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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.

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Question reference: S5O-02936

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of emergency workers’ time is lost due to mental ill health.

Question reference: S5W-21447

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 February 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 20 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the City of Edinburgh Council regarding the progress that the city is making toward meeting its air quality targets.

Edinburgh City Council has produced an action plan containing a number of measures to improve air quality. The Scottish Government is working closely with the Council as it implements the measures contained in the plan and is providing practical and financial assistance to both monitor air quality and support delivery.

As announced in the 2017-18 Programme for Government, the Council will establish a Low Emission Zone in Edinburgh by 2020.

Question reference: S5W-21448

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 February 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 20 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will publish a progress report on the Cleaner Air for Scotland strategy.

The second annual progress report for the Cleaner Air for Scotland strategy was pubished on 10 August 2018. The report can be found at https://www.gov.scot/publications/cleaner-air-scotland-annual-progress-report-2017-18/

On 6 November 2018, the Scottish Government announced that Professor Campbell Gemmell would chair an independent review of Scotland’s air quality strategy. The review will explore the progress and impact of Scotland’s previous air quality strategy, assessing progress to date and making recommendations for future priorities. The review is well underway, with a number of steering group and working group meetings having taken place, along with a stakeholder event on 10 January 2019.

Question reference: S5W-21366

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 20 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what mechanisms there are for patients to complain about food quality in (a) hospitals and (b) social care settings.

In a hospital setting, all patients should complain to the nurse in charge of their ward if they are not happy with the food provided and they should be offered an alternative meal. Patients can also complete a questionnaire as part of the mealtime observations conducted by NHS board staff or through an inpatient experience survey. If the patient is still unhappy, they can address their complaint at a local level through the NHS complaints handling procedure.

The Patient Rights (Scotland) Act 2011 and supporting legislation provides a specific right for people to make complaints, raise concerns, make comments and give feedback to NHS Boards. The Act also places a duty on NHS Boards to thoroughly investigate and respond to any concerns raised, to take improvement actions where appropriate and to share learning from the views they receive. .

In Social Care settings, if the level of service that a person or someone they care for is receiving is not up to standard, they should in the first instance to speak to the care service itself about their concerns. If they do not receive a favourable response they can then raise a formal complaint using the relevant local authority’s complaints procedure. They can also choose to complain directly to the Care Inspectorate if the service is being provided on behalf of the local authority, by a private care provider. If they are still unhappy with the outcome, they have the right to ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to look into the decision.

Question reference: S5W-21446

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 February 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 20 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to help Scotland meet its air quality targets.

Question reference: S5W-21401

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 04 February 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 19 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on reviewing the water and sewerage charges exemption scheme to support charities whose income exceeds the exemption limit due to them receiving funds for important new projects.

Question reference: S5W-21368

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 19 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what procurement criteria prospective private contractors must meet when hospitals are outsourcing the provision of their food.

The catering service in every Board must comply with National Food Safety Standards and the Food in Hospitals specification (the National Catering and Nutrition Specification for Food and Fluid Provision in Hospitals in Scotland) with regards to the quality of their patient catering service.

These standards are mandatory whether the service is provided in-house or by an external provider. For those services that are provided externally, Boards are responsible for ensuring that the standards and specification form the basis of the quality criteria for the provision of those services.

Question reference: S5W-21365

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 19 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what standards and regulations govern the (a) quality and (b) inspection of food provision in (i) hospitals and (ii) social care settings.

NHS Boards are required to comply with the ‘Food in Hospitals: National Catering and Nutrition Specification for Food and Fluid Provision in Hospitals in Scotland’ guidelines which were revised and updated March 2016 and Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s Food, Fluid and Nutritional Care standards published October 2014.

NHS Boards are required to meet these standards and the specification regardless of whether the catering is provided in-house or by an external provider.

NHS Boards are currently required to self-assess their performance against the Food in Hospitals Specification, taking into account local audit information (such as regular mealtime observations conducted by NHS board staff) and results from patient experience surveys. From April 2019, a new process for the provision of detailed self-assessment and supporting evidence will go live.

Food in Hospitals provides information on standards for nutritional care, nutrient and food provision for patients within hospitals. It provides information on how the standards/guidance can be met. There is no formal inspection of food provision in Scotland. Healthcare Improvement Scotland carries out inspection of nutritional care and hydration as part of their unannounced inspections of care of older people in acute hospitals.

The Health and Social Care Standards took effect from 1 April 2018 and are applicable across the whole of health and social care. They set out what everyone should expect when experiencing care and support, including eating and drinking. The Care Inspectorate and Healthcare Improvement Scotland are incorporating the Standards into their inspection and quality assurance activities.

Question reference: S5W-21213

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 11 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to consider the proposal in the report by the Cross Party Group on Heart Disease, Beating High Blood Pressure: Scotland’s Silent Killer, to implement an effective approach to tackling common modifiable drivers of poor cardiovascular health.

Question reference: S5W-21242

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 January 2019
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 7 February 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to improve and build relationships with countries that have a strong connection with Scotland's historic role in slavery.

The Scottish Government’s international ambitions are set out in our International Framework and various country plans. It aims to create an environment within Scotland that supports a better understanding of international opportunities and to influence the world around us on the issues that matter most. Scotland’s International Framework sets out how our international work supports the Government’s central purpose of creating a more successful country. The International Framework can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/scotlands-international-framework-9781788514033/ .

Our partner countries in Africa are Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia. Scotland has identified it’s partner countries across the world based on historical and contemporary relationships, shared values, partnership and trust. Our bilateral relationships are primarily focused on Scotland acting as a good Global Citizen, through collaboration opportunities in trade and investment, culture and tourism, research and innovation, education links and international development to support poverty alleviation and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.