Chamber and committees

The information requested is published by Public Health Scotland as part of it’s annual Acute Hospital Activity and NHS Beds Information publication. Information on cataract procedures, broken down by NHS Board and financial year, can be found in Table 7 of the supporting data tables available via the publication page.

Management of asbestos in the NHS estate is a matter for local Health Boards. Health boards carry out annual asbestos monitoring surveys and asbestos management plans are in place across the NHS estate.

For the purpose of this exercise we’ve included correspondence from MSPs on behalf of practices in their constituency, and one received from the RCGP representing practices from Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The results were as follow (a) 0 are direct from NHS boards (b) 6 are direct from practices (3 Greater Glasgow and Clyde, 2 Dumfries and Galloway, 1 Forth Valley). It should be noted that more than one correspondence may relate to the same practice.

The standards of care for cancer treatment are rightly developed independently of Scottish Government by those with the relevant clinical expertise.

The NHS Scotland Cancer Collaborative’s Clinical Management Pathways (CMPs) define national standards of care for cancer treatment. The CMP for breast cancer has incorporated the Scottish Health Technologies Group (SHTG) Council’s 2023 independent recommendation on the use of commercial multigene assays for breast cancer patients across Scotland. SHTG have criteria and processes in place to judge whether new evidence is sufficient to revise its existing recommendations of these commercial tests. NHS genomic testing, delivered within our laboratory service, is nationally commissioned by NHS National Services Division to ensure equitable access across Scotland.

Alongside our enterprise agency partners, we are always looking to improve our approach to attracting inward investment focusing on priority markets, pipeline development, investor aftercare and support for major investment projects. This will ensure Scotland remains an attractive destination for businesses looking to establish, expand or grow their operations, building on Scotland's position as the UK's top performing location outside London for inward investment for the eleventh consecutive year. We will continue to engage regularly with the UK Government on matters relating to investment, economic development and business growth.

Any changes to the approved Forth Green Freeport tax sites, or changes to the legislative framework underpinning Green Freeport tax sites, is a reserved matter for the UK Government.

However, the Scottish Government would be willing to engage constructively with relevant partners should Forth Green Freeport seek to pursue this course of action.

The Scottish Government recognises the fragmented nature of the approval and routes to implementation for medical innovations across devices, diagnostics and new technological interventions.

Whilst the Scottish Government does not hold specific data on the time to adoption of all medical technologies, it is actively working to streamline processes within the health and care system to enable faster access to innovative products and solutions in line with our ambitions set out in our Health and Social Care Service Renewal Framework.

Growing Scotland’s life sciences sector and enhancing research, development and innovation are core Scottish Government commitments backed by the Life Sciences Strategy for Scotland and the Health and Social Care Service Renewal Framework. This is underpinned through a national innovation ecosystem designed to develop, test, adopt and scale the innovations most likely to improve the lives of people in Scotland.

Commercial multigene assays for breast cancer patients have been adopted in Scotland in line with the independent recommendations of the Scottish Health Technologies Group (SHTG). SHTG have criteria and processes in place to judge whether new evidence is sufficient to revise its existing recommendations.

As the Covid 19 UK Inquiry Module 5 report sets out, the figure of £9.9 billion relates to PPE written off by the UK Government alone. The report also notes that the Scottish Government wrote off £8.35 million of PPE and other items in the period from 2020-2023.

The Scottish Government, in collaboration with Public Services Delivery Scotland (PSDS), has a range of measures to reduce wastage of PPE in any future health emergency. The national stockpile consists of a wide range of PPE items, aligned to the requirements of NHS Scotland and rotated into NHS usage to help prevent and reduce wastage.

During a future health emergency, we will work in partnership with PSDS and other stakeholders to ensure stock is procured and deployed based on assessed need, clinical guidance, and demand intelligence; while providing only items of PPE which meet the relevant product standards.

We are also working on a project which aims to support Health Boards to move to using more re-usable PPE products where appropriate.

It is important that data centres are as sustainable as possible. This means minimising water use through closed-loop systems and considering whether there are alternative sources of water, such as treated wastewater. Where drinking water is used, the needs of existing populations must take priority, as our priority is the protection of human health.

Any decisions about data centres would be subject to the statutory planning process and the use of water resources would form part of that consideration. Most existing data centres in Scotland already operate as closed-loop systems and it is Scottish Ministers’ expectation that sustainable solutions are identified for any new data centre proposals. Scottish Water’s assessment is that data centres currently account for around 0.006% of public water demand in Scotland and, as part of wider considerations, they have suggested that there may be options available for using effluent from their wastewater treatment process as part of a closed loop system to reduce the impact on water resources.

Any proposals for new data centres would be subject to the statutory planning process, which would consider a range of factors including water resources, environmental impacts and wider infrastructure capacity. It is Scottish Ministers' expectation that new developments are designed and located in a way that supports long-term sustainability and water resilience.

Scotland's existing data centres account for a very small proportion of public water demand, and early engagement with developers is important to ensure proposals are aligned with local infrastructure and environmental considerations. There are opportunities for some future developments to make use of treated wastewater, helping to support economic growth while protecting drinking water supplies and the environment.