849

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 9 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many people are unemployed in each local authority area, also broken down by those unemployed for over (a) six and (b) 12 months, expressed as a percentage of the population.

The official measure of unemployment based on the ILO (International Labour Organisation) definition is not reliable for these disaggregations at local authority level. However, an alternative measure of unemployment is the claimant count. This gives the number of people claiming unemployment-related benefits, and as it is based on administrative records collected by the Department of Work and Pensions, it is available for small areas. The latest claimant count data is for August 2012.

The claimant count level and rate (as a proportion of the resident population aged 16 to 64) in each local authority, broken down by those claiming for over (a) six months and (b) 12 months, is shown in the following table.

Claimant Counts Levels and Rates by Duration of Claim for Scottish Local Authority Areas, August 2012

Local Authority

All Claimants

(a) Claiming for over 6 Months

(b) Claiming for over 12 Months

Level¹

Percentage²

Level¹

Percentage²

Level¹

Percentage²

Aberdeen City	3,360	2.2	1,345	0.9	735	0.5
Aberdeenshire	2,125	1.3	790	0.5	425	0.3
Angus	2,400	3.5	900	1.3	530	0.8
Argyll and Bute	1,735	3.1	815	1.5	540	1.0
Clackmannanshire	1,795	5.4	890	2.7	570	1.7
Dumfries and Galloway	3,445	3.8	1,610	1.8	930	1.0
Dundee City	6,120	6.5	3,110	3.3	1,980	2.1
East Ayrshire	4,990	6.4	2,355	3.0	1,490	1.9
East Dunbartonshire	1,810	2.7	775	1.2	440	0.7
East Lothian	1,960	3.2	825	1.3	435	0.7
East Renfrewshire	1,400	2.5	530	0.9	300	0.5
Edinburgh, City of	11,355	3.3	4,910	1.4	2,815	0.8
Eilean Siar	520	3.2	250	1.6	150	0.9
Falkirk	4,545	4.6	2,195	2.2	1,285	1.3
Fife	11,140	4.7	5,155	2.2	3,115	1.3
Glasgow City	25,255	6.1	11,660	2.8	7,095	1.7
Highland	3,775	2.7	1,455	1.0	795	0.6
Inverclyde	3,010	5.8	1,310	2.5	735	1.4
Midlothian	2,175	4.2	940	1.8	520	1.0
Moray	1,385	2.5	550	1.0	305	0.5
North Ayrshire	6,010	7.0	2,890	3.4	1,785	2.1
North Lanarkshire	12,345	5.8	5,940	2.8	3,515	1.6
Orkney Islands	180	1.4	70	0.6	45	0.4
Perth and Kinross	2,210	2.4	775	0.8	425	0.5
Renfrewshire	5,570	5.0	2,535	2.3	1,505	1.4
Scottish Borders	2,095	3.0	930	1.3	535	0.8
Shetland Islands	215	1.5	70	0.5	40	0.3
South Ayrshire	3,160	4.5	1,400	2.0	735	1.1
South Lanarkshire	9,425	4.6	4,355	2.1	2,575	1.3
Stirling	1,955	3.4	870	1.5	505	0.9
West Dunbartonshire	3,835	6.4	1,920	3.2	1,190	2.0
West Lothian	4,375	3.8	1,785	1.6	880	0.8
Scotland	145,680	4.2	65,900	1.9	38,910	1.1

Source: Claimant count, not seasonally adjusted, Office for National Statistics

Notes:

1. Levels rounded to nearest five.

2. Rates (percentages) based on resident population aged 16 to 64 using mid-2010 population estimates.

Question reference: S4W-09850

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 9 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many young people are unemployed in each local authority area, also broken down by those unemployed for over (a) six and (b) 12 months, expressed as a percentage of the population.

The official measure of unemployment based on the ILO (International Labour Organisation) definition is not reliable for these disaggregations at local authority level. However, an alternative measure of unemployment is the claimant count. This gives the number of people claiming unemployment-related benefits, and as it is based on administrative records collected by the Department of Work and Pensions, it is available for small areas and various disaggregations within these areas. The latest claimant count data is for August 2012.

The claimant count level and rate for 16 to 24-year-olds (as a proportion of the resident population aged 16 to 24) in each local authority, broken down by those claiming for more than (a) six and (b) twelve months, is shown in the following table.

Claimant Counts Levels and Rates for Young People (aged 16 to 24) by Duration of Claim for Scottish Local Authority Areas, August 2012

Local Authority

All Claimants

(a) Claiming for over 6 Months

(b) Claiming for over 12 Months

Level¹

Percentage²

Level¹

Percentage²

Level¹

Percentage²

Aberdeen City	855	2.8	250	0.8	100	0.3
Aberdeenshire	700	2.8	185	0.7	85	0.3
Angus	845	7.6	245	2.2	115	1.0
Argyll and Bute	475	5.2	150	1.6	75	0.8
Clackmannanshire	640	11.1	275	4.7	145	2.5
Dumfries and Galloway	1,115	7.7	430	3.0	210	1.5
Dundee City	1,935	8.8	795	3.6	405	1.9
East Ayrshire	1,650	11.7	560	4.0	275	1.9
East Dunbartonshire	610	5.2	190	1.6	85	0.7
East Lothian	640	6.0	230	2.1	100	0.9
East Renfrewshire	475	4.7	130	1.3	65	0.7
Edinburgh, City of	2,960	4.4	895	1.3	405	0.6
Eilean Siar	105	4.5	25	1.1	10	0.5
Falkirk	1,345	7.9	510	3.0	245	1.4
Fife	3,630	8.0	1,280	2.8	620	1.4
Glasgow City	7,085	8.6	2,425	2.9	1,120	1.4
Highland	1,015	4.8	290	1.4	125	0.6
Inverclyde	920	10.0	280	3.0	110	1.2
Midlothian	745	8.0	285	3.1	135	1.5
Moray	430	4.5	135	1.4	55	0.6
North Ayrshire	1,960	12.8	710	4.6	360	2.3
North Lanarkshire	3,955	10.5	1,500	4.0	735	1.9
Orkney Islands	60	3.2	20	0.9	10	0.5
Perth and Kinross	700	4.2	180	1.1	85	0.5
Renfrewshire	1,670	8.5	620	3.2	285	1.5
Scottish Borders	745	6.9	290	2.7	140	1.3
Shetland Islands	60	2.7	20	0.8	5	0.3
South Ayrshire	1,010	8.5	340	2.9	130	1.1
South Lanarkshire	3,020	8.7	1,170	3.4	565	1.6
Stirling	655	5.0	250	1.9	120	0.9
West Dunbartonshire	1,125	10.4	440	4.1	245	2.2
West Lothian	1,500	7.6	535	2.7	215	1.1
Scotland	44,640	7.1	15,625	2.5	7,385	1.2

Source: Claimant count, not seasonally adjusted, Office for National Statistics.

Notes:

1. Levels rounded to nearest

2. Rates (percentages) based on resident population aged 16 to 24 using mid-2010 population estimates.

Question reference: S4W-09848

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 8 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many people attended the West of Scotland Action Forum on Youth Employment on 21 August 2012 and how many were private sector employers.

Question reference: S4W-09808

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 8 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the statement of Dr Michael Williams, Reader in International Relations at Royal Holloway College, University of London, that Trident would still be based in a Scotland separated from the rest of the UK and, if this were the case, whether there would be a lease arrangement and for how long.

Question reference: S4W-09765

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 21 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 4 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of welfare reform on its plans for preventative spending.

Question reference: S4W-09803

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 4 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government what the reason is for the further delay in publication of the report of the public inquiry into the outbreak of Clostridium difficile at the Vale of Leven Hospital and when it will now be published.

Question reference: S4W-09734

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 3 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many complaints have been made to the Scottish Ambulance Service since September 2011 and how this compares with the previous 12-month period.

The information requested is not held centrally.

However, the latest annual national NHS complaints statistics (covering the period 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012) were published last month by the Information Services Division (ISD) of NHS National Services Scotland, and are available at:

http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Quality-Improvement/Publications/2012-09-25/2012-09-25-Complaints-Report.pdf.

ISD published statistics show that for the second year in succession there has been a reduction in the number of complaints to the Scottish Ambulance Service.

The figures show that 214 complaints were recorded between 1 April 2011 and 31 March 2012 compared to 374 recorded between 1 April 2010 and 31 March 2011. This represents a 43% reduction in complaints.

Question reference: S4W-09731

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 3 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) urgent tier and (b) other ambulance shifts have been dropped in the Vale of Leven since 1 June 2012, and what this equates to in personnel hours.

Question reference: S4W-09728

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 3 October 2012

To ask the Scottish Government how many ambulance shifts have been dropped in each month since September 2011.

Information on the numbers of emergency ambulance rostered shifts which are not filled because of sickness or other absence is not held centrally. This is an operational matter for the Scottish Ambulance Service.

When a potential gap on a roster appears Scottish Ambulance Service managers undertake a risk assessment of the situation, taking into account coverage elsewhere within the ambulance station or local area, availability of paramedic response units and predicted demand. In the vast majority of instances (over 80% in this financial year) these shifts will be offered to other staff on overtime.

When they are not offered as overtime shifts, this is because managers consider that it is safe not to cover that shift, taking into account the factors mentioned above. Putting the safety of patients first is at the heart of this risk assessment process. The risk assessment procedure has been agreed as clinically safe and appropriate by the Scottish Ambulance Service Medical Director.