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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-15317

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 11 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) the UK Government and (b) other EU member states on the H7N9 influenza virus.

On behalf of Scottish Government, Health Protection Scotland (HPS) routinely participates in global networks that monitor emerging health issues such as AH7N9 in China.

Under the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), the UK Government has designated Public Health England (PHE) as the UK's National Focal Point for communications with the WHO (World Health Organisation) IHR Contact Point. PHE shares all relevant WHO IHR communications with HPS.

Question reference: S4W-15318

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 11 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of new technologies that might lead to the faster production of an influenza vaccine.

The need for faster production of influenza vaccines is recognised. The World Health Organisation, academic researchers and vaccine manufacturers are all engaged in assessing new technologies for the production of vaccines against influenza viruses.

The results of any significant developments are shared with Scottish Government at meetings of the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) who provide expert advice on vaccination and immunisation policy and in academic output available internationally.

The Scottish Government is represented on the JCVI by one of its Senior Medical Officers, who has responsibility for vaccination and immunisation issues.

Question reference: S4W-15354

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that child protection data are being collected and shared digitally to reduce duplication of services.

The child protection data published annually by the Scottish Government, as part of the Children's Social Work Statistics, collates returns from local authorities.

The data currently collected and due to be published in 2014 will be the first year for which the data will be sourced entirely from local authorities’ own systems, securely uploaded, rather than requiring additional forms to be completed. This development reduces duplication of effort by local authorities.

The data are shared digitally in that the findings are made publically available on the Scottish Government website:

www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Children/PubChildProtection

Question reference: S4W-15353

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many early years programmes other than Family Nurse Partnership programme, Sure Start family centres and Home-Start there are in Scotland and how many (a) meet the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines for parenting programmes for the effective treatment of conduct disorders in non-abusive families, (b) are based on evidence of effectiveness or (c) are innovative programmes that have been evaluated as effective or are being evaluated.

Question reference: S4W-15350

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) Sure Start programmes, (b) family centres and (c) Home-Start programmes there were in (i) 2006-07 and (ii) 2012-13 and how many children they were supporting.

Question reference: S4W-15380

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14761 by Alex Neil on 22 May 2013, how much it pays toward participating in the UK pay review bodies and how much it would cost to establish a separate set of bodies in an independent Scotland.

Question reference: S4W-15379

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-14763 by Alex Neil on 22 May 2013, whether an independent Scotland would have its own body to provide such advice.

Question reference: S4W-15335

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what difference there was between the recommendation of the pay review body and the award made by the Scottish Government for (a) GPs' (i) pay and (ii) expenses, (b) consultants' pay and (c) junior doctors' pay for 2013-14.

The review body recommendation was for an uplift of 2.29% in relation to General Medical Practitioners. The 1.25% uplift awarded in Scotland is designed to give an increase of 1% to net taxable income in line with Scottish public sector pay policy. I also refer the member to the answer to question S4W-15334 on 10 June 2013.

We accepted the review body’s recommendation of a 1% pay uplift in the salary scales of consultants and junior doctors for 2013-14.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-15333

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government on what dates it had negotiations with BMA Scotland about doctors' pay for 2013-14.

The independent Doctors’ and Dentists’ Pay Review Body make recommendations to Scottish Ministers on pay levels who then decide whether or not to accept these recommendations and in the context of the public sector pay policy.

Both the Scottish Government and the British Medical Association (BMA) submit written, oral and supplementary evidence on pay to the review body and no negotiations were undertaken with BMA Scotland about doctors’ pay for 2013-14.

Question reference: S4W-15334

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 10 June 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether there is a pay gap between GPs in Scotland and the rest of the UK and, if so, whether the most recent pay settlement will increase that gap and whether it considers that this will lead to GPs leaving the NHS in Scotland.

The recent GP pay uplift means an increase in funding of around £8 million for all GP practices across Scotland in 2013-14. Scotland also has more GPs per head of population than the rest of the UK. The average earnings of a GP in Scotland before tax in 2010-11 was £89,300 per annum, plus expenses of over £100,000 to run their practice (staffing etc). The recent pay settlement is in line with the Scottish Government Public Pay Policy.

GPs do not receive a straight forward salary. Instead, they receive practice income through a system of fees and allowances, which are then distributed according to internal partnership arrangements. This will include payments based on the number of patients registered in each practice. As the average list size of a general practice in England is 23% larger than in Scotland, and payments are calculated per practice, as well as GP, it would be misleading to make simple comparisons between the countries.