The Scottish Parliament

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.

Question reference: S7W-01695

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 29 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been diagnosed with dementia in each year since 2021.

The Scottish Government does not hold data on the number of people diagnosed annually with dementia, but Public Health Scotland (PHS) does publish information on the number of people in different health settings with a diagnosis of dementia. This doesn’t necessarily reflect when a person would have been first diagnosed with dementia.

In March 2026 PHS released their first Dementia Index publication, which covers the time period 2020-21 to 2024-25. The number of people aged 18 and over living with dementia identified across health and social care services was 60,176 as of 31 March 2024-25. This corresponds to a prevalence estimate of 1,286 per 100,000 population. It includes people with both new and pre-existing diagnoses of dementia.

It is important to note that the index contains details of every individual aged 18 and over identified with a dementia diagnosis within the data collections available and is therefore an estimate.

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Question reference: S7W-01695

Answer