Ken Macintosh

6 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much each NHS board has spent on dermatology waiting list initiative clinics in the last two years.

Answer · Alex Neil: Information on waiting list initiatives is not routinely collected nationally for any specialty, including dermatology patients.

6 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to amend the Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005 to cover e-cigarettes.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I welcome the draft European Tobacco Products Directive, which was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 14 March 2014. This sets out a number of measures for the regulation of electronic cigarettes, such as subjecting non-medical devices to the same adverti…

6 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes to under-18s.

Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4O-02994 on 12 March 2014. The answer to the oral parliamentary question is available on the Parliaments website, the Official Report can be viewed at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/2886…

30 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to notify patients with polypropylene mesh medical devices of any potential risk to health.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government has no plans to directly notify patients. The Chief Medical Officer and Deputy Chief Medical Officer wrote to all NHS boards and Medical Directors on 10 April 2013, 11 July 2013 and 20 December 2013 regarding the investigation and man…

30 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support victims of defective polypropylene mesh medical devices.

Answer · Alex Neil: An expert working group, chaired by the Deputy Chief Medical Officer, has been set up to address the issues affecting women who have undergone transvaginal mesh surgery. The group is developing: A revised patient information and consent booklet that will the…

24 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many fire-related fatalities there have been in residential premises in each year since 1999.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government publishes long-term trend data on key fire statistics on an annual basis. The latest figures, containing trend data on the number of fatal casualties in primary fires by location for the financial years 1999-00 to 2012-13, were publish…

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has carried out an assessment of the impact of reductions to college budgets on the provision of courses at Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) levels 1 to 7.

Answer · Michael Russell: For courses at Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) levels 1 to 7, the full-time equivalent (FTE) student places was 3% higher in 2012-13 than in 2006-07. It is for colleges to deliver a balanced curriculum that meets the needs of learners and…

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether advanced higher qualifications will continue to be available at colleges.

Answer · Michael Russell: It is for colleges to deliver a balanced curriculum that meets the needs of learners and employers in their region.

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many students have enrolled for advanced higher qualifications at colleges in each of the last five years.

Answer · Michael Russell: The Scottish Qualifications Authority provides data on candidates entered for Advanced Highers in Scotland. The latest available data for colleges is provided in Table 1. Table 1: Candidates entered for at least one Advanced Higher by Further Education Colle…

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the analysis by the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) on page 29 of its briefing, Early Learning and Childcare, that “given the increased supply of labour, the modelled results would be expected to show downward pressure on real average wages. This co…

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government has laid out its position on childcare in Scotland’s Future and the subsequent Childcare and Labour Market Participation – Economic Analysis paper, which contained economic analysis of increased female activity. Evidence shows that acc…

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has made of the possibility of women already in the labour market increasing their hours of work rather than an overall increase in labour market participation as a result of its proposals for childcare in an independent Scotland.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government has assessed the evidence base setting out the links between childcare and female labour force participation. In a recent report from the European Commission, among mothers in the UK citing childcare as a barrier to working full-time, …

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many additional women would have to enter the labour market in order for Scotland to match the level in (a) Finland, (b) Norway and (c) Sweden, as outlined in its paper, Childcare and Labour Market Participation - Economic Analysis.

Answer · John Swinney: As shown on page 4 of Childcare and Labour Market Participation - Economic Analysis, the number of females that are active in the labour market would have to increase by a) 35,000 for the female participation to rise by 2.0 percentage points (broadly in line …

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the analysis of the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) that the third phase of the childcare proposals as outlined in the white paper on independence would cost £1.2 billion.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government has already committed to significant spend on childcare. Through the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act, we have committed more than a quarter of a billion pounds (£280m) to expand funded, quality childcare from 12.5 hours to alm…

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the cost would be of the third phase of its childcare proposals as outlined in its white paper on independence.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: In Scotland’s Future we set out our plans for the first Parliament after independence. In our first budget after independence we will commit £100 million to extend 600 hours of childcare a year to nearly half of Scotland’s two year olds. By the end of the fir…

3 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many economically inactive women with dependent children aged from one to five there are.

Answer · Angela Constance: The Annual Population Survey provides the preferred measure for detailed labour market information for subsets of the population in Scotland. The latest data covers the period from January 2013 to December 2013. In 2013, there were an estimated 80,000 econom…

2 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what labour market factors are different between Sweden and Scotland apart from childcare and whether these factors could impact on Scotland achieving a similar rate of female participation.

Answer · Angela Constance: Although there are some broadly comparable features in the Swedish and Scottish labour markets, it should be noted that female participation is affected by a range of matters and not just the nature of the labour market. However, we are clear that there is c…

2 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it means by “the analysis below illustrates the impact of a boost in female participation rates rather than a specific policy" on page four of the paper, Childcare and Labour Market Participation – Economic Analysis.

Answer · John Swinney: The analysis published in the Childcare and Labour Market Participation – Economic Analysis paper highlights the potential effects on the Scottish economy of increasing female activity rates. It illustrates the impact of increasing the female participation ra…

2 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what modelling it carried out to calculate the suggested £2.2 billion increase in economic output as a result of the childcare policies outlined in the white paper on independence.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government modelled the impacts of increased female participation using a Computable General Equilibrium model of the Scottish economy. As outlined in the Childcare and Labour Market Participation – Economic Analysis paper, an increase in output …

2 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what modelling it carried out to calculate the suggested £700 million increase in tax revenue as a result of the childcare policies outlined in the white paper on independence.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government modelled the impacts of increased female participation using a detailed Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model of the Scottish economy. The model is used by the Scottish Government to model the impacts of economic shocks and change…

2 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it based its suggested 6% increase in female participation on in the paper, Childcare and Labour Market Participation – Economic Analysis.

Answer · John Swinney: The 6 percentage point increase in female participation referred to in the question is based on the gap between female participation in Scotland and Sweden, which has a range of policies designed to support parents into work including a universal entitlement …

31 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the (a) treatment, (b) care and (c) life expectancy of patients with heart failure in Scotland compares with the rest of the UK.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Scotland has some of the best health service data in the world and on an annual basis produces information on a range of heart conditions in Scotland. There is evidence, that life expectancy for people with coronary heart disease, the main cause of heart fail…

31 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve the treatment and care of patients with heart failure.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Better Heart Disease and Stroke Care Action Plan, emphasises the Scottish Government’s commitment to tackling heart disease as a clinical priority for NHSScotland and specifically highlights the need for a greater strategic focus on improving the care of …

31 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the stated benefits of the national heart failure audit.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government is committed to providing the best quality care and treatment for people living with heart failure in Scotland. As with all aspects of heart disease we want services that address a person’s care needs on an individual basis. The Scott…

31 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is participating in the national heart failure audit and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Heart disease remains a clinical priority for NHSScotland and the Scottish Government. There has been substantial investment and redesign in cardiology services which has contributed to NHSScotland reducing mortality rates from coronary heart disease by over …

31 Mar 2014 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the report by ISD Scotland into nursing vacancies.

26 Mar 2014 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what economic modelling the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth has carried out on the childcare policies contained in the white paper on independence.

Answer · Angela Constance: Improving access to childcare would reduce an important barrier to participation in the labour market faced by parents with young children, which would be expected to have positive impacts on the Scottish economy. The Scottish Government has carried out econ…

19 Mar 2014 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many SQA academic appeals were submitted in 2013 and how many were upheld.

17 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many staff who have been made redundant by the NHS in each year May 2007 have been subsequently re-employed by the service on a (a) permanent and (b) fixed-term contract basis.

Answer · Alex Neil: This information is not collated centrally.

17 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the supplementary to question S4O-03002 by Alex Neil on 12 March 2014 (Official Report, c. 28811), what evidence the cabinet secretary has to support the claim that the "Scottish health service is the safest in the world".

Answer · Alex Neil: We have a range of data from the Scottish Patient Safety Programmes which supports progress in Acute Care, Primary Care, Mental Health and Maternity and Paediatrics. We can also look to the views of international experts such as Prof Don Berwick, the man ask…

17 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4O-03002 by Alex Neil on 12 March 2014 (Official Report, c. 28811), what evidence it has other than the "recent study" mentioned in the answer to suggest that there is no such weekend effect in hospitals in Scotland.

Answer · Alex Neil: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20212 on 26 March 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/parliamentaryb…