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-05588

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 5 March 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will introduce legislation, in line with England and Wales, to offer full protection to the water vole population.

Question reference: S4O-00727

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 February 2012
Current Status: Answered by Linda Fabiani on 22 February 2012

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what external and internal damage was caused to the parliamentary complex by the recent storms and what the financial implications are.

Two granite cladding panels were dislodged on the south elevation of Tower 1 due to high winds on 9 of December 2011 and a further four panels were removed as a precaution the same day. All six panels were reinstated the following day.

A small section of flashing on the roof of the MSP building roof was lifted from its fixings due to high winds on 3 January 2012. The flashings did not become detached from the building and they were secured back in position the following day.

The cost for both these repairs was £3,500.

Question reference: S4W-04935

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive which NHS boards operate prostate cancer screening initiatives.

Question reference: S4W-04937

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether screening for prostate cancer is standard practice for NHS boards.

It is not standard practice for NHS boards to operate screening for prostate cancer. I would refer the member to my answer set out in S4W-04935 on 23 January 2012 which outlines the rationale for this.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-04936

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what priority it gives to prostate cancer.

Cancer remains a top clinical priority for Scottish Government. Our cancer policy is generic in that its aims are to improve cancer services for all regardless of cancer type or whether a primary or secondary diagnosis. Better cancer Care, which was published in 2008, outlined the Scottish Governments commitment to address issues around cancer prevention, screening, early detection of cancer, referral and diagnosis, treatment, living with cancer, improving the quality of cancer care and delivery.

Whilst the cancer plan is generic the National Cancer Quality Steering Group (NCQSG), a sub group of the Scottish Cancer Taskforce, has a programme of work to develop quality performance indicators (QPIs) for all cancer types. Prostate cancer QPIs are one of the first cancers to be addressed in this programme of work, with QPIs being published later this year.

A prostate cancer risk management pack was also circulated to all GPs and NHS boards in 2009. The programme provides guidance to medical practitioners on the situations in which it is suitable to offer prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing, the information and guidance that should be provided to patients before PSA testing is undertaken, and the support that may be required by men as they deal with the consequences of the PSA test and any resulting diagnosis.

Question reference: S4W-04938

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many deaths have been attributed to prostate cancer in the last six years.

As set out in the National Records of Scotland, the figure for the total amount of deaths in Scotland as a result of prostate cancer from 2005 to 2010 is 4,768. This information is available at the following link and under “Malignant neoplasm of prostate”:

http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files2/stats/ve-reftables-2010/ve10-t6-1.xls

The preliminary figure for 2011 will be published on 8 March at http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/theme/vital-events/general/bmd-preliminary/index.html.

Question reference: S4W-04939

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 23 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) best practice advice and (b) guidance the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland has issued to health authorities in relation to prostate cancer.

Guidance in the form of a Prostate Cancer Risk Management Pack which supports the Prostate Cancer Risk Management Programme was issued to NHS boards (urologists, histopathologists, PSA testing laboratories) and all general practitioners in Scotland in 2009. The programme provides guidance to medical practitioners on the situations in which it is suitable to offer PSA testing, the information and guidance that should be provided to patients before PSA testing is undertaken, and the support that may be required by men as they deal with the consequences of the PSA test and any resulting diagnosis.

Details of the programme and copies of the Prostate Cancer Risk Management Pack can be found at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Health/health/cancer/publications.

Question reference: S4O-00603

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 January 2012
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive when the next review of the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board will take place.

Question reference: S4W-04626

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 12 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the households that are entitled to replacement (a) boilers or (b) central heating systems under the warm homes initiative are yet to have these installed.

The Scottish Government's current initiative to provide replacement boilers and/or central heating systems is stage 4 of the Energy Assistance Package (EAP). Scottish Gas have advised that the overall number of customers awaiting an installation (central heating system, boiler or insulation only) fell below 4,000 in December 2011. This is the lowest reported since December 2009.

There have been issues with EAP stage 4 delivery and problems caused by an IT systems failure at Scottish Gas in 2011. This has not only impacted on service delivery to EAP stage 4 customers but also on the reporting of accurate management information to the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government is not in a position to publish or release more detailed information on EAP stage 4 until there is a successful outcome to audit of management information.

Question reference: S4W-04627

Asked by: John Wilson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 December 2011
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 12 January 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the households that are entitled to replacement (a) boilers or (b) central heating systems under the warm homes initiative have not had these installed as, because of asbestos-related issues, the contractor has declined to proceed with the installation and what its position is on this.

<>I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-04626 on 12 January 2012. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Under the terms of stage 4 of the Energy Assistance Package, it is the customer’s responsibility to ensure that asbestos is removed and to arrange and pay for its removal. The customer is provided with advice by Scottish Gas on how to arrange for this.