Neil Findlay

9 Apr 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many NHS Lothian orthopaedic patients have been waiting (a) 12 weeks to six months, (b) six months to one year and (c) more than one year to be seen. 

Answer · Shona Robison: The information requested is provided in the following tables. I recognise some patients in Lothian are experiencing long waits including in the specialty of orthopaedics, that is why I have made £50 million available to NHSScotland in 2017-18 - with up to £…

29 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the impact on a person's life of mesh injuries as a result of treatment for stress urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse or hernia, and whether it will support the UK Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health by writing to the Department for Work and…

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government sympathises with anyone who has suffered complications after receiving a mesh implant. It is imperative that any such patient receives the follow-up care they need, and that is why the Scottish Government and NHS Scotland continue to d…

29 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency not issuing a medical device alert or publishing information for patients reflecting concerns regarding mesh implants, whether it will write to all women who have an implant to provide the most up-to-date information, i…

Answer · Shona Robison: Given the concerns associated with the use of transvaginal mesh, the Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that information about symptoms and different options for care is available, both to patients and to healthcare professionals. However, the Scott…

29 Mar 2018 · SPCB Written Question

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body which of its services that were provided by external contractors in each of the last 10 years have subsequently been taken in-house; what analysis it has made of the impact that each change had on the (a) level of service provided and (b) cost of providing the service, …

Answer · Kezia Dugdale: Three services were brought in-house in the last 10 years: 1. Guided Tours – brought in-house in 2009 Guided tours started with the opening of the Scottish Parliament building in 2004 and a contract was awarded to an external organisation to provide a team …

29 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that NHS waiting times for (a) outpatient appointments and (b) A&E departments are recorded accurately.

Answer · Shona Robison: As a recognised producer of Official Statistics in Scotland, ISD works to the Code of Practice for Official Statistics which is maintained by the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA). NHS Boards are responsible for ensuring local administrative systems and data re…

29 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that patients in the NHS Lothian area have been told they will have to wait up to 44 weeks for an orthopaedics outpatient appointment.

Answer · Shona Robison: I recognise that orthopaedic patients in Lothian are experiencing waits which are too long for orthopaedic outpatient appointments. This is unacceptable in a patient-centred NHS. We made £50 million available to NHSScotland in 2017-18 - with £7.4 million bein…

29 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients have missed the recommended 12-week outpatient appointment standard in (a) NHS Lothian and (b) the rest of the country in the last year.

Answer · Shona Robison: Information on waiting times is published quarterly by ISD and can be accessed at: https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Waiting-Times/Publications/

8 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many GP practices in the NHS Lothian area used locums in each of the last three years.

Answer · Shona Robison: Practices that responded to the biennial Primary Care Workforce Survey in 2015 and 2017 were asked if practices needed to recruit a locum/sessional GP during the years ending, 31 August 2015 and 31 August 2017 respectively. The responses are as follows. In 20…

8 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average weekly payment is to locum GPs, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Shona Robison: There is no set rate for a locum. Locums are self-employed and can agree their own rates. Boards and practices cannot combine to set a rate for locums either nationally or locally. The Scottish Government, through the Statement of Financial Entitlement, direc…

7 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report in The Times on 8 March 2018 that there is "a culture of neglect" at Tippethill Hospital; whether it was aware of these allegations prior to the report and, if so, (a) when it was informed and (b) whether the families of patients have been informed of N…

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is not automatically notified of whistle blowing incidents. The Health & Social Care Partnership has operational responsibility for the Community Hospital and worked in partnership with NHS Lothian from the outset of the complaints bei…

7 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the report in The Times on 8 March 2018 that there is "a culture of neglect" at Tippethill Hospital, whether it is aware of similar allegations regarding other NHS facilities and, if so, (a) which and (b) what action it is taking to (i) address these and (ii) prevent these h…

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is not automatically notified of whistleblowing allegations but is grateful to all whistleblowers who raise concerns. It is vitally important that staff feel they can raise any concerns they may have about patient safety and malpracti…

5 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recent bad weather, what advice was issued by its departments or agencies from 28 February to 2 March 2018 to employees or contractors regarding deliveries of goods relating to Scottish Government contracts.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government issued clear and consistent advice throughout the period of adverse weather, explaining that everyone should follow Police Scotland travel advice. The Scottish Business Resilience Centre also issued separate travel advice to industry a…

5 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many of its departments or agencies, including their contractors, had HGV vehicles on the road on 28 February or 1 or 2 March 2018.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government has two Directorates that have an HGV; The Marine Scotland HGV was not on the road on 28 February or 1 or 2 March 2018. The ARE Stud Farm HGV was out on 2 March. It left Inverness at 1300 and travelled west to Uig, Skye and then by fer…

5 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many of its departments or agencies issued their staff travel advice on 28 February or 1 or 2 March 2018; how many urged their staff not to travel but advised them they would still be paid; when any advice was issued, and whether it will publish this advice.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government issued a number of staff communications over the period 28 February to 2 March in relation to the extreme weather which advised staff to keep up to date with weather warnings from the Met Office for their area and to follow Police Scot…

1 Mar 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will urgently publish the reported 25 areas of disagreement between the Scottish Government and UK Government in relation to the EU withdrawal bill.

Answer · Michael Russell: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-14824 on 13 March 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/parliamentarybusiness/…

28 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many active golf club members there have been in each of the last 10 years, and what the average club membership fee has been; what analysis it has carried out of how the Barclay Review recommendations on non-domestic rates might impact on fees and c…

Answer · Aileen Campbell: Comparable data is only held following the amalgamation of the Scottish Golf Union Limited and Scottish Ladies' Golfing Association Limited in 2015, golf club membership in Scotland has therefore been as follows:  Financial Year Total Playing Membership Sc…

26 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many modern apprentices are employed in the (a) Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service and (b) Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, broken down by location.

Answer · James Wolffe QC: (a) SCTS currently employ 5 members of staff on a Modern Apprentice programme, at the following locations.   Location Headcount Headquarters 3 Office of the Public Guardian 1 Forfar Sheriff and Justice of the Peace Courts 1 Total 5 (b) COPFS curre…

26 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many modern apprentices it employs, broken down by location.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: As of 27 February 2018 the Scottish Government employs 160 Modern Apprentices. We do not record Modern Apprentices location as they, and other staff, may work within specific Scottish Government Departments and Agencies, but are based in different locations …

21 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what declaration Balfour Beatty has made regarding any previous blacklisting of construction workers when it has completed pre-tendering questionnaires.

Answer · Keith Brown: Despite employment law being a reserved matter, the Scottish Government has gone further than any other part of the UK to help eradicate blacklisting from public contracts. The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 and the Procurement (Scotland) Regul…

21 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it awarded Balfour Beatty a long-term contract worth £125 million to manage and maintain major trunk roads in south west Scotland and, if so, for what reason.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government has not awarded a contract directly to Balfour Beatty to manage and maintain major trunk roads in the south west of Scotland. However, in 2013 Transport Scotland awarded the Fourth Generation (4G) Term Maintenance and Management Contra…

19 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many procurators fiscal have been employed by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) Health and Safety Division in each year since 2009.

Answer · James Wolffe QC: The Health and Safety Division (a specialist unit within the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service) was created in October 2008. The Division grew steadily from 2009 to 2014. There were 6 legal members of staff in 2009, 8 in 2010, 10 in 2011, 9 in 2012, …

19 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) Health and Safety Division has considered for prosecution under its corporate homicide legislation in each year since 2009, and how many subsequent (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions there were.

Answer · James Wolffe QC: COPFS Health and Safety Division lead the investigation and prosecution of all potential cases under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007. Its staff provide advice, support and (in the case of Police Scotland) direction to investigators …

19 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review its corporate homicide legislation, and what its response is to concerns that statistics suggest that the current law is ineffective.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 (“the 2007 Act”) is reserved legislation brought forward by the then UK Government. The legislation provides for corporate liability where the way an organisation’s activities are managed or organised…

15 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £500 million package of support for private sector businesses, which was announced in its Programme for Government, has been spent, broken down by the (a) type of business supported and (b) average amount of support given.

Answer · Derek Mackay: To date £25.7m has been invested in 28 companies under the Scottish Growth Scheme. The type of businesses supported will tend to be young innovative technology based companies, a breakdown of these investments is as follows:Textiles 1 Financial Services 1 En…

14 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Essure contraceptive implant has been withdrawn from the market at any time and, if so, (a) on what dates, (b) for what reason and (c) how many women underwent the procedure for an implant during this time.

Answer · Shona Robison: In August 2017 Bayer announced that Essure's CE mark had been temporarily suspended, stressing that this development was unrelated to product safety or quality. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) subsequently announced, in Septembe…

14 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many women in each NHS board area have been given an Essure contraceptive implant, and how many have subsequently reported health concerns, which they suspected could be related to the implant.

Answer · Shona Robison: According to Health Board records, just under 700 women received an Essure contraceptive implant from four Health Boards in Scotland, though no Health Board now offers the device following its withdrawal from market. Whilst for confidentiality reasons a pre…

6 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the outcome of the Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Framework Third Sector Funding Programme will be announced.

Answer · Aileen Campbell: All grant applicants to the funding programme were notified of the outcome of the assessment process by 16 February 2018. The list of successful organisations and projects will be published before the end of this financial year.

2 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to share with the Parliament its analysis of the scope and process for agreeing joint legislative or policy frameworks following the UK’s exit from the EU.

Answer · Michael Russell: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-14347 on 21 February 2018. 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/parliamentarybusines…

2 Feb 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to consult the Parliament regarding its work with the UK Government regarding the scope and process for agreeing joint legislative or policy frameworks following the UK’s exit from the EU.

Answer · Michael Russell: The Government welcomed the interim report of the Finance and Constitution Committee on the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, including its observation that the process for the agreement of common frameworks must be transparent and inclusive. As noted in that report, I h…

31 Jan 2018 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what contracts (a) it, (b) its agencies and (c) the Scottish Futures Trust has or has had with Capita, broken down by (i) the value of the contract, (ii) the date the contract was signed and (iii) the date the contract was or is expected to be completed.

Answer · Keith Brown: Gathering information on the date contracts were signed could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost as it would require the search of historical databases, hard-copy archives and individual contractual agreements, therefore the start date, which is held…