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-14223

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 January 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 7 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commission its statutory environmental agencies to embed the control of the most prolific species, such as grey squirrels, into their operations long-term, in light of reports that non-native invasive species are now recognised as one of the top five drivers of biodiversity loss, and of it making the managing of them a priority in the latest draft of its Scottish Biodiversity Strategy to 2045.

The control of invasive non-native species is already a priority in the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy which states that a key aim for the Strategy is that by 2045:

“Harmful invasive non-native species (INNS) will be managed so that established INNS no longer degrade native habitats and species or impede their restoration and regeneration and new introductions are managed quickly and effectively”

The Strategy will be supported by a delivery plan which will set our approach to tackling INNS in Scotland, including the grey squirrel.

NatureScot, the key statutory agency for delivering the Biodiversity Strategy states in its business plan for 2022-23 that it will:

“Deliver invasive non-native species controls and reduce the biodiversity impacts of established invasive non-native species”

Work on the ground at present includes Scottish Government to support the work of Local Action Groups including the Scottish Invasive Species Initiative (SISI), an ambitious 5-year partnership project led by NatureScot that is tackling invasive non-native species alongside rivers and water courses in an area of 29,500km2 within northern Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-14444

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 27 January 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how much each fit and proper person test, carried out by Police Scotland as part of short-term let licensing applications, costs the service.

Question reference: S6W-14275

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 January 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Elena Whitham on 31 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how much each fire safety check carried out by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as part of short-term let licensing applications costs the service.

Question reference: S6O-01843

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting Creative Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-13815

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 24 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what plans there are to approve Palforzia, a treatment for children with peanut allergies, for use in Scotland, in light of it being available through NHS England.

In Scotland, the (SMC) appraises the clinical and cost-effectiveness of newly-licensed medicines. Making decisions about whether or not to recommend routine access to new medicines is a complex task and the SMC bases its decisions on the best available evidence provided to it. Following a full submission from the submitting company, Aimmune Therapeutics, on 10 October 2022, the SMC for Health Boards on the routine use of Palforzia ® in NHS Scotland. The submission received did not present a sufficiently robust economic analysis to gain acceptance by the SMC.

By way of an update, Aimmune Therapeutics has indicated its intention to make a resubmission to the SMC.If they do, information on the specific timelines for the reassessment will be available via the search facility available on the home page of the SMC’s website . There is a fast-track resubmission option, which reduces the normal assessment timeline.

In the meantime, Health Boards have procedures in place using the Peer Approved Clinical System “PACS Tier Two” process, for clinicians to request the use of licensed medicines on a ‘case-by-case’ basis for individual patients, when the treating clinician considers that there would be significant clinical benefit for a patient.

Question reference: S6W-13660

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 19 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what measures it (a) can take and (b) is taking to ensure that households that are eligible for a smart meter can install one.

Energy policy, including the rollout of smart meters programme, is a matter reserved to the UK Government.

Smart meters have an important role to play in helping the Scottish Government achieve our aim of increasing energy efficiency across Scotland as well as helping consumers manage their spend on energy. At the recent energy summit chaired by the First Minister, we committed to working with partners to increase the number of households with smart meters in Scotland, with a focus on rural areas, by highlighting the benefits they can deliver in terms of both energy bills and energy efficiency. As part of this work, we will continue to call upon BEIS and Ofgem to take the necessary action to ensure all households eligible for a smart meter have the opportunity to install one in their home.

In the meantime, we will continue to work with our consumer advice and advocacy partners to ensure they are equipped with the necessary knowledge and information to support consumers seeking help on managing or accessing a smart meter.

I would also urge consumers who are struggling with their energy bills to contact Energy Advice Scotland on 0808 196 8660 or at energyadvice.scot.

Question reference: S6W-13659

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 19 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what support is available for households in rural areas in Scotland that do not have a mobile or radio signal and cannot therefore install a smart meter and receive any benefits that come with it.

Question reference: S6W-13550

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 18 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of when it will deliver its commitment to roll out a national thrombectomy service that enables approximately 800 stroke patients to receive the procedure each year.

Work is ongoing to establish the most effective means, and timescales, of further expanding access to thrombectomy, including how the increased budget will be best used in recruiting staff to maximise the number of patients able to benefit from this treatment.

By working with National Services Division, we aim to ensure that decisions taken on potential expansions of the thrombectomy service consider the wider access requirements of patients across Scotland and ensure access is as equitable as possible.

Question reference: S6W-13549

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 18 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its plans are to ensure that there is a 24/7 national thrombectomy service to support patients across the whole of Scotland, and when it aims to deliver this by.

The Scottish Government remains committed to introducing a high quality and clinically safe thrombectomy service in Scotland. Work is ongoing to establish the most effective means of further expanding the national thrombectomy service, and the appropriate timescales to achieve this. This includes seeking input from National Services Division, to ensure that regional plans are cohesive and maximise access to thrombectomy procedures nationwide.

The budget for thrombectomy and development of a refreshed stroke improvement plan has been increased from £8.6 million for 2022-23 to £12.5 million in 2023-24. Prior to the 2023/24 budget announcement, the delivery of a national thrombectomy service had already received over £16 million of investment.

Our NHS Recovery Plan also invests £1 billion of targeted funding over five years to increase NHS capacity, deliver reform, and ensure everyone has the treatment they need at the right time, in the right place, and as quickly as possible, all in aid of our recovery from the global pandemic, the biggest shock our NHS has faced in its 74 year existence.

Question reference: S6W-13277

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 16 December 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 January 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-09464 by Maree Todd on 18 July 2022, and in light of the UK Government's spending announcement of MND research funding of an immediate £29.5 million to specialist research centres and £20.5 million through open call processes, what it is doing to promote MND research in Scotland through biomedical science centres, and what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding maximising the use of this funding in Scotland.

The £29.5 million funding to specialist research centres announced by UK Government on 12 December 2022 includes £12.5 million to be delivered through the UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI). Edinburgh University hosts one of the 6 UK DRI Centres and is eligible to bid for this funding. In addition, £8 million of the research centre funding will be delivered through the National Institute for Health and Care Biomedical Research Centres (BRC's). While Scotland does not have direct BRC equivalents, officials from the Scottish Government Chief Scientist Office have confirmed with Department of Health and Social Care officials that Scottish research teams can join BRC consortia to bid for this funding.

The NHS Research Scotland Neuroprogressive and Dementia Research Network is funded by the Scottish Government to deliver cutting edge clinical research in Neuroprogressive conditions and Dementia across Scotland. The network has been key to the delivery in Scotland of the UK-wide MND SMART Trial, with over 200 of the 400 total trial participants as of October 2022 enrolled in Scottish centres.