Parliamentary questions
Miles Briggs
4,209 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many quasi-governmental agencies, also known as quangos, it has funded in each year since 1999, and how much it spent on each.
Answer · Tom Arthur: Quasi-government agencies (quangos) are referred to as devolved national public bodies. There is no requirement to maintaining financial records of devolved national public bodies as far back as 1999, therefore, this information is not held centrally. The na…
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to charities supporting families to prevent family breakdown.
Answer · Natalie Don: The Scottish Government wants children to grow up loved, safe and respected and to fulfil their potential, and our third sector partners play a critical role in achieving this. We are providing over £34 million to a wide range of third sector organisations …
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many patients have been referred by NHS Scotland for private surgery in other parts of UK in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not hold this information and it is not collected by Public Health Scotland.
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what recent representations ministers have made to public bodies regarding the pausing of public debt collection.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Scottish Ministers continue to encourage public bodies to share good practice on debt assistance and collection and to show empathy and dignity when working with people struggling with debt. At a recent meeting of the ‘Joint Working Group on Sourcing of Local…
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the current levels of public debt in the public sector.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Every Public Body publishes an Annual Report and Accounts which will include details of amounts owed to them. These annual accounts will normally be available online on the website of the individual organisation. The Scottish Government continues to support …
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) local authority and (b) private care homes have closed in each local authority area in each year since 1999.
Answer · Maree Todd: This information is not held centrally and is a matter for the Care Inspectorate (CI). The CI does not hold data in relation to care homes that have closed, however information on cancelled services is publicly available on the CI website: https://www.care…
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many local authorities have written off school meal debt in each year since 1999.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The information you have requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government as the management of debt is an issue for education authorities and their finance departments. The Scottish Government is aware, however, that Glasgow City Council announced …
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on implementing split payments of welfare benefits to families in Scotland.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government remains committed to using our limited powers in this area to make Universal Credit more accessible and fairer for people in Scotland. Universal Credit is reserved to the UK Government and delivery of split payments is therefore depen…
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Target Ovarian Cancer’s new report, Pathfinder Scotland: Faster, further, and fairer, which found that 44% of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer were never asked about the impact of their treatment on their mental health, what action is currently being taken to ensure that …
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government aims to ensure that the mental, social and physical needs of all those diagnosed with cancer are considered equal. In 2022 the Cancer Prehabilitation Implementation Steering Group oversaw the publication of the Psychological Therapie…
11 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Target Ovarian Cancer's recent report, Pathfinder Scotland: Faster, further, and fairer, what steps it is taking to address the reported variation in (a) survival and (b) access to surgery.
Answer · Jenni Minto: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-17748 on 18 May 2023. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/…
10 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government's proposed "immediate justice" approach to antisocial behaviour, which will reportedly require people who vandalise public spaces to repair the damage within 48 hours of being given an order, whether it is considering introducing similar measures in Scot…
Answer · Siobhian Brown: The Scottish Government condemns all acts of antisocial behaviour, including vandalism, and we believe that our focus should be on preventing these crimes from occurring in the first place. There are currently a number of provisions contained in the Criminal…
9 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the current prevalence of coeliac disease is, and what plans it has to tackle any (a) under-diagnosis and (b) delayed diagnosis of the condition.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Modernising Patient Pathway Programme Coeliac Disease Pathway Test of Change Final Report, September 2020 estimates that the incidence of diagnosed Coeliac Disease is 1% of the population in Scotland with 7-8 people remaining undiagnosed for every person …
9 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with (a) Coeliac UK and (b) other patient representatives regarding any challenges in relation to the under-diagnosis of coeliac disease.
Answer · Jenni Minto: In 2018, a new national evidence-based pathway for coeliac disease was launched across four health boards (NHS Lothian, NHS Lanarkshire, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Tayside). It was funded by Scottish Government’s Modernising Patient Pathways Progra…
9 May 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to mark Coeliac Awareness Week, which runs from 15 to 21 May 2023, and what strategies it has in place to raise awareness of the condition.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government welcomes the work of organisations like Coeliac UK who are already undertaking communications work to increase awareness and knowledge of coeliac disease. We supported their messaging on Coeliac awareness week by sharing their twitter …
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making towards reviewing its guidance, The Right Tree in the Right Place, in line with the fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4), and in light of the importance of tree cover for climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: ‘The Right Tree in the Right Place: Planning for Forestry and Woodlands Guidance’ provides Scottish Government advice to planning authorities on planning for forestry and woodlands. It supports Scottish Ministers’ desire to see a significant expansion in wood…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) boys and (b) girls have been referred for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessment in each of the last 10 years.
Answer · Maree Todd: There is no reliable data held or published which we can refer to answer this question: 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…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many households have received a council tax reduction in each year since 1999, also broken down by local authority area.
Answer · Tom Arthur: Monthly statistics on the number of Council Tax Reduction recipients since the scheme’s commencement in April 2013 are available at Council Tax Reduction: local authority tables and charts - April 2013 to February 2023 - (www.gov.scot) . March 2023 data wil…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many BASRiS or DS1500 forms have been issued in each year since 1999, also broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Social Security Scotland does not keep statistics on the total number of BASRiS [Benefits Assessment under Special Rules in Scotland] forms issued or the number received but does publish statistics regularly on the caseload of clients who were eligible for di…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-12594 by Màiri McAllan on 9 December 2022, what progress it is making towards developing a new National Register of Ancient Woodlands, and when it anticipates that work will be completed.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Bute House Agreement includes a commitment to further protect Scotland’s ancient woods through establishing a National Register of Ancient Woodlands. We are discussing with NatureScot and Scottish Forestry the best approach to developing a new National Re…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to undertake a campaign to promote uptake of benefits and support schemes available through Social Security Scotland.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: A key principle at the heart of our second Benefit Take-Up Strategy, published in October 2021, is communicating and engaging effectively. Evidence-based communication and engagement strategies are developed for each of our benefits and paid-for tailored mark…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its commitment to end care charges by 2026, whether it will provide an update on when it plans to end social care charges, in light of calls to speed up the process of ending care charges.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government remains committed to removing non-residential charges for social care within the lifetime of this Parliament.
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on which local authorities currently charge for technology-enabled care equipment.
Answer · Maree Todd: I can confirm that 28 of 32 local authorities charge citizens for technology-enabled care equipment as part of their telecare services. The Data collated in 2022 also identified that charges range from £1.48 to £8.40 per week for telecare. An annual survey t…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates that the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry will report.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: As a statutory inquiry, The Edinburgh Tram Inquiry is independent of the Scottish Government. Questions concerning the conclusion of the inquiry, including its timeline, are a matter for the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry team and Lord Hardie. We are aware of the u…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which of its public grant schemes are currently closed to applications.
Answer · Tom Arthur: Scottish Government guidance on grant giving requires that all grants be completed by default. Therefore, at any one time, there can be a large amount of grants available, all at different stages of their operational cycle. Each grant fund is managed by a spe…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on reimbursement for the cost of medical equipment in people’s homes (a) in total and (b) in each year, since 1999, also broken down by NHS board area.
Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government does not hold this information, however, it may be available from local Health Boards.
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review the eligibility criteria for receiving Carer's Allowance Supplement.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Carer’s Allowance Supplement is a temporary measure to increase support for unpaid carers in Scotland in receipt of Carer’s Allowance until the Scottish replacement for Carer’s Allowance is in place. We have reviewed the eligibility criteria for the Carer…
28 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to ensure that all public services are carer positive.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government’s National Carers Strategy (December 2022) sets out our cross-government approach to carer support and recognition, including through collaboration with different partners spanning local government, the Third Sector, the NHS and the …
24 Apr 2023 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what impact assessment it has undertaken regarding any reductions to core funding allocations in its Budget for third sector organisations.
19 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the work it commissioned with the agency, The Lines Between, which resulted in the report, Scottish Government Pain Management Panel, published in November 2022, what the total costs and expenses were for setting up the panel and holding the panel's meetings; how much was paid…
Answer · Jenni Minto: In summer 2022, Scottish Government commissioned a social research company, The Lines Between, to recruit and engage a diverse cross-section of people with chronic pain across Scotland. The Lines Between were selected by means of a competitive Invitation to T…
19 Apr 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has used Facebook as part of any health projects to recruit people as paid patient representatives for particular conditions, and, if so, for which projects it did this, and which conditions the representatives had.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government has not used Facebook to recruit paid patient representatives for any health projects.