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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-19667

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 03 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 19 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it will make available to local authorities that find reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete present in (a) school buildings and (b) other local authority-owned buildings, in order to (i) manage and (ii) remove it.

Question reference: S6W-19678

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 03 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 19 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete being present in (a) social housing and (b) private housing developments.

Question reference: S6W-19682

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 03 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 19 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that West Lothian Council has requested financial assistance from the Scottish Government to assist with the removal of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete, whether any other (a) public sector and (b) private sector bodies have contacted the Scottish Government about this.

Question reference: S6W-19617

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce a Down's Syndrome Bill, similar to the Down Syndrome Act 2022 that was passed by the UK Parliament and extends to England and Wales.

The Scottish Government has committed to consulting on a Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Bill by the end of this year. The Bill will aim to ensure that the rights of people with Down’s Syndrome, among others, are respected and protected.

An informal consultation took place last year as part of the scoping work for the Bill. The scoping report is available here: Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Bill: Scoping Analysis 2022 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . The Easy Read version is here: Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Bill: scoping work analysis 2022 - easy read - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

The formal public consultation will provide an opportunity for people across Scotland, including those with Down’s Syndrome and their families and supporters, to express their views on what the draft Bill should include.

The exact timing of the public consultation will be announced in due course.

Question reference: S6W-19616

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 6 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether the planned introduction of annual health checks for all people in Scotland with a learning difficulty will be tailored to each need, and whether it will specifically take account of the particular health needs of people with Down's syndrome.

Scottish Ministers issued National Directions on annual health checks, which state that the Scottish Health Check for Adults with Learning Disabilities documentation must be used in every health check. This documentation was tested and evidenced throughout the pilot phase and provides comprehensive best practice information and guidelines for practitioners, including on the specific health needs of people with Down’s Syndrome. This maintains the consistency and efficacy of each annual health check whilst also enabling practitioners to incorporate the specific health needs of each individual.

The Scottish Government has commissioned NHS Education for Scotland (NES) to support practitioners to complete annual health checks.

The Scottish Government continues to fund Down’s Syndrome Scotland to develop resources and accessible information about annual health checks for people with Down’s Syndrome, their families and carers, and for practitioners.

Question reference: S6W-19265

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 16 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 28 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what provision is made by NHS Scotland and NHS boards to launder personal items of clothing of people in hospital for protracted periods, particularly those being given end of life care.

Question reference: S6F-02291

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 26 June 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 June 2023

To ask the First Minister when the Cabinet will next meet.

Question reference: S6W-18633

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 05 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 21 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what provisions it is making to support an expansion of capacity for after school clubs.

Question reference: S6W-18954

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 09 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 20 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government (a) whether and (b) how it plans to review social care provision for people with profound and complex care needs.

As part of the development of the National Care Service (NCS), the Scottish Government is considering options to improve the ways people access social care support. This includes the processes by which their needs are assessed, their care is planned and their supports are provided. We are committed to embedding a human rights-based approach across the NCS. This means ensuring that services for accessing support planning can meet people’s wide-ranging individual access needs and that support plans are co-produced with the person seeking support, and where appropriate unpaid carers and others important to them. This will help ensure people have choice and control over their care.

The Scottish Government is also committed to improving independent advocacy services so people are supported to participate in decisions about their care. Improvements to the provision and consistency of independent advocacy services will support people who have complex needs or find the system difficult to navigate to access the social care supports they need.

The Scottish Government wants the NCS to make it easier for people to get care and support in their homes, in their communities and among their family and friends. In line with the Independent Review of Adult Social Care recommendations, we recognise that there are some very complex and specialist care and support services where it would be better to commission them once, to ensure a high quality and consistent quality of service for people, regardless of where in Scotland they live. Therefore, part of the NCS approach will see such services commissioned at a national level.

As we build the NCS, we will listen to the voices of the real experts: People who use community health and social care, including unpaid carers, and the staff who provide it, listening to their needs and acting on what they tell us. We will co-design the detail through our continued engagement with people with experience of using these services, and with partners and stakeholders who deliver community health and social care services to develop the final scope of a National Care Service for everyone.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting people with profound and complex care needs right now. In 2021, £20m of funding under the Scottish Government’s ‘Community Living Change Fund’ was distributed to Integration Authorities across Scotland to help in the design of community-based solutions that negate or limit inappropriate out-of-area placements for adults with learning disabilities and complex care needs.

Question reference: S6W-18850

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 16 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are being taken to ensure healthy sandeel populations, which serve as a key source of food for Scottish seabirds.

Given the importance of sandeel to the wider ecosystem and the subsequent benefit in aiding long-term sustainability and resilience, it remains an overarching Scottish Government position, which is reflected in Scotland’s Fisheries Management Strategy, not to support fishing for sandeel in our waters.

There are several measures in place for the protection of sandeel stocks through the network of Marine Protected Areas. Furthermore, the Northeast UK closed area in sandeel management area 4 has been in place since 2000 and, the UK has not allocated sandeel quota to UK vessels since 2021.

However, recognising a commitment to consider what additional measures could be put in place to manage the sandeel fishery, in May 2023 I announced that the Scottish Government will be undertaking a public consultation this summer on potential measures to manage fishing for sandeel in Scottish waters. I refer the member to the answer to S6W-18244 on 19 May 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .