Parliamentary questions

Shona Robison

1,014 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

29 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding has been received by Careers Scotland in each year since 1999.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Careers Scotland wasformed in April 2002 when it was established as part of the Enterprise Networks.The amount of actual and planned expenditure by Scottish Enterprise and Highlands andIslands Enterprise on Careers Scotland is set out in the Draft Budget 2006…

29 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have gained part-time employment through the Working for Families programme since it was established.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: At 31 October 2005, over 1,000 parents registered with Working for Families had experienced a successful transition to full and part-time employment, training or education, volunteer work and improved or sustained employment. The current number entering part-…

29 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have gained full-time employment through the Working for Families programme since it was established.

29 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to implement the employability framework.

Answer · Allan Wilson: Details of the framework implementation will be announced when we publish it in early 2006.

29 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-18222 by Allan Wilson on 10 August 2005, when the employability framework will be published.

Answer · Allan Wilson: We plan to publish theframework early in 2006.

28 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the timescale is for the completion of the consultation on the establishment of a third full dental school.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: In accordance with our Partnership Agreement commitment, we will establish a dental outreach training centre in Aberdeen which will be open for use by dental students in autumn 2006 and fully operational by Easter 2007. We will consult in 2007 on the need for…

28 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to introduce My Bookstart Treasure Chest for children aged 36 to 48 months, as introduced by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Answer · Robert Brown: The Scottish Executive has no current plans to introduce My Bookstart Treasure Chest for children aged 36 to 48 months.

28 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to introduce the Bookstart plus scheme for toddlers aged 18 to 30 months, as introduced by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Answer · Robert Brown: The Scottish Executive has no current plans to introduce the Bookstart Plus scheme for toddlers aged 18 to 30 months.

28 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment has been carried out of the impact of the Bookstart pack for babies aged up to 12 months on the speech and language skills of children.

Answer · Robert Brown: Booktrust, which oversees the Bookstart programme, has commissioned research in England into the effectiveness of the programme. The evidence shows that Bookstart children are further ahead than their peers in their reading, writing, maths and science at the …

25 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when an appeals process will be in place for people whose applications to the Skipton Fund have been declined.

Answer · Andy Kerr: I regret the delay that has occurred in establishing the appeals procedure. However, I would like to assure you that the Department of Health, in consultation with the devolved administrations, has been developing procedures and has of course, discussed arran…

24 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been assessed as requiring personal care but whose needs have been recorded as unmet since the enactment of the Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002, broken down by local authority.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: This information is not held centrally. The Health Department has recently begun an assessment of the implementation and operation of the policy of free personal care and information on unmet need will be collected as part of that exercise.

24 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many direct payments have been made by each local authority since the enactment of the Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002, broken down by client group.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The information requested is given in Tables entitled Number of Direct Payments by Client Group and Local Authority, for each of the years 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05, copies of which have been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bi…

22 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when its investigation into the increased number of deaths from malnutrition among older people, announced on 20 November 2005, will be completed and how the results will be reported to the Parliament.

Answer · Andy Kerr: I have asked NHS Scotland Information Services Division to conduct a short piece of work to see whether there is any obvious explanation for the increase. I hope this will be completed shortly and I will write to give details of any conclusions.

15 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken to improve services for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) since the Minister for Health and Community Care addressed the Celtic Conference on COPD in June 2005.

Answer · Andy Kerr: As I made clear at that conference, people with COPD will benefit from the generic approach to the management of long-term conditions set out in Delivering for Health. In the Scottish context, the most effective way of improving services for those with…

11 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many managed clinical networks have been established for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and where these are located.

Answer · Andy Kerr: There is a COPD Managed Clinical Network (MCN) in NHS Grampian. Our general approach is to encourage the development of such networks where they would bring tangible benefits for those with COPD. I have agreed that pump-priming funding should be made a…

11 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The information is given in the following table: Deaths in Scotland where Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease1 was the Underlying Cause<table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3> <thead> <tr> <td>  </td> …

11 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board area.

9 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what regulation of the counselling and psychotherapy profession there (a) is currently and (b) will be in future and what discussions it has had with the (i) Secretary of State for Health, (ii) Minister for Health and Social Services at the Welsh Assembly Government and (iii) Northern Ire…

Answer · Andy Kerr: Counselling and psychotherapy are not currently subject to statutory regulation, although some practitioners are subject to partial voluntary regulation through membership of professional organisations. The Scottish Executive has had no discussions wit…

3 Nov 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the legislation to ban smoking in enclosed public spaces will apply to the terraces within football stadia.

Answer · Andy Kerr: Where football terraces or stadia are wholly or substantially enclosed within the meaning of the Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005, they will be no smoking premises for the purposes of part 1 of that act by virtue of Schedule 1 to the draft …

18 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action will be taken to improve waiting times for bowel cancer treatment.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The 2005 cancer waitingtimes target is a big challenge for the NHS. We set a stretching target andrecognise it will be difficult to meet. NHS boards are continuing to takeaction to accelerate change and eliminate blockages in referral, diagnosis andtreatment.…

7 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers to be the optimum number of trained rehabilitation workers for blind and partially sighted people, expressed per 100,000 population.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: This information is not held centrally, it is for local authorities to identify the number of rehabilitation workers required to provide a particular service within their area. The Scottish Executive funds Guide Dogs for the Blind to train rehabilitation work…

7 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many trained rehabilitation workers there are for blind and partially sighted people, expressed per 100,000 population.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: This information is not held centrally.

7 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether responsibility for training for rehabilitation workers for blind and partially sighted people will be transferred from the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association to a university or other public institution and, if so, when.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: Guide Dogs for the Blind are currently in discussions regarding transfer of the initial education programme with a Scottish university. If these negotiations are positive they envisage that the initial intake would be no earlier than autumn 2007.

7 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many training places are available for rehabilitation workers for blind and partially sighted people.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive funds Guide Dogs for the Blind to train rehabilitation workers at the Glasgow School of Vision and Rehabilitation Studies in Glasgow. There are currently 15 students undertaking the course. No further referrals have been made and it is …

6 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of people diagnosed with cancer are eligible to be reimbursed for their travel costs under the Hospital Travel Costs Scheme, broken down by NHS board area.

Answer · Andy Kerr: Information is not held centrallyon the number of cancer patients who are eligible for reimbursement of travellingexpenses under the statutory schemes or those receiving reimbursement where NHSboards have exercised their discretion.There are two statut…

6 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-17550 by Elish Angiolini QC on 21 July 2005, how many of the deaths from hepatitis where the type was not specified were attributed to receiving infected blood or blood products through the NHS.

Answer · Elish Angiolini: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-19692 on 17 October 2005. 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/webap…

6 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-17550 by Elish Angiolini QC on 21 July 2005, how many deaths from hepatitis C reported to the Procurator Fiscal involved people with blood product or whole blood product-derived infections.

Answer · Elish Angiolini: The information requested is not available. The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service Case Management Database only records the principal cause of death, as set out on the death certificate. It does not record the source of any infection.

6 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people diagnosed with haemophilia have died in each year since 1994.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The number of recorded deaths where haemophilia is mentioned is: <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3> <tr> <td> 1994</td> <td> 12</td> <td> 2000</td> <td> 4</td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1995</td…

6 Oct 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether imported paid donor plasma was used to make fractionated blood products in Scotland at any time in the 1980s and, if so, which broker and donor companies were involved.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service has confirmed that imported paid donor plasma was not used to make fractionated blood products in Scotland at any time in the 1980s.

15 Sep 2005 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take if demand for independent advocacy services exceeds supply in the next three years.

Answer · Lewis Macdonald: If demand for independent advocacy services proved to meet supply during the next three years the Scottish Executive will consider what action, if any, might be appropriate for it to take in the particular circumstances which gave rise to that situation.