Parliamentary questions
Miles Briggs
4,209 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
26 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of participation levels in clinical trials for blood cancer, and what action it can take to increase participation among underrepresented groups.
Answer · Neil Gray: The NHS Research Scotland (NRS) Cancer Network monitors recruitment to eligibly funded non-commercial and commercial cancer clinical studies taking place in the NHS here, including in Blood Cancer. Routinely collected data includes postcode, date of birth and…
26 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support (a) investigator-led and (b) commercially-sponsored clinical trials in blood cancer research.
Answer · Neil Gray: Through NHS Research Scotland (NRS), the Scottish Government provides funding for infrastructure to support the delivery of both investigator-led and commercially-sponsored clinical trials in the NHS here.The NRS infrastructure includes the NRS Cancer Network…
26 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to (a) encourage blood cancer patients' knowledge of self-monitoring their condition and (b) improve resources for blood cancer patient advocacy, including signposting and referral to third sector support services.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government expects that health and care professionals will support patients with cancer to help them understand their condition and explain the options open to them, including around self-monitoring their condition where appropriate.The Scottish …
26 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to implement targeted monitoring programmes for people who are at a higher risk of developing blood cancer, including people with monoclonal gammopathy of unknown significance.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer have been developed to support primary care clinicians to identify those with symptoms suspicious of cancer and identify those who require urgent assessment by a specialist.Referrals are closely monitored …
26 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to improve access to a timely diagnosis of blood cancer for (a) black and minority ethnic people, (b) people from deprived backgrounds and (c) people who live in remote locations.
Answer · Neil Gray: We are committed to tackling health inequalities and providing access to the highest quality of care for all, which is why our ambitious cancer strategy has a focus on reducing inequities in access to all cancer care, and cancer outcomes.We continue to suppor…
25 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many homes have been secured for key workers as a result of the £25 million Rural Affordable Homes for Key Workers Fund.
Answer · Paul McLennan: To date 17 homes have been approved through the demand-led Rural Affordable Homes for Key Workers Fund. This includes 7 homes in Highland, 7 homes in Orkney, 2 homes in Moray and 1 home in North Ayrshire. More Homes Division officials are in discussion with l…
25 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has spent any money in the current financial year on transferring responsibility for the Winter Fuel Payment from Social Security Scotland back to the Department for Work and Pensions, and, if so, how much, and what this money was spent on.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government, including Social Security Scotland, have not incurred any additional costs in 2024-25 as a result of the Department for Work and Pensions administering a payment equivalent to Winter Fuel Payment to eligible Scottish clients in 2024.
25 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it spent preparing for the roll-out of its replacement for the Winter Fuel Payment prior to its decision to delay the roll-out until 2025, and what any money was spent on.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government spent approximately £4.2 million on the preparation to roll out Pension Age Winter Heating Payment between May 2023 and August 2024. This primarily relates to the development of systems to deliver the benefit but also covers cost…
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people have been assessed for (a) autism and (b) ADHD through the NHS in each year since 1999.
Answer · Maree Todd: This data is not centrally available; whilst Public Health Scotland publish the total number of patients waiting for specialist mental health services, detail of the individual types of assessment or diagnosis is not held. The publications for both CAMHS and …
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people have waited over a year for medical treatment in each year since 1999.
Answer · Neil Gray: Neither Scottish Government or Public Health Scotland (PHS) centrally hold all of the information requested.Table 1 presents the latest available statistics on the total number of admissions for patients aged less than 16 years who had waited over a year for …
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent on consultancy fees for the Sheriffhall roundabout upgrade project.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government has spent approximately £6.4 million on the necessary design and assessment work for the A720 Sheriffhall Roundabout scheme since Transport Scotland appointed its technical advisor, AECOM, in July 2013.This figure is inclusive of…
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many children and young people have been assessed for (a) autism and (b) ADHD privately in each year since 1999.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government does not collect this data.The Scottish Government is committed to implementing the National Neurodevelopmental Specification: Principles and Standards of Care for Children and Young People, published in September 2021, which specifies…
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many (a) local authority-owned and (b) privately owned properties have been identified by local authorities as containing suspected reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government encourages all building owners to be open and transparent about the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in their properties, including making information available on websites (although there is no duty on the par…
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many developments have been identified by local authorities as containing suspected reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), broken down by local authority area.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government encourages all building owners to be open and transparent about the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in their properties, including making information available on websites. Information on the presence of RAAC …
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people have been on an NHS waiting list in each year since 1999.
Answer · Neil Gray: This information is not held centrally by either Scottish Government or Public Health Scotland (PHS).PHS does not capture waiting list information on all NHS services and where they are captured, many are sourced from aggregate returns submitted to PHS by NHS…
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it spent the £97.1 million of Barnett consequential funding that it received from the UK Government to fund cladding remediation work, broken down by allocation.
Answer · Paul McLennan: Under devolution, consequentials of this kind become part of the Scottish Government’s overall budget for that year. As part of the Scottish Budget process, it is for Scottish Ministers to propose funding levels for specific programmes in Scotland, and …
24 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the financial situation regarding support services for victims of historic forced adoption practices.
Answer · Natalie Don-Innes: The Scottish Government, along with public sector bodies across the UK, face a very challenging environment as we manage our finances through the current financial year and set our budget for 2025-26. We are continuing to fund the charity, Health in Mind, in …
10 Sep 2024 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to deliver better outcomes for children and young people with learning disabilities, autism and neurodiversity, in light of its decision not to include the introduction of its proposed Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill in the Programme for Governmen…
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how much has been spent to date from the cladding remediation fund.
Answer · Paul McLennan: Latest published data shows the aggregated spend on single building assessments, fire risk measures and remediation is just over £9.0m to the end of quarter one 2024-25; spend is updated quarterly, the next update will be published in October 2024.
3 Sep 2024 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment the Ministerial Taskforce on Population has made of the reported population increase in Edinburgh and the south east, including any proposals that it has made to address this, since it was established in June 2019.
20 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how muchsupport has been made available to support services for people who experiencedhistoric forced adoption, in each year since 2021.
Answer · Natalie Don-Innes: The Scottish Government continues to fund the charity, Health in Mind, to deliver a specialist peer service to those affected by historic forced adoption. This is in direct response to feedback from people with lived experience for this type of support.Fundin…
20 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions its ministers have had with Police Scotland regarding the wearing of safety helmets by delivery drivers.
Answer · Angela Constance: The enforcement of traffic offences is an operational matter for Police Scotland, with oversight provided by the Scottish Police Authority, who act independently of Scottish ministers.The wearing of cycle helmets is covered by the Highway Code and is a matter…
20 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions its ministers have had with local authorities regarding the wearing of safety helmets by delivery drivers.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: No discussions have taken place between ministers and Local Authorities regarding the wearing of safety helmets by delivery drivers.As outlined in the Highway Code (a matter reserved to the UK Government), riders are recommended to wear a correctly fitted cyc…
20 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many developments have been approved in the first phase of its review of permitted development rights, broken down by local authority area.
Answer · Ivan McKee: In most cases, permitted development rights (PDR) allow certain developments to be carried out without reference to the planning authority – provided the relevant PDR conditions are complied with. Therefore, such developments do not require an applicati…
20 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions its ministers have had with (a) Police Scotland and (b) companies that provide delivery services regarding any requirements for delivery drivers to wear safety helmets.
Answer · Angela Constance: The enforcement of traffic offences is an operational matter for Police Scotland, with oversight provided by the Scottish Police Authority, who act independently of Scottish ministers.The wearing of cycle helmets is covered by the Highway Code and is a matter…
7 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it plans with housing developers towards agreeing a contract for undertaking cladding remediation works for buildings under their responsibility.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We are continuing to work at pace on the Developer Remediation Contract to ensure alignment with the Housing (Cladding Remediation) Scotland Act 2024 and the Single Building Assessment (SBA) specification, which was published in June 2024. We are committed to…
7 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government since 5 July 2024 regarding delivering more homes across all housing tenures in Scotland, including the potential for increased funding for increasing unit output.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government met with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, via a Microsoft Teams call, on Wednesday 17 July 2024. Discussion highlighted that the forecast reduction in Capital and Financial Transactions…
7 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making towards the introduction of a building safety levy, and by what date this will be introduced.
Answer · Shona Robison: Following the general election, I wrote to the Secretary of State for Scotland, Ian Murray MP, requesting renewal of the agreement to the devolution of the necessary powers for a Building Safety Levy in Scotland that was in place with the previous UK Governme…
7 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many so-called “orphan” buildings have been identified as part of its cladding remediation programme, and how much it will cost to carry out the remediation work required on these buildings.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Cladding Remediation Programme is in a pilot phase. Of the 107 pilot entries there are currently 12 entries for which we expect assessment and any mitigation or remediation required to be led by Scottish Government.It is not possible to estimate the cost …
7 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the overall economic impact of its cladding remediation programme, including the impact of new homes being built as a result of this.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We recognise the potential impact of the cladding remediation programme on developers and on the building of new homes. These issues will be among those being considered by an in-depth economic analysis, which is in development.