The Scottish Parliament

Question reference: S6T-02591

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action is being taken to reduce ambulance turnaround times at hospitals, in light of figures showing that so far in 2025 more than half of conveyances recorded a turnaround time of longer than 45 minutes.

Question reference: S6W-38298

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions have taken place between the finance and workforce sections of its health directorate regarding the allocation of funding to ensure pay parity for hospice staff.

The Scottish budget for 2025-26 includes £5 million of investment to support independent hospices to provide pay parity with NHS levels. Officials are working with a variety of colleagues across the health directorates to explore mechanisms for providing this funding to hospices, while respecting existing commissioning arrangements with Integration Joint Boards (IJBs).

Most recently, policy officials have been working closely with health finance officials to ensure that the relevant governance and approval procedures are correctly followed to ensure this funding can be provided as soon as practically possible. We look forward to engaging further with Scottish hospices as we conclude this work.

Question reference: S6W-38301

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that people with palliative care needs, who do not want to die in hospital, are not admitted to hospital unnecessarily.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who needs it can access high-quality palliative care that is right for their circumstances.

Through our upcoming palliative care strategy, we will promote person-centred future care planning. Future care planning is important for people of all ages living with long-term conditions, disabilities, frailty in older age or rare conditions, as well as people with life shortening conditions. A future care plan summarises what matters to the individual and has key information for staff providing urgent or emergency care about the person, their health and care. Planning ahead can help people manage or avoid crisis situations and improve experiences of urgent or emergency health and social care, as well as avoiding unnecessary hospital admissions.

The strategy will be published alongside a delivery plan, which will set out our approach to ensuring that everyone who needs it can access timely palliative care and care around dying.

Question reference: S6W-38300

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take if the £5 million being allocated to hospices is not enough for them to match 2025-26 NHS staff pay levels.

The Scottish budget for 2025-26 includes £5 million of investment to support independent hospices to provide pay parity with NHS levels. This figure is based on estimates provided by independent hospices. Officials are working with a variety of colleagues across the health directorates to explore mechanisms for providing this funding to hospices, while respecting existing commissioning arrangements with Integration Joint Boards (IJBs).

We expect the £5m for pay parity to significantly help independent hospices in increasing their pay offer for staff. However, as independent hospices are charitable organisations, they are responsible for setting their own staff terms and conditions, including pay arrangements.

The Scottish Government does not undertake financial planning for local services, which is why commissioning and contractual discussions are carried out at a local, operational, level between independent hospices and IJBs.

Question reference: S6W-38299

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to ensure that hospices do not lose staff as a result of the reported delay in allocating the £5 million of funding to hospices.

The Scottish Government has already provided reassurances to independent hospices that the funding will be allocated as soon as practically possible, based on the analysis of financial data provided by the hospices.

However, it is important to reflect that it remains the responsibility of Integration Joint Boards (IJBs) to commission palliative care services, including independent hospices, to meet the needs of their local populations. As such, we expect Scottish hospices and IJBs to continue to engage on any matters that may impact on the delivery of local palliative care services.

Question reference: S6W-38381

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware that Ferguson Marine reportedly undertakes sub-contract work for BAE Systems on the Type 26 frigate programme, and how this sits with its reported policy of not funding munitions.

The aerospace, defence, and shipbuilding sectors play a vital role in supporting jobs and driving economic growth across Scotland. We are committed to promoting manufacturing and innovation, and Ministers continue to engage with businesses in these sectors as part of that commitment. Ferguson Marine's (FMPG) work for BAE Systems is consistent with the Scottish Government’s policy that public money is not used to support the manufacture of munitions.

Question reference: S6W-38385

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the inclusion of a right to palliative care is within the scope of the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill.

The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill was introduced to the Scottish Parliament on 27 March 2024 by Liam McArthur MSP (Liberal Democrats). As such, this is a Member's Bill, not a Scottish Government Bill.

As with all Bills, at Stage 2 of the Bill’s passage through Parliament it is for the Convener of the lead Committee to make a decision on the admissibility of any amendment put forward.

At Stage 3, it would be for the Scottish Parliament’s Presiding Officer to make decisions on admissibility.

Question reference: S6W-38383

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential cost of implementing the provisions in the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill, and when it will report on its assessment of the potential (a) cost of, (b) practicality of and (c) legal issues arising from implementing the provisions in the Bill.

The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill was introduced to the Scottish Parliament on 27 March 2024 by Liam McArthur MSP (Liberal Democrats). As such, this is a Member's Bill, not a Scottish Government Bill.

Alongside the Bill, Mr McArthur submitted a Financial Memorandum, setting out an assessment of the projected costs of implementing the Bill. He also wrote to the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee on 17 June 2024, and again on 14 October 2024, to provide updates to the figures in the Financial Memorandum.

A Scottish Government memorandum was provided to the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee on 30 September 2024. This advised that the Scottish Government considered that the costs provided by the member responsible for the Bill were likely to be underestimates. This same memorandum also set out the Scottish Government’s view that the Bill, as introduced, is outside of the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament, and that the Scottish Government would be taking a neutral position on the Bill.

A further letter was sent to the Committee on 27 February 2025, following the Scottish Government’s oral evidence session, to provide estimates of the costs associated with providing initial and refresher training to NHS staff. This noted that all cost estimates provided at this stage are purely indicative, and that this is something that will need to be kept under careful review as the Bill moves through the Parliamentary process.

Significant issues were raised about various aspects of the Bill in the Committee’s Stage 1 report, and during the Stage 1 debate. As highlighted in the Stage 1 report, the Committee made a number of recommendations in relation to the detail of the Bill including about areas for further debate and potential amendment. As such, we are considering our own position moving forward, in light of Parliament's decision to support the general principles of the Bill, and we will be paying close attention to any amendments put forward by non-Government MSPs to consider the practical, financial and legal implications of these.

Question reference: S6W-38384

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to engage in the development of amendments to the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill.

The Scottish Government is currently considering its position on the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill moving forward, in light of Parliament’s decision to support the general principles of the Bill. In doing so, we will be taking care to ensure that any future steps are informed, balanced and respectful of the views expressed across the Chamber and the country. As part of this, we are carefully reflecting on the conclusions of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee in their Stage 1 report.

Question reference: S6W-38146

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that everyone diagnosed with ovarian cancer is able to access ovarian cancer surgery regardless of where they live.

NHS Boards continue to undertake improvement work to ensure that women diagnosed with ovarian cancer can access surgery. The Scottish Government continues to seek regular updates on progress and to work with them to improve overall care for patients with ovarian cancer regardless of where they live.

Further to this, Scottish Government has provided £106 million planned care funding in 2025/26 across NHS Scotland, with £14.23 million of this directed towards Cancer Waiting Times.

This is all part of our programme to drive up productivity and tackle waiting lists, supported by the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD). Together, our actions will further enable NHS Scotland to maximise capacity, build greater resilience and deliver year-on-year reductions in the number of patients who have waited too long for treatment.

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Question reference: S6T-02591

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Question reference: S6W-38298

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