Parliamentary questions
Elaine Smith
1,153 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
7 May 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on Roman Catholic churches reopening to conduct funerals to allow higher numbers of socially-distanced attendees to attend, in light of reports of there being up to 20 such attendees at services held in smaller crematoria.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Restrictions) (Scotland) Regulations 2020 require that places of worship are closed during this emergency period, except for specific purposes as provided by the Regulations. The Regulations set out that a place of worshi…
7 May 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it will engage with the Roman Catholic church's newly established working group, chaired by Sir Harry Burns, which will create an infection control protocol that will guide the phased reopening of Roman Catholic churches, and what its involvement was in establishing the group.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Bishops’ Conference of Scotland Covid-19 Working Group has been established independent to Scottish Government, however we are engaging regularly with the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland in order to understand their concerns and how we can better support …
7 May 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the work and projects of individual Roman Catholic churches and religious groups, including the Society of St Vincent de Paul, in its endeavours to help the most vulnerable people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: I would like to offer my warmest congratulations to the Society of St Vincent de Paul in Scotland as they celebrate their 175th anniversary. I was looking forward to attending their celebrations later this month, which have now unfortunately been cancelled. …
7 May 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it agrees that the reopening of churches will allow more people to pay their last respects to loved ones, while keeping within social distancing.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-28954 on 27 May 2020 and S5W-28953 on 29 May 2020. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.…
3 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it is ensuring that dignity is central to its response to food insecurity during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government is committed to supporting communities to respond to food insecurity in a manner which places dignity at its heart. That is why we are taking a ‘cash-first’ approach to food insecurity, which prioritises direct financial transfers whe…
3 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of concerns regarding a shortage of equipment for some care workers, what consideration it is giving to working with small businesses that can adapt supplies to make personal protective equipment.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation Ivan McKee is leading a Working Group tasked with supporting the supply of manufactured products such as ventilators, personal protection equipment (PPE), hand sanitiser and testing kits to NHS Scotland. Along…
3 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what advice it can give to volunteers with facilities to make personal protective equipment, such as industrial sewing machines, to enable them to produce supplies that can assist their local health and care providers.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: We have established a single point of contact for businesses, third sector or voluntary organisations who wish to offer support at [email protected] . Advice on how individuals can help their community through volunteering can be found at ww…
30 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether gas and oil servicing companies should only be conducting essential emergency calls to households; whether they have been advised to stop routine boiler checks, which may mean engineers visiting up to 10 households per day, and, if so, what measures are in place to ensure these s…
Answer · Kevin Stewart: The annual gas safety regulations are reserved to the UK Government and the Scottish Government cannot change them. Whilst the Scottish Government recognises the importance of the annual safety checks, during the current health emergency, the Scottish Govern…
18 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Optometry Scotland regarding guidelines for managing COVID-19 and staff safety.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Scottish Government officials have met with Optometry Scotland regularly during the COVID-19 pandemic period, working collaboratively with others to develop and implement appropriate guidelines for managing patients and staff safely. Officials will continue t…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of an increased number of referrals by GPs and hospitals, whether personal protective equipment will be made available to (a) optometrists, (b) dentists and (c) other non-NHS frontline healthcare staff who are having difficulty sourcing masks and sanitisers.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Government has worked closely with NHS National Procurement and territorial Health Boards during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide appropriate Personal Protective Equipment, including masks and hand sanitiser, to primary care contractor groups who…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what additional protections and support will be given to (a) optometrists, (b) dentists and (c) other non-NHS frontline healthcare staff who do not have the same protections as NHS staff working in hospitals and surgeries.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: To control and reduce the transmission of COVID-19, routine eye and dental care services were suspended on 23 March 2020. Since then the Scottish Government has provided financial support to enable optometrists and dentists to safely manage most patients remo…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of an increased number of referrals by GPs and hospitals for patients with conjunctivitis and red eye, which can reportedly signs of COVID-19, what the relevant guidelines are for (a) optometrists and (b) other non-NHS frontline healthcare staff.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Viral conjunctivitis is not currently listed in the national case definition for COVID-19. The Royal College of Ophthalmologists and College of Optometrists have jointly advised that it is unlikely that a patient would present with viral conjunctivitis as a s…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that hospitals and GPs are referring an increased number of patients to optometrists for treatment during the COVID-19 outbreak, placing an increased financial burden on these private businesses.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Community optometry is the established first port of call for all eye problems in Scotland, and has the capacity to manage patients safely. Supported by a substantial package of financial support from the Scottish Government outlined in PCA(O)2020(4) , opto…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Cuba's proactive steps to help other countries with COVID-19, what contact it has made with the country.
Answer · Michael Russell: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-27988 on 27 March 2020. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will approach the Cuban government to request assistance from Cuban medics to support and assist the NHS.
Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Government is actively investigating the successful approaches taken by governments and clinicians across the world as recommended by WHO. There are currently no plans to request direct assistance from the Cuban Government to support and assist N…
17 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will contact the Cuban government to discuss supplies of drugs such as interferon B, interferon alpha-2B and other recently developed medicines that can be used to treat respiratory disease.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The supply of medicines remains the reserved responsibility of the UK Government. The Scottish Government continue to work closely with UK Government colleagues and the pharmaceutical industry in order to ensure that patients in Scotland can access the medici…
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what reassurance it can provide on maintaining the supply of essential items in shops as a result of the coronavirus, COVID-19, in order to avoid panic buying leading to scarcity of products.
Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government is liaising closely with supermarkets, shops and suppliers to help ensure the continued supply of key products. Our retail sector is committed to ensuring supplies continue to reach all areas of the country, including rural and island …
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether any priority will be given to medical staff to be tested for the coronavirus, COVID-19, in light of the risks they face in the important role they play in the fight against the disease.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: Our priorities for testing are directing testing capacity to save lives and protect the vulnerable; ensuring that critical staff can return to work as soon as possible; and monitoring and reporting of the spread and prevalence of the virus in the population a…
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to increase the availability of testing for the coronavirus, COVID-19, in light of large-scale testing reportedly being cited as a contributory factor to the comparatively low fatality rate in South Korea.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: Monitoring will continue through our laboratories and will be targeted on the following groups:admissions to hospitaladmissions to intensive carecommunity testing dependent on circumstances, for example specific situations such as a nursing home outbreakcriti…
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what advice it is giving to people who are most vulnerable during the coronavirus, COVID-19, outbreak, such as those with asthma, type 1 diabetes, thyroid and other auto-immune conditions.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Public health advice is regularly updated and can be found at: Coronavirus (COVID-19) on NHS Inform and at Public Health Scotland: https://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/a-to-z-of-topics/covid-19/ As of 23 March 2020 three new measures are in place to protect those…
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what advice it is giving to sporting bodies, such as the Scottish Football Association, regarding the safety of public gatherings, in light of sports fans from countries where gatherings have been banned still being able to travel to attend events in Scotland.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Following the First Minister's recent statements on restricting mass gatherings and a need to minimise social contact, the Scottish Government issued detailed guidance to Scottish sporting bodies to aid decision making during this difficult time. Our sporting…
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what advice it provides on the precautions that people living with a person who does not exhibit symptoms of the coronavirus, COVID-19, but who is self-isolating, should take.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: I refer the member to my answer to question S5W-27881 on 23 March 2020. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/…
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its latest advice is to older people and people who live with underlying health conditions who are not exhibiting symptoms of the coronavirus, COVID-19, but who live with someone who has been advised to self-isolate.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The main source of medical advice remains the NHS Inform website. The website contains a range of measures people should take to minimise the spread of the virus. These include but are not limited to, staying at least 2 metres (about 3 steps) away from other …
11 Mar 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assurances it can provide on the level of NHS preparedness for a worst-case scenario coronavirus, COVID-19, outbreak, and whether this could involve, like some other countries, having to prioritise which patients receive treatment due to a lack of availability of equipment, such as …
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The international standard for an appropriate pandemic response is to double ICU capacity. NHS Scotland has more than trebled its adult ICU capacity, from a base of 173 beds to a surge capacity of 585. These beds will be brought into use as needs dictate, on …
27 Feb 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what monitoring systems are in place for the maintenance of the Healthy Living Award on sites catered by the NHS.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: All NHS catered sites for staff and visitors (including outpatients) are expected to achieve the Healthyliving Award plus . Once achieved, the site retains the award for two years. During this period, unannounced quality assurance visits take place annually t…
27 Feb 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what guidance is in place to support the provision by NHS boards of healthy options, including fresh fruit, to patients in hospital wards.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: NHS Scotland Hospitals are required to comply with 'Food in Hospitals: National Catering and Nutrition Specification for Food and Fluid Provision in Hospitals in Scotland'. This policy provides information on standards for nutritional care, nutrient and food …
27 Feb 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how the NHS ensures that healthy options, including provision of fresh fruit, are made available for outpatients receiving care at NHS facilities.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: Patients who attend outpatient clinics in NHSS Hospitals are offered the use of the staff and visitor dining facilities that will include a combination of restaurants, retail outlets, coffee shops and vending machines. Each of these facilities would typically…
20 Feb 2020 · SPCB Oral Question
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what equality monitoring of staff employed by MSPs it undertakes, and what steps it is taking to address any under-representation from any section of society.
5 Feb 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place to promote the use of sunflower lanyards to help identify passengers with hidden disabilities on public transport.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Alongside providing funding and support to refresh and expand Scotland’s own Thistle Assistance Card scheme, we continue to promote the Sunflower Lanyard, and associated staff training, with disabled people, disabled people’s organisations, and transport prov…
5 Feb 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of customer-facing ScotRail staff have been trained in awareness of the sunflower lanyard, hidden disability assistance scheme.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This is an operational matter for ScotRail. However my officials have requested that ScotRail write to you in respect of your question.