Jeremy Balfour

29 Jul 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consultation it undertook before launching the advocacy service for disabled people accessing social security.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-30549 on 27 July 2020. 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/parliamentarybusiness/…

25 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the employment rate for disabled people has been in each of the last five years.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: In Scotland, as in the wider UK, the employment rate of disabled people has consistently been much lower than that of non-disabled people. However, it has shown steady growth since 2014, increasing by 7.5 percentage points (p.p.) between 2014 and 2019 from 41…

23 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to use its powers under the Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 to permit the use of additional environmentally-sustainable end-of-life options.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Our legislative framework is flexible. Whilst the Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 specifically provides for the regulation of burial and cremation, it also allows us to regulate alternative methods of body disposal. We will consider what regulations…

23 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether resomation (water cremation) can be an environmentally-sustainable end-of-life option, and what analysis it has made of the scientific research carried out by Middlesex University, which informed the decision by Yorkshire Water to approve the practice.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has not assessed the environmental credentials of the process as Resomation Ltd wish to discharge the effluent by-product to public sewers. This is a matter for Scottish Water and I refer the member to the answer to …

23 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason Scottish Water does not allow resomation (water cremation).

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Water is not opposed to the introduction into Scotland of alternatives to burial and cremation, including the services offered by Resomation Ltd. However, it has significant concerns about the effluent by-product from this process being discharged in…

10 Jun 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support vulnerable veterans during the COVID-19 outbreak.

3 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it has issued regarding the racing of pigeons during the COVID-19 outbreak, and whether it has granted the Royal Pigeon Racing Association approval to resume racing.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: The Scottish Government has issued no specific guidance regarding the racing of pigeons during the Covid-19 outbreak. We have issued advice for animal owners to ensure that the basic welfare needs of kept animals can be met under the current restrictions. Cor…

3 Jun 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason professional sports’ coaches who offer services that allow physical distancing to be maintained, including for equestrian activities, are restricted to coaching only one household per day under the measures to ease the COVID-19 lockdown and, in the light of the potential …

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Coaches and personal trainers have been permitted to meet and train members of another household which is in line with the current health advice. The Scottish Government appreciates the financial pressures which this brings, but there are a wide range of meas…

27 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the announcement by the First Minister on 19 May 2020 of £33 million of funding to help people get back into work, how much of this will be given to the Fair Start Scotland employment service, and where the remaining funding is being allocated.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Scottish Budget announced in February 2020, demonstrated the Scottish Governments ongoing commitment to helping those furthest from the labour market move towards and into work. In 2020-21 we are continuing to invest more than £33 million to support those…

27 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the resumption of one-to-one tennis playing on 29 May 2020, whether one-to-one tennis coaching is also permitted, and, if not, for what reason.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: From Friday 29 May, one on one personal training or coaching is permitted if it is outdoors, physical distancing can be maintained, and is with members of your household and/or members of one other household. A coach or personal trainer may not deliver traini…

21 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether there is adequate provision of medical tubes, feeding tubes and oxygen being made available to people with muscular disabilities who are being cared for in their own homes during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: NHS National Procurement Scotland manage the supply of these provisions on behalf of NHS Scotland and they have national framework agreements in place for the provision of medical tubes, feeding tubes and oxygen which covers the supply into both hospitals and…

20 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what guidelines it has set out regarding online mental health counselling during the COVID-19 outbreak; what easing of these guidelines has taken place or is planned, and whether it expects the people providing these services to carry out any specific training.

Answer · Clare Haughey: The term counselling covers a wide range of therapeutic approaches. Some of these are highly defined and regulated (e.g. counselling psychologists), whereas others are not. Some counselling is delivered by therapists who are registered with a professional org…

18 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it has given to NHS boards regarding the attendance of birthing partners in (a) labour, (b) antenatal and (c) postnatal wards during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: In the interests of minimising risks during the COVID-19 outbreak, it is the right thing to restrict numbers of people visiting hospitals to essential visits only. We know it is important that pregnant women can be supported during this important time by fami…

18 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on contracting and training independent midwives, maternity assistants and doulas or volunteers to help alleviate pressures on maternity units during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Scottish Government is very grateful to everyone who has stepped forward to offer their services in support of the national response to the Covid-19 pandemic. At the beginning of the pandemic, a Health and Social Care Covid 19 Accelerated Recruitment Por…

18 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support homebirths during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: We have encouraged Health Boards to maintain as many options for birth as possible whilst taking into account workforce capacity, patient safety and the potential need for ambulance transfer. We are aware that some maternity services had to take the difficul…

18 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, how it is working with (a) birth practitioners and (b) medical staff to ensure that people’s rights regarding how and where they give birth are upheld.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The current COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented and requires all of our NHS services to adapt, in light of the effect on public health, including the health of staff, and also in line with measures introduced to reduce spread of the virus. Provision of safe an…

1 May 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the COVID-19 outbreak has had on the timetable for the introduction of (a) new legislation regarding pet selling and (b) the modern licensing system for dog, cat and rabbit breeders and pet sellers, which was set out in its Programme for Government.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: Despite the significant impact of Covid-19 on Scottish Government business, we remain fully committed to introducing new regulations covering dog, cat and rabbit breeders, pet sellers, animal sanctuaries and rehoming activities in this Parliamentary session. …

29 Apr 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to add people who have undergone a splenectomy to the COVID-19 shielding list, in line with the position in England.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Since becoming aware that NHS England have been shielding splenectomy patients, the Interim Chief Medical Officer for Scotland and Interim Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Scotland engaged urgently with the UK Government, as the UK Chief Medical Officers have…

23 Apr 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will support children with additional support needs who will not be able to benefit from transition support because of the COVID-19 outbreak, particularly between (a) Nursery-P1 and (b) P7-S1.

Answer · John Swinney: Local authorities, head teachers and teachers are experienced and skilled in leading transition arrangements. For Term 4, and looking ahead to the next session, schools, clusters and local authorities are considering new and innovative approaches to transitio…

23 Apr 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether a phased return to school is being considered for children with additional needs for whom social distancing during the COVID-19 outbreak is more difficult, particularly for those with physical requirements.

Answer · John Swinney: There is a lot to consider around the re-opening of schools and early learning settings ahead of the science indicating that we are able to do so. The recently established C-19 Education Recovery Group is looking into a range of issues, and ensuring that lear…

23 Apr 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support is being provided to autistic children who are unable to attend the COVID-19 hubs because (a) their parents or guardians are not considered to be key workers, (b) they are not considered a child protection risk or (c) they are unable to social distance.

Answer · John Swinney: We recognise that children and young people with autism may be finding things particularly challenging during this difficult time. Local authorities have developed a range of creative ways to support children and young people with a wide range of needs durin…

23 Apr 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much each local authority will be allocated from the £30 million Food Fund that it has announced in response to the COVID-19 outbreak; how many people have so far received cash-first grants from the fund, and what criteria are in place for people to receive cash from the fund to do t…

Answer · Aileen Campbell: The Scottish Government published information on the allocation each local authority would receive through the Food Fund on 5 April 2020. This is available on the Scottish Government website: https://www.gov.scot/news/coronavirus-food-fund/ Local authoriti…

19 Mar 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to regulate the time limit for redeterminations of all devolved benefits to make them the same.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The timescales for each of the devolved benefits will be set out in regulations. It may not be appropriate to have the same timescales for all benefits as they cater for different groups and have different evidence requirements.  

19 Mar 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the report on its consultation on Short Term Assistance.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: We consulted on our proposals for Short Term Assistance as part of the consultation on Disability Assistance in Scotland which ran from March to May 2019. The report was published in October 2019: https://www.gov.scot/publications/consultation-disability-ass…

19 Mar 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the rate for Winter Heating Assistance is £200 per child, or a one-off payment of £200 per household.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Child Winter Heating Assistance will be a £200 payment available to Scottish clients who qualify for the highest rate of the care component of the Child Disability Payment and Disability Living Allowance. It will be payable per client rather than per househol…

19 Mar 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its plans for the delivery of Employment Injury Assistance, what steps it is taking to set up a Scottish equivalent of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government plans to hold a full public consultation on Employment-Injury Assistance. The responses will inform detailed policy proposals, including whether there is a need for a Scottish equivalent to the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council and,…

17 Mar 2020 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the progress of court cases in light of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: It is critical that we maintain public trust and confidence by maintaining the essential services that support justice. The courts have already ceased all jury trials, adjourned all but essential summary criminal trials, adjourned all civil hearings involvin…

13 Mar 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-27753 by Mairi Gougeon on 13 March 2020, and in light of the commitment to initiate legislation within the same parliamentary session, whether it will confirm on what date new regulations will be laid to give full effect to the proposed Pet Shop (Li…

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Scottish Government remains fully committed to bringing forward new regulations covering dog, cat and rabbit breeders, pet sellers, animal sanctuaries and rehoming activities in this Parliamentary session. Delivery of the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties,…

11 Mar 2020 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action NHS Lothian is taking to recruit additional clinical staff, in light of recent ISD figures suggesting that one in three young people in the area are waiting over a year for mental health support.

4 Mar 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the proposed timeline is for the introduction of a modern licensing system for dog, cat and rabbit breeders and pet sellers, as outlined in its Programme for Government 2019-20.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-27753 on 13 March 2020. 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/…