- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 November 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Jeane Freeman on 21 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many neurologists have been employed by each NHS board in each year since 2007.
Answer
The number of medical staff employed by each NHS Board, by specialty, from 2007 to the most recent published data as at 30 June 2018, is available on the ISD website:
https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-09-04/Medical_Trend_J2018.xls (Consultant SIP tab)
This data shows four neurology related specialties: neurology, neurosurgery, clinical neurophysiology and diagnostic neuropathology (introduced December 2016).
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 November 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Jeane Freeman on 21 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the announcement that the FreeStyle Libre glucose monitoring system will be prescribed to everyone in England with type 1 diabetes who qualifies for the technology; what plans it has to offer this system to all eligible people in Scotland, and what progress each NHS board is making with the implantation of the system.
Answer
FreeStyle Libre is already available on prescription in 13 of the NHS Boards. NHS Highland is committed to introducing FreeStyle Libre to patients that meet the agreed criteria, and is working closely with the local Diabetes Service to identify and make the prescribing efficiencies necessary to release sufficient resource to meet the cost of FreeStyle Libre.
As with all Medicines and Devices on the Scottish Drugs Tariff, it is for NHS Boards to consider inclusion on their local formulary. The decision to prescribe a medicine or device is for the prescribing clinician in line with prescribing guidance and in consultation with the patient to ensure suitability for their treatment.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 November 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 20 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to educate school pupils about acid attacks.
Answer
Curriculum for Excellence is the national approach to learning and teaching for young people aged 3 to 18 in Scotland. It provides significant flexibility, within broad national guidelines, for teachers to develop lessons which best meet the needs of individual learners, such as lessons about acid attacks. Teachers, head teachers and other professional educational practitioners are best placed to decide what is taught in Scotland’s schools.
Through Curriculum for Excellence, education practitioners have an important role in equipping all children and young people with the knowledge, skills and understanding they need to keep themselves and others safe.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 October 2018
Submitting member has a registered interest.
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the First Minister’s speech at the Scottish Tourism Alliance Conference on 1 October 2018, whether it will hold a public consultation regarding introducing a so-called tourism tax and if so, what the timeline for this will be.
Answer
As indicated by the First Minister, the Scottish Government will hold an open, inclusive and transparent national discussion around the issues related to Tourism Tax. This is not an official public consultation consulting on specific proposals from the Scottish Government or anyone else on introducing a Tourism Tax. It is a national discussion to aid wider understanding of this Contentions issue.
Through a series of roundtable discussions, and related engagement, we will allow all views to be heard and we will make the evidence that is gathered through that available in due course.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 October 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Matheson on 15 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how may (a) collisions and (b) other accidents there have been on the (i) A1, (ii) A68 and (iii) A7 in each year since 2007, also broken down by how many led to (A) fatal and (B) serious injury and the number of people (1) killed and (2) seriously injured.
Answer
Police Scotland collect data on road traffic accidents that were a) reported to the police and b) involved someone being injured or killed.
The following tables show the number of injury road accidents and the number of casualties recorded by the police as occurring on the A1, A68 and A7.
Number of injury road accidents (in Scotland) on the A1, A68 and A7, classified by most severe injury sustained |
| | A1 | |
| Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2007 | 5 | 15 | 83 | 103 |
2008 | 1 | 6 | 86 | 93 |
2009 | 0 | 12 | 64 | 76 |
2010 | 4 | 7 | 60 | 71 |
2011 | 0 | 12 | 46 | 58 |
2012 | 0 | 8 | 61 | 69 |
2013 | 0 | 5 | 40 | 45 |
2014 | 1 | 7 | 60 | 68 |
2015 | 1 | 6 | 60 | 67 |
2016 | 3 | 6 | 54 | 63 |
2017 | 3 | 8 | 52 | 63 |
| | A68 | |
| Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2007 | 2 | 7 | 36 | 45 |
2008 | 2 | 9 | 53 | 64 |
2009 | 1 | 12 | 29 | 42 |
2010 | 0 | 8 | 30 | 38 |
2011 | 1 | 6 | 20 | 27 |
2012 | 1 | 5 | 27 | 33 |
2013 | 1 | 10 | 22 | 33 |
2014 | 0 | 9 | 21 | 30 |
2015 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 21 |
2016 | 4 | 9 | 20 | 33 |
2017 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 22 |
| | A7 | |
| Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2007 | 2 | 28 | 88 | 118 |
2008 | 2 | 22 | 112 | 136 |
2009 | 3 | 11 | 96 | 110 |
2010 | 0 | 19 | 96 | 115 |
2011 | 2 | 18 | 74 | 94 |
2012 | 2 | 15 | 80 | 97 |
2013 | 1 | 18 | 74 | 93 |
2014 | 4 | 8 | 64 | 76 |
2015 | 3 | 18 | 72 | 93 |
2016 | 0 | 19 | 73 | 92 |
2017 | 3 | 9 | 53 | 65 |
| | | | |
Number of casualties from injury road accidents (in Scotland) on the A1, A68 and A7, by severity |
| | A1 | |
| Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2007 | 5 | 16 | 104 | 125 |
2008 | 2 | 6 | 106 | 114 |
2009 | 0 | 17 | 84 | 101 |
2010 | 4 | 10 | 83 | 97 |
2011 | 0 | 12 | 64 | 76 |
2012 | 0 | 11 | 89 | 100 |
2013 | 0 | 6 | 52 | 58 |
2014 | 3 | 10 | 74 | 87 |
2015 | 1 | 6 | 80 | 87 |
2016 | 3 | 12 | 71 | 86 |
2017 | 3 | 10 | 80 | 93 |
| | A68 | |
| Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2007 | 2 | 9 | 52 | 63 |
2008 | 2 | 15 | 76 | 93 |
2009 | 2 | 17 | 42 | 61 |
2010 | 0 | 8 | 42 | 50 |
2011 | 1 | 9 | 31 | 41 |
2012 | 3 | 6 | 52 | 61 |
2013 | 1 | 16 | 36 | 53 |
2014 | 0 | 12 | 33 | 45 |
2015 | 1 | 11 | 15 | 27 |
2016 | 6 | 14 | 42 | 62 |
2017 | 0 | 4 | 34 | 38 |
| | A7 | |
| Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2007 | 2 | 35 | 120 | 157 |
2008 | 2 | 22 | 157 | 181 |
2009 | 3 | 16 | 133 | 152 |
2010 | 0 | 21 | 115 | 136 |
2011 | 2 | 19 | 103 | 124 |
2012 | 2 | 15 | 102 | 119 |
2013 | 1 | 19 | 90 | 110 |
2014 | 5 | 11 | 82 | 98 |
2015 | 4 | 19 | 95 | 118 |
2016 | 0 | 22 | 91 | 113 |
2017 | 3 | 10 | 71 | 84 |
Note: These figures have been derived from the dataset used to produce Transport Scotland’s Reported Road Casualties National Statistics publication.
These figures may differ from other sources, such as those produced from Transport Scotland’s Trunk Road Accident Manager Database or those provided by Local Authorities.
Whilst these sources are all based on the same data returns from Police Scotland, there may be differences in how databases interrogate and present the information and in the recording of updates and corrections.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 05 November 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 15 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to improve the speed at which students with (a) dyslexia and (b) dyspraxia receive Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) support.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all students with a disability, long term medical condition or additional support needs are fully supported throughout their studies.
This academic year, the Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) has made a number of improvements to the application process for all students applying for Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA).
These include a new application form and evidence template aimed at making the DSA application process quicker and easier for students to complete.
SAAS are working with a range of representative groups, including the Heads of Disability Services within universities and colleges to explore what further improvements they can make to the services they provide for disabled students.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 05 November 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 15 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what the target time is for disabled students to receive Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) support for the start of the academic year.
Answer
The Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) are committed to ensuring that all students will have their funding (tuition fee and living-cost support) in place by the start of their course. To make this possible, students need to apply by 30 June each year with a fully completed application, supported by all the necessary documentation.
Students applying for Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) have to complete an additional application, supported by a needs assessment report, usually from the college or university’s Disability Adviser. SAAS aim to process a DSA application within 21 days of receipt.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 October 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 9 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many farm businesses are awaiting outstanding CAP payments for (a) 2017 and (b) 2018.
Answer
As at 5 November 98.9% of all Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments for 2017 had been completed, with only 37 BPS payments still to make.
We have also completed 99.57% of all 2017 payments under the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme and Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme with only 34 payments still to make.
We have also completed 89.7% of Pillar Two CAP payments for 2017 and we are aiming to complete the vast majority of the remaining 2017 Pillar Two payments by the end of the year.
Under European Commission regulations the window for making 2018 BPS and other Pillar One CAP payments doesn’t open until 1 December 2018, but as at 2 November 13,056 farm businesses had received payments worth £303.9 million under our 2018 national BPS loan scheme.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 November 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 9 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government what additional funding it will be providing to local authorities as a consequence of the Vibrant Libraries, Thriving Schools strategy.
Answer
Decisions on the level of local authority funding settlement for 2019-20 are subject to negotiation with COSLA and the results will be confirmed as part of the Budget next month.
The Scottish Government is already providing £1 million over three years through the School Library Improvement Fund. The fund supports implementation of the national strategy for school libraries and opened again for applications on 5 November. More information can be found on the Scottish Library and Information Council's website at https://scottishlibraries.org/funding/school-library-improvement-fund/ .
The Scottish Government will be considering any further funding requirements for implementation of the strategy in the coming months, informed by the work of the School Library Strategy Implementation Group.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 18 October 2018
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Current Status:
Answered by Jeane Freeman on 6 November 2018
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) community mental health nurses, (b) mental health nurses, (c) consultant psychiatrists, (d) psychologists NHS Borders has employed in each year since 2007.
Answer
The number of mental health nurses employed by NHS Borders from 2007 to the most recent published data as at 30 June 2018 is available on the ISD website: https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-09-04/Non-Medical_Trend_J2018.xls
(Nursing and Midwifery tab).
The link above shows the number of mental health nurses who have a location of service delivery recorded as (i) community, (ii) hospital, (iii) combined hospital / community or (iv) other.
The number of consultant psychiatrists employed by NHS Borders from 2007 to the most recent published data as at 30 June 2018 is available on the ISD website: https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-09-04/Medical_Trend_J2018.xls
(Consultant SIP tab).
The number of psychologists employed by NHS Borders from September 2010 to the most recent published data at 30 June 2018 is available on the ISD website: https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-09-04/2018-09-04-Psychology-Workforce-Tables.xls .