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: S5W-00081

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 May 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 26 May 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many GP surgeries are holding telephone consultations as a result of a shortage of GPs.

Access to GP services is an important issue for the Scottish Government and I’m aware that many of general practices have, for many years, adjusted appointment arrangements in order to try to prioritise urgency, and support quality and continuity of patient care.

We recognise that local situations vary and so practice partners are responsible for designing their own patient appointment and consultation arrangements. We expect them to use their professional judgement to make decisions which enable them to run the best possible service and deliver for their patient needs. GPs are encouraged to develop technology and deploy the talents of their staff appropriately to introduce new, innovative ways of working to benefit their patients by prioritising urgency, and supporting quality and continuity of patient care.

Adopting a telephone consultation model, that has been used successfully elsewhere could enable them to run the best possible service and deliver for their patient needs. As with any new system, it is a learning process and the model may be adapted over time depending on performance. Telephone appointments, in the right circumstances, can increase efficiency, improve access and boost patient satisfaction.

Question reference: S5W-00084

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 May 2016
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 25 May 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what lessons it has learned from the blacklisting case at the High Court.

The Scottish Government regards the practice of blacklisting in any form as unacceptable, particularly given the serious impact it can have on the lives of those affected.

Despite employment law being a reserved matter, the Scottish Government has gone further than any other part of the UK to help eradicate blacklisting from public contracts. The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 and the Procurement (Scotland) Regulations 2016, which came into effect on 18 April 2016, contain provisions to ensure that companies that blacklist will be excluded from bidding for public contracts. Statutory guidance concerning blacklisting has also been published.

Question reference: S5W-00085

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 May 2016
Current Status: Answered by Derek Mackay on 25 May 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of those companies that had to apologise to the blacklisted workers following the recent High Court case that have been awarded public sector contracts in Scotland in the last eight years.

Information on public contracts from August 2008 is already in the public domain and can be found on Public Contracts Scotland (PCS) and can be accessed at: http://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Default.aspx. Information on public sector contracts prior to August 2008, the date PCS was launched, may be obtainable by searching Tenders Electronic Daily and can be accessed at: http://ted.europa.eu/TED/main/HomePage.do.

Question reference: S4W-30733

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many delayed discharges there have been in Lothian in each month from January 2015.

Table 1 shows the number of delayed discharges in NHS Lothian at each monthly census snapshot from January 2015 to February 2016.

Table 1. Number of delayed discharges at the census snapshot; NHS Lothian (Board of treatment)

Month

2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2015	2016	2016
Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Jan	Feb

Census Figure

208

206

200

214

226

227

219

210

229

224

211

202

191

Question reference: S4W-30743

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has engaged in any correspondence with Charlotte Street Partners since January 2014 and, if so, what subjects were discussed.

Question reference: S4W-30734

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether delayed discharges across Lothian are increasing and, if so, for what reason.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30733 on 22 March 2016, which shows the trend in delayed discharges across Lothian over the last year. As this chart shows, significant progress has been made by the partnership since September 2015, when there were 229 delays, this reduced to 191 at the February census (16% reduction).

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

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

Question reference: S4W-30727

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to reduce the number of delayed discharges in Lothian.

<>We have, in particular, been working with the City of Edinburgh Health and Social Care Partnership, and we have allocated an additional £2 million to the partnership, with an agreement to reduce the level of delayed discharges significantly by May 2016. To receive the final £0.5 million, the Edinburgh partnership had to reduce standard delays to below 100 by February 2016, from a start point of 146 in November 2015. They achieved this and I am now looking for this to reduce by half by May 2016.

Question reference: S4W-30572

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by Alex Neil on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has the power under section 101(7) of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 to halt widening of asylum dispersal in Scotland and whether it has any power in relation to companies alleged to be involved in mistreating asylum seekers in Scotland.

Asylum is a matter reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Government does not have powers in relation to companies holding Home Office contracts to provide services to asylum seekers in Scotland.

The Scottish Government is aware that the Home Office is exploring the widening of asylum dispersal in Scotland. As discussions are still at an early stage, the application of section 101(7) of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 has not yet been tested.

Question reference: S4W-30744

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether any cabinet secretary or minister has had any contact via telecommunications or correspondence with Charlotte Street Partners since January 2014 and, if so, which cabinet secretary or minister, and what subjects were discussed in these communications.

Question reference: S4W-30742

Asked by: Neil Findlay, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 March 2016
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 24 March 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings (a) ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) civil servants have had with Charlotte Street Partners since January 2014 and what was discussed at each meeting.