Chamber and committees

All patients receive an information leaflet with each dispensed prescription providing information on the safe and correct use of medicines including potential side-effects. Good clinical practice recommends that all health professionals advise patients on the treatments they are receiving, including the benefits as well as potential side effects.

A total of 11 patients were admitted from the waiting list in Scotland for surgery to treat epilepsy during the year ending 31 March 1999. The median wait for treatment was 34 days. Information on the number of waiting list admissions for surgery to treat epilepsy, by health board of residence, is provided below.

Health Board	Number of Patients	Waiting Time (days)
Argyll and Clyde	1	22
Ayrshire and Arran	1	31
Fife	1	103
Forth Valley	2	231
Grampian	1	34
Greater Glasgow	3	1131
Lanarkshire	1	178
Lothian	1	45
Scotland	11	34

Source: ISD Scotland.

Notes:1. Median waiting time.

The Scottish Executive is working closely with the Trust and the health board to ensure that a robust recovery plan is produced, which will ensure that high quality patient care continues to be delivered within a sustainable financial framework.

The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the United Kingdom Government on a wide range of issues including additional tobacco taxes. The Executive will receive Barnett formula consequentials of increased health spending funded by additional tobacco taxes.

I have established a Working Group to produce good practice guidance on the administration of medicines in schools which will address these issues. The Epilepsy Association of Scotland is represented on the Group.

Details of the number of bags purchased through the NHS central contract during the period November 1998 to October 1999 are as follows:

Health Board	Product		Total	Cost(£)
	Glucose	Saline
Lothian	153,420	537,750	691,170	315,101.80
Greater Glasgow	286,840	964,760	1,251,600	577,985.10
Lanarkshire	95,960	272,060	368,020	167,196.80
Forth Valley	45,710	107,019	152,729	70,304.15
Fife	45,350	173,310	218,660	102,227.10
Borders	6,000	39,310	45,310	22,576.50
Dumfries &Galloway	24,920	63,260	88,180	40,039.50
Ayrshire & Arran	58,440	217,570	276,010	129,663.80
Argyll & Clyde	77,220	139,730	216,950	96,885.30
Grampian	67,850	251,140	318,990	146,498.60
Highland	18,850	72,069	90,919	44,888.15
Shetland & Orkney	1,760	4,180	5,940	2,674.00
Tayside	70,820	284,329	355,149	164,825.87
Western Isles	2,780	9,860	12,640	5,748.00
Totals	955,920	3,136,347	4,092,267	1,886,614.67

Planning guidance states that a priority is placed on the re-use of vacant and derelict land as a contribution to regeneration of older urban areas and as a means of reducing demand for greenfield sites.Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise undertake a range of projects to bring derelict, neglected or unsightly land or buildings into economic use under their Environmental Renewal powers.Information from the Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey shows that the number of hectares of reclaimed land for 1996 was 688 ha, for 1997 it was 990 ha and for 1998 it was 823 ha. In 1998, local authorities recorded 12,212 hectares of vacant and derelict land in Scotland.^{1, 2}Notes:1. The Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey includes only that vacant land which is either located within an urban settlement (with a population of 2,000 or more) or which is located within 1km of such settlements, which would commonly be considered as having the characteristics of urban vacant land. Sites covering less than 0.1 ha are excluded.2. Figures given for reclaimed land may underestimate the total as not all local authorities completed a return.

South Glasgow University Hospitals Trust has taken steps to reduce the waiting list for ultrasound examinations. Full details are available from the Trust.The Scottish Executive is committed to improving waiting times, addressing all stages of a patient's care pathway through the Health Service. Over the coming months we will be working with the NHS across Scotland to establish national maximum waiting times to be met by March 2001 in the three national priorities of heart disease, cancer and mental illness.

Payment arrangements are a matter between local authorities and individual suppliers. As noted in my response to question S1O-332, I spoke to Councillor Norman Murray, President of CoSLA, asking him to draw to the attention of councils the requirements of the Late Payment of Commercial Debt (Interest) Act 1998 and the importance of paying their bills on time. CoSLA wrote to all local authorities advising them of this on 1 October.The latest available information on the performance of councils in paying invoices within 30 days was published in the recent Accounts Commission pamphlet Benefits, Finance and Housing 1998-99. It reported that 19 councils had improved in terms of the percentage of invoices which they had paid on time during 1998-99, compared to the previous year.

We are currently working with the NHS in Scotland to establish national maximum waiting times, to be delivered from March 2001, in the key clinical specialties of heart disease, cancer and mental health. In addition, the introduction of instant appointment booking systems, the establishment of additional one-stop clinics and the re-design of services to improve the patient pathway, will tackle inequity and reduce waiting times.