Parliamentary questions
Anas Sarwar
601 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
5 Mar 2018 · First Minister's Question
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to figures that show black and Asian people in Scotland are more likely to be stopped and searched.
28 Feb 2018 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it takes to ensure that people with a violent or threatening past do not work directly with vulnerable patients in health and social care settings.
27 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the levels and adequacy of short-term mobility aids provision.
Answer · Shona Robison: This is a matter for individual Integration Authorities, Local Authorities and NHS Boards along with relevant partners. The Scottish Government does not collect information on the specific types of equipment or adaptations provided. The Scottish Government i…
27 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government which (a) health and social care partnerships and (b) NHS boards provide wheelchair loans to people with short-term mobility needs.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally. This is a matter for individual Integration Authorities, Local Authorities and NHS Boards along with relevant partners.
8 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of a fast-track crisis grant fund for reunited refugee families.
Answer · Angela Constance: The Scottish Government has been working with Glasgow City Council, the British Red Cross and COSLA to develop the Family Reunion Crisis Grant Fund, which will provide support for refugee families arriving in Scotland under family reunion rules during their f…
7 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many positions that have been offered by hospitals to doctors living outwith the UK in each of the last three years remain unfilled due to visa refusals, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Shona Robison: Immigration powers are reserved to the UK Government and visa refusal data is therefore held by the Home Office. The Scottish Government is aware that the visa cap set for Tier 2 (General) visas has recently been reached for the third month in a row. Scottish…
1 Feb 2018 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that the NHS gets best value for new medicines.
Answer · Shona Robison: In Scotland we have a clear and consistent route for licensed medicines to be appraised through the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC). The SMC do this based on clinical and cost-effectiveness at a national population level for all Scotland.
11 Dec 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many asylum seekers accessed antenatal classes in each of the last three years.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: This information is not held centrally. The Scottish Government have worked with NHS Boards to improve early access to antenatal services and have created a Local Delivery Plan Standard to help drive improvement. The standard states that at least 80% of preg…
22 Nov 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the average cost per day is of keeping a person in hospital who has been medically cleared for discharge.
Answer · Shona Robison: Information on the cost of delayed discharge is published in the annual delayed discharge publication. The most recent published figures are for 2013-14 (£214) and are available from last year’s annual publication: https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/He…
15 Nov 2017 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making on NHS recruitment.
Answer · Shona Robison: Under this government, NHS staff numbers have risen to historically high levels, with more clinical staff now delivering excellent care for the people of Scotland. Our record investment of over £13 billion has supported a significant increase in staffing leve…
7 Nov 2017 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much the integration of British Transport Police in Scotland into Police Scotland will cost.
2 Oct 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that all primary care staff are aware of the rights and entitlements of asylum seekers and refugees.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government believe everyone should have equal access to health care and treatment, regardless of race, gender, social class, age, religion, sexual orientation, appearance, disability or medical condition, and that staff should be provided with th…
2 Oct 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much of the additional £150 million investment in mental health services, which was announced in the Mental Health Strategy 2017-2027, will be allocated to specialist services for asylum seekers and refugees.
Answer · Maureen Watt: £4.6 million for Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) to work with Boards. £10 million supporting new ways of improving mental health in primary care. £15 million supporting better access to CAMHS and innovation. £1 million supporting people become more …
2 Oct 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that all asylum seekers and refugees can access specialist mental health support services in each NHS area.
Answer · Maureen Watt: Our 10-year Mental Health Strategy was published on 30 March, and sets out our vision of a Scotland where people can get the right help at the right time, expect recovery, and fully enjoy their rights, free from discrimination and stigma. The Scottish Govern…
20 Sep 2017 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with the GP contract.
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-09920 by Aileen Campbell on 18 July 2017, for what reason the information on pain psychology services was not included in the summary, and whether this was at its request.
Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-10183 on 26 July 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…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-09920 by Aileen Campbell on 18 July 2017, whether it considers providing the information on Excel tables rather than the previous method of a summary of statistics is an open and transparent approach that assists non-experts, laypeople and people us…
Answer · Aileen Campbell: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-10182 on 26 July 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…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on conducting an audit of the care received by stroke patients beyond the first 72 hours to assess the longer-term outcomes for them and the requirements for their care.
Answer · Shona Robison: Stroke rehabilitation sprint audits have been conducted as part of the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme (SSIP) report, published on 11 July. The Rehab Sprint Audit is focussed on 4 key criteria; Assessment by AHP by 4th day of hospital admission; Multid…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the longest wait was for a brain scan in 2016-17 for a patient diagnosed with a stroke, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Shona Robison: In 2016 the Scottish Stroke Care Standard for brain scanning was made more challenging – 95%, rather than 90%, of patients to have a brain scan within 24 hours of admission. In 2016, 93% of patients across Scotland with a final diagnosis of stroke had a brain…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the NHS workforce identifies as being disabled, and how this compares to the proportion of disabled people in the wider population.
Answer · Shona Robison: NHSScotland Workforce Statistics, as at 31 March 2017, show that 0.8% of respondents have self-declared as living with a disability. It is not known how many respondents declined to answer. Further information is available at the linked table: https://www.isd…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of it being included in previous years, for what reason the most recent Scottish Stroke Care Improvement Report did not contain a section in which the CEO of each NHS board commented on their local stroke provision.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Stroke Care Improvement Report, is reviewed yearly, and contains different aspects from year to year. We continually look to enhance the report by focussing on different aspects of stroke care. Following feedback from a variety of sources it is p…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of stroke patients (a) overall and (b) in each NHS board received a brain scan within the 24-hour post-diagnosis target in 2016-17, also broken down the by the proportion of the patients that were given the scan within the target time in (i) less than four, (ii) four to e…
Answer · Shona Robison: In 2016 the Scottish Stroke Care Standard for brain scanning was made more challenging – 95%, rather than 90% of patients to have a brain scan within 24 hours of admission. In 2016, 93% of patients across Scotland with a final diagnosis of stroke had a brain …
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to encourage disabled people to work in the health and social care sector.
Answer · Shona Robison: Through a number of initiatives, such as the Professional Careers Programme, we are actively supporting individuals living with a disability to realise their ambitions of working for the NHS in Scotland. This programme, developed in partnership between the Sc…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action each NHS board is taking to increase the (a) recruitment, (b) retention and (c) development of disabled people in its workforce.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government and NHS Scotland actively promote employment for individuals living with a disability within the NHS workforce; this is underpinned by fair and inclusive recruitment policies, supported by clear and unequivocal Staff Governance Standar…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action each NHS board is taking to increase the (a) recruitment, (b) retention and (c) development of black and minority ethnic (BME) people in its workforce.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government and NHS Scotland actively promote the participation of traditionally underrepresented groups within the NHS workforce; this is underpinned by fair and inclusive recruitment policies, supported by clear and unequivocal Staff Governance …
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the NHS workforce identifies as black and minority ethnic (BME), and how this compares to the proportion of BME people in the wider population.
Answer · Shona Robison: NHSScotland Workforce Statistics, as at 31 March 2017, show where staff provided data on their ethnic background, that 3.0% of respondents identify as belonging to a ‘Non-White’ ethnic group. 18% declared ‘Not Known’ and 13.2% of respondents declined to answe…
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to encourage black and minority ethnic (BME) people to work in the health and social care sector.
Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is determined to show leadership in advancing race equality in Scotland. Through the Race Equality Framework we have identified a number of actions to promote the participation of traditionally underrepresented groups in all arenas of …
24 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many times the Report of Independent Advisory Group on Hate Crime, Prejudice and Community Cohesion uses the term (a) “Islamophobia” and (b) “anti-Muslim acts”.
Answer · Kevin Stewart: On page 6, the report notes that "within the associated report on religiously aggravated crime, the number of charges relating to Islam has increased 89% to 134 charges, from the 71 recorded charges last year. This increase is not attributable to a single eve…
18 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what programme is in place for training neuroradiologists to carry out mechanical thrombectomy treatment; how many are being trained, broken down by when this training will be completed, and what impact this will have on the number of acute ischaemic stroke patients who will receive trea…
Answer · Aileen Campbell: For training to provide Thrombectomy for Stroke (TfS) the established pathway is for a trainee to move from general radiology to sub-speciality neuroradiology training, to sub-speciality training in diagnostics and finally to interventional neuroradiology pro…
13 Jul 2017 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many consultant (a) radiologist and (b) interventional neuroradiologist vacancies there have been in each of the last six months.
Answer · Shona Robison: Information on consultant vacancies is published at quarterly intervals by ISD Scotland. Monthly vacancy information may be available from individual NHS Boards. Vacancy information for: a) consultants with a specialty of clinical radiology is available at …