David Torrance

19 Jan 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is working with Police Scotland to tackle cyber crime.

12 Jan 2022 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many families in the Kirkcaldy constituency have received the new Scottish Child Payment.

22 Dec 2021 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it has provided to hospitality businesses to help mitigate the impact of Brexit.

Answer · Ivan McKee: We are working with sectors on an economy wide basis to help navigate the predictable consequences of leaving the EU. The hospitality sector, like many sectors who have employed EU nationals as a benefit of free movement, is experiencing recruitment and rete…

8 Dec 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action has been taken on the use of mesh in hernia repair.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: In February 2018, the then-Chief Medical Officer wrote to NHS Scotland Medical Directors about public interest in the use of mesh implants, including in hernia repair. Medical Directors were asked to ensure that clinicians offer patients all appropriate optio…

29 Nov 2021 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its discussions with Optometry Scotland regarding the request for a fee uplift and regular yearly review of fees, and the anticipated timeframe for a mutually agreeable settlement to be reached.

Answer · Maree Todd: I am pleased to confirm that, after due consideration, the Scottish Government will make an offer to Optometry Scotland regarding a 3% uplift to General Ophthalmic Services fees for the year 2021/22, backdated to 1 April 2021, as well as a commitment to conti…

10 Nov 2021 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to emphasise the harmful effects of tobacco as part of its aim to reduce smoking and protect public health.

25 Oct 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government what further financial support will be made available to NHS boards and integration authorities in responding to COVID-19 in 2021-22.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Following the allocation of £2.1 billion provided to date to NHS Boards and Integration Authorities to support additional COVID-19 costs, a further £482 million is now being provided to NHS Boards and Integration Authorities in 2021-22 to meet ongoing costs a…

29 Sep 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the principles and commitments that support the care for people with long COVID.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: In line with our Programme for Government commitment, the paper outlining the principles and commitments that underpin our care and support for people with long COVID has been published today, 30 September 2021. This is available on the Scottish Government we…

15 Sep 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the reported labour shortages being faced by food producers in Scotland following Brexit.

31 Aug 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what importance it places on recognising and addressing the societal issues that contribute to poor mental health.

2 Jul 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government what financial support will be made available to NHS Boards in responding to COVID-19 in 2021-22.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Additional funding of £1.08 billion has been confirmed through the Scottish Budget for health and care for 2021-22 to support the response to the pandemic. From this, the Scottish Government is providing an initial £380 million to NHS Boards in 2021-22 to me…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have received a medical prescription since charges for these began to be phased out in 2008.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Information on number of patients receiving prescriptions prior to April 2009 is not available centrally since Community Health Index (CHI) numbers were not widely recorded in the prescribing systems at that time. Consequently, patient numbers cannot be calcu…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have received a free bus pass since 2007-08, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The National Concessionary Travel Scheme provides eligible applicants free bus travel through the National Entitlement Card (NEC). The Improvement Service is responsible for the management of the NEC, the application process and provides overall governance f…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have received free personal and nursing care since the policy was introduced.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Official statistics confirming the number of individuals who have received free personal and nursing care since 2008-09 are shown in the table below. Individuals may receive care across both settings within the same year and/ or receive care across in either…

11 Mar 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many students from Scotland have received free university tuition since 2007-08.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: Analysis of data from the Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) shows that almost 600,000 higher education students have benefited from free tuition between 2007-08 and 2019-20. Information on the number of students benefitting from free tuition each year ca…

3 Mar 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to conserve and grow Scotland’s natural assets.

24 Feb 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking following the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency's (MHRA) review of the use of UK plasma for fractionation.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has advised Ministers that, following its detailed review in 2020, the Commission on Human Medicines has recommended that UK plasma can be used for production of immunoglobulin medicines as they are sati…

24 Feb 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much the finance secretary has allocated to support outdoor education centres during the COVID-19 pandemic.

10 Feb 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it gives to the development of new railway infrastructure.

9 Feb 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether there are any plans to further develop the Protect Scotland app.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Close to 2 million people have already downloaded Protect Scotland, and almost 40,000 users have been advised to self-isolate by the app. However, due to the anonymous nature of the app to date those who have only been asked to self-isolate via the app – and …

3 Feb 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to coastal communities to mitigate the impact of climate change and reduce the risk of flooding.

27 Jan 2021 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work being carried out to support the health and wellbeing of Scotland’s health and social care workforce at this time.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The Scottish Government is very grateful to all health and care staff for their hard work, commitment and professionalism over the Covid-19 response. As we outlined on 22 January, the Scottish Government is pleased to be able to make £500,000 available to Bo…

5 Jan 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports the design of new and innovative projects that can help to tackle climate change.

16 Dec 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how important it considers grassroots-level sport is to the health and wellbeing of communities.

9 Dec 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact it considers the UK Internal Market Bill will have in Scotland on food standards, environmental standards and public health policies such as minimum unit pricing.

2 Dec 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its progress in meeting its target of achieving net-zero emissions of all greenhouse gases by 2045.

18 Nov 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is giving to small and medium-sized businesses facing difficulty as a result of the pandemic.

4 Nov 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what further funding it will allocate to support the regeneration of high streets and encourage footfall, in light of the rise in online shopping due to COVID-19.

29 Oct 2020 · Inspired Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the next set of Action 15 recruitment figures will be published.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The most recent recruitment figures were published on the Scottish Government website ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/mental-health-workers-quarterly-performance-reports/ ) on 19 October. This sets out the number of Whole Time Equivalent posts recruited…

21 Sep 2020 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that no fabrication work for the Seagreen offshore wind farm project has been awarded to BiFab.