- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 1 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of premature mortality due to liver disease on years of working life lost in 2021.
Answer
Data specific to Years of Working Life Lost (YWLL) for liver disease is not routinely published. Scottish Burden of Disease data published in Sept 2021 showed that for liver disease (cirrhosis and other chronic liver disease) the number of years of life lost (YLL) have fallen from 37,467 in 2016 to 32,279 in 2019. This is around 2.9% of all YLL reported in the 2019 study (1,100,944).
We know that 60 per cent of liver disease is caused by alcohol misuse and we are working on initiatives that will support communities across Scotland to reduce alcohol consumption.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to environmental organisations, including Friends of the Earth Scotland and the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland, who referred to its contributions to the UK Plan of action for decision VII/8s of the UNECE Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention, as "woefully inadequate".
Answer
The Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee has previously welcomed significant progress made by Scotland in strengthening compliance with the requirements of the Aarhus Convention. Work is in progress or planned in relation to the areas of concern which were raised in decision VII/8s. The Scottish Civil Justice Council has been asked to undertake a review of court rules relating to Protective Expenses Orders, and this is currently underway. Following a public consultation which closed in March this year the Scottish Government has introduced an exemption for court fees for Aarhus Convention cases in the Court of Session. This exemption is now in force. Work is underway on planning for a new Human Rights Bill for Scotland, which will include a commitment to a right to a healthy environment. The Scottish Government is committed to introducing legislation to reform legal aid in the course of the current Parliament, informed by ongoing engagement with stakeholders. The Scottish Government is committed to strengthening compliance with the requirements of the Aarhus Convention.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will implement the recommendations of the UNECE Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention decision VII/8s by the deadline of 1 October 2024.
Answer
The implications of the recommendations of decision VII/8s are being considered and work is ongoing to strengthen compliance with the requirements of the Aarhus Convention. A number of strands of work are being undertaken in relation to a review of the court rules governing Protective Expenses Orders, a new Human Rights Bill for Scotland which will include a commitment to a right to a healthy environment, and consideration of Legal Aid Reform in the course of this Parliament. The Scottish Government has already introduced an exemption from court fees for environmental 'Aarhus' cases brought in the Court of Session. In terms of the recommendations that relate directly to unauthorised development within the UK, we are working with the other UK administrations to assess the options and identify appropriate actions.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Keith Brown on 1 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to working with stakeholder groups, such as the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland, to ensure that the Scottish legal system is fully accessible for those seeking to defend the environment, in time for the deadline set out by the UNECE Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention decision VII/8s of 1 October 2024.
Answer
The Scottish Government is always happy to work with stakeholders and fully intends to continue to engage with environmental stakeholder groups going forward. Officials have met with the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland a number of times, most recently on 12 October, and will continue to engage with them and other stakeholders as we look to strengthen our compliance with the requirements of the Aarhus Convention.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 31 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 November 2022
To ask the First Minister what urgent action the Scottish Government is taking to prevent poverty-related malnutrition and food insecurity, in light of reported growing concerns from healthcare workers, school staff and charities about the impact of hunger on people across Scotland.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 November 2022
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 10 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 26 October 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that retailers do not sell vaping products to under-18s.
Answer
We are greatly concerned by reports of children and under-age young people obtaining e-cigarettes or vaping products. Vapes and other nicotine products are part of a range of cessations tools available to existing smokers to help stop tobacco use. They are not a lifestyle accessory for children, young people or adult non-smokers.
There are already regulations in place which restrict the marketing, promotion and sale of vaping products to under 18s. We wrote to all retailers involved in their sale to remind them of their duty at the start of October 2022.
Our recent consultation proposed restrictions on vaping products that strike a balance between protecting all non-smokers from the potential harms of vaping, while still providing existing adult smokers with the information they need to make an informed choice on cessation. We hope to bring forward further regulation in the new year.
We recognise the importance of having a clear public health message for young people around the dangers of vaping. We are working with Young Scot and the Children’s Parliament to bring their voices into our work to develop a bold refreshed Tobacco Action Plan due to be published in Autumn 2023.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 10 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 26 October 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve life expectancy in Lanarkshire, in light of the diminishing life expectancies highlighted in the National Records of Scotland report, Life Expectancy in Scotland 2019-2021.
Answer
The National Records of Scotland published the latest life expectancy statistics on 22 September 2022. As reflected in these statistics, the pandemic has hit our most deprived communities the hardest, including many in Lanarkshire.
Reducing poverty and inequality sits at the heart of our investment across all portfolios and remain the best way of improving life expectancy. As a result we are mobilising action across government to tackle the underlying causes of inequality in our society.
This includes our commitment to providing free school meals, increasing the number of hours of free childcare, investing in affordable housing and continuing to deliver free prescriptions, concessionary travel and free personal care. Our Programme for Government and COVID Recovery Strategy include further commitments to improve life expectancy and to tackle health inequalities.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Monday, 10 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 26 October 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many retailers have been (a) charged and (b) convicted in relation to selling vaping products to under-18s.
Answer
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service have confirmed that in the last five financial years, as of 14 October 2022, there have been 11 charges reported and 2 charges convicted under the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2010 S4A(1) in relation to the selling of vaping products to under 18's.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 25 October 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its work on reviewing environmental justice and the case for an environmental court, as referred to in its Programme for Government 2021-22.
Answer
The Scottish Government will carry out the review required by section 41 of the EU Withdrawal from the EU (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021. This Act requires Ministers to review and consult on the effectiveness of the governance arrangements introduced by the Act, access to justice on environmental matters and whether the establishment of an environmental court could enhance the environmental governance arrangements. The report has to be presented to the Parliament within six months of Environmental Standards Scotland (ESS) adopting its first full strategy.
The ESS strategy has recently been laid in the Parliament and is expected to be published shortly, subject to the Parliamentary process. The review is planned to be published and the subsequent consultation to be launched in spring 2023.
The Scottish Government is committed to introducing a new right to a healthy environment as a part of the planned Human Rights Bill.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 October 2022
-
Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 25 October 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to fund research into heart condition diagnoses for women, in light of public health data that reportedly shows a rise in hospital admissions due to takotsubo cardiomyopathy.
Answer
The Women’s Health Plan, 2021-2024, includes a long term action to establish a Women’s Health Research Fund with the aim of closing gaps in scientific and medical knowledge in women’s health for both sex specific and non sex-specific conditions.
The Chief Scientist Office provide funding for the NHS Research Scotland Cardiovascular Network. The role of the Network is to support the delivery of high quality cardiovascular disease clinical research for the benefit of patients in Scotland and is currently providing support for the following clinical study:
Tako Genetics Study - Is There a Genetic Predisposition for Acute Stress-Induced (Takotsubo) Cardiomyopathy?
The Chief Scientist Office directly funds research through its 2 expert committees.
Applications on Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy, and other heart conditions, are welcomed and in common with all other applications would go through a process of independent expert review in order to enable funding decisions to be made.
