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: S6W-03933

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 29 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by George Adam on 12 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether there is a protocol for ministerial responses to MSPs and, if so, what that is.

Question reference: S6W-03893

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 12 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the current level of uptake is of the flu vaccination in 2021, and what the uptake was in each of the two previous years.

Public Health Scotland's weekly respiratory report indicates that up to week 42 (week ending 24th October 2021) a total of 944,989 individuals, among different eligible cohorts, have received influenza vaccine. This season a combination of data recording systems has been used to generate the influenza vaccine uptake data as part of the Vaccine Transformation Programme (VTP) and the adoption of new systems for the scheduling, booking and recording of influenza vaccination. Thus, the data presented for season 2021-22 are not directly comparable to influenza vaccine uptake in previous seasons.

Although it is not possible to directly compare with previous seasons, the data indicated that the overall influenza vaccine uptake for Scotland in 2020-21 was higher than 2019-20 season in most eligible cohorts; notably for those aged 65 years and over with an overall uptake of 79.7 % compared to 74 % in the 2019-20.

Question reference: S6W-03894

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 12 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what public information action it has in place to encourage the uptake of the COVID-19 booster vaccine.

On the week commencing 25 October we launched booster campaign activity to support those aged between 60 and 69 and those 16+ with an ongoing health condition who have started to receive their COVID-19 Vaccine Booster appointments.

The main element of the media campaign which includes TV, Radio, Press, Digital and PR activity started 1 November with a generic call to action.

From 15 November, all media activity will direct target audiences to the appointment booking portal. This campaign is covering 91% of the adult population with an average opportunity to see/hear of 21.

The campaign was supported by a wide range of other communications and engagement activity to raise awareness and encourage uptake in the general population as well as specific groups.

Question reference: S6W-03895

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 12 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the cost is of training a medical student.

The cost of funding a Scottish domiciled student from entry to university through to graduation is set out in the first table. The cost of funding a student from the Rest of the UK (RUK) from entry to university through to graduation is set out in the second table.

ScotsDom	SFC	ACT*	SAAS	Total
Year 1	£6,936	£19,500	£1,820	£28,256
Year 2	£6,936	£19,500	£1,820	£28,256
Year 3	£15,592	£19,500	£1,820	£36,912
Year 4	£15,592	£19,500	£1,820	£36,912
Year 5	£15,592	£19,500	£1,820	£36,912
Total	£60,648	£97,500	£9,100	£167,248

RUK	SFC	ACT*	Total
Year 1	0	£19,500	£19,500
Year 2	0	£19,500	£19,500
Year 3	£8,162	£19,500	£27,662
Year 4	£8,162	£19,500	£27,662
Year 5	£8,162	£19,500	£27,662
Total	£24,486	£97,500	£121,986

*ACT – Additional Costs of Teaching (distributed to NHS Scotland Health Boards)

Question reference: S6W-03897

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 12 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many additional medical students it believes will be needed to resolve the reported staffing issues, and how much it believes it will cost to fill these places.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to ensuring a sustainable medical supply pipeline into the NHS. In response to overall UK undersupply of medical graduates, the Scottish Government has been expanding university medical school places since 2016 and has created 269 additional medical undergraduate places (a 32% increase over 2016 levels).

The recent Programme for Government also sets out a further commitment to increase medical school places by 100 per annum over the course of the Parliamentary term and to double the number of widening access places.

Question reference: S6W-03892

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 12 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has done of the cost of administering the COVID-19 booster vaccine by GP practices compared with health boards, and what the estimated costs were of both approaches.

Question reference: S6O-00407

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body when it will make a decision regarding the level of MSP allowances for staff for 2022-23.

Question reference: S6W-03981

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 25 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when the winter flu period is anticipated to commence in 2021.

Most influenza infections typically occur in the winter months with a peak between December and March. Public Health Scotland produce a weekly report monitoring the surveillance of influenza infection which currently sits at baseline activity (week 42). The latest weekly report can be found here: Weekly national seasonal respiratory report - Week 42 2021 - Weekly national seasonal respiratory report - Publications - Public Health Scotland .

Question reference: S6W-03880

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 22 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether district nurses are being used to administer COVID-19 booster vaccines and winter flu vaccines to individuals at home, and, if so, under what circumstances.

Due to the importance of the autumn/winter vaccines, some health boards are utilising Community Nursing Teams.

This will particularly be for those patients who are on their current caseloads and are housebound. Community Nurses are also supporting vaccinations in care homes, not only to those on caseload but to help support delivery to this priority group. Community Nurses are also undertaking additional shifts in vaccination clinic settings.

Question reference: S6W-03609

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 11 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether the additional funding of £62 million for unmet need in social care is recurring funding.