- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will develop a training programme for primary care professionals regarding understanding coeliac disease.
Answer
The Scottish Government will continue to work with primary care to ensure the objectives, including training requirements set out in the Modernising Patient Pathways Programme Coeliac Disease Pathway Test of Change final report in 2020, are implemented.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve diagnosis of coeliac disease.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all people living in Scotland with long term conditions such as coeliac disease are able to access the best possible care and support, and benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put the person at the centre of their care.
We recognise that more needs to be done and we expect all Health Boards to fully implement the Coeliac Disease Pathway in Scotland to improve diagnosis for those with coeliac disease. Our £70 million Endoscopy and Urology Diagnostic Recovery and Renewal Plan is increasing capacity and supporting workforce training. This also includes a commitment to promote and implement guidelines for non-biopsy diagnosis for coeliac disease, which is expected to reduce waiting times for diagnosis for this condition.
Health Boards have developed plans to increase capacity, workforce and activity. Mobile Endoscopy Units are providing access to an additional six endoscopy rooms to help people get the diagnostic tests they need. Additional activity throughout the week, including weekends, will help reduce diagnostic waits.
By using the Gluten Free Food Service (GFFS), available in all community pharmacies in Scotland, patients are provided with gluten-free food prescriptions. There are also clinical benefits associated with the annual pharmacy health check that pharmacists are required to carry out under the GFFS for adult patients who have coeliac disease.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government whether every NHS board has adopted the coeliac disease clinical pathway, and, if this is not the case, which NHS boards are yet to adopt it.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold this information. This is a matter for Health Boards locally.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the recently agreed Memorandum of Understanding, what consultation (a) NatureScot, (b) Hampden & Co, (c) Lombard Odier Investment Managers and (d) Palladium had with the Scottish Land Commission; what agreement was reached on how they would assist the community consultation processes envisaged, and whether the (i) Scottish Land Commission and (ii) NatureScot will be paid by private investors for any assistance given to them.
Answer
NatureScot approached the Scottish Land Commission to provide advice so that the design of the investment meets the expectations for community engagement, benefit and ownership that are set out in the Scottish Government’s Interim Principles for Responsible Investment in Natural Capital. Neither the Scottish Land Commission nor NatureScot will be paid by the investors for their advice.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether NatureScot, by signing the Memorandum of Understanding with Hampden & Co, Lombard Odier Investment Managers and Palladium, and making disclosure of significant amounts of information relating to it and its operation confidential, has placed an obligation upon itself not to disclose any such information on the basis of it being commercially confidential.
Answer
While some detailed financial and legal information between investors and project land managers will be confidential between those parties, NatureScot’s agreement with partners will remain subject to normal information management obligations, including Freedom of Information. NatureScot will disclose all information in line with those requirements.
- Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 17 February 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-14311 by Jenny Gilruth on 7 February 2023, whether it can provide a breakdown of the number of (a) Category 1 and (b) Category 2 potholes that were (i) reported and (ii) repaired, in each of the last five years.
Answer
Transport Scotland, through its Trunk Road Operating Companies and Design Build Finance Operate (DBFO) Concessionaires, is responsible for the management and maintenance of the strategic trunk road network, including motorways. Repair of potholes on all other roads is the responsibility of the local authorities.
Category 1 potholes are defined within the term maintenance contract as those which present, or could present, an immediate hazard to trunk road users. They are typically detected during the twice weekly driven safety related inspections.
The Scottish Government fully funds the inspection and repair of all Category 1 potholes and the term maintenance contract sets out strict timescales for their repair. Following identification of Category 1 pothole defects, the Operating Companies are required to make the defect safe by 6am the following morning, preferably by completing a permanent repair. Where this is not possible then a temporary repair is required within the same timescale with permanent repairs required 28 days.
Category 2 defects are defined as those which do not present an immediate hazard to road users and are typically identified during walked annual inspections. Category 2 defects that deteriorate slowly could be recorded repeatedly over successive years before they are prioritised for maintenance. If defects do worsen more rapidly, a Category 1 defect is recorded and the defect is repaired within the contractual timescales outlined above.
The following table shows the number of Category 1 and Category 2 potholes identified and repaired in each of the last five whole years.
| Number of Cat 1 Potholes Recorded | Number of Cat 1 Potholes Repaired | Number of Cat 2 Potholes Recorded | Number of Cat 2 Potholes Repaired |
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- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 February 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government how it will support Glasgow City Council's proposal to cover the M8 between junctions 17 and 19 with a "garden cap", in light of the project not receiving funding in the second round of UK Government Levelling Up funding, and whether it will investigate the potential for platform deck structures to be marketed for private investment to develop the air rights over the motorway cutting as an alternative means to deliver the aspiration to cover the M8 in this area of central Glasgow.
Answer
I am aware of Glasgow City Council’s unsuccessful bid for Levelling up Funding for their proposed M8 ‘garden cap’ project. However the Levelling Up Fund is a UK Government initiative which clearly encroaches on devolved areas of transport policy. The Scottish Government has had no input into the development of the fund nor any responsibility for award decisions. Therefore, all the final decisions are solely taken by the UK Government.
The Scottish Government recognises the important role the M8 plays in providing access to key markets, jobs and services in Scotland and beyond. However given that this proposal is about the wider public realm and land-use within the city it is more appropriate that this work is led by the City Council. Transport Scotland, on behalf of Scottish Ministers, has a statutory duty as the Trunk Road Authority to ensure that any potential impacts on the trunk road network are appropriately assessed and any adverse impacts mitigated, where required.
Transport Scotland will continue to engage constructively with local authorities where proposals or projects are considered to have a potential impact on transport assets and services owned and or provided by Scottish Ministers and I trust that Local Authorities will likewise proactively seek the advice and guidance of my officials at Transport Scotland on such matters.
- Asked by: Michael Marra, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Clare Haughey on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what lessons it has learned from the pilot scheme for deferred entry of children to P1.
Answer
Interim reporting from the pilot local authorities on the number of ELC places needed for children deferring entry to P1 has been used to inform budget settlement decisions for 2023-24. The final evaluation report will be published in May 2023 and will provide information about implementation in pilot areas and explore the impact of the pilot on parental awareness and perceptions of the entitlement.
- Asked by: Michael Marra, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 16 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Clare Haughey on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government when the evaluation report of the pilot scheme for deferred entry of children to P1 will be published.
Answer
The evaluation of the Deferral pilots will be published in May 2023. The report has been slightly delayed to allow for an extended recruitment and data collection phase of the research, as the response rate was lower than expected during the original phase.
- Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 March 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 24 March 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what the anticipated timescale is for the electrification of the City Union railway line in Glasgow.
Answer
No date has been set for the electrification of the City Union line, however, in line with the Rail Services Decarbonisation Action Plan this route will be considered for future electrification by Transport Scotland.
The Decarbonisation Action Plan commits to all passenger diesel trains being replaced; the order and programme in which that is done will depend on business cases and available budgets. The Plan is a dynamic document, with a refresh of the Plan scheduled for 2023.
