Annie Wells

25 Sep 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the new agricultural tenancy legislation is having on the number of farm tenancies.

3 Sep 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-20711 by Clare Haughey on 8 January 2019, whether it will provide an update regarding how many of the 800 additional mental health workers that it committed to recruiting in its mental health strategy have been appointed to date.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Based on the information received from the Integration Authorities in respect of the third quarterly update on Action 15, 268 additional mental health workers have been recruited as of 1 July 2019. The settings these workers are based in are as follows: A&E …

2 Sep 2019 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government will take in response to the sectarian disorder in Glasgow at the weekend.

30 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when section 29 of the Management of Offenders (Scotland) Act 2019 will come into effect.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government is planning for commencement of the reforms to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 under Part 2 of the Management of Offenders (Scotland) Act 2019, ("the 2019 Act"). In order for implementation of the reforms to reduce the disclo…

1 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what recent communication it has had with (a) third sector organisations and (b) integration joint boards regarding providing care and support to people with MS.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Government works closely with third sector organisations to raise awareness of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and improve the support and care for those living with MS in Scotland. During MS Awareness Week 2019 (22-29 April) the Minister for Public Hea…

10 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many neurology consultant vacancies there are, also broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: There are 8.8 WTE consultant vacancies in neurology across NHS Scotland as at March 2019. These are broken down by NHS board in the following table. NHS Board Neurology consultant vacancies (WTE) as at March 2019 NHS Borders 0.0 NHS Fife 1.0 NHS Lothi…

10 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the current waiting times are for multiple sclerosis treatment following diagnosis.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: This information is not held centrally as we do not collect information on diagnosis for outpatient appointments within national returns. The member can obtain this information by contacting individual Health Boards. Last year the Scottish Multiple Sclerosis…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it proposes to work with companies to best deliver e-health technology in the NHS.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The development of Scotland’s National Digital Platform offers a unique opportunity to produce new products which will support service improvement, service change and emerging consumer demand. Part of this work will be to provide a standard route for companie…

12 Jun 2019 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is meeting the objectives of its Equally Safe Strategy.

11 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish a business and regulatory impact assessment for its proposed legislation to restrict the promotion and marketing of products high in fat, sugar and salt.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: A Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment would be published alongside the introduction of any draft legislation.

11 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will define products that will be subject to restrictions on the promotion and marketing of products high in fat, sugar and salt.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Government will reflect on the responses to its consultation Reducing health harms of foods high in fat, sugar or salt in considering the foods that would be subject to any relevant restrictions.

11 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much revenue it has received from the UK Soft Drinks Industry Levy, and how it is spending this in Scotland.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The rules for how the Scottish Government is funded are set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. Changes in Scottish Government funding are determined by applying the Barnett formula to changes in UK government departmental spending, rather than allocating…

11 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to the effect on Scottish businesses of its proposed legislation to restrict the promotion and marketing of products high in fat, sugar and salt.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The consultation paper Reducing health harms of foods high in fat, sugar or salt included questions on business impact and support. In parallel, officials have engaged with industry to support the development of a Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BR…

11 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the results of its consultation, Reducing health harms of foods high in fat, sugar or salt: consultation, and what action it plans to take in response to restrictions on the promotion and marketing of products that are high in fat, sugar and salt.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: An analysis of consultation responses will be published by the autumn. The Scottish Government will reflect on the consultation responses in considering what actions to take.

30 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-23071 by Joe FitzPatrick on 29 May 2019, how much it will cost to match the EIBSS scheme payments in cases in which they are higher than the SIBSS, without reducing any other existing payments from the Scottish scheme.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: It is not possible to provide a precise cost estimate given that the numbers of beneficiaries registered with SIBSS changes constantly, in particular as new applicants join the scheme. It is also important to note that not all categories of beneficiary are th…

22 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on the number of people from ethnic minorities who have been convicted and recorded as having reoffended in each of the last five years, also broken down by ethnicity.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The requested information is not centrally held by the Scottish Government.

22 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people from ethnic minorities in police custody have been recorded as having (a) self-harmed, (b) been assaulted, (c) been identified as having assaulted other prisoners, (d) been involved in violence involving other prisoners and (e) died by suicide in each of the last five yea…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: This question seeks Police Scotland data, which is not held by the Scottish Government.  

22 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average length of sentence has been for a convicted person from an ethnic minority in each of the last five years, also broken down by ethnicity.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The requested information is not centrally held by the Scottish Government.

22 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people from ethnic minorities have been victims of crime in each of the last five years, also broken down by ethnicity.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) is the main source of evidence on the extent of victimisation in Scotland. It provides information on the proportion of adults experiencing crime, including incidents not reported to the police, rather than the num…

22 May 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the financial review of Social Security Scotland, which has been recommended by Audit Scotland.

16 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of the NHS budget has been spent on mental health in each of the last five years.

Answer · Clare Haughey: Detail on mental health spending and the NHS budget is made available each year as part of the annual NHS Cost Book publication and the Scottish Budget.  

15 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many dog control notices have been issued in each of the last five years in (a) Scotland and (b) the Glasgow local authority area under section 1 of the Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010.

Answer · Ash Denham: The requested information is set out in the following table. Each year covers the period from 27 February to 26 February of the following year.   Number of Dog Control Notices Issued Per Year Local Authority 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 To…

14 May 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the number of pupils with additional support needs who have a coordinated support plan in place is increasing.

9 May 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will bring payments under the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme in line with those in England, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Overall funding for infected blood support in Scotland remains proportionately higher than in England on a population basis and our support is based on recommendations agreed with Scottish stakeholders through both the Financial Review Group in 2015 and the C…

1 May 2019 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to further strengthen the economy of Glasgow.

30 Apr 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on people from ethnic minorities' (a) confidence in the police and (b) fear of crime, broken down by ethnicity. 

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Confidence in the police The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) collects data on the public’s perceptions of the police through a range of questions. These cover aspects such as the perceived effectiveness of the police, how engaged the police are with…

30 Apr 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people from ethnic minorities have been recorded as having been (a) arrested, (b) stopped and searched, (c) prosecuted and (i) convicted and (ii) not convicted and (d) on remand in each of the last five years, also broken down by ethnicity.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The information for (a), (c), (d) is not held centrally. (b) The Stop and Search data (including the 'Ethnicity' column) is published by the Police Scotland and is available at https://www.scotland.police.uk/about-us/police-scotland/stop-and-search/stop-and…

16 Apr 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-22097 by Clare Haughey on 26 March 2019, how many of the new mental health workers are employed by each NHS board, broken down by job title.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The Scottish Government does not have the level of detail requested. It should be noted that the recruitment of the additional mental health workers is being carried out by Integration Authorities (IAs) who have devolved responsibility for health and social …

13 Mar 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what requirement there is on its directorates to explain and address any reported race and ethnic disparities.

Answer · Christina McKelvie: The Scottish Government is committed to increasing the representation of minority ethnic employees. We are a signatory of the Race at Work Charter which reflects our commitment to improve race equality at all levels. There is no requirement on each directora…

13 Mar 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that its directorates have a consistent approach in collecting and presenting race and ethnicity data; how such information is collated; whether it expects each directorate to carry this work out on a continual basis; which directorate has overall responsibility for (a) ov…

Answer · Christina McKelvie: The Scottish Government ensures a consistent approach to the collection of race and ethnicity data by recommending that the same question is used in Scottish Government surveys and administrative collections, and in those across the wider public sector. The r…