Parliamentary questions
Donald Cameron
1,854 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on how many occasions in each year since 2016 the number of medically-trained NHS 24 call handlers has fallen below any minimum number that are required to be on shift at any given time.
Answer · Michael Matheson: There is no minimum required number of medically-trained NHS 24 call handlers, as call handlers are classed as healthcare support workers and are not medically trained. Call handlers operate under clinical supervision at all times with a minimum level of one…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 53.85% for Geriatric Medicine ST4 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall, more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record. 14 posts were advertised in Geriatric Medicine at ST4 level and 7 (or 50%) filled successfully. These figures are accurate as of 25 July and pertain only to the initial recr…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 95.45% for Obstetrics and Gynaecology ST1 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). 95.45% is a very high fill rate for Obstetrics and Gynaecology ST1 in rounds 1 and 2 of 2023 recruitment. Within that context there will al…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 0% for Paediatric and Perinatal Pathology ST3 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). Within that overall context there will always be a number of posts which do not fill. Paediatric and Perinatal Pathology ST3 is a small spe…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 50% for Oral and Maxillo Facial Surgery ST3 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). Within that overall context there will always be a number of posts which do not fill. Oral and Maxillo Facial Surgery ST3 is a small specia…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 57.14% for Palliative Medicine ST4 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Overall, more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record. 8 posts were advertised in Palliative Medicine at ST4 level and 4 (or 50%) filled successfully. These figures are accurate as of 25 July and pertain only to the initial recr…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 95% for Intensive Care Medicine ST3 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). 95% is a very high fill rate for Intensive Care Medicine ST3 in rounds 1 and 2 of 2023 recruitment. Within that context there will always b…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many different funding formulas it uses to distribute money to (a) local authorities and (b) NHS boards, and how many of these formulas explicitly take rurality into account.
Answer · Michael Matheson: (a) For Local Authorities there were 140 separate lines in the funding formula being used in the consultation process for the 2024-25 revenue settlement. Twenty-six lines specifically use rurality-related indicators, though about 120 of the lines attract extr…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it sets a requirement for a minimum number of medically-trained NHS 24 call handlers to be on shift at any given time, and, if so, whether it will provide details of this.
Answer · Michael Matheson: There is no minimum required number of medically-trained NHS 24 call handlers. NHS 24 call handlers operate under clinical supervision at all times with a minimum level of one clinical supervisor for every five call handlers on shift. Each call has clinical…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there has been a 37% increase in the budget for Scotland House in London between 2023-24 and 2024-25, as set out in the 2024-25 Scottish Budget.
Answer · Angus Robertson: The increase in operational budgets of overseas offices in 2024-25 predominantly reflects how running costs for Scotland House London are attributed from a budgeting perspective as well as a minor amendment to IFRS 16 adjustments, and does not reflect an incr…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 87.5% for Combined Infection Training ST4 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). 87.5% is a very high fill rate for Combined Infection Training ST4 in rounds 1 and 2 of 2023 recruitment. Within that context there will al…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there has been an overall increase of £820,000 in the operational budgets of all of its overseas offices between 2023-24 and 2024-25, as set out in the 2024-25 Scottish Budget.
Answer · Angus Robertson: I refer the Member to the answer to question S6W-24197 on 19 January 2024. 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-committ…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 0% for Occupational Medicine ST3 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023).Within that overall context there will always be a number of posts which do not fill. Occupational Medicine ST3 is a small specialty with on…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 97.14% for Anaesthetics ST4 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). 97.14% is a very high fill rate for Anaesthetics ST4 in rounds 1 and 2 of 2023 recruitment. Within that context there will always be a smal…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 0% for Genitourinary Medicine ST4 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). Within that overall context there will always be a number of posts which do not fill. Genitourinary Medicine ST4 is a small specialty with …
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what investment it has made to grow rail freight capacity in each year since 2016.
Answer · Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government’s leadership in support for rail freight is outlined in our rail freight strategy and put into practice with significant investment and our first of a kind innovative regulatory growth targets. Benefits for rail freight are included in…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether Forestry and Land Scotland will review its proposed forestry car parking charges in light of the proposed uplift in the agency's budget, as set out in the 2024-25 Scottish Budget.
Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The 2024-25 Scottish Budget settlement for Forestry and Land Scotland does not impact the use of car park charges at sites on Scotland’s national forests and land as part of the agency’s sustainable forest and visitor management strategy.
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-09337 by Mairi McAllan on 15 July 2022, for what reason it did not consult on its Scottish Seabird Conservation Strategy in 2022, and whether it will provide an update on when it will consult on the strategy.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government is committed to the development of a Scottish Seabird Conservation Strategy in partnership with stakeholders, to drive forward and prioritise action aimed at improving the conservation prospects of our internationally important seabird…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there was a fill rate of 0% for Rehabilitation Medicine ST3 in the 2023 recruitment round 1 and 2 for the NHS, and what action it is taking to improve this fill rate.
Answer · Michael Matheson: Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). Within that overall context there will always be a number of posts which do not fill. Rehabilitation Medicine ST3 is a small specialty with…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of any performance payments that VisitScotland has awarded to staff at executive level in each year since its creation.
Answer · Richard Lochhead: VisitScotland pay all staff in line with the Scottish Government pay guidelines. HR records cover the past six years, these are stored in line with legal requirements of employee record keeping. VisitScotland’s digitised annual accounts published on VisitSco…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government for how much funding was provided through the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme to repair small scale wind turbines in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.
Answer · Gillian Martin: No funding was offered through the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) for the repair of small scale wind turbines in 2022 and 2023. In 2022 and 2023, CARES funding has mainly focussed on decarbonising community buildings and supporting off-electri…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many Historic Environment Scotland sites (a) are earmarked for closure and (b) will receive a decrease in funding over the next 12 months.
Answer · Christina McKelvie: Questions regarding day-to-day operational matters of Historic Environment Scotland are best answered directly by Historic Environment Scotland. I have asked Historic Environment Scotland to respond directly to the member with a reply to his question in writ…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many online clicks its paper, Citizenship in an independent Scotland, received in its first month following publication, broken down by (a) main paper, (b) easy read version, (c) each individual language version and (d) audio version.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: We have previously answered two FOIs on website visits to the Building a New Scotland Papers:Unique online visitor statistics: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) Building a New Scotland webpage visitors: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) Paper title:…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-19768 by Christina McKelvie on 7 July 2023, whether it will provide an updated breakdown of any performance payments that Historic Environment Scotland has awarded to staff at executive level in 2023.
Answer · Christina McKelvie: As stated in my answer to question S6W-19768 given previously, no such payments have been made since the establishment of Historic Environment Scotland in 2015. Scottish Government pay policy for public bodies has not permitted performance-related payments fo…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many complaints have been made to Historic Environment Scotland in 2023, and how many of those complaints were (a) successfully and (b) unsuccessfully resolved.
Answer · Christina McKelvie: Questions regarding day-to-day operational matters of Historic Environment Scotland are best answered directly by Historic Environment Scotland. I have asked Historic Environment Scotland to respond directly to the member with a reply to his question in writ…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many online clicks its paper, Migration to Scotland after independence, received in its first month following publication, broken down by (a) main paper, (b) easy read version, (c) each individual language version and (d) audio version.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: We have previously answered two FOIs on website visits to the Building a New Scotland Papers:Unique online visitor statistics: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) Building a New Scotland webpage visitors: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) Paper title:…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many events have been hosted by (a) Nicola Sturgeon and (b) Humza Yousaf in Bute House in 2023, and whether it will provide a breakdown of the costs of each event.
Answer · George Adam: Both Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf hosted 3 events each at Bute House in 2023. All Ministerial engagements are published here: Ministerial engagements, travel and gifts - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . The following table shows the total costs for each event…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many sites that are managed by Historic Environment Scotland and its predecessor agencies have been (a) open, (b) temporarily closed and (c) permanently closed in 2023.
Answer · Christina McKelvie: Questions regarding day-to-day operational matters of Historic Environment Scotland are best answered directly by Historic Environment Scotland. I have asked Historic Environment Scotland to respond directly to the member with a reply to his question in writ…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many online clicks its paper, Independence in the Modern World. Wealthier, Happier, Fairer: Why Not Scotland?, received in its first month following publication, broken down by (a) main paper, (b) easy read version, (c) each individual language version and (d) audio version.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Our analytics tool logs only record 13 months of data for PDF downloads, so we do not have the data for the easy read and translations of this paper as they were published out with this period. We have previously answered two FOIs on website visits to the Bu…
20 Dec 2023 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many ministerial visits were made in Scotland in 2023, broken down by parliamentary (a) constituency and (b) region.
Answer · George Adam: Information on Ministerial engagements is routinely published on the Scottish Government website and can be found at: www.gov.scot/collections/ministerial-engagements-travel-and-gifts/ . Visits are not recorded by parliamentary or constituency region.