Parliamentary questions
Jim Hume
1,310 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
7 Dec 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what arrangements it has put in place to facilitate travel for NHS staff affected by the closure of the Forth Road Bridge.
Answer · Derek Mackay: We have put in place a travel plan to support those affected by the closure of the Forth Road Bridge. This includes details enhanced public transport provisions and the measures put in place to manage the flow of traffic via the Kincardine and Clackmannanshir…
4 Dec 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-28444 by Margaret Burgess on 26 November 2015, for what reason it did not make an agreement with the Local Affordable Housing Trust to make properties available for rent in 2015-16.
3 Dec 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the overall spend has been on hepatitis C treatments in each of the last three years.
Answer · Maureen Watt: The Scottish Government has provided NHS boards with £26.7 million in each of the last three years under the Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Framework to support its implementation, which includes provision of hepatitis C treatment. These funding allocat…
3 Dec 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether each NHS board has hepatitis C treatment targets for 2016 and, if so, what they are.
Answer · Maureen Watt: The hepatitis C treatment target for each NHS board is set out in the following table: NHS board Hepatitis C Treatment Target 2015-16 Ayrshire and Arran 98 Borders 14 Dumfries and Galloway 41 Fife 58 Forth Valley 96 Grampian 168 Greater Glasgow…
30 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the number of adverse events recorded by NHS boards has risen by 80% since 2007.
Answer · Shona Robison: The provision of safe care is a key priority of both the Scottish Government and NHSScotland. It is very common for large organisations such as NHSScotland, who prioritise patient safety, to report an increase in the number of adverse events being reported, w…
26 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many children and adolescent mental health inpatient beds there have been in each NHS board in each year since 2007.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Child and adolescent inpatient beds: NHS board Financial year ending 31 March 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 NHS Scotland 43 43 51 51 51 51 51 51 54 Beds are not broken down by boards but by region. These are: Under 12s …
26 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the children and adolescent mental health inpatient bed occupancy rate has been at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital Glasgow.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The following table shows the percentage bed occupancy for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in the Royal Hospital for Sick Children (which is based in the grounds of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital) in Glasgow in each month from January to …
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that protected areas continue to be adequately funded and resourced.
Answer · Aileen McLeod: Details of the Scottish Government’s spending plans will be available when its draft budget is published in December 2015. Scottish Natural Heritage will continue to be responsible for managing its annually allocated budget, in line with priorities agreed wit…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) role and (b) duties Scottish Natural Heritage has in relation to protected areas.
Answer · Aileen McLeod: Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) acts as an advisor and statutory consultee on a wide range of issues, including protected areas. Full details of SNH statutory functions are set out in the Natural Heritage (Scotland) Act 1991 and further information on the SNH…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what budget it has provided to Scottish Natural Heritage in each of the last five years.
Answer · Aileen McLeod: Details of Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) budgets for the last five years, as published in SNH annual reports and accounts, is provided below. These figures take account of in-year budget adjustments: £ million 2010-11 66.7 2011-12 59.6 2012-13 55.6 201…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Scottish Natural Heritage regarding its review of protected areas.
Answer · Aileen McLeod: Scottish Government officials have discussed the Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) review of protected areas during regular liaison meetings as part of established sponsorship arrangements. Information about the SNH review is available on the SNH website at: ww…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to inform people who are bereaved by suicide of their rights.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Following any bereavement, bereaved people will receive advice and support from agencies including their GP, the local registrar’s office and the police, on actions which they require to take in relation to the death of their loved one. In addition, where dea…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to address the proportion of death by suicide in very remote small towns.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: NHS Health Scotland published evidence-informed guidance National guide on suicide prevention in rural areas in 2013 to assist local rural and remote areas in mapping existing support, discussing, planning for and deciding on priorities for actions to prevent…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to address the suicide rate among the most deprived quintile of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Government's Suicide Prevention Strategy 2013-2016 is a population-wide strategy which sets out commitments designed to continue the downward trend in the suicide rate at national level, whilst recognising that those from the more deprived commun…
25 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many people have died by suicide in each year since 2007, also expressed as a rate per 100,000 population.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Annual data on deaths by suicide are published by National Records of Scotland at the following site: http://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/deaths/suicides/the-definition-of-the-statistics Further analy…
20 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the number of people over age 75 who are homeless.
Answer · Margaret Burgess: Those assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness by financial year and age of main applicant. Main applicant under age 75 Main applicant over age 75 Number of Cases % of Total Number of Cases % of Total Total 2010-11 41,785 99.6% 180 0…
20 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports by Shelter Scotland that every 18 minutes a household in Scotland is assessed as homeless.
Answer · Margaret Burgess: The Scottish Government is committed to tackling and preventing homelessness, and assessments of homelessness have been falling in recent years. Since the start of 2007-08, the number of cases assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness has fallen b…
20 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to carry out a study into the economic impact of inequalities.
Answer · Alex Neil: There is already strong international evidence that high levels of inequality impact negatively on a wide range of economic and social outcomes. The Scottish Government will continue to publish a range of statistics on inequalities on a regular basis and ther…
20 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what it estimates the economic impact of inequalities on each local authority to be.
Answer · Alex Neil: There is already a growing body of international evidence indicating that high inequality has a negative impact on long-term economic growth and prosperity. That is why tackling inequality is a central pillar of Scotland’s Economic Strategy, which recognises …
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many diabetes specialist nurses have graduated from training posts in Scotland in each year since 2010.
Answer · Shona Robison: S4W-28615 and S4W-28616 on 2 December 2015 provide information on the number of diabetes specialist nurses in Scotland since 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be f…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase the number of diabetes specialist nurses in full-time employment.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is committed to supporting people living with diabetes, as well as their families and carers. We want to ensure that everyone who requires care has access to the highest standards of care in every setting, in an NHS facility or their o…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many diabetes specialist nurses (a) are employed by each NHS board and (b) have been employed by each NHS board in each year since 2010-11.
Answer · Shona Robison: The number of whole time equivalent (WTE) clinical nurse specialists with the specialty of diabetes employed by each NHS board has increased by 12.1 WTE, or 12.9 per cent since September 2010, and is shown in the following table: September 2010 Septem…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many diabetes specialist nurse training posts have been filled in each year since 2010.
Answer · Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. A key aim of the Scottish Government’s Diabetes Improvement Plan, which was published in 2014, is to ensure that the healthcare practitioners, including diabetes specialist nurses, that care for those with dia…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when the UK National Screening Committee will next consider its recommended policy on antenatal screening for group B streptococcus.
Answer · Maureen Watt: The UK National Screening Committee is due to review the recommendation on antenatal screening for group B streptococcus in 2016.
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the success of routine testing for group B streptococcus from 35 to 37 weeks of pregnancy in other countries.
Answer · Maureen Watt: Research shows that the rate of early onset group B streptococcus (GBS) in the UK is comparable to those countries which have population based screening programmes. The 2012 UK National Screening Committee review highlighted some questions over the benefits …
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it estimates a test for group B streptococcus would cost and whether it has carried out a cost-benefit analysis of introducing routine antenatal screening.
Answer · Maureen Watt: As there is currently no recommended test for group B streptococcus that would be suitable for routine antenatal screening no cost-benefit analysis has been carried out by the Scottish Government.
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review its decision not to establish a systematic antenatal screening programme for group B streptococcus.
Answer · Maureen Watt: On screening issues we are advised by the UK National Screening Committee (NSC), an independent expert advisory group which advises ministers and the NHS in the four UK countries about all aspects of screening. The NSC reviewed the policy for group B strepto…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK National Screening Committee regarding the absence of an antenatal screening programme for group B streptococcus.
Answer · Maureen Watt: The UK National Screening Committee (NSC) is an independent expert advisory group which advises ministers and the NHS in the four UK countries about all aspects of screening. We are represented at the NSC meetings and are actively involved in all discussion t…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information (a) pregnant women and (b) maternity care health professionals are given about the risk of group B streptococcus and whether it plans to carry out further awareness raising with these groups.
Answer · Maureen Watt: (a) The Scottish Government funds NHS Health Scotland to develop and publish Ready, Steady, Baby! (RSB), a guide to pregnancy which is given to all pregnant women at their first booking appointment with a midwife. The current edition of RSB contains informati…
19 Nov 2015 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of (a) early and (b) late onset group B streptococcus infections there were/have been among babies in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) 2015, also expressed as a rate per 1,000 births.
Answer · Maureen Watt: Surveillance of invasive early and late onset streptococcal Group B infection in Scotland is based on laboratory confirmed reports received through the electronic reporting system called ECOSS (Electronic Communication of Surveillance in Scotland). Informati…