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: S3O-13034

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2011
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 24 February 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers there are per head of population in the Grampian Police force area.

Question reference: S3W-39006

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2011
Current Status: Awaiting answer

To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of the average local government revenue allocation grant per capita each local authority (a) will receive in 2011-12 and (b) has received in each of the last 10 years.

Question reference: S3W-38604

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 24 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers there are in each force; what size of population they serve, and what the figures were in each of the previous four years.

Details are as follows:

		Year
		2006-07	2007-08	2008-09	2009-10	2010-11
Central	Officers	865	815	836	834	846
Central	Population	286,390	288,810	290,400	291,760	291,760
Dumfries and Galloway	Officers	496	502	517	513	507
Dumfries and Galloway	Population	148,030	148,300	148,580	148,510	148,510
Fife	Officers	1,035	1,059	1,066	1,071	1,082
Fife	Population	358,930	360,500	361,890	363,460	363,460
Grampian	Officers	1,400	1,440	1,483	1,545	1,546
Grampian	Population	529,890	535,290	539,630	544,980	544,980
Lothian and Borders	Officers	2,783	2,829	2,891	2,979	2,990
Lothian and Borders	Population	911,570	921,220	930,250	939,020	939,020
Northern	Officers	697	713	747	793	792
Northern	Population	283,310	285,550	287,470	288,840	288,840
Strathclyde	Officers	7,782	7,735	7,955	8,331	8,382
Strathclyde	Population	2,207,100	2,210,370	2,213,320	2,217,880	2,217,880
Tayside	Officers	1,173	1,174	1,180	1,208	1,225
Tayside	Population	391,680	394,160	396,960	399,550	399,550

Notes:

1. Officer numbers as at 31 December each year, 30 September for 2010-11.

2. Population numbers based on estimates by General Register Office as at 30 June each year at:

http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/theme/population/estimates/mid-year/index.html

3. Population numbers for 2010-11 are not yet available, numbers in table reflect 2009-10 figures.

Question reference: S3W-38479

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 20 December 2010
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 17 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many newly qualified midwifery graduates have been employed in each of the last six intakes, broken down by NHS board.

Question reference: S3W-38478

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 20 December 2010
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 17 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive how many newly qualified nursing graduates have been employed in each of the last six intakes, broken down by NHS board.

Question reference: S3O-12581

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 January 2011
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 13 January 2011

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider introducing a floor to the local government funding formula so that no local authority receives less than 90% of the average allocation per head.

The distribution formula for the 2011-12 local government finance settlements has already been agreed with COSLA. It includes a floor to limit the year-on-year change in councils'' allocations. The change suggested would cost around £120 million a year to implement and that would either have to be found by cutting funding to other councils or by reducing budgets of other portfolios. However, we are always open to suggestions for improving the formula as part of the consultation process for future settlements.

Question reference: S3O-11320

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 September 2010
Current Status: Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 16 September 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the retention of the forensic services laboratory in Aberdeen.

The Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA) delivers forensic science services to all eight police forces and the Crown Office Procurator Fiscal Service on a national basis. The SPSA is committed to creating an improved and responsive national service and has been carrying out extensive engagement with stakeholders over the last 18 months as part of its forensic modernisation programme. I anticipate SPSA will submit proposals for the Scottish Government''s consideration later this month. We will carefully consider SPSA''s proposals before reaching a decision.

Question reference: S3O-11087

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 June 2010
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 24 June 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing last met the chief executive of NHS Grampian and whether she discussed the impact of current funding difficulties on the delivery of frontline services.

I meet the Chief Executive of NHS Grampian at various times throughout the year, for example when I chair the NHS board''s annual review. Officials from the Scottish Government Health Directorates meet the chief executive regularly and did so most recently on 15 June 2010. Discussions cover a range of current matters affecting service delivery, including the NHS board''s investment of its increased funding allocation for 2010-11 in frontline services.

Question reference: S3W-33546

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 10 May 2010
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 21 May 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that a mental health patient whose condition poses no risk to others should have the right to refuse treatment.

There are three ways in which a person may be subjected to compulsory measures of treatment under the civil regime in the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, namely: (a) emergency detention; (b) short-term detention, and (c) long-term detention or compulsory measures under the authority of a compulsory treatment order. In addition, mentally disordered offenders may be made subject to compulsory measures of treatment by the courts under the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 act).

Before an individual is detained under the Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 an Approved Medical Practitioner must have considered and be satisfied that if the patient were not detained in hospital there would be significant risk to the health, safety or welfare of the patient or to the safety of any other person. The Approved Medical Practitioner must then keep this criteria under review.

In terms of any subsequent treatment, the majority of compulsory measures of treatment for mental disorder are first approved by either the Mental Health Tribunal for Scotland under part 7 of the 2003 act (compulsory treatment orders) or by a court under the 1995 act in relation to mentally disordered offenders. The two exceptions to this prior authority for treatment for mental disorder by a court or tribunal are: civil emergency detention under part 5 of the 2003 act, and short-term detention under part 6 of the 2003 act.

In relation to emergency detention, the authorised period of detention is just 72 hours and the purpose of the detention is to determine what medical treatment requires to be provided to the patient. There is no general authority to give treatment for mental disorder under an emergency detention certificate.

A short-term detention certificate does enable treatment to be given, in accordance with part 16 of the 2003 act. Volume 1, Chapter 10 of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 Code of Practice provides guidance on the provision of medical treatment for mental disorder which are set out in part 16, including the issue of consent.

Where an individual feels that they may have been misdiagnosed as suffering from a mental disorder of any sort they may ask for a second opinion or they may contact the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland to look into their complaint.

Question reference: S3W-33544

Asked by: Nicol Stephen, MSP for Aberdeen South, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 10 May 2010
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 21 May 2010

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to invite the Scottish Law Commission to consider Recommendation Rec(2004) 10 of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers to member states concerning the protection of human rights and dignity of persons with a mental disorder and to consider whether this requires amendments to the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003.

Recommendation (2004) 10 of the Council of Europe''s Committee of Ministers to member states concerning the protection of human rights and dignity of persons with mental disorder was adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 22 September 2004. A Council of Europe Recommendation is a recommendation to member states following agreement by them on a common policy on a particular subject, and is not binding on member states.

The UK Government, as the member state, and after consulting with the Scottish Government, agreed the Recommendation subject only to having entered reservations in relation to its articles 17, 18, 20, 24, 28 and 37. As an example of the reservations entered into by the UK Government, articles 17 and 18 (involuntary placement and treatment for mental disorder), these provide that measures might be taken only where there is a significant risk of serious harm; this was viewed in the context of the existing tests for compulsory measures of detention and treatment under mental health legislation across the UK not to be proportionate, whether that be in the interests of the health and safety of the patient, or for the protection of others.

For these reasons, the Scottish Government currently has no plans to invite the Scottish Law Commission to consider the Recommendation, with a view to amending the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003.

Otherwise, the Recommendation is based around the aim of enhancing the protection of the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons with mental disorder, in particular those who are subject to involuntary placement or involuntary treatment. It also embraces principles of non discrimination on grounds of mental disorder, principle of least restriction, and the importance of information and assistance on patients'' rights. These are all concepts already firmly embedded in Scottish mental health legislation.