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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-26517

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider any further planning or regulatory assistance that could be put in place for the electricity transmission networks in Scotland in relation to infrastructure projects.

Transmission Owners in Scotland have worked with Scottish Government officials to consider the challenges around the consenting of major grid developments through a short life working group established in October 2022. The group made multiple recommendations including setting out clear steps to enable the determination of applications within 12 months and the need for legislative changes to the UK Electricity Act 1989. The UK Government has committed to a review of Scottish consenting processes under the UK Electricity Act 1989, and we are working closely with them as they consider the scope of the review.

We have also laid a statutory instrument in the Scottish Parliament which introduces new measures to simplify the planning process and extend the existing Permitted Development Rights (PDR) for electricity undertakings. Subject to parliamentary scrutiny, the changes are expected to come into effect on 24 May 2024.

Question reference: S6W-26522

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 15 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered amending the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2005 to include local resilience structures for MSPs in their constituencies or regions, including notifications and communications with all relevant partners.

The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (CCA) and the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2005 is the legislation which identifies categorised responders, and their duty to prepare for civil emergencies within Scotland.

The CCA divides responders into two categories, category 1 and category 2. The CCA imposes a set of duties on each category of responders. It does not confer any powers upon the categorised responders.

Under the terms of the amendment regulations, the structure which supports multi-agency co-ordination is the Regional Resilience Partnership (RRP). Currently there are three such groups in the North, West and East of Scotland. Within each RRP area are a number of Local Resilience Partnerships (LRPs) determined by the RRPs themselves.

The RRPs and LRPs bring together all the relevant organisations in an area to develop an effective approach in dealing with emergencies in accordance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.

The Scottish Government does not currently have any plans to review the accompanying regulations to the CCA to include MSPs as a categorised responder under the CCA.

Question reference: S3W-40154

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive who the members are of the sub-group of the Breast and Cervical Screening National Advisory Group who will review the integration of human papilloma virus (HPV) testing in the cervical screening programme.

Question reference: S3W-40158

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what costs are associated with the cervical screening programme.

NHS boards currently meet the costs associated with the Scottish cervical screening programme, therefore this information is not held centrally.

However, as part of a cervical cytology laboratory review a detailed exercise took place to identify and allocate costs to cervical laboratory services. The total estimated costs across the cervical cytology laboratories only, as of May 2010, was calculated at £5,849,159.

Question reference: S3W-40156

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to introduce triage for human papilloma virus (HPV) into the cervical screening programme in order to reduce the number of women requiring repeat screening after detection of borderline abnormalities.

In January 2011 the Breast and Cervical Screening National Advisory Group recommended that a sub group be established to consider HPV testing within the cervical screening programme in Scotland. The sub-group will use its expertise to consider the available evidence and will provide advice to the Scottish Government. The remit, membership and timeline for the sub-group to report will be agreed shortly.

Question reference: S3W-40155

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive when the sub-group of the Breast and Cervical Screening National Advisory Group will report its findings on the review of the integration of human papilloma virus (HPV) testing in the cervical screening programme and when the findings will be published.

Question reference: S3W-40157

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) sensitivity and (b) specificity is of the cervical screening programme.

Question reference: S3W-40159

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 14 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what costs are associated with performing a colposcopy and how many were performed in the last year for which information is available.

Question reference: S3W-40160

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 14 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive what costs were associated with biopsy for and treatment of cervical cancer in the last year for which information is available.

Question reference: S3W-40152

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2011
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 4 March 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will announce additional support for people infected with hepatitis C or HIV through NHS treatment with blood or blood products.

I have made an announcement on 4 March 2011 to extend the current support provisions in line with the recently published Contaminated Blood Review report, to:

Introduce an annual payment of £12,800 for those living with hepatitis C who qualify for Stage 2 payments from the Skipton Fund;

Allow posthumous clams for support to be made on behalf of people who died before 29 August 2003;

Increase the one-off payment made to those who qualify for Stage 2 payments from £25,000 to £50,000 (whether the patient is alive or dead);

Give access to discretionary fund for patients and/or their dependants suffering financial hardship;

Relevant patients who develop hepatitis C-related B cell lymphoma to be eligible to claim for Stage 2 payment; and

Increase the annual payment for those with hepatitis C/HIV in line with the consumer price index.

I understand that patient representatives believe that payments to those in Stage 1 of the illness should also be increased. I am also therefore announcing that this issue, and the implementation of the measures confirmed today, will be reviewed when we consider the final report (and any recommendations) of the Penrose Inquiry.

The cost of these new provisions is estimated to be around £18 million over the next
five years. Funding for the first year has been earmarked from the health budget for 2011-12 and, thereafter, funding will be provided through future health budgets.