- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 6 April 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address any staff shortages in the ear, nose and throat department of Grampian University Hospitals NHS Trust in response to recent instances of check-up appointments being cancelled several times.
Answer
This is a matter for Grampian University Hospitals NHS Trust, if necessary in consultation with Grampian Health Board. These bodies are responsible for assessing health service requirements in their area and for determining priorities within the increased resources we are making available to NHSScotland.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 5 April 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the decision to refuse compensation to patients with haemophilia who contracted hepatitis C through contaminated blood products.
Answer
The Scottish Executive has no plans to do so.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 23 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what savings have been made in administrative costs due to the abolition of fundholding practices, broken down by health board area.
Answer
The £13.5 million which was formally paid as a management allowance to GP fundholding practices has been allocated to health boards on a capitation basis to support the development of Local Healthcare Co-operatives. LHCCs play a vital role in the planning and delivery of health improvement and healthcare services at a local level.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 March 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Jack McConnell on 23 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to review the criteria for assessing the maximum number of pupils which schools can accommodate in the light of any increased space requirements flowing from, for example, increasing use of IT in classrooms.
Answer
It is the responsibility of individual authorities to determine the capacities of their schools. However, during the passage of the Standards in Scotland's Schools etc Act 2000, Ministers agreed to review issues relating to school capacity in the light of the new provisions on placing requests. This review will include the effects of increasing use of IT equipment in schools.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 14 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether current regulations place any restrictions on the cremation of human organs or body parts.
Answer
It is not for the Executive to interpret the statute. But, as The Independent Review Group on the Retention of Organs at Post Mortem, chaired by Professor Sheila McLean, noted in its recently published report, it appears there is nothing in the Cremation (Scotland) Regulations 1935 to support the view that body parts may not be cremated. The report also urges the British Cremation Authority to deal with the reported problem of some crematoria appearing unwilling to cremate individual organs. I have asked officials to consider whether there is a need to amend the Regulations in order to remove any lack of clarity on this point.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sam Galbraith on 14 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list all of the facilities in Scotland licensed for the disposal of clinical waste.
Answer
The licensing of facilities for the disposal of clinical and other wastes is a matter for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. The information requested is held on the agency's public register.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 12 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities make an administration charge for the issuing of concessionary fare cards and what the level of any such charge is in each local authority area.
Answer
The details, from the latest information we have available, are as follows:
| Local Authority | Concession Card Charge |
| Aberdeen City Council | £5 per annum |
| Aberdeenshire CouncilMoray Council(Joint Scheme) | £5 per annum |
| Angus Council | £2.50 for 5 year travel card |
| City of Edinburgh CouncilEast Lothian CouncilMidlothian Council(Joint Scheme) | Free of Charge - 5 year travel cardFree of Charge - 4 year travel cardFree of Charge - 4 year travel card |
| Clackmannanshire CouncilFalkirk CouncilStirling Council(Joint Scheme) | Free of Charge |
| Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar | £4 per annum |
| Dumfries and Galloway Council | Annual Travel Card - £10 (free travel)or5 Year Travel Card - £2 (10p flat fare) |
| Dundee City Council | £1 for 3 year travel card |
| Fife Council | Free of charge - 5 year travel card |
| Highland Council | £3 for 5 year travel card |
| Orkney Islands Council | Free of charge |
| Perth and Kinross Council | £2.50 for 5 year travel card |
| Scottish Borders Council | £3 per annum |
| Shetland Islands Council | Free of Charge - unlimited |
| SPTA* | Free of Charge |
| West Lothian Council | Free of Charge |
* The scheme operated by the SPTA covers the whole of the following local authority areas:Argyll and Bute North AyrshireEast Ayrshire North LanarkshireEast Dunbartonshire RenfrewshireEast Renfrewshire South AyrshireCity of Glasgow South LanarkshireInverclyde West Dunbartonshire
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 12 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the proposed plans for a national concessionary fare scheme will lead to the abolition of administration charges for concessionary fare cards.
Answer
I have opened discussions with CoSLA on implementing the enhancement to existing concessionary travel schemes to provide free off-peak bus travel by October 2002. As part of those discussions I am also seeking to make progress on a number of other associated issues, including the potential for abolition of charges on concessionary travel cards, which apply in some local authorities but not in others.
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 01 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 8 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria it currently takes into account in the measurement of health inequalities.
Answer
Inequalities in health are reflected in many different aspects of people's health. For example, the proportion of babies born with low birth weight is higher among people living in relatively deprived areas. The incidence of many diseases including lung cancer, coronary heart disease and respiratory diseases is also much higher in deprived areas. Mortality rates are higher and as a result the average life expectancy of people living in deprived areas is less than that of people living in more affluent areas. There is, therefore, no single measure of health inequalities but rather a wide range of measures that must be taken into account to reflect the influence of socio-economic circumstances on health.Tackling inequalities is a key priority for the Scottish Executive and our long-term aims for tackling poverty and injustice were set out in Social justice... a Scotland where everyone matters. Several of the milestones in the Social Justice document are important measures of health. Our National Health: A plan for action, a plan for change reinforces our commitment to tackling health inequalities within Scotland, and states that "we will develop the health indicators within our Social Justice framework of targets and milestones to track progress in tackling health inequalities".
- Asked by: Brian Adam, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 02 February 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Susan Deacon on 8 March 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the document Fair Shares for All from July 1999, when it will publish the technical report for the second Arbuthnott formula.
Answer
We have no plans to publish a further technical report on the Arbuthnott formula. The first report, published in 1999, was accompanied by a very detailed technical report which explained fully the sources of data, methods of analysis and results. The data sources and methods of analysis used in the further work were largely similar to those used in the first report. Any technical changes are explained in the final report which contains a number of technical appendices.
