Parliamentary questions

Jackie Baillie

9,379 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many press releases were issued by NHS Lothian that were intended to inform families about the measures that had been put in place to encourage and support families to seek a retest if they had concerns about a child’s hearing, as a result of the failings in NHS Lothian paediatric au…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The National Audiology Review Group continues its independent review of services having most recently convened on 25 October. It will shortly be meeting with the Review’s Chair for an update on their progress and their developing recommendations. The review …

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-05839 by Humza Yousaf on 21 January 2022, which states that the National Audiology Review Group will provide recommendations for a national plan for improvement in audiology, when the national plan will be published.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12273 on 5 December 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-committ…

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many reviews into paediatric audiology care at NHS Lothian were carried out between 2018 and 2022; how many children were identified as needing retesting by any reviews carried out, and where the reviews are available for the public to view.

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many children it estimates have been negatively impacted by the failings identified by the British Academy of Audiology review of paediatric audiology care at NHS Lothian from (a) those patients whose records were sampled by reviews carried out by the British Academy of Audiology or …

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-08565 by Humza Yousaf on 1 June 2022, which states that 124 affected families had been contacted directly by NHS Lothian and offered a retest by that point, how many (a) families had been contacted directly by NHS Lothian and offered a retest of the…

14 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it still expects to meet its commitment to have increased the number of GPs by 800 by 2027, and how many whole time equivalent (WTE) GPs have been recruited to date.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: We are making good progress on our commitment to increase the headcount of GPs by 800, with Scotland’s GP headcount increasing by 277 from 4,918 to 5,195 from 2017 to 2021. The most recent estimate for whole time equivalent of GPs can be found in the Genera…

10 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is the case that 30% of funding for the treatment of Long COVID has not yet been made available to NHS boards, and, if it is the case, what is the reason for its position on this matter, and when it plans to provide any remaining funding.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Territorial NHS Boards’ 2022-23 funding from the long COVID Support Fund has been split into two tranches. The first tranche (70%) was provided to NHS Boards in June. The second tranche (30%) will be made later in the financial year following progress reporti…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S6W-05371 and S6W-05373 by Humza Yousaf on 10 January 2022, and the reference to a "regular tripartite forum" that has a focus on junior doctors, what progress has been made in addressing the concerns raised in the BMA Scotland report, Supporting Juni…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12117 on? 28 November 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-commi…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-05371 by Humza Yousaf on 10 January 2022, which refers to a "regular tripartite forum" that has a focus on junior doctors, what progress has been made in implementing the recommendations from the publication, Junior Doctors - 48-hour Maximum Working…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Junior Doctors are a valuable part of the NHS Scotland workforce. The Scottish Government has implemented a 4.5% pay uplift this year which is in line with the independent DDRB recommendations. The Scottish Government has been working with BMA and NHS Emplo…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that a large number of junior doctors are considering leaving NHS Scotland due to poor pay and conditions, what steps it is taking to avoid any such situation arising.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Junior Doctors are a valuable part of the NHS Scotland workforce. The Scottish Government has implemented a 4.5% pay uplift this year which is in line with the independent DDRB recommendations. The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care is aware of Juni…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the proposed 4.5% pay award to NHS Scotland junior doctors for 2022-23 would be the equivalent of a real-terms pay decrease.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: In line with the UK Wide DDRB recommendations, Junior Doctors in Scotland have been awarded a 4.5% pay uplift this year, the same position in Wales. Junior Doctors in England did not receive a 4.5% uplift due to agreeing a previous multi-year deal.

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the total number of whole time equivalent GPs working in Scotland is.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The most recent estimate for whole time equivalent of GPs can be found in the General Practice Workforce Survey 2019 , published by Public Health Scotland in October 2021. This estimated that there were 3,613 GP whole time equivalents (WTE) in Scotland in 2…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the reported reduction in GP Practice Sustainability Payments will have on primary care.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government recognised in 2021 that partial implementation of the pharmacotherapy and community treatment and care services, on a national level, meant that general practice was facing a difficult winter without all of the support Scottish Governm…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people who are awaiting inpatient appointments to access orthopaedic procedures have been waiting for over (a) two years, (b) two years and six months and (c) three years.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Table 1 presents the latest published number of patients covered by the Treatment Time Guarantee (TTG) that were waiting within an inpatient or day case setting in Scotland at 30 June 2022, and the number waiting over two years (104 weeks), 2 years and six …

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many whole time equivalent radiographers who were fully qualified to undertake MRI scans there were working in the NHS in the financial year (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21, (d) 2021-22 and 2022-23 to date, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The requested information on how many whole time equivalent radiographers who were fully qualified to undertake MRI scans working in the NHS in the financial year (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21, (d) 2021-22 and 2022-23 to date, broken down by NHS board…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the new funding that it has provided in the current financial year to recruit additional staff for the NHS, and what the level of overseas recruitment has been.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Funding of £18 billion is provided for the health portfolio in 2022-23. This builds on frontline health spending in Scotland that, per head, is 2.2% (£74) higher than in Wales and 10.6% (£323) higher than in England - equivalent to around 10…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the total number of whole time equivalent staff working for NHS 24 was in the financial year (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21 and (d) 2021-22, including a breakdown by (i) call handlers and (ii) nurse advisers.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The requested information on how many whole time equivalent staff working for NHS 24 in the financial year (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21 and (d) 2021-22, including a breakdown by (i) call handlers and (ii) nurse advisers is not centrally available. I…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of how the £15.1 million investment for NHS 24, as committed to in the winter resilience plan, will be spent.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: NHS 24 has received £15.1 million to support improvements that lead to sustainable delivery across the Redesign of Urgent Care pathway and contribute to the wider ambition to reduce attendances at acute care. This funding is largely committed to the recruitm…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown by role of the total number of whole time equivalent staff joining NHS 24, as committed to in the winter resilience plan, and how many will be in post by 1 December 2022.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: NHS 24 will have recruited an additional 41.81 Whole Time Equivalent (WTE) staff by 1 December 2022. These additional posts support the recruitment priorities set out in the Winter Resilience Plan. The following table shows the breakdown by role of the total…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many new paramedics will be recruited as part of the £45 million that was committed to in the winter resilience plan.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: 113 paramedics will be recruited as a result of the investment of £45 million by the Scottish Government, as outlined in the Winter Resilience Plan.

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown by job role of the 1,000 additional NHS staff that were committed to in the winter resilience plan, and how many will be in post by 1 December 2022.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: As advised in the letter I wrote to you on 26 October 2022, funding will be made available to health boards to boost workforce and recruit up to 750 nurses, midwives and allied health professionals. Early indication from Boards suggest the breakdown will be 6…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its letter of 12 September 2022 to Integration Joint Boards, how much it expects to recoup in COVID-19 reserves.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: IJBs were given a funding allocation in 2021-22 to support a range of Covid pressures. This was a ring fenced allocation specifically for Covid. There have been a number of significant changes to Public Health policies in relation to Covid over the summer, r…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been removed for Primary Care Implementation Plans from each Integration Joint Board as part of the Emergency Budget Review.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government is not removing funding for Primary Care implementation plans. Reserves that have been built up over four years by HSCPs are now being used so that recurring funding for recruiting multi-disciplinary teams can be maintained. It is prud…

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the £400 million from health and social care funding that was repurposed in the Emergency Budget Review is recurring, or will only apply in the current financial year.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Emergency Budget Review (EBR) sets out in-year redistribution of funding within the Health and Social Care Portfolio. Future years funding will be set out in each year’s Scottish Budget, with the 2023-24 Budget to be published on 15 December 2022.

9 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the current (a) operating costs, (b) total number of staff and (c) reserves, both earmarked and unearmarked, for (i) NHS Golden Jubilee, (ii) Healthcare Improvement Scotland, (iii) NHS 24, (iv) NHS Education for Scotland, (v) National Services Scotl…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Health Board expenditure and staff numbers are set out in Annual Accounts which are available on Board's websites. With regards to reserves, Health Boards are not permitted to hold reserves.

8 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11466 by Kevin Stewart on 25 October 2022, when the further work to assess the amounts to be recouped from Integration Joint Boards in line with COVID-19 requirements will be completed.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: We communicated the action to reclaim surplus Covid reserves to be redistributed across the sector to meet current Covid priorities on 12 September 2022. We will continue to work with IJBs to understand their financial forecasts and further detail will be com…

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what COVID-19 mitigation measures will continue in health and social care settings until the end of the current financial year, and what the estimated cost is of these.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Health and Social care settings are expected to follow the National Infection Prevention and Control Manual when caring for individuals who have been diagnosed with or suspected of having COVID-19. Guidance on infection control measures across health and soc…

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will confirm whether it plans to reduce COVID-19 testing and the provision of PPE in health and social care settings as a result of the reported reduction of the budget for COVID-19 measures by £116 million, as part of the reprioritisation of spending within Health and Social …

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Reduced prevalence and hospitalisation rates has resulted in an easing of the previous infection and prevention control measures which has contributed, in turn, to a reduction in expenditure levels. There are no plans to reduce COVID-19 testing in health and…

7 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the reported reduction of the budget for COVID-19 measures by £116 million, as part of the reprioritisation of spending within Health and Social Care as announced in the emergency budget review on 2 November 2022, what consideration it gave to any impact on equality and f…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government recognised the unprecedented nature of the changes required in the Emergency Budget Review and also published analysis of the equality and fairness impacts of the most substantive in-year adjustments. Given the exceptional circumstance…

4 Nov 2022 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the Childsmile programme is delivered to children under the age of five.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Childsmile Programme is designed to help improve the oral health of children in Scotland and is delivered through a range of measures. The Childsmile Core Programme is available throughout Scotland and is introduced to families by their Health Visitor. Ev…