Parliamentary questions

Jackie Baillie

9,397 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will share the budget plan for Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS) with the SCSWIS partnership forum.

Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-37699 on 2 December 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at: <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/App…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will share the business plan for Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS) with the SCSWIS partnership forum.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the business plan for Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland will be ready.

Answer · Shona Robison: The chair of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS) is currently considering the draft business plan along with the budget plan for the new body. Once approved by the chair and by the Minister for Children and Early Years and myself, the pl…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-37018 by Shona Robison on 11 November 2010 and in light of the delay in the appointment of the chairperson, chief executive and senior management team, whether it remains its position that Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland will be on t…

Answer · Shona Robison: Yes. Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland is on target to launch on 1 April 2011.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the chairperson of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland will be announced.

Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-37695 on 2 December 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason the announcement of the appointment of the chairperson of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland was put back first from 1 to 8 November and then to 12 November 2010 and has yet to be made.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the reason is for the delay in the appointment of the chairperson of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland has slipped from August.

Answer · Shona Robison: The appointment process for the chair of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS) was conducted in accordance with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodi…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-37018 by Shona Robison on 11 November 2010, whether it will forecast the budget and job losses for Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland now that the spending review is known.

Answer · Shona Robison: We expect the business plan when approved will set out the budget and explain the implications for staff numbers.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a delay in agreeing an early severance scheme for staff in the Care Commission or Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland will result in increased costs, such as for pay in lieu of notice.

Answer · Shona Robison: We do not anticipate any increased costs.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason the civil servant taking the lead in dealing with the establishment of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland is now also leading the Moray Task Force.

Answer · Shona Robison: This arrangement is a pragmatic short-term solution to a major problem. The Transition Director''s appointment to the Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS) transition team was intended to run until the conclusion of the appointment process…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason the reference group to assist with the establishment of Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland has been disbanded.

Answer · Shona Robison: The New Scrutiny Bodies Reference Group met quarterly to help engage external stakeholders in the work to establish the two new scrutiny bodies, Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) and Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS). With the appo…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-36992 by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 November 2010, whether the proposed 25% reduction in senior managers in the NHS will start immediately.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Yes.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-36992 by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 November 2010, what criteria will apply in determining which posts will go in the proposed 25% reduction in senior managers in the NHS.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The criteria that will apply in determining which posts will go in the proposed 25% reduction in senior managers in the NHS is set out in the guidance issued to boards which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 52181).</p…

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-36992 by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 November 2010, whether it plans to achieve the proposed 25% reduction in senior managers in the NHS by the non-filling of vacancies.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: It is for individual health boards to determine how they will achieve the target having regard to the guidance to boards that has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 52181).

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-37268 by Nicola Sturgeon on 15 November 2010, when it will decide on the number of new entrants to foundation training programmes for trainee doctors for 2011-12.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The number of new entrants to the foundation training programme for 2011-12 will be decided shortly.

19 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-37265 by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 November 2010, when it will decide on the number of new entrants to trainee nursing programmes for 2011-12.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The intake targets for nursing and midwifery students for 2011-12 will be notified to the Scottish Funding Council in December 2010.

17 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Scottish House Conditions Survey will be published.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish House Condition Survey 2009 Annual Report will be published on 25 November 2010. This publication has been pre-announced, in line with national statistics practices, on the Scottish Government website. The list of forthcoming publications…

17 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Housing and Communities will publish a statement on fuel poverty.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 requires ministers to report at least every four years on progress towards the commitment that by 2016, so far as is reasonably practicable, persons do not live in fuel poverty. The updated Scottish Fuel Poverty Statement detai…

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to evaluate the performance of community health partnerships and community health and care partnerships.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon : 1. Community health partnerships are not separate statutory bodies. They are committees or sub-committees of NHS boards and are accountable for their performance to NHS boards. Where an NHS board and local authority have established a community heal…

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether additional funding will be provided to achieve the NHSScotland Resource Allocation Committee (NRAC) targets for each NHS board and what the likely timescale is for NHS boards to meet their targets.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: In order to ensure a smooth transition to the NHSScotland Resource Allocation Committee (NRAC) targets for NHS Scotland the Scottish Government committed to phasing in the target shares calculated by the NRAC formula by way of differential growth. Under this …

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether NHS boards will be able to retain the efficiency savings that they generate in 2011-12.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: It is planned that boards providing direct patient care will be able to retain the efficiency savings which they generate in 2011-12.

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what level of efficiency savings NHS boards will be required to find in 2011-12.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Government expects NHS boards to make and retain a minimum of 3% efficiency savings in 2011-12.

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the original completion date was for NHS Inform.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The original completion date was planned for the end of 2009. However, a range of service and operational pressures, including those associated with the H1N1 flu pandemic, led to the launch date being put back to August 2010.

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether work on the NHS Inform website is complete and, if not, what further work is required.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: NHS Inform is a constantly evolving service and there are currently a number of strands of work in train, including information relating to carers, cancer, healthy lifestyles and mental health and wellbeing.

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the budget for NHS Inform was in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10 and is in 2010-11.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: In 2008-09, a range of patient information work was carried out by NHS 24 on behalf of NHSScotland that pre-dated the decision to proceed with and therefore was not attributable to NHS inform. The expenditure in 2008-09 for this work was £298,000. The budget …

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent at the launch event for NHS Inform on 3 August 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The launch of NHS inform took place as part of NHS24''s Annual Review and therefore incurred minimal costs of less than £50.00.

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how project spend on NHS Inform was monitored.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: A team manager in NHS 24 and its finance department were jointly responsible for monitoring project spend at operational level. I understand that current/projected spend is also monitored at programme board level.

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment of best value has been made of the procurement and development of NHS Inform.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: In June 2008, the Scottish Government asked NHS24 to take the lead role in co-ordinating the service (including its development and all associated procurement) on behalf of, and in partnership with, NHSScotland. In May 2009, a national partnership…

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the content of the NHS Inform website has been taken from other NHS websites and what these websites are.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Information has been drawn from NHS24 and NHS Choices (a comparable website). Other content is still under construction and is being developed in partnership with organisations such as NHS Health Scotland and NHS Education for Scotland, as well as third secto…

8 Nov 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how NHS Inform relates to NHS24.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: NHS inform is a NHSScotland service, hosted by NHS24. NHS24 provides online information for people who are symptomatic and provides access to a self help guide which assists the public to be signposted to the most appropriate level of care. In additi…