Sarah Boyack

23 Sep 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the (a) UK Government and (b) other devolved administrations regarding the creation of the Domestic Advisory Group required by Article 13 of the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: As mentioned in the previous answer S6W-03311 on 8 October 2021, we are in contact with the Cabinet Office on this matter, and have emphasised to them the need to involve representative Scottish stakeholders. We will consult the other Devolved Administrations…

23 Sep 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with the European Commission regarding the creation of the Civil Society Forum required by Article 14 of the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Scottish Government has been using our contact with the UK Government to strongly make the case that Scottish civil society groups should have their voice heard in the Civil Society Forum, including through adequate representation of all four nations in i…

8 Sep 2021 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how it will address the backlog in NHS dentistry.

24 Aug 2021 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to enshrining a rule in the National Planning Framework 4, where, for every new building, 1% of the cost is given to the arts.

6 Aug 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the economic impact on communities of the closure of local historic buildings.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Historic Environment Scotland has undertaken surveys of Scotland’s historic environment sector to evaluate the ongoing economic impact of the pandemic on heritage businesses and community groups and is working on further plans to empower and enable a resilien…

6 Aug 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made on carrying out inspections of the historic sites cited as being closed as a precautionary measure by Historic Environment Scotland on 7 June 2021.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Historic Environment Scotland is conducting inspections at present with an initial phase to be completed by the first week in September as per its inspection programme. A number of properties have been assessed to date and the next steps are currently being c…

6 Aug 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has allocated to Historic Environment Scotland to enable historic sites to be made safe for reopening to members of the public, and what the timescales are for the reopening of these sites.

Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Historic Environment Scotland has responded to address the precautionary closures within the funding already available. The Scottish Government provided Historic Environment Scotland with £72.9m in 2020-21 and are providing £55.9m to support Historic Environm…

27 Jul 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to help ensure that hospitality businesses in (a) Edinburgh and (b) nationally have sufficient staffing cover.

Answer · Ivan McKee: We recognise the serious and immediate recruitment issues being experienced by the sector. Tourism and hospitality businesses have been extremely hard hit by the pandemic and the ability to employ committed, talented and enthusiastic staff will be an importan…

27 Jul 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has for supporting the hospitality sector following the end of furlough.

Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Government has consistently called for the furlough scheme to remain in place for as long as it is needed to support businesses as we move through recovery. Whilst the figures show those on furlough are reducing, there is still a significant numb…

19 Jul 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the message from the director of the Scottish Centre on European Relations of 14 July 2021, whether it will take steps to ensure that the centre can continue its work, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Angus Robertson: The Scottish Government is grateful for the work done by the SCER to promote informed debate and produce high quality policy analysis since its establishment in 2017. In particular, the Government notes the SCER’s thoughtful work on the reception that an inde…

24 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to people who have (a) swallowing and (b) communication problems due to long-term illness.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The provision of speech and language therapy services is the responsibility of NHS Boards for children and adults with communication and swallowing difficulties and also Education Departments in Local Authorities for Children and Young people. The Allied Hea…

24 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to close the reported gap in the take-up of cervical cancer screening between women in the most and least affluent areas, as reported by Public Health Scotland.

Answer · Maree Todd: The latest annual statistics from Public Health Scotland show that uptake of cervical screening is still lower in the most deprived areas of Scotland, compared to the least deprived areas. We recognise that there is further work required to tackle this issue,…

7 Jun 2021 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to address the reported backlog of NHS dental appointments for children and young people.

4 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the speed for offering invites for initial and second COVID-19 vaccinations in the NHS Lothian area is reportedly slower than in other NHS board areas.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: NHS Lothian is performing in-line with the rest of Scotland and within national timeframes. All NHS Boards have the same timeframe in which to complete each JCVI cohort. There will be slight local variations in time taken to reach targets dependant on populat…

1 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the scale of delays in waiting times for NHS dental check-ups.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government does not analyse statistics on waiting times for NHS dental examinations within General Dental Services (GDS) as this service is delivered across around 1100 dental practices, each with local differences in patterns of prescribing and …

1 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it recognises dental care as part of preventative healthcare, and, if so, how it will ensure that cost is not a barrier to receiving adequate healthcare.

Answer · Maree Todd: As part of this Government’s manifesto commitment, all NHS dental charges will be removed in the lifetime of this Parliament. Currently, those in the most financial need receive their NHS dental treatment free of charge, whilst those on a low income may be e…

1 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out on the impact on public health, and children's health in particular, of the reduction in the number of dental checks carried out.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government does not carry out its own analysis on dental treatment patterns and the associated impact on oral health. Evidence to inform policy is derived from a range of sources with specific sectoral interest, including Scottish Dental Clinical…

1 Jun 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that people in every community can access NHS dentistry.

Answer · Maree Todd: We have a record number of people registered with a NHS dentist, more than 95% of the population of Scotland. We intend to build on this success story which is why as part of this Government’s Manifesto Commitment, all NHS dental charges will be removed in t…

10 Mar 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will utilise its public sector procurement to ensure that companies in receipt of public sector contracts pay staff the real living wage and provide longer-term employment and training opportunities.

1 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the establishment of a new centre of excellence for eye treatment in Edinburgh.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government has asked NHS Lothian to carry out a review of the way in which it delivers its eye care services and to look again at what it can do with its existing estate. The Scottish Government recognises the importance of centres of expertise p…

1 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what costs and savings might arise from the cancellation of the relocation of Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion to the BioQuarter site in Edinburgh.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government had not committed to funding the construction of a new Eye Hospital in Edinburgh and therefore no savings arise.  

1 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what investment will be required to disperse the ophthalmology services provided by the Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion in Edinburgh to Livingston.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government has asked NHS Lothian to carry out a review of the way in which it delivers its eye care services and to look again at what it can do with its existing estate, including the existing Eye Pavilion, and whether it can adapt the designs f…

1 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the funding for the relocation of the Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion to the BioQuarter site In Edinburgh, which it had initially approved, was cancelled; whether it will publish the timeline of the process that it used to reach this decision; what advice it has received …

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government has never approved funding for the relocation of the Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion. In February 2018, the Scottish Government invited NHS Lothian to submit an Outline Business Case, making clear that it was not making a commitment to…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether BS 8414 fire tests allow flammable cladding to be used on buildings and, in light of the position taken by the other UK administrations, whether it will ban their use.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: Cladding systems containing combustible materials that pass the large scale BS8414 test and meet the performance criteria in BR 135 can be used on buildings over 11m in Scotland. I announced at the Local Government and Communities Committee meeting on 4 Septe…

17 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of clinically extremely vulnerable people have received a COVID-19 vaccination.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: 163,831 people who are clinically extremely vulnerable have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of 10 March 2021. This represents around 93% of the shielding list. The latest information, including the latest vaccination figures can be viewe…

15 Feb 2021 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister how the consequentials from the recently announced £3.5 billion of funding to replace unsafe cladding in England will be allocated, and whether buildings under 18 metres will be included in any grant scheme.

27 Jan 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the current benefits system can be used to support people who have been impacted financially by the COVID-19 pandemic and are currently not receiving the benefits that they are entitled to.  

25 Jan 2021 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what measures the Scottish Government is putting in place to catch up with the reported six-month backlog of cervical screening tests, and whether priority will be given to people who have previously had an abnormal result.

19 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its news release of 18 January 2021, Extra funding to support unpaid carers, what information it has regarding how many unpaid carers there are; how many will be able to access the £750,000 being allocated, and what the average payment will be.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The actual number of unpaid carers in Scotland is not known but is estimated to be around 700,000 to 800,000 people. The latest estimate is 690,000, of whom 29,000 are young carers (under 18). This is based on Scottish Health Survey figures from before the …

19 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the role played by unpaid carers during the COVID-19 pandemic, whether it will consider providing a "thank you" bonus through a Carer's Allowance top-up.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: We have already topped up Carer’s Allowance in response to the coronavirus pandemic. In June 2020, we made a one-off Coronavirus Carer’s Allowance Supplement of £230.10 to 83,000 of Scotland’s carers, on some of the lowest incomes and with some of the most in…