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: S6F-04529

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 08 December 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 December 2025

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the independent investigation into NHS Scotland by the retired consultant surgeon and former President of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, Mr Mike McKirdy.

Question reference: S6W-42210

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 5 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to improve the transparency and accountability of public sector health and social care procurement services.

The Scottish Government is taking a range of measures to strengthen transparency and accountability in public sector health and social care procurement.

Under the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, all public bodies are required to publish Procurement Strategies and Annual Procurement Reports, ensuring clear visibility of purchasing activity and performance. In addition, the Public Contracts Scotland (PCS) portal provides a single national platform for advertising contract opportunities and awards, offering forward visibility of procurement pipelines for NHS Health Boards and other public sector authorities. PCS continues to play a central role in improving transparency, supporting supplier access, and enhancing accountability across the system.

To support continuous improvement, the Scottish Government has published its Procurement Strategy 2025-28, which emphasises greater openness, strengthened reporting, and collaborative working across government, Health Boards and wider public sector partners. Its four outcomes - Good for Society; Good for Businesses and Their Employees; Good for Places and Communities; and Open and Connected - form the strategic framework within which health and social care procurement operates.

These principles are further developed in the NHS Scotland Procurement Strategy 2024-28, which sets out specific commitments relating to governance, monitoring and reporting of procurement activity across health and social care services. National Procurement’s priorities within this strategy include enhanced data-driven decision-making, clearer performance metrics, and strengthened assurance processes aligned with NHS Scotland’s wider strategic framework.

Planned improvements include the deployment of advanced digital systems to provide end-to-end visibility of procurement activity, embedding ethical and sustainable procurement practices, and delivering measurable efficiency, social value and sustainability outcomes. Through these combined strategies and programmes, the Scottish Government is ensuring that transparency and accountability remain central to health and social care procurement across Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-42209

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 5 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the collapse of NRS Healthcare Limited, which supplied mobility aids and complex assistive technologies, has had on NHS Scotland and social services across Scotland.

The Scottish Government is aware of how critical equipment is to allow individuals to participate fully in daily life and to support the person being cared for to live safely within their home environment. Anyone requiring equipment should experience a seamless journey through the pathway of care, which ensures they receive the right intervention at the right time.

That is why the Scottish Government engaged robustly with Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCP) to establish the impact of the collapse of NRS Healthcare Limited. This engagement concluded that there was little to no immediate impact on services providing community equipment. Where required, HSCPs have taken appropriate steps to mitigate any immediate disruption to services. This includes; purchasing stock in bulk, purchasing from other suppliers, and utilising off-contract purchases. HSCPs have also confirmed that they have been taking the necessary steps to mitigate any disruption to the supply chain in the medium to longer term.

The National Equipment and Adaptions Network is available for HSCPs to collectively discuss local impact and mitigating actions. The Scottish Government will continue to monitor this matter.

Question reference: S6W-42212

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 5 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what impact its publication, Equipment and Adaptations Review: Guidance on Provision 2023, has had on waiting times for the supply of mobility aids, other daily living aids and complex assistive technologies.

The Scottish Government is committed to delivering a more equitable and accessible approach to the provision of equipment and adaptations. Our revised guidance on the Provision of Equipment and Adaptations is statutory guidance issued under Section 53 of the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014. This means that responsibility for delivering it and assessing its impact rests with Integration Authorities.

This includes capturing data which evidences the value that effective and efficient community equipment and adaptation provision makes to the delivery of key service goals. However, to support national implementation of this guidance, the Scottish Government works closely with our national Equipment and Adaptations Network to support good practice and aid a more consistent approach to implementation.

Question reference: S6W-42058

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 2 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when discussions were held with the (a) British Medical Association, (b) Royal College of General Practitioners and (c) Royal College of Nursing regarding the plans for the network of walk-in GP clinics.

Question reference: S6W-42081

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 1 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it has not yet settled the costs in the Supreme Court case, For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers.

Question reference: S6W-41663

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 18 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how the average resident doctor study budget in Scotland compares with that available in England.

Postgraduate medical education and study leave are funded differently in England and Scotland. In England study leave is managed by each region whereas in Scotland it is managed centrally by NHS Education for Scotland and there are differences in the funding available and what it can be used for.

In monetary terms an allocation of £600 per person is made in Scotland and £812 per person in England. In England, some local offices have an approved list of study leave courses for each specialty which can restrict access to opportunities that are not on the generic list unless there are special circumstances. In Scotland, each application is reviewed for appropriateness against curriculum requirements and while lists for each programme are in development they are for guidance only rather than approval.

Question reference: S6W-41671

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 18 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29116 by Neil Gray on 6 September 2024, whether it will provide an update on what total cost has been incurred to date in relation to the planned National Treatment Centre in NHS (a) Ayrshire and Arran, (b) Grampian, (c) Lanarkshire, (d) Lothian and (e) Tayside.

Question reference: S6W-41662

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the average annual study budget available is for resident doctors, in each NHS board.

Study leave for resident doctors is managed centrally by NHS Education for Scotland. All resident doctors in training, irrespective of board location, have access to the study leave budget. This includes regional or nationally provided courses, and individual training programme budgets. For further information, I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-41661 on 13 November 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Question reference: S6W-41661

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the average annual study budget available is for resident doctors who are undertaking training or professional development within NHS boards.

The notional study leave allocation for each resident doctors in training is £600 annually but this is not a limit and, as requirements vary from year to year, where necessary doctors are provided additional study leave funding depending on curricular demands and availability. Resident doctors in training receive 30 days per year in study leave time, not including any study leave which is utilised to provide courses for all doctors including Leadership and Management training and simulation training. Foundation doctors have less access to study leave but are able to apply for taster experiences where they can shadow a resident doctor in a specific specialty. More information is available at https://www.scotlanddeanery.nhs.scot/resident-doctor-information/study-leave/.

Board	Cost incurred to date on National Treatment Centre
Ayrshire & Arran	£5,016,600
Grampian	£6,474,000
Lanarkshire	£268,000
Lothian	£12,532,000
Tayside	£12,468,438
Total	£36,759,038