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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-13775

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 24 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to mark National Pothole Day 2023.

Question reference: S6W-13800

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 24 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported figures showing that 42 inmates died in Scottish prisons in 2022-23.

The safe treatment, health, and wellbeing of all those in custody is a key priority for this Government and it is vital that people who live in our prisons are supported. It is imperative that when problems do occur, individuals receive the necessary treatment, care and respect, in a timely manner.

When anyone arrives in custody, they will have a healthcare consultation with an NHS healthcare professional within 24 hours of arrival, to identify healthcare conditions, other vulnerabilities and medication requirements. Early assessment of health needs is vital and a range of related work is being progressed with partners to improve healthcare in custody and in relation to deaths in custody.

Preventing suicide and supporting people who self-harm are key areas of focus for the Scottish Prison Service in developing its Health and Wellbeing Strategy. We continue to work closely with NHS Boards, SPS and the National Prison Care Network to implement the healthcare recommendations from the Independent Review of Deaths in Custody, as well as the Suicide Prevention Strategy and Mental Health Transition and Recovery Plan.

Question reference: S6W-13879

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 24 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the scheme to equip 18,000 police officers with body-worn cameras to improve their safety will not go ahead.

In November 2022, the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) Resources Committee approved Police Scotland's Initial Business Case for the introduction of National Body Worn Video, ahead of consideration by the SPA Board. Once approved by the Board, Police Scotland is expected to undertake a full procurement exercise this year which will provide more clarity on costs - both upfront purchase costs and ongoing costs.

The Scottish Government remains fully committed to using the resources available to support the vital work of Police Scotland in delivering effective and responsive policing across Scotland. We have invested over £11.6 billion in policing since Police Scotland was created in 2013 and we will invest a further £1.45 billion in 2023-24. Despite cuts to the Scottish Government capital budget, we have also continued to maintain the £45.5 million capital investment in the police asset base for buildings, vehicles and technology. Operational policing decisions on the introduction and use of body worn cameras and budgetary prioritisation remain matters for Police Scotland to decide, acting under the oversight of the SPA.

Question reference: S6F-01753

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 January 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 January 2023

To ask the First Minister what steps are being taken to tackle unethical and illegal dog breeding, in light of recent reports of high value extreme breeding programmes operating in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-13661

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 23 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that, between 19 and 25 December 2022, more than 30 patients at the Inverclyde Royal Hospital waited longer than 12 hours to be seen.

We know that this is one of the toughest winters in the NHS’s 74-year history and long delays clearly demonstrate the challenge our Health Service is facing.

Delayed discharges continue to drive up A&E waits, which is why we are working with hospitals across Scotland, including Inverclyde Royal Hospital to ensure people leave hospital without delay, freeing up vital beds for those who need them most.

Our £50 million Urgent and Unscheduled Care Collaborative looks to drive down A&E waits through, Hospital at Home and our Out-patient Antimicrobial Therapy service which allows patients to be treated at home or in the community.

Question reference: S6W-13665

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 23 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to reduce the opening hours of any ScotRail ticket offices in (a) Inverclyde and (b) North Ayrshire, and, if so, what discussions it has had with rail users groups on this matter.

Question reference: S6W-13627

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 23 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding any poor customer service processes and response times at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), and whether any businesses in Scotland have raised related concerns with the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S6W-13722

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 09 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 23 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what progress ScotRail has made towards its goal of becoming a menopause friendly accredited business by the end of January 2023.

ScotRail is committed to becoming a menopause friendly employer and has delivered “Let’s Talk about Menopause” training to its Executive Committee and eighty of its senior leaders.

ScotRail designed and delivered training for colleagues in ScotRail and the wider UK rail industry to celebrate World Menopause Month in October 2022 and has plans to offer Train the Trainer sessions with other ScotRail staff. ScotRail’s aim is then to roll out a programme of menopause awareness training across the organisation.

Applications for the Menopause Friendly Accreditation (MFA) are open four times each year and ScotRail’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager is currently in the process of collating evidence to submit with its audit survey which ScotRail intends to do by end February 2023.

Question reference: S6W-13677

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 09 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 23 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Kidney Research UK report, Changing the future for chronic kidney disease in Scotland, published in December 2022.

We welcome the report by Kidney Research UK and commend its work to support people with chronic kidney disease in Scotland. A number of Scottish Government clinical advisors and partners participated in the roundtable which informed the development of this report.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving care for people with chronic kidney disease through a number of activities which are aligned with the recommendations set out in Kidney Research UK’s report. We are raising awareness of the symptoms, causes, diagnosis and prevention of kidney disease by providing and promoting information on chronic kidney disease for patients and their families on NHS Inform .

Our Donation and Transplantation Plan was published in 2021 and sets out a dedicated priority to increase living donation and reduce the wait for a kidney transplant. This includes a number of recommendations to improve care, including developing resources and information to promote living donation , changing clinical practice in renal units, increasing direct engagement with patients and their families, and developing new guidance on staffing to support living donation.

We also continue to support the work of the Scottish Renal Registry which promotes excellence in renal care in Scotland including audits on the delivery of renal replacement therapy. The most recent report from registry was published by Public Health Scotland in October 2022 and provides vital information for Health Boards, service managers and individual clinicians to help improve care and standards for people with chronic kidney disease.

Question reference: S6W-13419

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 23 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Cancer Research UK report, Cancer in the UK: Deprivation and cancer inequalities in Scotland.

The Scottish Government continues to focus on tackling disparities in deprived areas by ensuring equitable access to cancer services through the actions in our National Cancer Plan. We recognise that the impact from the COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated inequalities within screening. A key Ministerial priority is reducing inequalities in access to and uptake of screening programmes. That is why we committed up to £2.45 million to the Screening Inequalities Fund to build a programme of evidence-based, sustainable and scalable projects that tackle inequalities in a systemic way.

Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services (RCDS) have been established across three NHS Boards to date which have a key role in delivering earlier diagnosis and improving patient care. The First Minister recently announced an additional two RCDS’ are being developed.

Additionally, the development of national clinical management pathways through the Scottish Cancer Network will help reduce variation across Scotland, across the entirety of the pathway. In parallel, the first optimal cancer diagnostic pathway, led by the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD) was launched in December 2022, and is being funded by £3 million from the Scottish Government’s Detect Cancer Earlier (DCE) Programme.