Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-33570

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 10 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 18 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care, how it is supporting the expansion of community-based healthcare hubs in rural areas.

The National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care is working with Health Boards and Health and Social Care partnerships to drive improvements in sustainability, and the capability of remote, rural and island primary and community care services, avoiding a one size fits all approach.

Their work includes programmes to enhance the education and training for multi-disciplinary teams working in rural and island areas, as well as evaluation of new ways of delivering improved primary and community care health services in partnership with practitioners, citizens and partner agencies.

The National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care has developed a new training programme and supervisory training hub for Rural Advanced Practitioners and is developing a community training hub pilot to increase the amount of training taking place in remote, rural and island primary and community healthcare settings.

Further details on the work of the National Centre can be found here: National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care: Information Hub | Turas | Learn

Question reference: S6W-33616

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 18 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to roll-out mobile clinical units in rural and remote areas, including Aberdeenshire.

Question reference: S6W-32665

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 14 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its work on the prevention and detection of public sector fraud and corruption, what measures are in place to avoid public funds being used for, and Scottish institutions being implicated in, cases of international corruption.

The measures to mitigate the impact of potential international corruption in the management of public resources in Scotland are found in the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM), and within the relevant Scottish Government policies and Civil Service Code. Requirements within the SPFM cover the appropriate standards for the handling of all elements of public finances in terms of payments made, received, and in how they are documented and authorised.

The SG engages with external partners and colleagues from the UK Government Public Sector Fraud Authority, the International Public Sector Fraud Forum, Audit Scotland and the Scottish Public Sector Counter Fraud Network. This facilitates the sharing of expertise and current practice in the prevention of fraud and corruption, as well as horizon scanning on future risks, providing assurance on the management of fraud and corruption risk and the protection of public resources.

The Scottish Government has in place a Fraud Risk Management Framework and Counter Fraud Strategy, which both align to the UK government functional standard 013 - Counter Fraud, and the principles of this standard. The SG framework focuses on four areas that determine the Scottish Government’s high-level approach to fraud and corruption. These centre on the areas of:

Governance
Risk assessment
Prevention and detection
Fraud response

This framework and approach can be used to inform assessment and response to any fraud or corruption risks.

Question reference: S6W-32666

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 14 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its work on the prevention and detection of public sector fraud and corruption, how it (a) assesses and (b) responds to any corruption risks associated with financial markets and infrastructure projects linked to foreign governments.

a) The Scottish Government’s Counter Fraud Toolkit within the Counter Fraud Framework contains a range of processes for assessing risks associated with fraud and corruption in all areas of public sector spending. These are aligned with the UK Government's Counter Fraud Standards and international best practice on the effective prevention of public sector fraud and corruption.

b) The Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM) contains the requirements for assessing and responding to the risk of corruption in all areas of public finance and infrastructure spending. Where the risk of fraud or corruption of any kind is identified, the SPFM requires that appropriate measures are put in place to prevent these risks.

Question reference: S6W-34067

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 14 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks; what was discussed, who attended, and when the next meeting will take place.

At the time of writing, the Scottish Government last met with Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) on 4 February 2025. Scottish Government officials met with SSEN’s Head of Corporate Affairs, Head of Public Affairs and Policy colleagues to discuss recent regulatory and policy developments.

The following items were discussed at the meeting:

Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP)
Upcoming community engagement events for SSEN’s proposed projects
Transition Impact Assessment (TIA) thresholds
Biodiversity funding

The next meeting is scheduled to take place on 26 February 2025.

Question reference: S6W-34030

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 14 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33252 by Alasdair Allan on 23 January 2025, who attended each meeting; whether it will publish any formal minutes that were taken, and what plans there are to next meet.

Please find below a table with a list of who attended each meeting. Any formal minutes will be published on the Scottish Government’s website and at the time of writing, there are no meetings with SSEN scheduled in ministerial calendars.

Any meetings that Ministers have with Transmission Owners as part of expected engagement with industry cover a range of subjects relevant to grid management with no discussion of specific developments, in accordance with Section 8 of the Scottish Ministerial Code.

Minister	Date	What	Attendees
Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work	31-01-2024	Meeting with DNOs (SPEN and SSEN)	Minister for Energy and the Environment Head of Market Development and Commercial, SPEN Head of Connections, Policy & Performance, SSEN SG Officials
First Minister	22-02-2024	Meeting with SSE CEO	First Minister CEO, SSE Head of Public Affairs, SSE SG Officials
Minister for Housing	27-02-2024	Meeting with SSEN	Minister for Housing Managing Director, SSEN Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN SSEN Official SG Officials
Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work	07-03-2024	Meeting with SSEN	Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work Managing Director, SSEN Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN SG Officials
Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy, Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work	21-03-2024	Meeting with ESO, SSEN and SPEN	Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work Director of Networks, NESO Corporate Affairs Director, NESO Network Planning & Regulation Director, SPEN SPEN Official Chair of SSEN Transmission Head of System Planning and Investment, SSEN Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN SG Officials
Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy, Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work	07-05-2024	Meeting with SSEN, NGET and the NESO	Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work Managing Director, SSEN Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN President, UK Strategic Infrastructure, NGET Head of Corporate Affairs, UK Strategic Infrastructure, NGET Director of Networks, NESO NESO Official SG Officials
Minister for Climate Action	16-07-2024	Meeting with SSEN	Minister for Climate Action Managing Director, SSEN Director of Customers and Stakeholders, SSEN SG Officials
Minister for Climate Action	17-07-2024	Meeting with SSEN and SPEN	Minister for Climate Action Network Planning & Regulation Director, SPEN SPEN Official Managing Director, SSEN SSEN Official Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN SG Officials
Minister for Housing and Minister for Employment and Investment	25-07-2024	Joint Housing and Economy Roundtable Discussion	Minister for Housing Minister for Employment and Investment Highlands and Islands Enterprise South of Scotland Enterprise Communities Housing Trust South of Scotland Community Housing Highland Council SSEN Prosper Crerar Hotels Salmon Scotland ASSC Scottish Land and Estates North Ayrshire Council SG Officials
First Minister	24-04-2024	Scottish Energy Advisory Board (SEAB)	Attendees and minutes available on SG website: Scottish Energy Advisory Board - gov.scot
First Minister	20-09-2024	Scottish Energy Advisory Board (SEAB)	Attendees and minutes available on SG website: Scottish Energy Advisory Board - gov.scot
Minister for Housing	23-10-2024	Rural and Islands Housing Action Plan Summit	Minister for Housing Scottish Land and Estates Scottish Empty Homes Partnership Highland Council Perth & Kinross Council Argyll & Bute Council Highlands & Islands Enterprise South of Scotland Enterprise North Ayrshire Council Rural and Islands Housing Association Forum Scottish Land Commission South of Scotland Community Housing Communities Housing Trust SSEN Scottish Federation of Housing Associations Prosper Community Land Scotland Crown Estate Scotland Shapinsay Development Trust Shetland Islands Council Dumfries & Galloway Council Aberdeenshire Council Moray Council East Lothian Council South Lanarkshire Council Stirling Council Comhairle nan Eilean Siar East Ayrshire Council Scottish Islands Federation North Ronaldsay Trust Mull & Iona Community Trust Harris Forum Homes for Scotland SG Officials
Minister for Climate Action	21-11-2024	Transmission Roundtable – Session 1	Minister for Climate Action Head of Transmission Stakeholder Engagement & Communications, SPEN SPEN Official SPEN Independent Net Zero Advisory Committee Member, Head (CEO) of Fuel Bank Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN Ofgem COSLA Community Energy Scotland-Scottish Coalition of Community Energy Development Trust Association Scotland- Scottish Coalition of Community Energy Local Energy Scotland Foundation Scotland Shetland Community Benefit Fund Farr North Community Development Trust Finderne Development Trust The Cabrach Trust East Lammermuir Community Council The 9CC Group Solway Firth Partnership Newcastleton & District Community Trust Glenkens & District Trust CEO, Consumer Scotland Director of Enterprise & Community Support, Highland & Islands Enterprise Head of Energy Transition, South of Scotland Enterprise SG Officials
Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy	28-11-2024	Meeting with SSEN	Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy Director of Offshore Delivery, SSEN Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN SSEN Official SG Officials
Minister for Climate Action	03-12-2024	Transmission Roundtable – Session 2	Minister for Climate Action Head of Transmission Stakeholder Engagement & Communications, SPEN SPEN Official Head (CEO) of Fuel Bank, SPEN Independent Net Zero Advisory Committee Member Energy Consumers Commission Head of Corporate Affairs, SSEN SSE Ofgem COSLA Community Energy Scotland-Scottish Coalition of Community Energy Development Trust Association Scotland- Scottish Coalition of Community Energy Local Energy Scotland Foundation Scotland Shetland Community Benefit Fund Farr North Community Development Trust Finderne Development Trust The Cabrach Trust East Lammermuir Community Council The 9CC Group Solway Firth Partnership Newcastleton & District Community Trust Glenkens & District Trust CEO, Consumer Scotland Director of Enterprise & Community Support, HIE Head of Energy Transition, SOSE Scottish Enterprise

Question reference: S6W-34538

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 14 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much just transition funding has been allocated to the whisky industry in the last three years.

The Just Transition Fund has within the last three years provided £988k in capital funding support to the following projects:

£361,767 over 2022-23 to the Cabrach Trust for development of the Cabrach Distillery. The project aimed to create permanent skilled employment opportunities in the area, attract tourism, and support local economic growth and regeneration.
£626,734 over 2022-24 to Ripcell for its pilot Sustainable Solvent Recovery for EV Battery Recycling project utilising pot ale a whisky waste product.

Question reference: S6W-34116

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what policies or procedures are in place to address any situations where patients who are deemed “surgically fit for discharge” refuse to leave hospital.

Where a patient deemed ready for discharge refuses to leave hospital, there is a clearly defined procedure in place:

Healthcare staff will arrange a meeting with the patient to discuss the reason they are unwilling to be discharged from hospital and discuss a way forward.
Where no progress is made, the case will be referred to a Medical Director. The Medical Director will then write to the patient, reiterating their planned date of discharge.
Throughout the discharge process, it is made clear to patients that a person is not entitled to remain in hospital indefinitely, and that staying in hospital longer that necessary can have adverse health effects.

Therefore, in such limited cases, it is the responsibility of the Health Board and Medical Directors to manage reluctant discharges.

Question reference: S6W-34091

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 13 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what progress was made on securing partnerships to advance Scotland’s green hydrogen capabilities during the Acting Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy’s recent visit to Berlin.

Question reference: S6W-34122

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance is provided to NHS boards regarding the management of so-called medical boarders in surgical wards to minimise disruption to scheduled surgeries.

Chamber and committees