- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government when the last (a) announced and (b) unannounced inspection took place at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, and whether reports of these inspections have been published.
Answer
All of Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) inspection reports and action plans are published on the following website address. Find an NHS hospital or service: inspection reports (healthcareimprovementscotland.org)
In relation to HIS inspections, the QEUH has only had unannounced inspections since it opened in April 2015.
- Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom Arthur on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what biodiversity metrics will used to determine whether the National Planning Framework 4 meets the outcome of “securing positive effects for biodiversity”, as set out in the amended Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997.
Answer
In response to the amended Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, Draft National Planning Framework (NPF) 4 sets out policy proposals which aim to deliver positive outcomes for biodiversity from development.
A key element for the successful implementation and delivery of NPF4 is having a robust monitoring process in place, to be actively applied through the period of the framework. The Scottish Government has committed to working with relevant stakeholders, to develop an approach to monitoring of NPF4, making links across the national, regional and local levels.
- Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Submitting member has a registered interest.
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-07899 by Maree Todd on 3 May 2022, whether it will confirm how it is supporting the Scottish honey industry.
Answer
The honey industry and honey production is dependent on maintaining a healthy population of honey bees. The Scottish Government has a dedicated Bee Health Team, including bee health inspectors, that works in close partnership with the Bee Health Improvement Partnership (BHIP) which is made up of stakeholders with an interest in honey bees in Scotland. The objective of the BHIP is to achieve a healthy and sustainable population of honey bees for pollination and honey production in Scotland.
Scottish Government contributes to the funding of BeeBase, a database designed for beekeepers which supports inspections and health programmes in Scotland, England and Wales and provides a range of apicultural information for beekeepers. Scottish Government Bee Inspectors also collect samples of honey from beekeepers and honey producers in Scotland for medicine residue analysis as part of the Veterinary Medicines Directorate statutory surveillance scheme .
Scottish Government have worked with the key trade bodies across the food and drink sector to develop a COVID-19 recovery plan, which was announced in November 2020. We have committed support of £10m over in 2020-2022 towards the plan which contains 50 actions to support all sectors of Scotland’s food and drink industry to recover from Covid and Brexit. The focus is on two overarching aims: stimulating more demand in key markets; and supporting businesses to capitalise on this demand. Scotland Food & Drink lead on the delivery of the recovery plan and any honey producer looking for advice or support can contact them at info@foodanddrink.scot
In addition, a new £10.2m round of the Food Processing and Marketing Cooperation (FPMC) grants scheme was launched on 9 May 2022 with applications closing on 19 June 2022. Further information on the funding round can be accessed at https://www.ruralpayments.org/publicsite/futures/topics/all-schemes/food-processing--marketing-and-co-operation/ and we would encourage any honey producers who fit the eligibility criteria to consider applying.
- Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government by what date it anticipates the new website to provide NHS patients with indicative waiting times will go live.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-08571 on 30 May 2022. 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
- Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the website that is being designed with Public Health Scotland to give patients indicative waiting times, how it will work; how specific the date ranges provided will be, and whether it will provide patients with (a) average and (b) longest waiting times.
Answer
The Scottish Government is working with Public Health Scotland to develop an online platform for members of the public to access information on the average waiting times for a range of treatments within their health board area. We expect the platform to be available this summer.
- Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, as of May 2022, how many properties in Shetland are outwith the scope of the main R100 programme or commercial build plans and will be reliant on its broadband voucher scheme for a superfast internet connection.
Answer
The R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (SBVS) is a key strand of R100 programme delivery. As of May 2022, 1,847 properties on Shetland were eligible for a voucher worth up to £5,000 through the R100 SBVS.
- Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 30 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many applications there have been for the (a) interim voucher and (b) full voucher, of the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme, from households in Shetland, and, as of May 2022, how many of these applications have resulted in successful connections.
Answer
As of May 2022, 33 applications had been received for properties located in Shetland for the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme’s interim voucher, which offers up to £400 to secure a temporary superfast connection. Twenty six of these vouchers have been issued so far.
A total of 4 applications have been received for the R100 SBVS main voucher which offers up to £5,000 to secure a permanent superfast connection. Three of these vouchers have been issued so far.
- Asked by: Natalie Don-Innes, MSP for Renfrewshire North and West, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 26 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update regarding the implementation of the powers in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 that make provision for allowing local authorities to run their own bus services from July.
Answer
As I said in March, we are committed to delivering the powers under section 34 of the 2019 Act before the summer recess to enable local authorities to run their own bus services in a way that they see fit within the wider context of their obligations. This power sits alongside their existing ability to subsidise services. We intend to deliver that commitment and are currently working with local transport authorities on the development of an information note to help implement the provision.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many retired staff have returned to work in the NHS during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answer
The requested information is not centrally held. NHS Education for Scotland publishes annual data on joiners/leavers, but this information does not specify start date or professional background of joiners.
Information on joiners/leavers by staff group for each financial year can be found (turnover tab) here: https://turasdata.nes.nhs.scot/data-and-reports/official-workforce-statistics/all-official-statistics-publications/01-march-2022-workforce/dashboards/nhsscotland-workforce/?pageid=6429 .
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 May 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how it is ensuring that (a) the required specialist and condition-specific support is delivered and (b) clinical standards are met for MS patients throughout the Western Isles, and whether it will outline its plans to support healthcare workers to cope with their caseload of MS patients in the Western Isles.
Answer
Whilst Scottish Ministers set the strategic policy for the NHS in Scotland, responsibility for service delivery rests locally with Health Boards. Scottish Ministers expect satisfactory specialist and condition-specific support and care to be delivered for the benefit of all patients.
The requisite education and training to support people with neurological conditions, including MS, is provided to NHS Western Isles specialist nursing staff, in collaboration with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Neurology Service.
The Board's Lead Nurse for Specialist Nursing provides leadership and management to its neurology service, to ensure that clinical standards are met and the caseload is effectively managed.
To support the delivery of the Neurological Framework, the Scottish Government has commissioned Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) to support quality assurance of the implementation of the HIS General Standards for neurological care. Condition-specific third sector organisations will be an integral part of this evaluation and will help us understand how these standards are being implemented for people across Scotland.