Parliamentary questions
Pam Duncan-Glancy
1,119 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
20 Jul 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what date it met with Room for Refugees to discuss its approach to the Homes for Ukraine and Super Sponsor schemes.
Answer · Neil Gray: Rooms for Refugees is a hosting service run by Positive Action in Housing. Scottish Government officials met with representatives from Positive Action in Housing on 4 August 2022 and discussed the Scottish Government’s Super Sponsor scheme. Officials updated…
11 Jul 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with Rooms for Refugees, and when it last met with the organisation.
Answer · Neil Gray: Rooms for Refugees is a hosting service run by Positive Action in Housing. Scottish Government officials met with representatives from PAIH on 30 June to discuss their experience of running a matching service.
29 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis has been undertaken regarding the re-establishment of the NHS 24 Musculoskeletal (MSK) Helpline.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: NHS 24 conducted a comprehensive analysis of the Musculoskeletal (MSK) Helpline data on the use of the service as well as examining the service model. This will inform the development of a new pathway, with particular consideration being given to digital opti…
29 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to re-establish the NHS 24 Musculoskeletal (MSK) Helpline, which was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: Scottish Government is working with NHS 24 and partners to develop a new Musculoskeletal (MSK) pathway, with particular consideration being given to digital options and a more preventative approach.
24 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that information on the provision of COVID-19 booster vaccines for pregnant people is easily accessible online.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: COVID-19 vaccines are recommended in pregnancy. Vaccination is the best way to protect against the known risks of COVID-19 in pregnancy for both women and babies. NHS inform have a dedicated page for pregnancy and the COVID-19 vaccine. Details on how pregnan…
24 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that pregnant people are able to access their COVID-19 booster vaccine.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: COVID-19 vaccines are recommended in pregnancy. Vaccination is the best way to protect against the known risks of COVID-19 in pregnancy for both women and babies. Public Health Scotland have created animations for minority ethnic audiences which include info…
22 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support young people with additional support needs through transitions in their education.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: We are committed to improving the experiences of children and young people with additional support needs at key transition points. The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 (“the 2004 Act”) requires authorities to plan for the tran…
16 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will implement a national definition of accessible housing.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Housing for Varying Needs design guide offers good practice in the design of homes in order to help them achieve a degree of flexibility, suit people of varying needs, be convenient to use, and be fit for purpose. Where possible, all new affordable homes …
16 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to an increase in funding for local authorities to make home adaptations for disabled people.
Answer · Shona Robison: The vast majority of funding from the Scottish Government is provided by means of a block grant to local authorities. It is then the responsibility of individual local authorities to manage their own budgets and to allocate the total financial resources avail…
16 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address any disparities in waiting times for housing adaptations across local authorities.
Answer · Shona Robison: Since the integration of health and social care, Integration Joint Boards (IJBs) are responsible for the planning and delivery of adaptations using budget created by delegation. They are also responsible for reviewing and developing services to improve outcom…
16 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will include a target for 10% of all new-build housing developments to be wheelchair accessible as part of the fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4).
Answer · Tom Arthur: Responses to the public consultation and Parliamentary scrutiny on Draft National Planning Framework (NPF4) are being carefully considered and we intend to lay a final NPF4 in the Parliament in the Autumn. The Draft proposed support for the delivery of high …
15 Jun 2022 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support young people with additional support needs through transitions in their education.
14 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much of the funding that it has spent on the promotion of direct payments and self-directed support, since the Community Care (Direct Payments) (Scotland) Regulations 1997 came into force, has been distributed to disabled people’s support organisations, and how many such organisation…
Answer · Kevin Stewart: The Scottish Government are committed to continuing to improve the promotion, quality, and implementation of Self-directed Support. Due to changes in SG accounting systems and SG Retention Policies it has not been possible to obtain details of all funding aw…
14 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on the promotion of direct payments and self-directed support since the Community Care (Direct Payments) (Scotland) Regulations 1997 came into force.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: The Scottish Government are committed to continuing to improve the promotion, quality, and implementation of Self-directed Support. Due to changes in SG accounting systems and SG Retention Policies it has not been possible to obtain details of all funding aw…
14 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many disabled people’s support organisations are supported by the 2022-23 tranche of Support in the Right Direction (SiRD) funding recipients.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: Scottish Government has invested £2,959,658.23 in the Support in the Right Direction (SiRD) programme in financial year 2022-23. The SIRD programme is managed by Inspiring Scotland and has a presence in all 32 local authority areas, with each SiRD organisatio…
9 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that only NHS Dumfries and Galloway successfully performs stroke therapy assessments within three days.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Stroke Improvement Programme report 2022 containing the performance of Health Boards against the Stroke Improvement Plan priorities, including access to stroke therapy, is available at: https://www.strokeaudit.scot.nhs.uk/index.html . The benchmark cri…
9 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has carried out any evaluation of the performance of each NHS board against the performance criteria to meet Article 26 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government has not carried out an evaluation of the performance of each NHS Board against Article 26 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
9 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will clarify which Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme (SSIP) measures are used to evidence where UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Article 26 performance criteria are being met.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme measures do not formally evidence the aims of Article 26 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Through the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme we reflect the aims of Article 26 of the Conv…
9 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether there is a minimum training standard for staff in stroke units.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The current Scottish Stroke Care Standards are available at the following link: https://www.strokeaudit.scot.nhs.uk/Quality/Scottish_Stroke_Care_Standards.html The provision of stroke care, including rehabilitation, is also assessed against the Scottish St…
9 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has set a national standard for delivery of rehabilitation for those who have had a stroke.
Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Stroke Improvement Plan ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/stroke-improvement-plan/ ) outlines the requirements on NHS Boards to ensure they have a trained and competent workforce capable of delivering person-centred, safe and effective stroke…
8 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has contacted or drawn upon existing frameworks and organisations, such as Room for Refugees, as learning examples for Ukrainian refugees coming to Scotland through the Homes for Ukraine scheme.
Answer · Neil Gray: Scotland has a wealth of experience and learning from previous refugee schemes and we have held discussions with experienced stakeholders including Room for Refugees. The New Scots strategy is providing the foundation for our response to Ukraine. It sets the …
8 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it is giving to local authorities in Scotland regarding its Super Sponsor scheme and the Homes for Ukraine scheme in order to ensure appropriate safeguarding measures are in place.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government has published guidance for local authorities which includes what safeguarding measures, such as disclosure checks, should be in place for people arriving through the Super Sponsor scheme and the private sponsor scheme. This guidance ca…
8 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to introduce micro-commissioning bodies to work with local and community-level organisations to help support the integration of Ukrainian refugees in Scotland.
Answer · Neil Gray: We are working alongside local authorities and partners to help displaced people from Ukraine integrate into communities and support them to settle here. Local authority caseworkers are in place to enable access to services including healthcare, education, em…
7 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide its official estimate of the current number of unpaid carers of people with dementia.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: It is not possible to accurately estimate, from nationally held data, the current number of unpaid carers of people with dementia. Data collected by Public Health Scotland (PHS) through their social care data collection provides some information on people …
1 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what preparation and research it has carried out regarding the proportion of Ukrainian refugees arriving in Scotland who cannot speak English, in order to ensure that they can access ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) and other language support and learning services.
Answer · Neil Gray: Upon arrival of Ukrainian Displaced People at Welcome Hubs, communication needs are assessed to ensure that information is provided in a format that meets their needs. This may include easy to read documents in community languages and interpretation services …
1 Jun 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consultation it has had with community-level organisations since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine and the launch of its Super Sponsor scheme and the Homes for Ukraine scheme regarding the integration of, and support for, refugees and asylum seekers in Scotland.
Answer · Neil Gray: It has been heart-warming to see the groundswell of support from our communities, pubic services, third sector and partners for people fleeing Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. We have worked closely and collaboratively with partners to stand up our Warm …
31 May 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it estimates the current delay is in the construction of accessible social housing, and approximately how long it will take to be back on track with the accessible housing targets set out in its strategy, Housing to 2040.
Answer · Shona Robison: We are aware of the global issues affecting construction which are impacting the pace of affordable housing delivery and we are working closely with the construction industry and housing partners to mitigate this where possible. Given these are global issues,…
30 May 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that gender mainstreaming approaches will be embedded into the implementation of the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan.
Answer · Shona Robison: As set out in response to S6W-08423 on 19 May 2022 , we remain firmly focused on supporting the six priority family types identified within our first Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan and will continue to engage with our partners, including gender represen…
26 May 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will set out its plans for Severe Disability Payment.
Answer · Ben Macpherson: Severe Disablement Allowance (SDA) will continue to be delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions on behalf of the Scottish Government, which Parliament were informed of in February 2019. Consultation and survey responses indicated that replacing Sever…
25 May 2022 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to safeguard access to psychosocial professionals for people with (a) paediatric and (b) adult cystic fibrosis in the event that vacancies arise among these professionals.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: Mental health and psychosocial support is an integral part of care for people who suffer from cystic fibrosis and the Scottish Government continues to invest in the mental health workforce to increase its capacity and capability. NHS Scotland’s Mental Health …