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: S5W-06906

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2017
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 24 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recommendation in the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health report, State of Child Health, that it should develop a “child health in all policies” approach to decision-making to ensure that all public and economic policy is scrutinised in relation to its potential impact on child health.

The Scottish Government works across policy areas to raise the profile of child health and to ensure proper account of the needs of children and young people is represented in relevant developing policies.

Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) is a national approach in Scotland to improving outcomes and supporting the wellbeing of our children and young people by offering the right help at the right time from the right people. Wellbeing is at the heart of the Getting it right for every child approach to improving services for children and young people.

GIRFEC puts the rights and wellbeing of children and young people at the heart of the services that support them – such as early years services, schools and the NHS.

Question reference: S5W-06743

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government how much each NHS board has spent in each year since 2011-12 on travel costs for people to receive treatment in a different board area from where they live, broken down by (a) personal mileage, (b) taxi, (c) rail, (d) flight and (e) other costs.

Question reference: S5W-06905

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2017
Current Status: Answered by Mark McDonald on 21 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-05422 by Mark McDonald on 15 December 2016, what its response is to the findings and recommendations on breastfeeding in the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health report, State of Child Health.

Following the findings in the Royal College of Paediatric Child Health “ State of Child Health” report, I can confirm that the Scottish Government is committed to supporting breastfeeding. Since 2011 we have invested more than £11.2m to enable Health Boards to promote breastfeeding and to support women to breastfeed for as long as they wish to do so. It is for NHS boards to take responsibility for monitoring the local breastfeeding trends for their area.

Funding is also provided to several voluntary organisations and peer support programmes including the Breastfeeding Network which provides a National Breastfeeding Helpline

In addition, we directly fund a Scottish UNICEF post and the first stage UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative accreditation. Scotland was the first country in the UK to have 100% of its maternity units meeting the UNICEF Baby Friendly best practice standards. Over 80% of our Health and Social Care Partnerships, 50% of our Universities and three (20%) of the largest Scottish Neonatal units are at stage 2 of the accreditation process.

UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Accreditation in Scotland		Maternity		HSCPs		NNU		Uni
Full accreditation	27	100%	29	80.5%	0	-	4	50%
Stage 2 accreditation	0	-	0	-	3	20%	0	-
Stage 1 accreditation	0	-	7	19.5%	0	-	1	12.5%
Certificate of commitment	0	-	0	-	0	-	0	-
Intent registered/No current information	0	-	0	-	12	80%	3	37.5%

As part of our 2016 Breastfeeding Awareness week activity we created the Feedgood.scot website to support women to initiate and continue breastfeeding. This was designed following detailed insight gathering with pregnant women and mothers of young children, and has already seen higher usage than the previous site.

To further strengthen our understanding of behaviours around breastfeeding, vitamin supplementation during pregnancy and early toddler diet we have commissioned a National Maternal and Infant Nutrition Survey for Scotland, following the withdrawal of the previous UK Infant Feeding Survey, and are the only UK country to do so.

Question reference: S5F-00882

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2017

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to recent NSPCC figures, which show that thousands of children with serious mental health problems turned to Childline last year.

Question reference: S5O-00652

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 February 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 February 2017

To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution last spoke with the Scottish Fiscal Commission.

Question reference: S5O-00592

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 25 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the maintenance of the 2016-17 funding reduction to alcohol and drug partnerships in its Draft Budget 2017-18.

The draft Scottish Government budget for 2017-18 provides for the allocation of £53.8 million to support Alcohol and Drug services. The agreed funding allocation will be directed through NHS territorial boards for delegation to Integration Authorities. Supporting the delivery of Alcohol and Drug Partnerships’ work is a priority for Integrated Authorities in 2017-18. As in previous years, the funds provided directly from the Scottish Government budget sit alongside funds provided from other NHS sources, statutory partners and the third sector, which collectively makes up the resources package for this important work.

Question reference: S5W-05963

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 23 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review its guidance to local authorities on how to identify, record and monitor the additional support needs of young people in schools.

Guidance to education authorities on duties under the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 is provided through the Statutory Code of Practice ‘Supporting Children’s Learning’ which is available from: http://www.gov.scot/Resource/Doc/348208/0116022.pdf

It is planned to review this in anticipation of the commencement of provisions within the Education (Scotland) Act 2016. We are supported in this by the Advisory Group for Additional Support for Learning who will work with us to ensure that the guidance we produce on this, and on any other issues related to additional support for learning, is fit for purpose and supports those working with children and young people.

Question reference: S5W-05964

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 January 2017
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 23 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish Children’s Services Coalition's call for clearer guidance on how the number of pupils with additional support needs is collected, in light of the 2016 pupil census data that suggests that there is significant variation across local authorities in the number recorded.

Question reference: S5W-05867

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 December 2016
Current Status: Answered by Maureen Watt on 18 January 2017

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-05094 by Maureen Watt on 12 December 2016, whether it will update the guidance for the mental health innovation fund, and when this will be published on its website.

The Guidance for the Mental Health Innovation Fund provided parameters for how NHS boards and their partners were to use £15 million additional funding, with £5 million being allocated in each of 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18. The Guidance is therefore specific to this tranche of additional funding and, as all the funding has now been allocated, it is not necessary to update or publish it.

Question reference: S5F-00727

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 January 2017
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 January 2017

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reports that hundreds of children with mental health problems have waited more than a year for treatment.