Parliamentary questions

Michael Matheson

1,154 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

4 May 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish the revised 5-14 Guidelines for modern languages.

Answer · Jack McConnell: The revised guidelines will be distributed to schools before the summer break.

4 May 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made with regard to the recommendations in the report Citi'ens of a Multilingual World by the Action Group for Languages.

Answer · Jack McConnell: I had intended to respond formally to this report in March 2001. However, in order to ensure a co-ordinated, strategic approach to curriculum development within the context of National Priorities, this statement was delayed. I will outline our response in det…

25 Apr 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it last met representatives of the Prison Officers' Association Scotland.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Representatives of the Scottish Prison Service and the Prison Officers’ Association attended a conciliation hearing on 1 May 2001 which was chaired by the Director of ACAS for Scotland.As a result, the dispute about staff attendance patterns has been refer…

5 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of the wage structure for prison officers within Kilmarnock prison during 2000 and 2001.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:The contract for HMP Kilmarnock does not require the contractor to provide details of the wage structure for staff and SPS does not therefore …

5 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what level of funding has been provided to the Scottish Prison Service chaplaincy service in each of the last three years, broken down by prison.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=546><TR><TD WIDTH="32%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGHT=17>Establishment</TD><TD WIDTH="23%" VALIGN="TOP" H…

5 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish its review of the Scottish Prison Service chaplaincy service; what level of consultation took place during this review, and which churches were involved in the review.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:No formal review of Chaplaincy within the Scottish Prison Service is being undertaken.The provision for Chaplaincy is, like those of other s…

5 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which NHS Trusts currently provide continuous hyperfactionated accelerated radiotherapy and whether this treatment will be made more widely available.

Answer · Susan Deacon: Continuous hyper-fractionated accelerated radiotherapy (CHART) is not currently available in any of Scotland's five cancer centres.The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has been asked to advise on the clinical and cost effectiveness of CHAR…

5 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to include Ministry of Defence police officers within the calculation of police numbers at either a national or local constabulary level.

Answer · Jim Wallace: No. The Scottish Executive figures count only the number of police officers in forces maintained under the Police (Scotland) Act 1967. Ministry of Defence Police do not fall within that category.

5 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to bring forward a national strategy for respiratory disease.

Answer · Susan Deacon: There are no plans to do so. In common with many other diseases and conditions, respiratory diseases in Scotland are tackled through a range of measures, from prevention through primary and acute to tertiary care. However, we monitor the prevalence and impact…

4 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-13170 by Mr Jim Wallace on 21 February 2001, how many senior prison chaplains are currently employed within Scottish Prison Service, which prisons they serve, and which denominations they represent.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:No such posts exist within SPS.

3 Apr 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Health and Community Care will reply to the letter of 26 February 2001 from Mr S Taylor of Sheildhill, Falkirk.

Answer · Susan Deacon: A Health Department official replied to Mr Taylor on 30 March.

23 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to issue guidance to NHS Trusts on the provision of free nebulisers for patients with lung disease living in the community.

Answer · Susan Deacon: We have no plans to do so. The decision on whether a nebuliser should be issued rests with the patient's hospital consultant.

8 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans for a national strategy to tackle lung disease.

Answer · Susan Deacon: There are no current plans for a formal national strategy. The Executive's policies on healthy lifestyles, like smoking and diet, along with the measures being taken to improve life circumstances, will all help prevent many lung diseases. Our record investmen…

7 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS Trusts provide free nebulisers for patients living within the community.

Answer · Susan Deacon: This information is not held centrally.

7 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding it provided for medical research in each of the last three financial years; which organisations benefited from this funding in each year and how much funding each organisation received.

Answer · Susan Deacon: The Chief Scientist Office (CSO) within the Scottish Executive Health Department spends approximately £40 million per year on medical research. Of this, £30 million is allocated from the R&D Support Fund budget to NHS providers for research activities and…

7 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for surgery on lung cancer in each NHS Trust.

Answer · Susan Deacon: The median waiting times for admission to hospital from the inpatient and day case waiting list for lung cancer surgery, in the year ending 30 September 2000, by NHS Trust are given in the table.The Scottish Cancer Group is currently preparing a cancer pla…

7 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for radiotherapy treatment for lung cancer in each NHS Trust.

Answer · Susan Deacon: Information is not available centrally in the form requested. Radiotherapy facilities are provided from five cancer centres in Scotland, Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Inverness.So far as waiting times are concerned I re…

7 Mar 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many pulmonary nurses are employed by the NHS in each health board area.

Answer · Susan Deacon: The information is not held centrally.

7 Mar 2001 · Written Question

Answer · Susan Deacon: These statistics are not held centrally.

7 Mar 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether local authorities are making adequate progress in developing services for people with learning disabilities.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The same as you?, our review of services for people with learning disabilities, was well received when published last year.Local authorities are acting on many of the report's recommendations, using existing resources. I understand they are making progress…

21 Feb 2001 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the implementation of the recommendations contained in The same as you? A review of services for people with learning disabilities is proceeding according to schedule.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Yes. We have invited bids to operate new Scottish Centre for Learning Disabilities; we have announced a Change Fund of £36 million over three years; we are considering proposals from the National Autistic Society and the Scottish Society for Scotland to take …

7 Feb 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many hospital chaplains are presently employed by the health service; which hospitals they serve and which church each represents.

Answer · Susan Deacon: There are currently 519 chaplains employed in the Health Service. The breakdown by denomination is as follows:Church of Scotland				287Roman Catholic				160Scottish Episcopal				 71Chaplains directly employed …

7 Feb 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many prison chaplains appointed under the Prisons (Scotland) Act 1989 there currently are, which prisons any such chaplains serve and which church each represents.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:There are currently 72 chaplains appointed under the Prisons (Scotland) Act 1989 serving in SPS Establishments. The breakdown is as follows:<P …

31 Jan 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Health and Community Care will reply to the letter dated 15 December 2000 from Mr R. Wilson of Bonnybridge.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Officials replied to Mr Wilson on 29 January 2001.

17 Jan 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning will reply to the letter dated 9 December 2000 from Mr W.H. Gray of Dunipace, Denny.

Answer · Wendy Alexander: A reply was issued to Mr W. H. Gray on 18 January 2001.

28 Nov 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what proposals it has to ensure that MSPs can be provided with all necessary financial information relating to the annual cost per prisoner place at Kilmarnock prison.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:The Scottish Prison Service has published financial information in respect of the contract for HMP Kilmarnock.<P ALIGN="JUSTIF…

30 Oct 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to complete its review of funding for speech and language therapy for children.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Scottish Executive Education and Health Department officials have been consulting on the remit and timescale of the review of therapy services, in association with the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapy. Ministers will make a decision on the final r…

30 Oct 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities have applied for funding from the "change fund" for learning disability services.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Local authorities have not been asked to apply for funding from the Learning Disability Services Change Fund. Discussions about use of the money available will take place over the next months.

30 Oct 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the amount will be of the "change fund" recommended in the Learning Disability Services Review.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The outcome of the Spending Review, announced in September, stated that £36 million over three years will be made available to assist local authorities to provide services for people with learning disabilities. We hope to make a further announcement soon on t…

30 Oct 2000 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in establishing a Scottish centre for learning disabilities.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-10722.