Parliamentary questions
Patricia Ferguson
1,079 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
21 Apr 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which homeopathic medicines are contained in the approved prescribing list for GPs.
Answer · Maureen Watt: There is no approved list of homeopathic medicines for prescription. The prescribing of specific medicines, including homeopathic ones, is a clinical decision taken in consultation with the patient based on the GP’s competencies and awareness of the medicin…
21 Apr 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government in what circumstances a letter from a secondary care service medical professional recommending the prescription of a drug or other medication by a GP will incur a charge to the patient.
Answer · Maureen Watt: It is common practice for hospital consultants to recommend to a patient’s GP the prescribing of a drug as part of the patient’s ongoing care at home. All prescriptions issued on a Scottish NHS prescription form are dispensed free in Scotland. The circumstan…
21 Apr 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reasons a GP would be unable to provide an NHS prescription for a homeopathic medicine that had been recommended by an NHS doctor.
Answer · Shona Robison: It is the doctor who signs a prescription who carries legal and clinical responsibility and not the clinician who recommended it. GPs will often write a prescription based on another clinician’s advice but generally will only do so if they are in agreement th…
30 Mar 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to review the legislation governing the operation of private hire cars and taxis.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government undertook a detailed consultation on proposals for change to taxis and private hire car licensing between 28 November 2012 and 15 March 2013. The responses to the consultation (http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2013/09/2230) informed th…
30 Mar 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) private hire and (b) taxi operators have been prosecuted for licence violations in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The available information on persons proceeded against for private hire and taxi licence offences is given in the following table. Please note it is not possible to fully disaggregate licence violations for taxi operators and private hire operators. Persons …
30 Mar 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has a preferred site for a future film studio.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: No. We are considering the bid recently received by Scottish Enterprise but continue to be open to any new proposals from the private sector in the short term to provide studio infrastructure in Scotland. Any new proposal would be assessed on individual merit…
30 Mar 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it monitors the number of Scottish film production companies that have benefitted from the high-end TV tax credit introduced by the UK Government.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: No, we do not monitor this information and there is no way to break it down from UK level to either Scottish or individual production company level.
30 Mar 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made regarding the establishment of a film studio for Scotland.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: As I stated at my evidence session at the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee on 4 February 2015, Scottish Enterprise have received a new proposal to provide studio infrastructure for Scotland. This proposal is currently subject to due diligence to determin…
9 Mar 2015 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many dermatology inpatient beds will be available at the new South Glasgow Hospitals.
2 Mar 2015 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers the charrette process an effective means of investing in the development of cities and what support accompanies it.
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to establish a partnership with the UK Government’s new specialist female genital mutilation (FGM) unit.
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government has confirmed through contact with the UK Government that a lead official has recently been appointed to the female genital mutilation unit, however is not yet in post. Once the official is in post Scottish Government officials will es…
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) support and (b) protection is available for girls who fear that they will be subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM).
Answer · Alex Neil: (a) The Scottish Government has allocated £213,500, for the period 2014-15, to tackle female genital mutilation (FGM) in Scotland (see also answer to S4W-24628 on 5 March 2015). This includes support for survivors of FGM through counselling, medical intervent…
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what support is provided to women and girls who may be affected by female genital mutilation (FGM).
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government has allocated £213.500, for the period 2014-15, to tackle female genital mutilation (FGM), in Scotland. This includes support for survivors of FGM through counselling, medical intervention and peer group assistance and support to minor…
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to raise awareness of female genital mutilation (FGM).
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government has taken a range of steps to raise awareness of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Scotland and during 2014: Wrote to all head teachers in Scotland reminding them of the procedures to be followed and guidance available in relation to…
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it provides to Police Scotland regarding female genital mutilation (FGM).
Answer · Alex Neil: Police Scotland is a member of the Scottish Government Multi Agency Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) Short Life Working Group. Through this group they are working collaboratively with the Scottish Government and other partners to develop national guidance to e…
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what work it is conducting to support schools and teachers in identifying and reporting cases of students at risk of female genital mutilation (FGM).
Answer · Alex Neil: Scottish Ministers wrote to all headteachers in February 2014 to alert them that female genital mutilation is illegal in the UK, is considered child abuse and should be dealt with as a child protection concern, with links to the National Guidance for Child Pr…
24 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on conducting a baseline study on the extent of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Scotland.
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government provided funding of £20,000 to the Scottish Refugee Council to support a report, presenting a research based baseline of Scotland-specific data to help inform our approach with community and statutory partners to tackling female genita…
23 Feb 2015 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many referrals of children and adolescents with mental health issues to specialist child and adolescent mental health services have been rejected by those services in the last quarter.
18 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders is functioning effectively and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.
Answer · Margaret Burgess: The Scottish Government considers that the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders (NASSO) is functioning effectively. NASSO forms part of the multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA) and explains how housing contributes to those arrange…
18 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the housing association movement regarding the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders.
Answer · Margaret Burgess: The Minister for Housing and Welfare met with representatives of Blochairn and Dunbritton housing associations in December 2013 to discuss their concerns regarding the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders (NASSO). In March 2014, Blochairn Housing…
18 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Police Scotland regarding the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders.
Answer · Margaret Burgess: A multi-agency public protection arrangement (MAPPA) national strategy group, chaired by the Scottish Government’s Public Protection Unit was established in 2011 and meets quarterly. Its membership includes representatives from Police Scotland and Scottish Go…
18 Feb 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the environmental scanning being carried out as part of the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders scheme is robust and fit for purpose and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.
Answer · Margaret Burgess: The Scottish Government considers that the environmental scanning being carried out as part of the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders (NASSO) is robust and fit for purpose. Under the multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA), the res…
27 Jan 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it is participating in the Civil Service Reserves 1% Challenge, which is aimed at recruiting reservists from among civil servants and, if so, when this commenced.
Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government recognises the benefits of the skills and experience that its employees gain if they are members of the reserve forces. It therefore supports and encourages service in the reserves. In January 2014 a senior civil servant took on the ro…
26 Jan 2015 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that the Glasgow Curriculum and Estates Plan's proposed transfer of activity to the city centre does not have a detrimental effect on the training needs of people from deprived communities in Maryhill and Springburn.
10 Dec 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government who will be responsible for deciding how the £1 million pound fund for youth arts that was announced by the then First Minister in November 2014 will be disbursed between the country’s youth arts organisations; how this will be done, and what criteria will be used to determine the method…
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: In recognition of the value we place on Scotland’s youth arts, the then First Minister announced on 14 November 2014 a package of public and private sector funding to engage more of Scotland’s young people in culture and the arts through Time to Shine, Scotla…
8 Dec 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-22402 by Paul Wheelhouse on 28 August 2014, whether it has now issued a consultation on its draft Low Emissions Strategy.
Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Low Emissions Strategy consultation will be issued by late January 2015.
4 Dec 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what sanctions it can impose on MyCSP when it makes incorrect payments to pensioners.
Answer · John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-23534 on 22 December 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamenta…
4 Dec 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that civil service pensions are paid (a) on time and (b) in the correct amount.
Answer · John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-23534 on 22 December 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamenta…
4 Dec 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many civil service pensioners in Scotland have recently experienced difficulties in receiving pension payments from MyCSP.
Answer · John Swinney: The payment of civil service pensions is currently a reserved matter and the responsibility of the UK Government. The Scottish Government is aware of a number of ex-employees who are experiencing on-going delays in receiving their first pension payment from M…
3 Dec 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which NHS boards use the pathology department at the Southern General Hospital for post mortems.
Answer · Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. It is for individual boards to assess how best to deliver hospital post mortems which will allow them to deliver high quality, safe and sustainable services.