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 MSPs 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-04157

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 15 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it will appoint a judge to lead the public inquiry into the handling of COVID-19.

The Scottish Government will establish a Scottish public inquiry under the Inquiries Act 2005 by the end of this year, to scrutinise decisions taken in the course of this pandemic, and learn lessons for future pandemics.

Public discussion and engagement about a draft COVID-19 Inquiry Establishment Aims and Principles paper took place between 24th August and end of September. Analysis of the engagement is being used to help shape drafting of the terms of reference for the inquiry. A report covering public engagement on the inquiry will be published in due course.

Discussions are underway with the Lord President to identify a candidate to chair the inquiry, in line with our previous commitment to having it led by a judge.

A statement on the appointment of the chair and the terms of reference for the inquiry will be made to the Scottish Parliament in accordance with the requirements of the Inquiries Act 2005.

Question reference: S6W-04159

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 15 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the final aims and principles or brief for the public inquiry into the handling of COVID-19.

Question reference: S6W-04158

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 15 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish a timeline for the public inquiry into the handling of COVID-19.

Question reference: S6W-03209

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 September 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many nurses have (a) joined and (b) left the NHS in each year since 2007.

The information requested on how many nurses have (a) joined and (b) left the NHS in each year since 2007 is not centrally available.

Information on how many Nursing & Midwifery staff have (a) joined and (b) left the NHS since 2011-12 can be found in the following table:

Nursing & Midwifery Staff Group - Joiners and Leavers by Financial year in Whole Time Equivalent (WTE)

Financial Year	Joiners	Leavers
2011-12	2,536.8	3,108.9
2012-13	3,677.7	3,173.7
2013-14	4,507.4	3,382.2
2014-15	4,870.5	3,774.5
2015-16	4,460.1	4,074.1
2016-17	4,913.2	4,293.0
2017-18	4,684.4	4,324.4
2018-19	4,611.5	4,133.3
2019-20	5,204.1	4,132.2
2020-21	6,862.1	3,647.2

Source: Scottish Workforce Information Standard System (SWISS)

Question reference: S6W-03210

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 September 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many clinical nurse specialists have been employed by the NHS in each year since 2007.

The information requested on how many clinical nurse specialists have been employed by the NHS in each year since 2007 is not centrally held.

Clinical nurse specialist data by NHS Board from 2009 to the most recent data, published September 2018, can be found at: https://turasdata.nes.nhs.scot/media/4ndpx4za/clinical_nurse_specialists_s2018.xlsx

A national review into the Clinical Nurse Specialist role and definition is currently underway, NES will work with NHS Boards to cleanse their CNS data once this is complete.

Due to the data quality concerns mentioned above, we advise that all historical data, whilst published, should be treated with caution. NES will continue to work with SG and NHS Boards to ensure improved recording going forward.

Question reference: S6W-04023

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, when developing the Interface Care and Discharge without Delay programmes, what assessment it made of the current delayed discharges situation for (a) physical and (b) mental healthcare.

The detrimental effects on physical and mental health and wellbeing are well known and documented. Reducing that harm, and ensuring that people receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time, is the key ethos behind the improvement programme. Data on the number of, and reason for delay, is collected monthly by Public Health Scotland and will be used, along with other data to measure progress and improvement.

Question reference: S6W-04024

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Interface Care and Discharge without Delay programmes will extend to mental health services.

The ideals and principles of the Interface Care and Discharge without Delay programs extends across all care groups, including Mental Health.

In addition to this work, in March 2021 we issued a £20 million Community Living Change Fund to be used during 2021–2024. This funding will be used to redesign services for people with complex needs including intellectual disabilities and autism, and for people who have enduring mental health problems, avoiding the need for out of area placements and reducing delayed discharges from hospital.

Question reference: S6O-00342

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on community sentencing.

Question reference: S6W-03563

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-03274 by Kevin Stewart on 4 October 2021, whether it will provide a breakdown of the £50 million that has been distributed through the Recovery and Renewal Fund to date, and what the timescale is for the remaining £70 million to be distributed.

Since my answer to question S6W-03274, a further £24.5 million has been provided from the £120 million Recovery and Renewal Fund, bringing total allocations to date to over £74.5 million, including:

£40 million for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) to address waiting times this year, increase access to and enhance services, including for those with complex needs;
£15 million to grass roots community groups via a Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund to help tackle the impact of social isolation, loneliness and mental health inequalities;
£5 million to address Psychological Therapies waiting times this year;
£5 million to implement the recommendations of the Eating Disorders Review;
Almost £2 million to roll out digital innovations, including online access to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

The following table provides a breakdown of allocations by the key themes in the Mental Health Transition and Recovery Plan, as well as funding provided for key dementia, learning disability and autism priorities.

Key area	2021-22 funding allocated (£)
Whole population mental health )	16,136,345
Ensuring Equity and Equality	250,000
Relationships	439,000
Children, Young People and Families	42,891,904
Women and Girls’ Mental Health	18,112
Bereavement and Loss	16,780
Distress interventions	328,000
Suicide prevention	178,125
Clinical rehabilitation and recovery from COVID-19 infection	1,533,395
A long-term trauma informed approach to recovery	127,468
Digital innovations	1,917,600
Mental Health Services	10,164,500
Autism and Learning Disability innovation and adult neurodevelopmental support	394,912
Dementia	108,299
Total	74,504,440

The remaining funding will be allocated in due course.

Question reference: S6W-03562

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how the NHS and Care Winter Package will support the care of people with severe mental ill health, including those experiencing a delayed discharge from hospital.

The winter funding will be used by Health and Social Care Partnerships to fund a range of options to support the timely discharge of patients from hospital. This includes £62 million for enhancing care at home capacity, £20 million to develop multi-disciplinary teams, £40 million for the development of alternative, interim care options and up to £48 million to increase the hourly rate of pay for social care staff.

In addition to this funding, in March 2021 we issued a £20 million Community Living Change Fund to be used during 2021–2024. Funding will be used to redesign services for people with complex needs including intellectual disabilities and autism, and for people who have enduring mental health problems, avoiding the need for out of area placements and reducing delayed discharges from hospital.