Parliamentary questions
Jackie Baillie
9,397 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been discharged from hospital to a care home in (a) March and (b) April 2020 and, of that number, how many were tested for COVID-19.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-28665 on 18 May 2020. Current guidance, issued by Publish Health Scotland on 29 April 2020, advises that new admissions to care homes should be tested and isolated for 14 days on entering the home. Furthermore…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of COVID-19 by area of deprivation.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Public Health Scotland include deprivation analysis by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) in their new weekly COVID-19 statistical reports. The first of these reports was published on Wednesday 6 th May. https://publichealthscotland.scot/our-areas…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action will be taken to reschedule the elective operations cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-28605 on 18 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.scot/parliamentarybusiness/288…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many COBRA meetings have taken place in (a) 2019 and (b) 2020 to which the First Minister was invited and (i) attended and (ii) did not attend and on what dates these took place.
Answer · John Swinney: We have no record of invitations to any COBR meetings in 2019. The Scottish Government can only comment on COBR meetings we are made aware of by the UK Government. In 2020, as of 30 April, Scottish Government ministers have been invited to take part in 16 m…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when the Scottish Water strategic review of charges will be completed and presented to ministers.
Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The current timetable for the Strategic Review of Charges process is detailed in our recent consultation “Investing in and paying for your water services from 2021: final consultation”. This states that the Water Industry Commission for Scotland expects to pu…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many residents of older people’s care homes were admitted to hospital with suspected COVID-19 in (a) March 2020 and (b) April 2020.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The information is not held centrally. I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-29384 on 16 July 2020 for further information about data on hospital admissions from care homes. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parlia…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, of the patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 and have died in hospital, how many were residents of older people’s care homes.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: On 3 June, the NRS published data on the number of COVID deaths of people whose usual residence was a care home and who died in hospital. That figure was 154. This information can be accessed via the following link: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//sta…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, of the confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19 that are in intensive care to date, how many are residents of older people’s care homes.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The information is not held centrally. I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-29834 on 16 July 2020 for further information about data on hospital admissions from care homes. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parlia…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many older people discharged from hospital to care homes have died of (a) suspected and (b) confirmed COVID-19.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: Information on hospital discharges is collected by Public Health Scotland. The specific information requested is not held centrally.
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether relatives with power of attorney should be consulted about do not resuscitate (DNR) notices when a patient lacks capacity.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The principles of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 should be given effect to in any intervention in the affairs of an adult lacking capacity. One of these principles is that the views of interested parties should be taken account of when determi…
27 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the intensive care unit bed (a) capacity and (b) occupancy rate has been on each day since 1 March 2020.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-28366 on 13 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.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28…
23 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many deaths there have been in care homes in each local authority area since 1 March 2020, also expressed per head of the population for each council.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: Local authorityarea Deaths in carehomes (all causes) Population at 30 June 2018 Deaths in carehomes per 1,000 population Aberdeen City 115 227,560 0.51 Aberdeenshire 173 261,470 0.66 Angus 82 116,040 0.71 Argyll + Bute 50 86,260…
23 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it has been taking to tackle scams since the announcement in the 2019 Programme for Government of a scams prevention strategy; whether it is on track to publish this strategy before September 2020, and what estimate it has made of the scale in any increase of scams during the…
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government recognises that fraudulent activities such as scams can have significant, and long term effects on consumers, especially those whose circumstances mean they are more vulnerable. Tackling this criminal behaviour cannot be achieved throu…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will accelerate investment in infrastructure construction projects once the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.
Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government is committed to its National Infrastructure Mission which will increase investment by £1.5 billion per annum by end 2025/26. The economic case for this increase is only strengthened by current circumstances. Infrastructure Investment w…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) road and (b) rail infrastructure projects are planned for 2020-21, and whether the start dates will be reviewed to bring forward spending.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Our priority is to protect the health of individuals and to minimise the loss of life caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. As such, the Scottish Government has recommended that non-essential construction work on major trunk road projects should temporarily cease.…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what major housing developments are planned for 2020-21, and whether the start dates will be reviewed to bring forward spending.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: The overarching priority of the Scottish Government is to protect the health of individuals and to minimise the loss of life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This has meant no sector of the Scottish economy has gone untouched. Consequently, measures have been…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will encourage the public to use face masks to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: Guidance on the personal use of face coverings during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was published on 28 April 2020 and can be found here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-public-use-of-face-coverings/ .
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what priority the Scottish Ambulance Service gives to calls regarding attempted suicide, and what its longest response time was for a call on this from the West Dunbartonshire area in the last quarter.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Ambulance Service respond to and prioritise all calls based on patients condition, state of vulnerability and perceived level of risk. The maximum response time in the West Dumbartonshire area for the most serious calls in the last quarter was 11…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what impact the COVID-19 outbreak is having on the capacity of the Care Inspectorate to visit care homes, and how the number of visits in (a) March and (b) April 2020 compares with the same period in 2019.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: In common with other UK regulators and counterparts in Ireland, the Care Inspectorate took the decision early in our response to the pandemic to scale down, recognising that this may put an unnecessary burden on the care sector, may contribute to spreading CO…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will instigate an immediate programme of mass testing and tracking following the COVID-19 lockdown period.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The next phase of our testing strategy, Test and Protect, is now live. This involves tracing the close contacts of those who test positive for Covid-19. These close contacts will be asked to self-isolate for 14 days and the Scottish Government will ensure the…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether there will be a review of the death certificates for all people who have died in care homes during the COVID-19 outbreak to ensure that all causes of death are listed.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Government understands the importance of high-quality, accurate completion of the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) and that is why Scotland's Chief Medical Officer, jointly with Police Scotland, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Serv…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what additional resources it has provided the Scottish Ambulance Service with in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, and how these have been used.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Government is working closely with all NHS Boards, including Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) to respond to the additional demands arising from the current unprecedented emergency. This includes provision of additional funding from the Scottish G…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many care home residents have been hospitalised with suspected COVID-19 in each week since 23 March 2020.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The COVID-19 data and trend charts for Scotland are published daily and provide a range of information, including the number of care homes notifying cases of COVID-19 and the number of suspected cases of COVID-19 in care homes. The data also includes the dail…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many care home residents have been tested for COVID-19 in each week since 23 March 2020.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The COVID-19 data and trend charts for Scotland are published daily and provide a range of information, including the number of care homes notifying cases of COVID-19 and the number of suspected cases of COVID-19 in care homes. These data are available from 1…
20 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many care homes (a) were issued with an improvement notice, (b) had conditions applied to their registration and (c) had their registration cancelled by the Care Inspectorate between 1 January and 30 April 2019, and how this compares with the same period in 2020.
Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Between 1 January and 31 March 2019 (a) 1 care home was issued with an improvement notice. (b) No care homes had conditions applied. (c) No care homes had their registration cancelled. Between 1 January and 31 March 2020 (a) No care homes were issued …
16 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-27952 by Jeane Freeman on 15 April 2020, how many samples have been taken each week; what this confirms about prevalence, and when it will publish prevalence data.
Answer · Jeane Freeman: The COVID-19 data and trend charts for Scotland are published daily and provide a range of information, including the cumulative number of people tested for COVID-19 in Scotland and how many of the tests had a positive result. The link to the daily data updat…
16 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether approved testing for COVID-19 is available for the oil and gas sector to purchase on a commercial basis.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: There is currently no NHS approved testing for COVID-19 available for purchase on a commercial basis. Health and social care workers in Scotland continue to be the top priority for testing and will continue to access testing through the NHS and through the U…
16 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact on the economy of the (a) fall in oil prices in the last quarter and (b) effect of COVID-19 on the oil and gas sector.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government has published analysis of the economic impact of COVID-19 in the State of the Economy report in April. It includes analysis on how COVID-19 is affecting sectors of the economy in different ways. The publication can be found via https:…
16 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will issue sector-specific guidance for the oil and gas sector on COVID-19.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: I recognise the challenges for the oil and gas sector and their key workers where ongoing activity on our critical national infrastructure is required to protect security of energy supply. This is why we are continuing to engage constructively with Oil & Gas …
16 Apr 2020 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-27933 by Fiona Hyslop on 20 March 2020, when the Oil & Gas Energy Transition Strategic Leadership group met and what was discussed.
Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Oil and Gas Energy Transition Strategic Leadership Group last met on 2nd April. I chaired an extraordinary meeting of this Group, convened virtually, and which heard directly from the sector and supply chain on the immediate impact and response to COVID-1…