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-37968

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 12 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what requirements exist for GPs under the General Medical Services contract to provide phlebotomy services and collect blood samples to support secondary care management of chronic conditions.

Under the General Medical Services contract GP practices are responsible for providing the services required for the management of their registered patients and temporary residents who are, or believe themselves to be ill, with conditions from which recovery is generally expected, terminally ill, or suffering from chronic disease. This can include taking bloods as necessary.

GP practices’ contracts must include terms which require the Health Board to provide the contractor with support by providing community treatment and care services which include phlebotomy.

GP practices may also contract with their Health Boards to collect blood samples to support the secondary care management of chronic conditions. These would be considered enhanced services which are additional to the GP contract and cannot be required.

Question reference: S6W-37969

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 12 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether NHS boards should provide blood sample collection through (a) phlebotomy hubs and (b) community treatment and care services.

NHS Boards are responsible for ensuring the provision of a safe, sustainable and high quality healthcare service that best meets the needs of their patients. The whole general practice team is being strengthened significantly and we are committed to increasing investment in primary care and GP services over the course of this Parliament. We remain committed to the GP contract and the delivery of extended multi-disciplinary teams (MDTs) making it easier for patients to see the right person, at the right time, in GP practices and the community.

Question reference: S6W-37971

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) data gathering and (b) reporting requirements are in place (i) centrally and (ii) at NHS board level to capture the number of medicines prescribed off-label.

Question reference: S6W-37970

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance is provided to clinicians who are considering prescribing a medicine off-label when unlicensed for a particular condition, when there is a Scottish Medicines Consortium approved medicine available, which is licensed for that indication.

Guidance to clinicians to support prescribing medicines off-label is provided by the General Medical Council (GMC) . The guidance states that doctors should usually prescribe licensed medicines in accordance with the terms of their licence but they may prescribe medicines off-label where, on the basis of an assessment of the individual patient, they conclude, for medical reasons, that it is necessary to do so to meet the specific needs of the patient. In addition, extant guidance states that, unless there is a specific clinical reason, clinicians should prescribe a licensed medicine which has been accepted for routine use in the NHS in Scotland by the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) as opposed to prescribing off-label or unlicensed medicines.

Question reference: S6F-04164

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 09 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 June 2025

To ask the First Minister what the impact on Scotland will be of the Chancellor’s Spending Review 2025.

Question reference: S6W-38266

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has reviewed the impact of the national guidance on reimbursement for home dialysis costs to include utility costs, including water and electricity, following its introduction in March 2024.

Question reference: S6W-38267

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the adequacy of current financial incentives for home dialysis and whether there has been any variation in adoption across NHS boards.

Question reference: S6W-38268

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to invest in infrastructure to support a greater uptake of home dialysis as part of the forthcoming long-term conditions framework.

Question reference: S6W-37587

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 27 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether fisheries management measures for the remaining inshore Marine Protected Areas and a programme of protection for Priority Marine Features outside inshore Marine Protected Areas will be fully consulted on and adopted in statute before the end of the current parliamentary session.

Scottish Ministers are legally required to consult, develop and implement fisheries management measures for inshore Marine Protected Areas and Priority Marine Features.

Developing the evidence-base for effective fisheries management measures, and undertaking statutory requirements, for more than 160 sites and areas within the inshore region is a complicated and challenging process. We are continuing to work at pace to complete the necessary statutory social, economic and environmental assessments ahead of launching a public consultation.

Fisheries management measure will be implemented as soon as possible following analysis of the consultation responses and a final decision on the measures has been taken.

Question reference: S6O-04619

Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 April 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to reverse the decline in NHS productivity since the COVID-19 pandemic, as referenced in research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.