Questions and answers

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for ��˿�� to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-21453

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress towards meeting its target of halving the child obesity rate by 2030, and what assessment has been made of the impact of A Healthier Future – Scotland’s Diet & Healthy Weight Delivery Plan, now that it is five years since it was published.

The Scottish Government reports on progress on its aim to halve childhood obesity by 2030 on an annual basis in the regular (SHeS) Report.

In 2021, almost two thirds of children were in the healthy weight range, the lowest the survey has recorded. Almost one in five children (18%) were considered at risk of obesity in 2021.

In our we set out ambitious and wide-ranging action to deliver our vision for a Scotland where everyone eats well and has a healthy weight. We are taking forward a range of action across five key outcomes: giving children the best start in life; creating a healthier food environment; better access to weight management services; leadership and reducing health inequalities.

Although there has been no formal assessment of the impact of the 2018 Diet and Healthy Weight Delivery Plan, the annual SHeS provides indicators relating to diet, including fruit and vegetable consumption, weight and physical activity.

Question reference: S6W-21451

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what action it is taking with NHS boards to address the reported long waits that women are experiencing for urogynaecology treatments.

Working Collaboratively with clinical colleagues across NHS Scotland, the Centre for Sustainable Delivery’s (CfSD) National Elective Coordination Unit (NECU) are working to support a nationally coordinated campaign to expedite treatment for patients waiting for specialised urogynaecological procedures: urethral bulking, fascial sling repair and colposuspension.

The initial phase of this work has been completed and patients waiting within these procedure groups have been contacted.

The CfSD is now working to support clinicians within this highly specialist area to both see and treat these patients, with a view to ensure all patients receive treatment as soon as possible. This is expected to focus initially on urethral bulking procedures.

The Chief Operating Officer for NHS Scotland wrote to Health Board Chief Executives in September outlining the Scottish Government’s expectations for the treatment of these patients.

Question reference: S6W-21433

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress in relation to the medium-term action in the Women's Health Plan to establish a Women's Health Lead in every NHS board, including the number of Women's Health Leads that are currently in place and where, and whether the "funding and resource restraints" that were identified in relation to these positions in the minutes of the Women's Health Plan Implementation Programme Board's meeting on 2 November 2022 have been resolved.

The recent produced for the Women’s Health Plan Implementation Programme Board and the by the Women’s Health Champion sets out progress made since the , which was published in January 2023.

There is now a Women’s Health Lead in nearly every NHS Board. It is for NHS Boards to determine the local role of their Women’s Health Leads according to local need and priority and with reference to the aims set out in the .

The will next meet on 15 November 2023, at which the minutes from the previous meeting will be agreed and subsequently published online.

Question reference: S6O-02607

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on cladding remediation in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-21415

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 22 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recent report by Epilepsy Consortium Scotland, Specialist Epilepsy Appointments, which emphasises the importance of face-to-face care, but found that 40% of patients had only attended their specialist epilepsy appointments by telephone since March 2020.

Delivering person-centred care is a priority for both NHS Scotland and the Scottish Government. As far as possible services should be organised around people’s needs, enabling them to be involved in their care in a way that is meaningful and tailored to their personal preference.

In December 2021 we published practical guidance for NHS clinicians on undertaking virtual consultations with people affected by neurological conditions:

The guidance considers when virtual consultations may be an appropriate option to offer. It states clearly that patients should be given the opportunity to decide how they wish to be seen. It is for NHS boards to decide how specialist epilepsy appointments are arranged in their area.

Question reference: S6O-02576

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking ahead of the festive period to support poultry farms, in light of the potential threat of avian flu.

Question reference: S6W-20948

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 14 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its commitment to develop a National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Social Care.

Question reference: S6O-02521

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work of its international offices.

Question reference: S6W-20348

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 30 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last received an update from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service on its work to expand and strengthen the national Community Asset Register on behalf of Scotland's resilience community, and when a new digital platform for the register is expected to become operational.

The Scottish Government last received an update from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) on the national Community Asset Register (CAR) at a meeting in early June 2023. SFRS confirmed that a CAR ‘action plan’ has been developed, to monitor progress of the actions required to improve the CAR, and SFRS will keep SG officials updated as progress is made. Before the end of 2023, SFRS plans to carry out further promotion of the CAR internally, and to review the Service Level Agreement between SFRS and the other emergency responders. SFRS also reiterated its intention to continue to further develop the digital platform currently being used for the CAR but has stated, however, that the planned Information & Communication Technology (ICT) improvements could not be delivered in the current financial year due to existing demands within the current SFRS ICT work plan. The necessary improvements are to be tabled for discussion as a priority for inclusion in the 2024-2025 ICT work plan.

Question reference: S6W-20354

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 29 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the reformed payment system for NHS dentistry in tackling oral health inequality across Scotland.

It is not possible to make a precise assessment of the payment reform changes and their impact on future oral health inequality patterns at this stage.

The Government has for some time been working apace on payment reform for NHS dentistry, and on the 27 July this was communicated to the sector, with implementation scheduled for 1 November 2023. The new model seeks to improve and protect patients’ oral health by focussing on more patient-centred care such as preventative periodontal – gum disease – treatments.

This is a complex, far reaching change with longer-term implications. Payment reform will provide a range of data that will enable the Government to assess the impact on dental activity and longer-term oral health inequality patterns. The enhanced payments to practices for the treatment of patients in Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 1 areas has also been retained.

Payment reform should also be seen in the context of well-established and proven programmes such as Childsmile which specifically targets child oral health inequalities by providing fluoride varnish treatment to nursery and early years schoolchildren from SIMD 1 areas. Tackling oral health inequalities requires a multi-faceted approach, not necessarily confined to the patient-dentist relationship, and a recognition that intervention in the early years is critical to the establishment of good oral health habits.