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: S5W-06524

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address the reported continued decline in cervical screening coverage.

Increasing coverage in the Scottish Cervical Screening Programme is a key objective for the Scottish Government and work continues on helping address the fall in cervical screening uptake rates.

It is disappointing that uptake is dropping however on the 8th of February 2017 we will launch a new hard-hitting campaign on cervical screening to raise awareness of the benefits of having a smear test and to encourage women to attend when invited.

We are also responding with £5m of funding from the Cancer Strategy being invested in our screening programmes including cervical screening to reduce inequalities and improve uptake, particularly amongst those less likely to participate in screening.

Officials are currently working to establish a network, involving clinical and academic experts from across Scotland as well as organisations such as Cancer Research UK and Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust to identify new activities, learning from local practice and innovation, to help improve screening coverage.

Furthermore, Scottish Government officials meet cervical screening coordinators from all NHS Boards on a quarterly basis to discuss a range of issues relating to the national screening programme, including promoting screening services and initiatives to improve uptake. NHS Boards have responsibility for publicising screening within their local area and for working closely with their communities to increase screening uptake.

Question reference: S5W-06525

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address the reported increase in cervical cancer mortality.

Cervical Screening is offered to women aged between 25 and 64 and we encourage all eligible women to take up their invitation. Cervical screening can reduce cases of cervical cancer and death. It saves around 5,000 lives in the UK every year and prevents eight out of 10 cervical cancers from developing.

We also now know that almost all cervical cancer is caused by HPV. Uptake rates for the HPV vaccination programme in Scotland remain high and exceed 80%. We will continue our efforts to ensure that Scottish girls benefit from this vaccine, which will save lives.

Whilst the HPV vaccine offers protection against the most common causes of cervical cancer it does not protect against all other types of HPV that cause cancer. Therefore, the combination of the vaccination and attending cervical screening from 25 years of age will offer the best possible protection against cervical cancer

Question reference: S5W-06474

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) has had on self-invested personal pension holders.

Question reference: S5W-05512

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 December 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether Deloitte has been commissioned to undertake a report on NHS general practice and, if so, (a) when it was commissioned, (b) at what cost and (c) when it will be published.

Deloitte were commissioned to undertake an Analysis of General Practice Systems and Processes, to inform the work carried out under the Primary Care Digital Services Delivery Fund for prioritisation of funding for digital services and infrastructure, both locally and nationally. The work was commissioned on 16 June 2016 and the funds payable to Deloitte for the work they undertook was £148,202 (excluding VAT).

Deloitte were also commissioned to undertake a review of the Scottish Allocation Formula (SAF), which weights general practice funding by various factors that affect workload, including deprivation, rurality and age. The work was commissioned in two parts, the first on 18 December 2015 and the funds payable to Deloitte for the work they undertook was £41,450, and the second on 14 April 2016 and the funds payable to Deloitte for the work they undertook was £36,450 (excluding VAT).

The relevant information will be published at an appropriate time following the successful conclusion of General Medical Services (GMS) contract negotiations.

Question reference: S5W-05511

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 December 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many private audit reports have been commissioned by NHS Scotland in each year since 2010, broken down by (a) cost per report and (b) NHS board.

Question reference: S5W-05509

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 December 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many reports have been commissioned from Deloitte by NHS Scotland in each year since 2010 and at what cost, also broken down by NHS board.

Question reference: S5W-05510

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 19 December 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many private consultancy reports have been commissioned by NHS Scotland in each year since 2010, broken down by (a) cost per report and (b) NHS board.

Question reference: S5O-00644

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 February 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recently published report, Export Statistics Scotland 2015.

Question reference: S5W-06158

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 31 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on ambulances attending emergencies without shift paramedics having carried out stock checks on the vehicles’ supplies.

Question reference: S5W-06164

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 31 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how many reports have been made of an ambulance not being inspected for mechanical safety in each year since 2010.