Chamber and committees

The data requested in respect of 2008-09 and 2009-10 is already published on the archived web site of the Information and Statistics Division (ISD) of NHS National Services Scotland. The website can be reached at:

http://www.isdscotlandarchive.scot.nhs.uk/isd/2241.html.

Data for 2010-11 will be added in due course to the new ISD website which can be reached at:

http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Prescribing-and-Medicines/Publications/.

The approach of the Scottish Government and individual territorial health boards is to contain reimbursement costs for prescribed items, to encourage best practice, and to develop, in conjunction with the clinicians concerned, local prescribing budgets, which support evidence based prescribing and thus deliver optimal patient care and value for money.

The savings achieved since 2007-08 attributable respectively to improved prescribing in primary care and more effective drug purchasing in primary care are detailed in the efficiency outturn reports for 2008-09 and 2009-10. These can be accessed at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/11/Outturn2008-09/Q/EditMode/on/ForceUpdate/on/Page/11, and

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2010/10/Outturn2009-10/Q/EditMode/on/ForceUpdate/on/Page/8.

A report for 2010-11 will be published in due course.

The Scottish Arthroplasty Project was one of a number of initiatives under review by Information Services Division in light of funding pressures. However continued collection of information on the use of arthroplasty is a necessary part of our quality strategy at the present time and it has been decided to maintain this project.

Local authorities are subject to the Equality Act 2010 and the new public sector equality duty which it contains. This new duty came into force on 5 April 2011 and covers all of the relevant protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010. The duty requires public authorities to pay “due regard” to the need to eliminate discrimination, victimisation and harassment which are unlawful under the Act, to advance equality of opportunity and to foster good relations. It is for local authorities themselves to determine how they respond to the duty.

Information Services Division has confirmed that this information is not collected centrally since it would depend on the cause of failure of the operation.

NHS boards continue to ensure that local arrangements are in place so that people with severe aortic stenosis get access to appropriate clinical treatment. As part of those arrangements, where it is considered clinically appropriate by their doctors, patients can get access to transcatheter aortic valve implantation treatment through consideration by an individual case panel.

It should be noted that conventional aortic valve replacement surgery in appropriate cases remains a clinically proven and cost effective treatment for aortic stenosis.

The Scottish Arthroplasty Project was set up to provide anonymised individual consultant and aggregated service outcome data on patients undergoing elective joint replacement surgery throughout Scotland.

This means that we will work with NHS employers in Scotland to fulfil our manifesto commitment to guarantee there will be no compulsory redundancies in the NHS. In this way security and certainty will be provided for thousands of households across Scotland who are already dealing with pressures on family budgets caused by rising prices and higher UK taxes such as VAT.

Information on the cost of voluntary redundancies is not held centrally and would have to be requested from individual NHS boards in Scotland.

Whilst the Scottish Government sets national direction of policy on mental health and provides funding to agencies, including NHS boards and local authorities, to support the implementation of policy, it is the responsibility of relevant local agencies to decide on local actions and spending priorities in the implementation of national policy.

Access to independent advocacy for people with learning disabilities continues to be a priority and the Scottish Government is working with key stakeholders to ensure disabled people have access to a range of structured, valued and accessible advocacy services to support their access to independent living in all aspects of day to day life.

The Scottish Government is providing local government in Scotland with almost £11.6 billion. The vast majority of the funding, including the funding for disability services will be provided by means of a block grant. It is the responsibility of each local authority to allocate the total financial resources available to it on the basis of local needs and priorities having first fulfilled its statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities including the Scottish Government’s key strategic objectives.

The expenditure on disability benefits is a reserved issue and a matter for Westminster.