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: S5O-00482

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 December 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 15 December 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what assurances it can give to customers who signed Solar Energy Green Deal agreements with Home Energy and Lifestyle Management Systems, which ceased trading in April 2016, in light of reports that some have found their energy bills increasing by up to three times and the value of their homes being adversely affected.

Question reference: S5O-00408

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 30 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to encourage more blood donations over the festive period.

Each year the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service – (SNBTS) - makes robust plans to raise awareness of the need for blood donations during the festive season and maintain supplies of blood across Scotland.

To ensure they maintain support from blood donors, SNBTS employs various strategies to boost the public response. For example:

Throughout the period, SNBTS will be contacting existing donors to build supplies of each of the eight major blood groups to maintain their target stock levels.

As O Negative is the only blood group that can be given to everyone in an emergency, donors of this blood group will receive special letters asking them to make an extra special effort to give blood.

A television campaign commenced on 28 November 2016, supported by a digital campaign. This aims to boost attendances and recruit new donors.

SNBTS is also working with gyms in the central belt to encourage people to make giving blood their New Year resolution and promote giving blood as part of healthy living.

I would like to thank all donors for their support. New, committed donors are obviously important to safeguard blood supplies and I would encourage everyone who can to participate.

Question reference: S5O-00372

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 November 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with South Lanarkshire Council regarding the building of secondary schools.

Question reference: S5O-00356

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how it will take forward plans to establish a national manufacturing institute.

Question reference: S5W-03921

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 October 2016
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Shona Robison on 21 October 2016

To ask the Scottish Government when it will provide an update on the legal challenge against minimum unit pricing.

Question reference: S5W-03192

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 26 September 2016
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 12 October 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what guarantees it has received from the UK Government on the protection of workers' rights in Scotland following the UK's vote to leave the EU.

The First Minister has welcomed the Prime Minister’s commitment to ensure Scotland is fully engaged in discussions around EU negotiations.

Our priority is to protect all of Scotland’s interests, including the protection of workers’ rights. The current common framework for EU law prevents the exploitation or workers and a race to the bottom on a range of issues such as discrimination; maternity leave and parental leave; working time; and health and safety. Our position in discussions with the UK Government will be to ensure that these protections are maintained, with scope for further improvements in the future.

Question reference: S5W-03202

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 26 September 2016
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 11 October 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the WASPI campaign's call for fair transitional measures in changes to pensions, and what representations it plans to make to the UK Government regarding the delivery of pension equality and fairness for women in Scotland who were born in the 1950s.

The Scottish Government fully supports the WASPI campaign in their efforts to secure fairness for women affected by the acceleration in the retirement age.

I wrote to Stephen Crabb, the former Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, urging him to reconsider the UK Governments decision not to look at transitional arrangements for those women affected by the change. Unfortunately his response was that the UK Government had no plans to bring forward any changes.

Question reference: S5O-00217

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 September 2016
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 October 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making to ensure that NHS staff receive at least the living wage.

Question reference: S5W-01841

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 August 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 September 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how much will be invested in major NHS projects in each of the next four years.

At this stage, the NHS capital budget is not known beyond 2016-17, therefore there is an element of uncertainty as to what major NHS projects will be undertaken over the next four years.

NHS capital projects in development (with a capital value over £5 million) are listed below along with the expected cost and estimated completion date. The various projects have been grouped into Public Capital, Non-Profit Distribution (NPD) and Revenue financed Hub investments. Major capital projects usually span more than one financial year, therefore the expected completion date is noted below. It should also be noted that the completion date is an estimate which may be subject to change.

NHS boards have also submitted a number of projects to the NHS Capital Investment Group (CIG) for consideration and these projects are progressing through the business case approval process. However until the CIG approve a business case, it will not be included as a planned investment.

Public Capital

NHS Ayrshire and Arran – Building for Better Care (£28 million), Completion expected 2017

NHS Grampian – Baird Family Hospital and ANCHOR Centre (£145 million), Timescales TBC

NHS Highland - Raigmore Critical Care and Theatres (£29 million), Completion expected 2019

NHS Lanarkshire - Monklands Hospital Theatres and ICU (£20 million), Completion expected 2018

NHS Western Isles - St Brendans Hospital (circa £9 million), Timescales TBC

Scottish Ambulance Service - Fleet Replacement for period 2016/2021 (circa £80 million), Ongoing

NHS Scotland – Elective centres (circa £200 million), Timescales TBC

NPD

NHS Ayrshire and Arran - Acute Mental Health and North Ayrshire Community Hospital (£55 million), Completion expected 2016

NHS Dumfries and Galloway - Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary (£274 million), Completion expected 2018

NHS Lothian - Royal Hospital for Sick Children / Department of Clinical Neurosciences (£230 million), Completion expected 2017

NHS Orkney - New Balfour Hospital (£67 million), Completion expected 2018

National Services Scotland - Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service National Centre (£38 million), Completion expected 2017

Revenue-financed Hub projects

NHS Forth Valley – Stirling Care Village (circa £35 million), Completion TBC.

NHS Grampian - Inverurie Health and Care Hub (£14 million), Completion expected 2018

NHS Grampian - Foresterhill Campus - Foresterhill Health Centre (£8 million), Completion expected 2018

NHS Grampian - Primary Healthcare Priorities in Grampian (£19 million), Completion TBC

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde – Maryhill and Eastwood Health Centres (£25 million), Completion expected 2016

NHS Greater Glasgow andClyde – Gorbals and Woodside Health Centres (circa £33 million), Completion expected 2017

NHS Greater Glasgow andClyde – Inverclyde Continuing Care for Adults and Older People (£8.5 million), Completion expected 2017

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde – Clydebank and Greenock Health Centres (circa £38 million), Completion expected 2019

NHS Highland - Community Hospitals for Skyle, Lochalsh and South West Ross and Badenoch and Strathspey (circa £30 million), Timescales TBC

NHS Lothian – Partnership Centres – Blackburn, NW Edinburgh, Firhill (circa £25 million), Completion expected 2018

NHS Lothian – East Lothian Community Hospital (circa £72 million), Completion expected 2020

NHS Lothian - Royal Edinburgh Campus Redevelopment (Phase 1 £49 million, further phases circa £120 million), Phase 1 expected completion 2016, further phases TBC

NHS Tayside - NHS Scotland Pharmaceuticals Specials Service (£26 million), Timescales TBC

NHS Tayside - Dundee Community Care (circa £20 million), Timescales TBC

Question reference: S5W-01840

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 August 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 September 2016

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the NHS targets review.