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: S7O-00337

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2026
Current Status: Due to be taken in the Chamber on 1 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to strengthen partnerships between Police Scotland and other public sector bodies to improve multi-agency approaches to community policing.

Question reference: S7W-03416

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what savings it has (a) identified and (b) achieved through its £30 million Invest to Save Fund.

The Invest to Save Fund supports projects intended to deliver efficiencies, service improvements and financial savings across the public sector. Many projects require a period of implementation before benefits can be realised, and it may take between two and three years for projects to mature sufficiently to begin delivering their full savings potential.

As part of the application and assessment process, funded projects are required to identify anticipated benefits and savings. Projects supported through the current funding round are forecast to deliver approximately £178 million of savings over five years.

Projects supported through the first year of the Fund identified anticipated savings of approximately £167 million over the next five years. These projects are at varying stages of delivery.

The Scottish Government continues to monitor project delivery and benefits realisation, including financial savings, through its fund management and reporting arrangements. No consolidated assessment of realised savings is yet available.

Question reference: S7W-03076

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much NHS Scotland has paid out in settlement agreements in each year since 1999.

The Scottish Government has been monitoring settlement agreement proposals since 2014-15, which is the first reporting year for which NHSS settlement records are available. The last year for which this data is available is 2025-26. The cost to NHS Scotland each year during this period is given in the following table.

Year (1 April – 31 March)	Total Cost (£)
2014-15	895,134
2015-16	574,568
2016-17	780,502
2017-18	1,209,500
2018-19	727,974
2019-20	316,389
2020-21	724,161
2021-22	759,536
2022-23	501,885
2023-24	1,627,403
2024-25	886,140
2025-26	1,745,460

Question reference: S7W-03074

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much NHS Scotland has paid out in compensation settlements in each year since 1999.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-03073 on 23 September 2026, which provides both the number of NHS Scotland compensation claims managed through the Clinical Negligence and Other Risks Indemnity Scheme (CNORIS), and the amount reimbursed in relation to those claims.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Question reference: S7W-03069

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government who will be represented in the three-month period of dialogue on social care reform announced in the Programme for Government, and specifically, whether small and micro care at home providers and community organisations will have a direct seat, rather than being represented through national umbrella bodies.

The Scottish Government is committed to engaging collaboratively with local government, providers, people with lived experience, the workforce, trade unions and other key partners as this work develops.

The arrangements for this dialogue, including how different stakeholders will participate, are currently being developed. The Scottish Government recognises the important contribution that providers of all sizes, including small and micro care at home providers and community organisations, make to the delivery of care and support across Scotland, and will consider how relevant voices can be reflected as plans for engagement are finalised.

Question reference: S7W-03075

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many settlement agreements have been signed by NHS Scotland in each year since 1999.

The Scottish Government has been monitoring settlement agreement proposals since 2014-15, which is the first reporting year for which NHSS settlement records are available. The last year for which this data is available is 2025-26. The number of settlements signed by NHS Scotland each year during this period is given in the following table.

Year (1 April – 31 March)	Total Number
2014-15	30
2015-16	25
2016-17	36
2017-18	24
2018-19	33
2019-20	26
2020-21	23
2021-22	33
2022-23	27
2023-24	43
2024-25	38
2025-26	82

Question reference: S7W-03078

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many referrals for treatment outwith Scotland have been made to (a) NHS providers and (b) private healthcare providers in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) releases statistics, as part of the monthly Stage of Treatment (SoT) publication, covering waits for new outpatient appointments under the 12-week standard, and for inpatient and day case admissions covered by the 12-week Treatment Time Guarantee (TTG). The latest statistics are published up to 31st July 2026 and can be found using the link below:

https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/stage-of-treatment-waiting-times/

Quality assured data relating to the number of additions and removals to the waiting list outside of Scotland for a new outpatient appointment, or for inpatient and day case admission, have been published since 31 December 2012 onwards and can be found using the links below.

https://publichealthscotland.scot/media/40088/newop_jul26-data-file-up-to-30-june-2026.xlsx

https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/media/40087/ipdc_jul26-data-file-up-to-30-june-2026.xlsx

It is important to note that there are minimal data quality checks carried out on the location of treatment. Neither Scottish Government or PHS hold accurate information on the number of referrals to NHS commissioned independent sector providers outside of Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-03073

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many compensation settlements have been signed by NHS Scotland in each year since 1999.

The following table provides the number of NHS Scotland compensation claims managed through the Clinical Negligence and Other Risks Indemnity Scheme (CNORIS), and the amount reimbursed in relation to those claims, from 2015-16.

Earlier reporting recorded the number of reimbursements rather than claims. As a claim can result in more than one reimbursement, the two measures are not directly comparable.

	Number of Claims			Value £m
Financial Year	Clinical	Non-Clinical	Total	Clinical	Non-Clinical	Total
2015-16	200	56	256	49.57	3.23	52.81
2016-17	297	89	386	37.46	2.79	40.25
2017-18	219	42	261	31.87	1.88	33.74
2018-19	218	37	255	35.80	3.94	39.73
2019-20	202	52	254	34.32	3.65	37.96
2020-21	242	35	277	59.94	1.66	61.59
2021-22	320	81	401	105.97	3.27	109.24
2022-23	294	102	396	52.58	2.99	55.56
2023-24	250	75	325	43.67	3.66	47.33
2024-25	187	58	245	56.87	5.99	62.86
Total	2,429	627	3,056	508.04	33.05	541.08

CNORIS operates a £25,000 deductible, with individual NHS Boards responsible for claim costs up to this amount. The figures presented therefore reflect amounts reimbursed through the Scheme above the applicable deductible.

The information is presented at an aggregate level to protect claimant confidentiality and is broken down between clinical and non-clinical compensation in line with established reporting arrangements.

The number and value of claims in any one year do not necessarily relate to incidents that occurred in that year, as claims can take a number of years to conclude. A small number of high-value claims can also significantly affect the amount paid in any one year.

Further information on claims made through CNORIS is available in the CNORIS Annual Reports published by Public Services Delivery Scotland:

https://www.nss.nhs.scot/legal/clinical-negligence-and-other-risks-indemnity-scheme-cnoris/access-annual-reports-for-the-scheme/.

Question reference: S7W-03072

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what specific measures within the social care reform process will support entrepreneurship and business sustainability among independent and community sector care at home providers.

The Scottish Government recognises the vital role that independent and community sector care at home providers play in delivering high-quality care and support across Scotland.

As social care reforms are developed and implemented, we will continue to engage closely with providers, people with lived experience, local government and other partners to explore opportunities to create a more cohesive, sustainable and effective social care system. The Scottish Government is approaching this work with an open mind and no specific measures have been ruled in or out at this stage.

Consideration of how best to support a diverse, sustainable provider landscape, including independent and community sector providers, will be considered as part of this ongoing work. Any specific measures will be considered as reform proposals are developed.

Question reference: S7W-03070

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the contribution of independent and voluntary sector care at home providers to local economies and local employment, given that the sector consists of primarily small and medium-sized enterprises, and how this will be considered in the forthcoming reform of social care commissioning.

The Scottish Government recognises the significant contribution that independent and voluntary sector care at home providers make to Scotland's social care system and to local communities. As at 31 December 2025, there were 77,080 people employed in housing support/care at home services in Scotland, three quarters of whom were in the voluntary (41%) and private (33%) sectors, supporting local employment and the delivery of care and support in communities across the country.

Independent and voluntary sector providers play an important role in delivering care and support services, contributing both to local economies and to the resilience and sustainability of community based care.

As set out in the Programme for Government, the Scottish Government will undertake a period of intensive dialogue with local government and other partners to inform consideration of future social care reform options. The Scottish Government is approaching this work with an open mind and no decisions have been taken on specific reform proposals. Any future proposals will be developed in consultation with relevant partners, including providers and people with lived experience.