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: S4W-12822

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 1 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many ancillary staff employed by NHS Grampian in each of the last five years were paid the living wage, broken down by (a) role and (b) grade.

The NHS pay cycle runs from 1 April each year and no member of staff employed in NHSScotland, whatever their role or grade, has been paid less than the Scottish living wage level since 1 April 2011. The Scottish living wage campaign started in Scotland in May 2009 and the Scottish Government subsequently adopted this as part of its 2011-12 public sector pay policy.

Although pay for almost all non-medical staff in the NHS is based, in the first instance, on recommendations made by the independent NHS pay review body, Ministers chose to apply the Scottish living wage in NHSScotland to provide additional assistance to the lower paid. The only NHS settlement round where a Scottish living wage level had been set but not applied, therefore, was 1 April 2010 when the living wage was £7.00 per hour and the lowest available rate in NHSScotland was £6.98 per hour.

It should be noted that “ancillary” is not a term used to define a staff group in the NHS for statistical purposes. Employees working in portering or hotel services, who would normally be referred to as “ancillary”, fall within the support services staff group. Records show that there were 1,592.99 whole time equivalent (WTE) staff in the Support Services staff group in NHS Grampian as at 1 April 2010, of which 43.2 WTE were on the £6.98 hourly rate.

Question reference: S4W-12756

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 28 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of unused operating theatre capacity in NHS Grampian that could be used to meet waiting times targets.

Question reference: S4W-12818

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 28 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to improve flood defence systems in (a) Aberdeen and (b) Aberdeenshire.

Flood protection schemes are primarily a matter for local authorities, however the Scottish Government is committed to supporting work that helps protect the people of Scotland from the effects of flooding. That is why we are working with our partners to implement the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009, and providing funding through the local Government settlement for local authorities to continue to invest in flood protection schemes.

We have also invested significantly in improving Scotland’s flood warning service, including funding to help the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Met Office establish a Scottish flood forecasting service, which is resulting in better flood forecasting and warning information being made available to the public throughout Scotland. A flood warning scheme for the River Carron in Stonehaven is also currently in development and planned to be rolled out in September 2013, as is the delivery of a new flood warning scheme for the Moray Firth by 2014.

Question reference: S4W-12757

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 28 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of the cost of using unused operating theatre capacity in NHS Grampian to meet waiting times targets.

Question reference: S4W-12753

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 January 2013
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 28 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients in the NHS Grampian area have been operated on in (a) private hospitals and (b) the Golden Jubilee National Hospital to meet waiting times targets in each of the last three years, broken down by hospital.

The number of NHS Grampian patients operated in a private hospitals was 124 in 2009-10, 2 in 2010-11 and 9 in 2011-12. In relation to the Golden Jubilee National Hospital the number of Grampian patient treated at the hospital was 10 in 2009-10, 20 in 2010-11 and 148 in 2011-12. This information relates to acute surgical specialties and derived from ISD Scottish Morbidity Return for inpatient and day cases.

Question reference: S4O-01863

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 6 March 2013

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth has had with the Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities on the funding arrangements for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Question reference: S4W-12824

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 26 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the outline business case for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

The outline business case for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route/ Balmedie to Tipperty has been agreed between the project partners. The full business case will be agreed prior to contract award which is expected in autumn 2014.

As the formal procurement of this project is currently underway, it is not intended, for commercial reasons, to publish this business case until after the contract for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of this road, has been awarded.

Question reference: S4W-12823

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 26 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that people carrying out work in relation to the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route are paid the living wage.

Question reference: S4W-12825

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 26 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that community benefit clauses are used in contracts for the work on the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

The Scottish Government wants to ensure that investment in large infrastructure projects results in on the job training for apprentices and local employment opportunities, particularly on the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route/ Balmedie to Tipperty scheme.

This contract will include requirements to provide site based vocational training places and site-based professional training places.

The contract will also specify that a number of permanent, site based, full time equivalent construction employment opportunities are to be provided, which are specifically aimed at people who have not been in employment for at least 25 weeks.

Question reference: S4W-12820

Asked by: Richard Baker, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 February 2013
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 25 February 2013

To ask the Scottish Government how many community benefit clauses were in place in public sector contracts in (a) Aberdeen and (b) Aberdeenshire in each of the last five years.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on community benefit clauses used in individual contracts.

We are aware that Aberdeenshire council is currently using the clauses in capital projects and are assisting Scottish Prison Service to monitor the community benefit clauses in the contract for HMP Grampian.

The forthcoming Procurement Reform Bill will require public sector bodies to publish details of community benefit clauses in major public contracts.