- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government how many reports of concerns, complaints or incidents it has received regarding the rollout or operation of the Vision 3 system in GP practices, broken down by NHS board area.
Answer
Scottish Government do not hold records of the number of reports of concerns, complaints or incidents regarding the rollout or operation of the Vision 3 system broken down by health board area.
The Scottish Government is aware of concerns raised by practices and representative bodies, including through correspondence, ministerial correspondences and representations from the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP). The Scottish Government has also received Parliamentary Questions on these matters and continues to engage with PSD Scotland about the issues being raised.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what escalation process is in place for GP practices that consider that the Vision 3 system is unworkable or having an adverse impact on patient care.
Answer
GP practices can escalate issues with the Vision system via their health board representatives, who in turn can raise these with the programme team. GP practice scan log any issues with the One Advanced(Vision) Service Desk.
The GP IT Re-provisioning Programme has a robust governance framework, governed by the GP IT Service Management Board, which meets regularly and features representation from Scottish Government, RCGP, SGPC and NHS Scotland stakeholders, including health board representation. Programme progress and status are assessed as part of each meeting.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government how it is responding to each of the five recommendations in the Environmental Standards Scotland report, Protecting Scotland’s seafloor: an assessment of Scottish Ministers’ implementation of the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010.
Answer
The Scottish Government is giving careful consideration to Environmental Standards Scotland’s (ESS) report, Protecting Scotland's seafloor: an assessment of Scottish Ministers' implementation of the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010. I have written to the Chief Executive Officer of ESS confirming that the Scottish Government will engage constructively with ESS to agree an appropriate action plan within the suggested timescale. The Scottish Government's position on the report’s findings and recommendations will be set out through this engagement and in its formal response.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to the approach taken by other UK administrations in relation to GP clinical IT systems, including any decisions to move away from Vision-based systems.
Answer
The GPIT procurement was undertaken through a formal, competitive procurement process led by National Services Scotland (now Public Services Delivery Scotland), in line with European Single Procurement Document (ESPD) requirements.
Three suppliers met the criteria for inclusion on the Scottish GP IT framework :Cegedim/INPS (Vision), Optum (EMIS) and Microtest/EVA Technologies. However, Microtest withdrew from the framework in 2021 and EMIS withdrew in 2022. As a result, Vision became the only remaining supplier on the framework and is currently the only GP clinical system available through that national procurement arrangement.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any patient safety implications arising from the rollout of the Vision 3 system, including in relation to system integration, ease of access to clinical information, any delays in processing patient information and any increase in administrative burden.
Answer
As with all major digital programmes, risks relating to patient safety, system integration, access to clinical information and administrative impacts are assessed and actively managed throughout the programme lifecycle.
Public Services Delivery Scotland continues to work closely with health boards, GP practices and the supplier to monitor issues raised during migrations and system use. Where concerns are identified, they are reviewed through established governance processes and appropriate mitigations are put in place to support the continued delivery of safe and effective patient care.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the Vision 3 system on GP and practice staff workload, wellbeing, morale and retention.
Answer
Public Services Delivery Scotland, on behalf of the Scottish Government, is working with health boards to ensure that training is delivered at the right stages of the migration process, reinforced following go-live, and supported through practical, hands-on learning opportunities.
Health boards have been asked to ensure that practices receive appropriate support before, during and after migration, including sufficient protected time for training and familiarisation with the system. Where necessary, health boards may consider temporary adjustments to clinical activity to support a safe transition and staff wellbeing.
PSDS is also working closely with One Advanced and health boards to address issues identified by practices and to improve the overall user experience as the rollout progresses.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will pause any further rollout of the Vision 3 system pending a full review of its impact on GP practices, staff wellbeing, patient safety and service capacity.
Answer
The Scottish Government has no plans to pause the rollout of the Vision hosted system. EMIS PCS is due to reach end of life in June 2027, and Vision is currently the only GP clinical system available through the national framework for practices requiring a replacement system.
Patient safety, staff wellbeing, service capacity and operational risks are monitored through established programme governance arrangements. PSD Scotland continues to work closely with health boards, GP practices and One Advanced to identify and address issues, strengthen training and support, and implement lessons learned from migrations. This approach is intended to support the safe and effective transition of practices from EMIS PCS before support for that system ends.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of its legal duties to protect and restore seabed habitats under the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010, and how it is delivering on these duties.
Answer
The UK wide Marine Strategy Regulations 2010 set out various requirements related to the UK wide endeavour of the achievement or maintenance of Good Environmental Status of marine waters within the marine strategy area, including with respect to seafloor integrity.
Environmental Standards Scotland's (ESS) report, Protecting Scotland's seafloor: an assessment of Scottish Ministers' implementation of the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010, contains findings and recommendations concerning the Scottish Ministers’ implementation of those Regulations, which the Scottish Government is carefully considering.
I have written to the Chief Executive Officer of ESS confirming that the Scottish Government will work constructively with ESS to agree an appropriate action plan within the suggested timescale. The Scottish Government's position on the report's findings and recommendations will be set out through that engagement and in its formal response.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the rollout of the Vision 3 system on GP practices, including on appointment capacity, consultation times, administrative workload and the ability of practices to deliver safe and effective patient care.
Answer
The Scottish Government continues to monitor the impact of the Vision hosted system rollout through Public Service Delivery Scotland (PSDS)’engagement with health boards, GP practices and the supplier OneAdvanced.
While some practices have experienced performance issues following migration, particularly where users are adapting from EMIS to Vision, additional training and post-migration support have been put in place.
OneAdvanced is implementing system improvements to address issues affecting appointments, prescribing and task management, and recent infrastructure changes have improved system stability. PSDS continues to work with Boards and the supplier to minimise and mitigate any impacts reported as a result of the system changes.
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 23 July 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what procurement process was followed in selecting the Vision 3 system as a GP clinical IT system, and what other systems were considered as part of that process.
Answer
The GPIT procurement was undertaken through a formal, competitive procurement process led by National Services Scotland (now Public Services Delivery Scotland), in line with European Single Procurement Document (ESPD) requirements. The process was supported by a wide range of Subject Matter Experts, including GPs, nurses, pharmacists, practice managers, health board facilitators, IT specialists and information governance experts, who helped develop and assess the system requirements.
Three suppliers met the criteria for inclusion on the Scottish GP IT framework: Cegedim/INPS (Vision), Optum (EMIS) and Micro test/EVA Technologies. However, Micro test withdrew from the framework in 2021 and EMIS withdrew in 2022. As a result, Vision became the only remaining supplier on the framework and is currently the only GP clinical system available through that national procurement arrangement.
