Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government continues to deliver its commitment made in 2010-11 that all health resource consequentials will be passed on in full. Details of spending are set out in the Scottish Budget publications.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-23401 on 4 June 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

The information requested is not collected or held centrally by the Scottish Government and would require to be obtained from NHS Grampian.

Growing Scotland’s economy and supporting businesses and jobs is a top priority for the Scottish Government. The latest national accounts statistics show that Scotland’s economy grew by 1.3% in 2018, with the production sector growing by 2.8% and the service sector increasing by 1.2%.

However, Scotland’s economic performance is threatened by the UK’s exit from the EU. All forms of exit will cost jobs, make people poorer, damage our society and undermine the democratic decision of the people of Scotland to remain in the EU.

The Scottish Government’s Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) published on 30 May 2019, sets out the Scottish Government’s borrowing policy over the period of the National Infrastructure Mission.

The MTFS publication can be found by way of the following link www.gov.scot .

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-23395 on 4 June 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

As highlighted by the Scottish Fiscal Commission’s latest report, forecasts for future earnings growth in Scotland have improved over the past six months. The SFC attribute this in part to Scotland’s record low unemployment rate and the Scottish Government’s public sector pay policy. On the back of this improved earnings growth, income tax receipt forecasts have also been revised upwards since Budget 2019-20, by a cumulative £490 million across the forecasting period. Earnings growth is an important driver of income tax revenues and that is why this Government continues to support growth in the economy through the actions of the Economic Action Plan and other measures.

This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise.

I have passed your query on to Steve Dunlop, the Chief Executive, and asked him to respond to you directly.

The latest forecasts [May 2019] for Scottish income tax are higher in every future year than the previous forecasts [December 2018], in large part due to an improved picture for earnings growth.

The SFC’s reconciliation estimates are still only forecasts, and are therefore subject to significant uncertainty. Any reconciliation risk will only be confirmed once final outturn data from HMRC is available in July 2019 (for 2017-18), and Summer 2020 for 2018-19. The Scottish Government will make a decision as part of each Budget process on how to manage any reconciliation, including through the use of the limited reserve and borrowing powers at its disposal - guided by the principles set out in the MTFS.

This information is not centrally available.

As you will be aware there are a number of reasons why operations can be cancelled including, at the request of the patient and based on clinical reasons. Clearly, if a patient is not clinically able to have an operation, the right course of action is that it doesn’t go ahead.

The decision for a board to postpone an elective procedure is never taken lightly. We continue to work closely with health boards to ensure cancellations are kept to a minimum and that any postponed procedures will be rescheduled at the earliest opportunity.

If a patient has their operation cancelled NHS Boards will aim to rebook them as soon as possible. Clinical urgency always takes precedence.

If a patient’s condition deteriorates whilst waiting for a procedure, the patient may contact their GP who can get in touch with the Consultant in order to discuss their case and consider whether a more urgent appointment might be more appropriate.

The Scottish Government Waiting Times Improvement Plan, launched in October 2018 and backed by more than £850 million, will ensure we further increase capacity, clinical effectiveness and efficiency, and will help implement new models of care that will support the reduction in the number of patient cancellations for non-clinical reasons. We are also working closely with those health boards experiencing the greatest pressures to support immediate and sustainable improvements.