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-39842

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 11 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 27 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance is provided to NHS boards regarding charging patients for certain GP letters.

The circumstances in which independent GP contractors can charge their patients for services not covered by their contracts are set out in schedule 5 of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) (Scotland) Regulations 2018 (box brackets and ellipsis denote edits to the text of the schedule for the sake of clarity):

1. The contractor may demand or accept a fee or other remuneration—

(a) from any statutory body for services rendered for the purposes of that body’s statutory functions;

(b) from any body, employer or school for a routine medical examination of persons for whose welfare the body, employer or school is responsible, or an examination of such persons for the purpose of advising the body, employer or school of any administrative action they might take;

(c) for treatment which is not primary medical services or otherwise required to be provided under the contract and which is given—

(i) pursuant to the provisions of section 57 of [the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978] (a) (accommodation and services for private patients); or

(ii) in accommodation provided by a care home service which is not providing services under the Act,

if, in either case, the person providing the treatment is serving on the staff of a hospital providing services under the Act as a specialist providing treatment of the kind the patient requires and if, within 7 days of giving the treatment, the contractor or the person providing the treatment supplies the Health Board, on a form provided by it for the purpose, with such information about the treatment as it may require;

(d) under section 158 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (payment for emergency treatment of traffic casualties) (b);

(e) when the contractor treats a patient [who claims to be on that contractor’s list of patients, but the contractor has reasonable doubts about that person’s claim], in which case the contractor is entitled to demand and accept a reasonable fee … for any treatment given, if the contractor gives the patient a receipt;

(f) for attending and examining (but not otherwise treating) a patient—

(i) at the patient’s request at a police station in connection with possible criminal proceedings against the patient;

(ii) at the request of a commercial, educational or not-for-profit organisation for the purpose of creating a medical report or certificate; or

(iii) for the purpose of creating a medical report required in connection with an actual or potential claim for compensation by the patient;

(g) for treatment consisting of an immunisation for which no remuneration is payable by the Health Board and which is requested in connection with travel abroad;

(h) for prescribing or providing drugs, medicines or appliances (including a collection of such drugs, medicines and appliances in the form of a travel kit) which a patient requires to have in their possession solely in anticipation of the onset of an ailment or occurrence of an injury while they are outside the United Kingdom but for which they are not requiring treatment when the medicine is prescribed;

(i) for a medical examination—

(i) to enable a decision to be made as to whether or not it is inadvisable on medical grounds for a person to wear a seat belt; or

(ii) for the purpose of creating a report—

(aa) relating to a road traffic accident or criminal assault; or

(bb) that offers an opinion as to whether a patient is fit to travel; or

(j) for prescribing or providing drugs or medicines for malaria chemoprophylaxis.

It is a matter for independent GP contractors to decide whether or not they want to carry out this private work and how much to charge for it.

Question reference: S6W-39807

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 26 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many children and young people have received treatment for an eating disorder in private healthcare facilities in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

The Scottish Government does not collect or hold this data centrally.

Public Health Scotland holds information on NHS patients treated in non-NHS healthcare facilities. 14 children and young people received treatment for an eating disorder in non-NHS healthcare facilities in the period from 1999 to 2023.

When broken down by Health Board and calendar year, the numbers involved are small enough to require suppression. This answer therefore does not include these breakdowns and reports only the total number.

Question reference: S6W-39806

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 26 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people have been placed in adult services to receive treatment for an eating disorder in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

The Scottish Government does not collect or hold this data centrally.

We expect children and young people who need inpatient mental health care to be looked after in age-appropriate specialist facilities. However, there may be occasions when it isn’t possible for a young person to be admitted to a specialist child and adolescent bed – for example, a crisis admission out of hours where there are concerns for the young person’s safety, or where a specialist facility might be a considerable distance from family support which may aid recovery.

When young people need to be admitted to a non-specialist ward, clinicians will work with the young person and their family to make the most appropriate decision regarding the treatment and support that a young person requires.

On occasions where young people are placed within an adult ward this will be monitored and reviewed regularly to ensure that the young person is receiving the most appropriate treatment and care.

Question reference: S6W-39805

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 26 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people have received treatment for an eating disorder in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

The table below contains the requested data concerning the number of children and young people who have received treatment for an eating disorder in each year from 1999-2023, broken down by NHS Board. The latest year in the time range is 2023, which is the most recent year for which data has been finalised.

NHS Board of Residence	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	Total
Ayrshire and Arran	*	*	*	*	*	5	*	5	*	*	*	5	*	5	8	*	*	*	*	*	5	8	*	7	*	97
Borders	*	0	0	0	*	*	0	0	0	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	5	12	*	5	6	12	*	66
Dumfries and Galloway	*	*	0	5	*	*	0	*	*	*	*	*	0	0	*	5	6	*	*	6	0	*	7	*	*	53
Fife	*	*	5	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	5	*	*	0	*	*	*	7	7	*	9	10	8	88
Forth Valley	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	0	*	*	0	*	6	*	*	*	*	9	7	6	9	10	8	8	96
Grampian	*	*	*	*	*	7	*	*	*	*	5	*	5	11	5	8	7	6	7	5	8	12	16	17	11	160
Greater Glasgow and Clyde	5	*	5	6	5	*	*	10	10	6	5	5	5	8	11	20	8	10	8	8	12	18	24	26	25	249
Highland	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	9	*	*	*	9	*	7	10	*	6	*	6	12	20	15	19	154
Lanarkshire	*	*	*	*	*	5	*	*	*	5	*	*	*	5	8	5	*	7	7	9	8	14	21	15	12	157
Lothian	*	5	*	*	5	7	9	11	14	7	13	10	14	9	13	19	28	20	15	18	19	22	45	34	30	376
Orkney	0	0	0	0	*	*	0	0	0	*	0	0	*	0	0	*	*	0	0	0	*	0	*	0	0	8
Shetland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	*	0	0	*	*	*	0	0	0	0	6
Tayside	*	*	*	*	*	5	*	*	0	5	6	7	5	7	8	9	8	8	*	7	5	13	16	15	6	145
Western Isles	*	*	0	*	*	*	0	*	0	0	0	0	0	0	*	*	*	0	*	*	*	0	0	*	*	18
Other	0	0	0	0	0	*	0	0	0	0	*	0	0	0	*	0	*	0	*	*	0	0	0	0	*	10
Total	35	28	26	32	30	44	23	44	39	45	48	41	49	63	65	84	81	68	72	91	85	119	179	163	129	1683

* denotes data which has been suppressed to preserve patient confidentiality

Question reference: S6W-40109

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 August 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many bowling greens/bowling clubs there have been in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S6W-40111

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 August 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how much has been spent on removing chewing gum in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S6W-40115

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 August 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the new Scottish Life Sciences Strategy.

Question reference: S6W-40113

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 August 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many hours NHS staff spent on clinical trials and research as part of protected development working time in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

Question reference: S6W-39219

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 11 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6O-04726 by Jenny Gilruth on 29 May 2025, whether it will provide an update on its review of the guidance regarding the levying of fees for hospital teaching costs for children who routinely attend independent schools, including when any new guidance will be published.

Question reference: S6W-39242

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 5 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many recorded (a) closures and (b) delays there have been on the Edinburgh City Bypass in each year since 1999.

Since August 2020 there have been 123 Critical Incidents and 1041 Disruptive Incidents on the A720 Edinburgh City Bypass section managed by Transport Scotland. This period covers approximately 1688 days. Critical Incidents cover the most significant incidents where there are full closures. Disruptive Incidents include these closures but also where the road has remained open but there have been significant delays caused, for example by breakdown or collisions. Unfortunately we are unable to confirm the delays associated with these incidents.