Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-13092

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 12 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 10 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the point of order by the First Minister on 8 December 2022, whether she plans to correct the Official Report in relation to the statement that the claim that Scotland has 25% of Europe’s potential offshore wind resource is “is no longer appropriate to use because it is out of date”, in light of the UK Statistics Authority’s reported investigation and letter of 7 December 2022 stating that it was never accurate and that “it is good practice for elected representatives to correct their use of official statistics”.

The Scottish Government accepts that this statistic needs revising and we have already committed to undertake further work to quantify Scotland’s offshore wind potential. In response to the issues raised in the UK Statistics Authority’s letter, dated 7 December 2022, the Scottish Government has engaged directly with the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) setting out the steps that have been taken to ensure the statistic is not used further, and provided an update on the analytical work that is underway to produce a replacement statistic.

Question reference: S6W-13109

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 10 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to any concerns raised by the Cross Party Group on Chronic Pain regarding 10 pain patient representatives, elected by other patients, reportedly not endorsing the draft framework for pain management service delivery or its subsequent implementation plan, due to the publications not providing key information such as staffing levels and investment, and independent patient volunteers being involved for just two meetings.

The Scottish Government published the Framework for Pain Management Service Delivery - Implementation Plan in July 2022.

Extensive engagement of people with lived experience was carried out at all stages to develop the Framework including members of the Cross Party Group on Chronic Pain. This includes through representation on the National Advisory Committee for Chronic Pain (NACCP) and a national survey of people with chronic pain and their carers. We also sought input from other stakeholder groups during the development of the Framework including NHS staff, service planners and third-sector partners. This included work to bring together the diverse clinical disciplines involved in pain management in order to inform and support activities to improve chronic pain services.

All members of the NACCP had the opportunity to freely share their views on the priorities for improving pain management support which were used to inform the development of the draft Framework. Committee members were provided with an advanced copy of the Framework and were encouraged to share their feedback on its content via a public consultation which had a high level of responses from people with chronic pain and other stakeholders. We are grateful for the views and ideas shared through the consultation which have been used to inform the Aims and Actions we have set out in the Plan. This includes actions to address issues raised by the Cross Party Group on Chronic Pain to drive delivery of sustainable services and support for people with chronic pain across Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-13108

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 12 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 10 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported views expressed by Scotland Versus Arthritis in its briefing on the Scottish Government's implementation plan for chronic pain services that (a) the plan lacks the necessary ambition, (b) the approach to change is too slow and (c) there is no identifiable funding for delivery.

We are grateful to Scotland Versus Arthritis for their support in developing the draft Framework for Pain Management Service Delivery as members of the National Advisory Committee for Chronic Pain.

The Implementation Plan sets out, for the first time, an ambitious national direction for improvement including 18 Actions which reflect the priorities of people with chronic pain to improve the care and services they need.

This includes taking a whole-system approach to address long-standing, complex issues including improving the quality of national resources such as NHS Inform, reviewing referrals and pathways of care, investing in comprehensive national data on chronic pain and its impact, and developing a national knowledge and skills framework to drive recognition, earlier intervention and improve quality of care for people with chronic pain.

We have also redesigned our Governance structure to ensure that we can deliver these Actions at pace. This includes investing in a new Third-Sector Network in direct response to requests from charity organisations including Scotland Versus Arthritis to better support their involvement in implementing the Framework. We will continue to monitor delivery of the Implementation Plan to ensure there is rapid progress and to identify further opportunities to improve pain services.

In addition to our investment in these challenges, we have recognised the impact of arthritis, and are providing £400m to develop a network of National Treatment Centres which will provide additional capacity for hip and knee surgeries which are a significant contributor to chronic musculoskeletal pain.

As stated by Scotland Versus Arthritis in their recent briefing to MSPs, the majority of people with chronic pain are seen in primary care services. That is why we are also providing increased funding of £170 million this year to support primary care services to expand multi-disciplinary teams and provide additional pharmacists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists who can support people to better manage chronic pain and its impact. We welcome the continued input of Scotland Versus Arthritis and other third-sector partners in our shared goal of improving care and services for people with chronic pain.

Question reference: S6F-01684

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 09 January 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 January 2023

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

Question reference: S6W-13311

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 16 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 5 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it expects to announce new policies to support its biodiversity strategy, which was published on 13 December 2022.

We published our new draft Biodiversity Strategy on 13 December 2022, which sets out 26 Priority Actions to put us on the path to a nature positive future, and halt biodiversity loss by 2030. We are now working closely with public bodies and other stakeholders to develop the first 5 year delivery plan which will support this strategy. The delivery plan, to be published in 2023, will set out how we will achieve the vision and outcomes in the new strategy, and will include further details of key related policies. The strategy will also be supported by a Natural Environment Bill, which will provide a framework for statutory targets for nature restoration.

We will be undertaking further consultation work on the strategy and delivery plan from early 2023.

Question reference: S6W-13247

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 16 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 21 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what representations it has made to the UK Government regarding the impact in Scotland of the UK's continuing membership of the International Energy Charter.

The Scottish Government is in regular contact with the UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy about the continuing discussions to renegotiate the Energy Charter Treaty, with a view to identifying and mitigating any particular impacts on Scotland.

The Scottish Government is aware of the concerns raised by The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and others that International Investment Agreements, such as the Energy Charter Treaty, may lead to ‘regulatory chill’. That is why, in our Vision for Trade, we are clear that no part of a trade or investment agreement should limit the ability of the Scottish Parliament to regulate in devolved areas, or constrain much-needed action to achieve our net zero goal.

Question reference: S6W-13312

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 16 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 20 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to update its agriculture strategy in order to improve biodiversity, in light of the publication of its biodiversity strategy on 13 December 2022.

Biodiversity is at the heart of the Scottish Government’s Vision for Agriculture and our ambition to transform how we support farming and food production in Scotland.

Our aim is to develop a support framework that delivers climate mitigation and adaptation, nature restoration and high-quality food production.

In addition the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy to 2045 sets out a clear ambition for Scotland to be Nature Positive by 2030, and to have restored and regenerated biodiversity across the country by 2045. Work is underway to ensure agricultural policy aligns with these goals and the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy.

Question reference: S6W-13072

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 09 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 20 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-12660 by Keith Brown on 7 December 2022, whether it will provide the information requested regarding what the specific timeline is for the removal of all of Hikvision cameras and equipment that are installed within the Scottish Government estate; by what date it expects this work to be completed, and for what reason it did not provide this information in its answer.

The work to replace and upgrade the security equipment across the Scottish Government estate is part of a multi-year improvement programme, and is therefore subject to the usual resourcing and prioritisation variables, common with such large-scale programmes.

It is not in the public interest to publicise details of the Scottish Government’s physical security across its estate, however I can confirm that all Hikvision CCTV cameras have been replaced at those Scottish Government buildings identified as “sensitive sites”, as described in the recent UK Government statement.

Question reference: S6W-12815

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 05 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 19 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) guidance it offers and (b) regulations are in place for local authorities, in relation to the siting of 5G mobile telecoms masts.

The Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 is the principal piece of legislation governing the use and development of land. The act is supported by various pieces of subordinate legislation, such as the Town and Country Planning General Permitted Development (Scotland) Order, which provides permitted development rights for certain categories of digital communications infrastructure. Guidance on these permitted development rights is set out in Scottish Government Circular 2-2015

Specific guidance in relation to the siting of telecommunications equipment is contained in Planning Advice Note 62: Radio telecommunications This document is currently in the process of being updated and will include guidance on the siting of 5G mobile telecom masts. The intention is to publish this in the early part of 2023.

Through our revised draft National Planning framework 4 , we have proposed policies which support the delivery of such infrastructure which is carefully balanced amongst other factors such as visual and amenity impacts.

Question reference: S6W-12636

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 13 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how much public money it has spent on preparing for a second independence referendum since the UK General Election in 2019.

On 22 March 2021, the Scottish Government published a draft Independence Referendum Bill. The total costs of publication were £258.22.

Costs incurred for the Lord Advocate’s reference to the Supreme Court were published on 22 September. The information can be found here: www.gov.scot/publications/independence-referendum-supreme-court-referral-legal-costs . The information will be updated with final costs later this month.

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