Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-42499 on 29 December 2025. 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.

The Scottish Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce will look at the scope of a national review of maternity services based on the emerging themes and outcomes of the Healthcare Improvement Scotland Inspections of Maternity Units across Scotland, and any other area that the Taskforce might identify. As the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care made clear during the Maternity Service debate in the Scottish Parliament on 5 November 2025, the Taskforce will be asked to review specifically the issues in Caithness and other rural communities, including Stranraer.

A full workplan will be agreed by the Taskforce once it has been established, and Parliament will be updated in due course.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-42499 on 29 December 2025. 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.

The Scottish Government does not currently hold information about how many calls are made on average by a patient before securing access to medical care. The telephony systems currently used by most GP practices do not provide such data.

As part of our recent agreement with the BMA, the Scottish Government will invest in a national programme to ensure every GP practice has modern cloud-based telephony. By January 2027, every practice will need to have moved to cloud-based systems, in line with the national Public Switched Telephone Network switch-off. Work will begin with a full baseline assessment and agreed national standards, supported by training and change management. The main implementation phase for practices adopting digital cloud based telephony will take place in 2026-27, and we will be able to begin collecting data from practices once this work is complete.

Practices will be expected to use a core set of features such as automated call back, call flow, and real-time monitoring. These features are designed to reduce queues, improve safety, and provide the data needed for service planning. We will seek to establish a national programme to oversee this work.

The Scottish Law Commission recently started a review of Scots executry law, which includes the need to seek confirmation. The project may review, amongst others, whether confirmation should continue to be a judicial process and whether some or all of the executry process could be simplified through the use of online or simpler processes. The Commission is always keen to engage with stakeholders who might be affected by the subject matter of any project, and who wish to contribute. Further information can be sought at [email protected]. The Scottish Government will consider any recommendations for reform the Commission may make.

The Scots law of succession and executry differs from the law elsewhere in the UK and this is reflected in the judicial process of obtaining a grant of confirmation. The Scottish Government has no current plans to work with other UK nations to reform the confirmation process. However, the Scottish Law Commission has started a review of Scots executry law and the Scottish Government will consider any recommendations for reform made as a result.

We do not currently have a plan to make bleed kits available nationally across Scotland but we encourage the public to focus on calling the emergency services for assistance in the case of an emergency and encourage members of the public, including young people themselves, to learn the basic first aid skills which could be vital in saving a life.

Whilst our approach to tackling knife crime is to prevent young people from picking up a knife in the first instance, it is important that bystanders are given the best advice on how to provide direct pressure to a bleeding wound using readily available items such as dry towels or clothing. Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) call handlers are well trained to provide first aid advice to bystanders before an ambulance arrives.

SAS is following the position of the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, which is supported by a number of UK organisations such as the London Ambulance Service and the NHS England London Violence Reduction Programme, in promoting bystander first aid but not the general role out of commercially available bleed kits. The SAS major trauma team regularly reviews how best to treat patients experiencing significant bleeding, which includes reviewing and taking part in guidance and research.

Existing laws already regulate the sale of dangerous bladed items. We continue to work closely with Police Scotland, local authorities and retailers to reduce knife related harm and to support the enforcement of these safeguards, including age restriction requirements. Retailers also have an important role to play in keeping their communities safe by ensuring the items they sell, including kitchen knives, are stored and displayed responsibly.

In this context, the Scottish Government has no current plans to introduce a legal requirement for kitchen knives to be security-tagged or kept behind the counter in retail premises.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The Scottish Government has the utmost sympathy for women who were prescribed diethylstilbestrol (DES) and the impact it may have had on them and their families.

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) does not currently recommend increased screening for individuals whose mother may have been administered diethylstilbestrol while pregnant with them. The most recent guidance advises that routine screening is appropriate for those who believe that they were exposed to stilbestrol in utero, and we would encourage all women to attend their routine breast and cervical screening appointments.

In line with the UK NSC’s current recommendations, all women aged between 50 to 70 are invited for breast screening every three years. In addition, those aged 25 and 64 are invited for routine cervical screening every 5 years. Individuals may be invited for more regular cervical screening or until they are aged 70 if previous results have found changes that need to be monitored.

Anyone concerned that they may have side effects from possible or known exposure to DES should discuss this with their GP in the first instance, who can provide support and advice, and request a referral for any further testing or treatment if this is determined to be appropriate.