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-33348

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what data is published that disaggregates the information that it has for 16- to 25-year-olds with cancer from other age groups.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) publishes annual data on 16 to 25 year olds with cancer in Scotland in their incidence statistics. The latest report is available on the PHS website

PHS also publishes information on cancer in children (ages 0 to 14) and young people (ages 15 to 24) in Scotland

Children and young people with cancer in Scotland 9 May 2023 - Children and young people with cancer in Scotland - Publications - Public Health Scotland

Question reference: S6W-33343

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what financial support it provides to 18- to 25-year-olds to attend day appointments for cancer treatment.

Health Boards are expected to support patients and their families in identifying and accessing available support. Financial support for travel is available for patients and authorised escorts, according to eligibility criteria and medical requirements, through schemes such as the Patient Travel Expenses Scheme (PTES) and the Highlands and Islands Travel Scheme (HITS).

Scottish Government has funded Young Lives Vs Cancer to provide practical advice and emotional and financial support to young people diagnosed with cancer and their families. This includes advice on potential welfare benefits as well as direct grants.

Further to this, we are working in partnership with Macmillan to improve the service we offer patients with cancer through the Transforming Cancer Care Programme (TCC). This partnership with Macmillan is worth £27 million and is the first of its kind in the UK. The programme ensures that every patient with cancer in Scotland has access to a specialist key support worker, who can provide emotional, financial, and practical support.

Question reference: S6W-33347

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will capture the experience of under 16-year-olds with cancer, and their parents, in a survey, similar to the surveys of those over 16 with the condition.

The Managed Service Network for Children and Young People with Cancer (MSN CYPC) are currently working with Young Lives vs. Cancer (YLvC) to take forward learning from the NHS England and Picker Institute U16 Cancer Patient Experience Survey, to see if this can be developed for children and young people with cancer in Scotland.

Additionally, the MSN CYPC provides a range of patient experience support services such as the Youth Advisory Forum which provides children and young people with cancer with the opportunity to share experiences with each other as well as identifying gaps and improve the quality of services by providing feedback. The Parent, Carer and Families Forum, also facilitated by MSN CYPC, gives a voice to the youngest children with cancer, and their support networks which enables their views to also be captured.

Question reference: S6W-33344

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported concerns that funding measures announced in its draft Budget 2025-26 do not go far enough to address the challenges facing children and young people with cancer.

The dedicated Cancer Strategy for Children and Young People in Scotland 2021- 2026 was published in 2021. This strategy emphasises the Scottish Government’s commitment to improving the distinct care and support services required for children and young people with cancer. Scotland is the only UK-nation to have in place a cancer strategy dedicated to children and young people with cancer.

Our draft Budget 2025-2026 includes a record £21 billion investment in health and social care services, including for services for children and young people with cancer.

Question reference: S6O-04258

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 January 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the public inquiry into the investigation of Emma Caldwell's murder.

Question reference: S6W-32999

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 22 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what long COVID referral pathways are in place for people with long COVID who have symptoms of myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME).

Question reference: S6W-33002

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to question S6W-04192 by Maree Todd on 22 November 2021 and S6W-18221 by Jenni Minto on 5 June 2023, what progress has been made on (a) the review by the Scottish Deans Medical Education Group of the online learning module on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and (b) its introduction into medical school curriculums.

a) The Scottish Deans Medical Education Group, now known as the Leads for Undergraduate Medicine Scotland (LUMES), reviewed the module and found the contents valuable.

b) We understand that rather than implementing stand-alone modules, medical schools in Scotland seek to integrate ME/CFS education throughout the existing medical curriculum.

Embedding relevant knowledge across the curriculum seeks to ensure that students encounter the condition in various contexts, including neurology and general practice.

We are advised that LUMES considers that incorporating the module’s key learning outcomes into institutions’ current teaching methods better aligns with existing educational strategies. This approach is in line with other conditions, to ensure graduates have a comprehensive and cohesive learning experience and develop a holistic perspective.

Question reference: S6W-33004

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many GPs (a) have been trained to date and (b) are currently being trained on how to diagnose, and manage people with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) in line with the latest NICE guideline.

Question reference: S6W-33003

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to address any (a) outdated professional views on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and (b) issues around capacity to train staff about ME/CFS, as identified in the report, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) services in Scotland: health board survey - updated analysis, published in November 2024.

The Health and Social Care Standards set out the expectation that care should be provided by health and social care professionals based on the most relevant evidence, guidance and best practice, as is appropriate to their profession and patient group. In July 2022 we wrote to health boards and GPs to raise awareness of the NICE guidelines and highlight key changes in practice, and these remain the most current national guidelines on the management of ME/CFS.

It is not appropriate for the Scottish Government to comment on the clinical opinion of health professionals.

We expect Health Boards to ensure their staff are appropriately trained and developed for their roles, as per the Staff Governance Standard. The standard complements the training expectations set out in individual professional and regulatory requirements.

We have funded Action for ME and partners to disseminate an online Continuous Professional Development training module on ME/CFS for health and social care professionals. Evaluation data suggests it is significantly improving participants’ ability to diagnose and manage ME/CFS. Recent activity around the module has included a focus on increasing uptake among clinicians.

Question reference: S6W-33005

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many paediatricians (a) have been trained to date and (b) are currently being trained on how to diagnose, and manage children and young people with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) in line with the latest NICE guideline.