Parliamentary questions
Dr Richard Simpson
2,702 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what percentage reduction in the number of junior doctors it plans in foundation year (a) 1 and (b) 2.
Answer · Alex Neil: There are no planned reductions in foundation year 1 or foundation year 2 doctors
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the percentage uplift is for each NHS board based on the NHSScotland Resource Allocation Committee distribution.
Answer · Alex Neil: The following table sets out the NHSScotland Resource Allocation Committee (NRAC) formula target shares for 2013-14 and 2014-15 and the year-on-year change (based on the current health board boundaries), alongside the proportionate increase in the actual boar…
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how the rare diseases fund will be affected by the new processes for Scottish Medicines Consortium approval of orphan and ultra-orphan medicines.
Answer · Alex Neil: As part of work ongoing between Scottish Government and NHSScotland on the financial implications of the change in approach being adopted by the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) consideration is being given as to how the Rare Conditions Medicines Fund will…
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what savings it anticipates in the medicines budget in each of the next five years as a result of (a) the introduction of the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme agreement in January 2014 and (b) branded products coming out of patent and becoming available as generic products.
Answer · Alex Neil: The Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) came into force on 1 January 2014. The scheme was agreed by the Department of Health in England and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI). Devolved administrations requested inclusion i…
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the findings of the report by PricewaterhouseCoopers into whether there had been sufficient learning at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde from child major incident reviews and also concerns relating to NHS Ayrshire and Arran in this regard, whether it will invite Health Improvem…
Answer · Alex Neil: There are no plans at this stage to invite Healthcare Improvement Scotland to undertake a national review of child major incident reviews.
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many times the 07:20 train from Dunblane to Edinburgh has been reduced to three carriages in each of the last three years, and how many times this has led to the operator being fined.
Answer · Keith Brown: The following table outlines the number of times the 07:20 train from Dunblane to Edinburgh service has been reduced to either three or two carriages: Financial Year Instances where capacity has reduced (four to three carriages) Instances where capacity ha…
26 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many times the 17:26 train from Edinburgh to Dunblane has been reduced to two carriages in each of the last three years, and how many times this has led to the operator being fined.
Answer · Keith Brown: The following table outlines the number of times the 17:26 train from Edinburgh to Dunblane service has been reduced to two carriages: Financial Year Instances where capacity has reduced (three to two carriages) 2011-12 7 2012-13 7 2013-14 (to Februar…
18 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will require hospitals to report cases of female genital mutilation.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government has initiated discussions with the Royal College of Midwives about the recommendations made in the report Tackling FGM in the UK: Intercollegiate recommendations for identifying, recording and reporting and we will take these forward.
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will confirm that Practitioner Services Division will not pursue the estate of deceased dentists for debts that arose because of problems with the Management Information and Dental Accounting System.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-19492 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/parliamenta…
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much Practitioner Services Division is paying collection agencies to recover debts from dentists arising because of problems with the Management Information and Dental Accounting System.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This is a matter for Practitioner Services. However, we are not aware of the involvement of collection agencies in the recovery process.
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what processes to identify duplicate registrations were put in place when the NHS introduced continuous registration; whether it considers that these were fit for purpose, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.
Answer · Michael Matheson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S4W-19485 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/parlia…
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when the Community Health Index of patient identification was introduced by the NHS; when it was first included in the dental payment system, and what the reason was for any delay in introducing it to dental payments system.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Community Health Index (CHI) was piloted in Tayside in 1974 and rolled out to the rest of Scotland in 1990. The CHI is not, and has never been, required for dentists to claim for treatment provided. However, as part of the introduction of non time-limited re…
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the reported problems with the Management Information and Dental Accounting System and whether it considers it fit for purpose.
Answer · Michael Matheson: On the matter of duplicate registrations I refer the member to the answer given to question S4W-19485 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:…
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it was advised that the Management Information and Dental Accounting System had made errors with (a) capitation and (b) continuing care registrations.
Answer · Michael Matheson: On 15 March 2010, Practitioner Services notified the Scottish Government of an issue identified with the overpayment of dental registrations which they found to result mainly from incorrect patient demographic data supplied by dentists. The issue was identifi…
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide the original Practitioner Services Division GP17 forms to dentists who have been asked to pay back overpayments because of problems with the Management Information and Dental Accounting System and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.
Answer · Michael Matheson: This is a matter for Practitioner Services as GP17 forms are not held by the Scottish Government.
17 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many dentists have been asked to pay back overpayments that arose because of problems with the Management Information and Dental Accounting System (MIDAS) and, in light of such problems reportedly arising over an eight-year period, for what reason some dentists have been asked to rep…
Answer · Michael Matheson: A total of 2,131 dentists are included in the process for repaying overpayments. We expect the first recoveries to be made in March 2014. We have instructed Practitioner Services to make these recoveries at the same time as backdated payments to dentists for…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people investigated by NHS Counter Fraud Services have been subject to confiscation of criminal assets procedures in each of the last five years, and what amounts were recovered that were related to NHS fraud.
Answer · Alex Neil: The number of people investigated by NHS Counter Fraud Services who have been subject to confiscation of criminal asset procedures in each of the last five years is shown in the following table: 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Number of Invest…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the expenditure has been on NHS Counter Fraud Services in each of the last five years and what the budget is for 2014-15.
Answer · Alex Neil: Expenditure on NHS Counter Fraud Services in each of the last five financial years is shown in the following table: 2009-10 £million 2010-11 £million 2011-12 £million 2012-13 £million 2013-14 £million Annual Expenditure 1.6 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.6 …
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many establishments that have had an "improvement required" hygiene rating on the Food Standards Agency in Scotland website have not had a follow-up inspection for over a year.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Follow-up inspections will be carried out by local authorities if necessary, in accordance with standard enforcement practice and are dependent on the non-compliance involved. Recurring minor non-compliance will result in a Food Hygiene Information Scheme (FH…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether establishments with an "improvement required" food hygiene rating on the Food Standards Agency in Scotland website are required to display this rating.
Answer · Michael Matheson: It is voluntary for food establishments to display the Food Hygiene Information Scheme ratings. However, all ratings are displayed on the Food Standards Agency website.
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason some establishments rated on the Food Standards Agency in Scotland website as "improvement required" have a time interval from their last inspection of more than a year.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Follow-up inspections will be carried out by local authorities if necessary, in accordance with standard enforcement practice and are dependent on the non-compliance involved. Recurring minor non-compliance will result in a Food Hygiene Information Scheme (FH…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Food Standards Agency in Scotland website displays only two hygiene ratings.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Food Hygiene Information Scheme (FHIS) is in operation in Scotland only. It is a two-tier scheme and this is why two hygiene ratings are displayed on the website. FHIS was rolled-out in Scotland by the Food Standards Agency FSA) in partnership with local…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether and, if so, for what reason the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in Scotland has a different hygiene rating system to the FSA in England and Wales.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Food Hygiene Information Scheme (FHIS) was initially piloted in November 2006 by five Scottish authorities. Following consultation in 2008 on a food hygiene scheme to cover the whole of the UK, local authorities and other stakeholders in Scotland indicate…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which medical directors responded to the letter on the prevention and management of venous thromboembolism by the Chief Medical Officer's deadline of 17 January 2014, and which did not.
Answer · Alex Neil: Responses were received from NHS Dumfries and Galloway, NHS Forth Valley, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, and NHS Highland within the original deadline. The matter has been followed up with the Boards that have not yet responded. In Board areas more than 200 …
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what models of vehicles are used for official government transport.
Answer · John Swinney: The makes and models of all pool and ministerial vehicles used in the Scottish Government fleet are listed in the following table: Make Model BMW 520D Citroen Berlingo Citroen Relay Ford Focus Ford Ranger Ford Tourneo Ford Transit Ford Trans…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that any shift in the balance of care is matched by a shift in the proportion of funding spend in primary care.
Answer · Alex Neil: The demands placed upon health and social care services, and the circumstances under which they will be need to be delivered will be radically different, bringing new challenges for everyone in the health and social care environment. The Scottish Government…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many GPs aged over 55 will retire as a result of the new pension arrangements and what the impact of this will be.
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government recognises that the number of GPs aged over 55 in the workforce has increased. Pensions are a reserved matter. Whilst, for most individuals, early retirement is a life choice based on their personal and financial circumstances, NHS bo…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many GPs are employed on a (a) full- and (b) part-time basis, also broken down by those working (i) in partnerships and (ii) on a sessional-only basis, and whether it will publish this information annually.
Answer · Alex Neil: Most general practices in Scotland are independent contractors and they are not obliged to report whether their individual GP(s) work(s) full time or part time. The Primary Care Workforce Survey 2013, a survey of Scottish general practices and GP Out of Hour…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many doctors from other branches of the medical profession have applied for GP training in each of the last five years.
Answer · Alex Neil: Recruitment to GP training is co-ordinated on a UK-wide basis by the GP National Recruitment Office to a nationally recognised selection criterion, and has been operating since 2006. After successful selection, applicants will be matched in rank order to thei…
5 Feb 2014 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether, in publishing the earnings of GPs, it will ensure transparency regarding any gender inequality.
Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government and the Scottish General Practitioners Committee have agreed to work together, to develop proposals on how the publication of GP NHS net earnings relating to the contract should be implemented for 2015-16 (i.e. publication using the la…