- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 11 December 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with (a) energy companies and (b) the UK Government regarding the equalisation of prepayment meter tariffs with standard credit tariffs and the end of the practice of backdating price increases when meters are recalibrated.
Answer
Regulation of energy supply companiesis a matter for Ofgem. However, I raised the issue of pre-payment meter disparitywhen I met with representatives of Scottish Gas, Scottish and Southern Energy and ScottishPowerrecently.
I intend to raise this matterat the next meeting of the UK wide Ministerial Group on Fuel Poverty which is expectedto be held early 2007. Additionally, my officials are in regular dialogue with colleaguesin Ofgem and Whitehall departments.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 6 December 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the signed contract with Netcare for an independent sector treatment centre at Stracathro Hospital will be placed in the public domain.
Answer
NHS Tayside intends to be openand transparent about the contractual arrangements with Amicus Healthcare (Scotland) Ltd,a subsidiary of Netcare and will publish as much information as possible relatingto the contract in the near future.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 6 December 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive which body has the authority to place the signed contract with Netcare for an independent sector treatment centre at Stracathro Hospital in the public domain.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-30210 on 6 December 2006. All answers to writtenparliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website the search facilityfor which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 6 December 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will confirm that no further independent sector treatment centre projects will commence until the Stracathro Hospital pilot is completed, assessed and audited.
Answer
I have no plans to introducefurther independent sector treatment projects within Scotland at present.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 30 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether its policy is to allow NHS boards to put clinical services out to tender without public consultation.
Answer
NHS boards are expected tofollow established arrangements in securing the provision of clinical serviceswith the key criteria being to deliver safe, high quality clinical care whichis responsive to patients' needs and offers value for money. Where materialchanges to existing services are proposed, we expect boards to follow guidancerelating to public engagement and consultation.
By requesting expressions ofinterest in providing these services NHS Lanarkshire is acting in “the normalway”. Since the NHS was set up in 1948, general practitioners have providedservices under contracts with health boards. Unlike hospital doctors themajority of general practitioners are not employees of health boards, butindependent self-employed practitioners that run GP practices as businesses forprofit.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 30 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will intervene in the decision of NHS Lanarkshire to put primary medical services in Harthill out to tender without consultation, in light of the ruling of the Appeal Court in England in a judicial review of North East Derbyshire Primary Care Trust’s decisions in relation to the tendering and award of a contract for GP services in Langwith, Derbyshire.
Answer
NHS boards are statutorilyresponsible for providing or securing primary medical services for their localpopulations. How that is achieved is a matter for each NHS board taking intoaccount the needs of the local population and local circumstances in accordancewith the Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2004, the National HealthService (Scotland) Act 1978 and the NHS Reform (Scotland) Act 2004.
I understand that NHSLanarkshire has already written to all households covered by the Harthill practiceinforming them of the position and invited them to take part in a publicmeeting which took place on Wednesday, 29 November. The public meeting gavepatients the opportunity to comment on find out more about the selectionprocess and to identify a patient representative from Harthill to sit on theselection panel. The board has also set up a free post service and website address:
www.nhslanarkshire.co.uk/consutlationsfor patients to submit their views.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 30 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive whether any of the flu vaccines being administered to pregnant women and children as part of the current immunisation programme contain thiomersal (mercury).
Answer
Pregnant women and children arenot in the recommended groups for vaccination unless they are in one of the “atrisk groups”.
Inthis year’s flu programme there is only one vaccine (Fluarix) which containsthiomersal (mercury) and could be offered to pregnant women and children. Afull list of the flu vaccines including being supplied in the UK bymanufacturers can be found at:
http://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/cmo/CMO(2006)08.pdf.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 30 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what cognisance it has taken of the ruling of the Appeal Court in England, in a judicial review initiated by Pam Smith, that NHS patients had not been properly consulted by North East Derbyshire Primary Care Trust over the tendering and award of a contract for GP services in Langwith, Derbyshire; whether it has discussed this decision with NHS boards, and what advice it has issued on the matter.
Answer
NHS boards are statutorilyresponsible for providing or securing primary medical services for their localpopulations. How that is achieved is a matter for each NHS board taking intoaccount the needs of the local population and local circumstances.
NHS boards should act inaccordance with the Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2004, theNational Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 and the NHS Reform (Scotland)Act 2004.
The NHS Reform (Scotland)Act placed a duty on NHS boards to involve the public in designing NHSservices. Guidance is already available to NHS boards to ensure involvement of the public on the provision and development of health and community careservices. Public involvement should be appropriate and proportionate to localcircumstances, and where material changes to existing services are proposed, weexpect boards to follow established guidance on public engagement andconsultation.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 27 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what communications it has had with United Healthcare regarding the tendering of primary medical services and what the (a) content and (b) outcome was of any such communications.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has hadno communications with United Healthcare regarding the tendering of primary medicalservices.
- Asked by: Carolyn Leckie, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Socialist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 November 2006
-
Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 27 November 2006
To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is in relation to the contracting for primary medical services from for-profit companies.
Answer
The Primary Medical Services(Scotland) Act 2004 places a duty on NHS boards to provide or secure primary medicalservices for their populations. The
Actprovides the legal framework for NHS boards to discharge this duty by providingprimary medical services directly (i.e. salaried services) or by making arrangementsthrough contracts or agreements with a range of primary medical service providers,including for-profit businesses and voluntary or not-for-profit organisations.
In Scotland, thevast majority of primary medical services are provided by general practitionersunder contract with NHS boards. These general practitioners are not employees ofhealth boards, but independent, self-employed practitioners that own and run GPpractices as businesses for profit. This has been the case since the NHS was setup in 1948.
How NHS boards discharge theirduty to provide or secure primary medicalservices is a matter for each NHS board takinginto account the needs of the local population and local circumstances. So long as the traditional model of contracting for primarymedical services continues to work for the benefit of local patients and communities,we see no reason why this would change.
