Edward Mountain

23 Oct 2017 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to hold to account NHS boards that do not meet their waiting times targets.

17 Oct 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent meetings the cabinet secretary has had with community representatives in Caithness regarding concerns about the removal of services.

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on there being enough radiologists in NHS Highland to deliver services, including on-call services, should there be any further resignations in the region.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is working closely with NHS Highland to support improved performance of its Radiology service and are taking forward a comprehensive range of actions to address concerns around staffing levels. We have welcomed the Royal College of Ra…

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the post in NHS Highland for the radiologist who retired in June 2017 was publically advertised; whether the board has written to other NHS boards to request assistance with the provision of radiologists, and what additional employment incentives have been offered and implemented to…

Answer · Shona Robison: While the Scottish Government sets strategic policies for the NHS in Scotland, it is the responsibility of NHS Boards – including NHS Highland – to plan and recruit their workforce to ensure that enough professional staff and facilities are available to provi…

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether NHS Highland has carried out a review of how many radiologists it requires based on population and work requirements.

Answer · Shona Robison: An independent review into the number of radiologists required by NHS Highland to meet the needs of their local population is currently being undertaken.

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how was radiologist cover in NHS Highland organised for the weekend of 19-20 August 2017.

Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-11626 on 25 October 2017. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at:- http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusi…

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for how many weekends in 2017 has NHS Highland had no radiologist cover arranged by midday on the Friday before.

Answer · Shona Robison: While the Scottish Government sets strategic policies for the NHS in Scotland, it is the responsibility of NHS Boards – including NHS Highland – to plan their workforce to ensure that enough professional staff and facilities are available to provide the best …

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many locum radiologists have been employed in NHS Highland in the last year, and how much this cost.

Answer · Shona Robison: Seven Locum Radiologists have been employed in NHS Highland in the last year at a total cost of £263,292.

28 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many radiologists have left NHS Highland in the last year and, of those, how many have been replaced on the on-call list.

Answer · Shona Robison: Trend information on the number of Consultants with a specialty of Radiology working in NHS Highland is published by ISD Scotland and is available at the following link:- https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2017-09-05/Consultant_…

27 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people in each NHS board area are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), and how many MS specialist health professionals each board employs.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: This information is not centrally held. However, the Scottish MS Register, operated by NHS National Services Scotland’s Information Services Division (ISD) and supported by Scottish Government funding, gives a figure of 3,243 people who reported to the Regis…

27 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis (MS).

Answer · Aileen Campbell: Scottish Government works closely with third sector organisations to raise awareness of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). We have provided funding to the MS Society Scotland this year to support a project aimed at boosting and promoting physical activity in people wit…

26 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much NHS Highland has paid other NHS boards in the UK in each of the last three years, broken down by the (a) board paid and (b) treatment category.

Answer · Shona Robison: It is not unusual for patients to move to other health boards for specialist treatment. Some specialist services, such as plastic surgery and neurosurgery, are provided on a regional basis. NHS Highland has service level agreements with other NHSScotland Boar…

26 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much NHS Highland spent on (a) agency and (b) locum staff in each of the last three years.

Answer · Shona Robison: In the last three years NHS Highland has spent the following on both agency and bank staff: Nursing Agency * Staff Bank £'000 £'000 2016-17 1,296.3 * 6,585.6 2015-16 1,017.8 * 6,411.8 2014-15 730.2 * 6,811.5 Medical Agency ^ Sta…

26 Sep 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve road safety on the North Coast 500 route, in light of a reported increase in accidents.

14 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on including the experiences of cancer patients under the age of 16 in the next Scottish Cancer Patient Experience Survey.

Answer · Shona Robison: We recognise the importance of ensuring that patient experience is captured and used in a meaningful way to influence the care that NHS Scotland provides children and young people with cancer. The content and format of the next Scottish Cancer Patient Experie…

11 Sep 2017 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to ensure that there is public confidence in the leadership of Police Scotland.

7 Sep 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that payments have been allocated to bank accounts under its various agricultural support schemes since 2016 that do not specify under which scheme refer to; what action it is taking to ensure that the people and businesses in receipt of such payments are …

Answer · Fergus Ewing: We have issued Payment Notification letters detailing the payment amount for each scheme where a payment has been made since 2016. The letters clearly define the scheme(s) to which they apply. The Reduction and Exclusion letter demonstrates to customers how …

4 Sep 2017 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the reported shortage of NHS radiologists.

29 Aug 2017 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the recent GERS figures.

11 Jul 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of it receiving income from the Crown Estate, what the annual capital investment will be.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management)'s gross capital investment for the current financial year is budgeted at £7.6m. This and other financial information can be found in Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management)'s draft Business Plan at http://www.crow…

11 Jul 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the cost of insurance is for the Crown Estate in the current financial year.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: From 1 April 2017, Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) has been managing the assets to provide continuity of delivery for Crown Estate tenants and customers. Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) anticipates its total insurance cost for 2017-2018 …

11 Jul 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the timescale is for the further devolution of the Crown Estate to local authorities.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Our recent consultation on the long-term arrangements for management of Crown Estate assets in Scotland outlined our proposals on how Crown Estate assets in Scotland can be managed differently in future. We are currently considering the consultation response…

11 Jul 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the SQA plans to remove the skills test element from 4-year Apprentice SVQ level 3 training.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: There are no plans to remove the skills test element from the 4 year SVQ level craft apprenticeships.

8 Jun 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the railway network has fibre optic cabling along existing rail tracks.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Network Rail has confirmed that the majority of the Scottish railway network has fibre optic cabling in place. The parts of the network which currently do not have fibre optic cabling are:- The Far North Line – North of Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh and to…

6 Jun 2017 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether all farmers will receive their 2015 and 2016 subsidy payments by the end of June 2017.

5 Jun 2017 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the impact will be of the planned closure of the police control room in Inverness and its move to Dundee.

17 May 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what book value of Glasgow Prestwick Airport was recorded in its 2016-17 accounts, and how this compares with the open market value as defined by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' (RICS) valuations and appraisals manual.

Answer · Keith Brown: The annual accounts of TS Prestwick Holdco Limited for financial year 2016-17 are presently in the process of being audited. The published annual accounts for financial year 2015-16 record a book value of £3.670 million in respect of non-current assets with a…

9 May 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will replace any agricultural assets of the Crown Estate that are damaged following a natural event.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: From 1 April 2017, Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) has been managing the assets to provide continuity of delivery for Crown Estate tenants and customers. Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) has put in place insurance cover to protect against…

9 May 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what aspects of the management of the Crown Estate will be devolved to local authorities.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: We recently consulted on the long-term arrangements for management of Crown Estate assets in Scotland. The consultation contained our proposals on how Crown Estate assets in Scotland can be managed differently in future, including opportunities for further de…

9 May 2017 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the transfer of the powers over its management, what powers the Crown Estate has to borrow against its capital assets.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) may only borrow in the limited circumstances as set out in the Crown Estate Act 1961 (as it applies to Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management)) and the Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) Order 2017.