Parliamentary questions
Ken Macintosh
1,334 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
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), how it defines "a systemic problem at weekends with mortality rates in Scottish hospitals".
Answer · Alex Neil: A systemic problem can be defined as an intrinsic or series of problems affecting mortality in Scottish hospitals. Hospital standardised mortality ratios data currently submitted by NHS boards in Scotland does not indicate that this is the case but we will co…
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 argument that "the [patient safety] programme is probably a major contributing factor to why the mortality r…
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Patient Safety Programme (SPSP) is admired across the world in relation to its results with reliably implementing evidence based interventions. The SPSP is about delivering reliable, safe care for every patient, every time, 24 hours a day, 7 days…
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 argument that "the Scottish health service is the safest in the world as a result of the patient safety progr…
Answer · Alex Neil: Independent support to this argument has been provided by Donald Berwick, President Emeritus and Senior Fellow, Institute for Healthcare Improvement who is quoted as saying "The Scottish Patient Safety Programme, marks Scotland as a leader, second to no natio…
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. 28810), whether the cabinet secretary is aware of the study, Weekend admissions as an independent predictor of mortality: an analysis of Scottish hospital admissions, by Handel, Patel, Skingsl…
Answer · Alex Neil: The British Medical Journal (BMJ) study paper ‘Weekend admissions as an independent predictor of mortality BMJ 2012’ highlights a reduction in mortality over the course of the study, which ran from 1999 to 2009 with the cause for any apparent increase in mort…
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. 28810) whether it will publish the (a) mortality data and (b) analysis relating to the recent study referred to in the answer; whether the study was peer reviewed, and, if so, by whom.
Answer · Alex Neil: This data is publically available on the NHS NSS Freedom of Information page, direct link below: http://www.nhsnss.org/supplementary_pages/foi_detail.php?discref=482260 These are crude rates which have not been adjusted to take account of some of those fact…
11 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many copies of the white paper on independence have been distributed in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales, (d) Northern Ireland and (e) internationally.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: As at 11 March 2014, 55147 hard copies of Scotland’s Future had been distributed. The following table provides a breakdown of the locations of this distribution: Location Total Scotland 52216 England 2658 Northern Ireland 108 Wales 136 Internationa…
11 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent to date on public question and answer events relating to the white paper on independence.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: We want to make sure that the public are as well informed as possible about the content of Scotland’s Future and the huge opportunities offered by independence. To facilitate this, the Scottish Government has organised a full programme of public engagement ev…
11 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £450,000 budgeted for the white paper on independence public information campaign has been spent.
Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: We want to ensure the people of Scotland can access the information they need to make an informed choice on 18 September 2014. I confirmed a budget for the public information campaign of up to £450,000 on 26 November 2013. I will update parliament on spend a…
3 Mar 2014 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether there is a difference in mortality and readmission rates in hospitals at the weekend compared to weekdays.
3 Mar 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to questions S4W-19550, S4W-19551, S4W-19557, S4W-19559 and S4W-19560 by Alasdair Allan on 28 February 2014, what involvement ministers have had in approving the SQA’s new exam appeals system.
Answer · Alasdair Allan: Under the Education (Scotland) Act 1996, responsibility for setting and assessing qualifications in Scotland lies with the Scottish Qualifications Authority. As such, ministers were not involved in the design of the new results services which was the result o…
24 Feb 2014 · First Minister's Question
To ask the First Minister, in light of the evidence given by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing at the Public Audit Committee on 19 February 2014, how long confidentiality clauses have been included automatically in NHS settlement agreements.
19 Feb 2014 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on promoting the German model of work-sharing and work-time accounts as a means of moderating the worst effects of the recession.
3 Feb 2014 · Topical Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of figures from the SQA that suggest a reduction in the numbers enrolling for national exams, what action it is taking to ensure access to courses.
31 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether the SQA's results service systems have been introduced to reduce the number of appeals.
Answer · Kenny MacAskill: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19550 on 28 February 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/Apps2/Busin…
31 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason school pupils using the results service systems to appeal their exam results will no longer be allowed to offer alternative evidence to support their appeals.
Answer · Alasdair Allan: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19550 on 28 February 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/Apps2/Busin…
31 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the SQA has replaced its appeals process at the same time that it is introducing a new system of exams.
Answer · Alasdair Allan: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19550 on 28 February 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/Apps2/Busin…
31 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the impact will be of the SQA's (a) Exceptional Circumstances Consideration Service and (b) Post Results Service for exam appeals charging for (i) clerical checks, (ii) marking reviews and (iii) priority marking reviews; how much it estimates the SQA will receive from each of these …
Answer · Alasdair Allan: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19550 on 28 February 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/Apps2/Busin…
31 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many school pupils it estimates will appeal their exam results in 2014; how this compares with each of the last 10 years, and how it will ensure that this year’s pupils are treated fairly compared with previous cohorts in being able to access the results service systems to lodge appe…
Answer · Alasdair Allan: This is a matter for the Scottish Qualifications Authority. I have asked the chief executive to write to you.
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the accuracy of the data used by Practitioner Services to reclaim alleged overpayments of NHS dentists.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This is a matter for Practitioner Services. It is for Practitioner Services to ensure that the data underlying the current recovery process is sufficiently robust to begin the process of recoveries.
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether duplicate registrations have ever accumulated on the lists of general medical practitioners and, if so, what action was taken.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not manage the patient registration process. Patient registration arrangements are local contractual matters between NHS boards and GP practices whilst The Practitioner Services Division (PSD) of the NHS National Services Scotland…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it indicated in recent discussions and correspondence with the British Dental Association that the total amount in overpayment of dentists to be recovered would not exceed £3.5 million and, if so, whether this remains the case.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government is not in a position to give a guarantee of the total value of the recoveries as this is a matter for Practitioner Services.
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether a majority of dentists opposed the non-time-limited registration system introduced in 2010.
Answer · Michael Matheson: We have no information on whether or not a majority of dentists opposed the introduction of the non-time-limited registration system.
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it did not put in place measures to ensure that duplicate registrations of dentists could be identified and removed.
Answer · Michael Matheson: To support the implementation of non-time limited registration Practitioner Services were required to make changes to their payment system (MIDAS), which included matching the Community Health Index with registration data held in MIDAS. This exercise identifi…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the non-time-limited registration system for dentists introduced in 2010 gave the impression that registrations were increasing.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The non-time limited registration system was introduced to ensure a long-term relationship between patient and practitioner. Patient registrations actually fell for the period between December 2009 and March 2010 as a result of removal of duplicate registrati…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the alleged recent overpayment of dentists is a result of its introduction of a non-time-limited registration system in 2010.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19482 on 20 February 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/parliamentar…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what factors led to the recent alleged overpayment of NHS dentists.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The overpayment recovery process which is underway relates to duplicate registrations of NHS dental patients. A duplicate registration occurs where a) the patient information submitted by a dentist on a claim, either electronically or in paper form, does not…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it plans to take if it has not received enough applications for dental vocational trainers to meet demand by 13 February 2014.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19480 on 25 February 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…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it expects to receive enough applications to meet the demand for dental vocational trainers by the deadline of 13 February 2014.
Answer · Michael Matheson: It is NHS Education for Scotland (NES) which is responsible for the recruitment of dental vocational trainers in Scotland. Recruitment is an ongoing process and, as of today, 180 applications have been received, against a projected demand for 179 dental vocat…
30 Jan 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether and, if so, for what reason it is recruiting dental vocational trainers without interviewing them.
Answer · Michael Matheson: NHS Education for Scotland (NES) has operational responsibility for the recruitment of dental vocational trainers. Following a review of the trainer recruitment process in 2013, NES proposed a revised recruitment process be introduced from 2014. These proposa…
20 Jan 2014 · Topical Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report in The Herald on 20 January 2014 on the pay of university principals.