- Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the workload of officers investigating rape and other serious sexual offences; what its position is on whether current staffing levels are sufficient to ensure timely, thorough and trauma-informed investigations, and what plans it has to publish guidance regarding officer workload to support the effective management of such cases.
Answer
The Scottish Government encourages all victims and survivors to report sexual crimes, including those that may have happened some time ago.
Operational policing decisions and workload considerations are for the Chief Constable who is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority - not to Scottish Ministers. It would not be appropriate for Scottish Ministers to provide guidance in relation to officer workload.
However, violence against women and girls is a key strand and tenet of Police Scotland’s 2030 vision and three-year business plan.
The Scottish Government recognises the vital roles that police officers play in keeping communities safe. This year, we have increased police funding to over £1.7 billion, an increase of £81.5 million on the 2025-26 Autumn Budget Revision (ABR) budget, to deliver on its priorities including frontline service delivery.
- Asked by: David Linden, MSP for Glasgow Baillieston and Shettleston, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S7W-01302 by Neil Gray on 17 July 2026, what training is offered to prison officers to support neurodivergent prisoners; whether such training is compulsory, and (a) how many and (b) what proportion of current officers have completed such training.
Answer
The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) is an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government. Training for prisons officers is designed and taken forward by the SPS.
SPS recognise the importance of supporting neurodivergence within the prison population, and although there is no standalone training for supporting neurodivergence in prisons, Officer ‘core to role’ training does cover areas which support trauma-informed practice.
SPS continue to engage with their partners, including Supporting Offenders with Learning Disabilities (SOLD), who together with Association for Real Change (ARC), are developing a framework of principles for inclusive justice which will in turn allow SPS to develop standards to improve support to help neurodivergent people in custody.
- Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that a number of individual officers might be responsible for investigating in excess of 200 rape cases alongside other serious offences, (a) whether it has sought information from Police Scotland regarding this and, if so, what information it has received and (b) what assessment it has made of the impact that high investigative caseloads might have on the confidence of victims and survivors in reporting offences.
Answer
Operational policing decisions and workload considerations are for the Chief Constable who is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority - not to Scottish Ministers. It would not be appropriate for Scottish Ministers to seek information from Police Scotland in relation to officer workload.
However, violence against women and girls is a key strand and tenet of Police Scotland’s 2030 vision and three-year business plan.
The Scottish Government encourages all victims and survivors to report sexual crimes, including those that may have happened some time ago.
- Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many and (b) what proportion of (i) 16- to 24-year-olds and (ii) people aged 25 or more who are in receipt of Adult Disability Payment remain in receipt after (A) one, (B) two and (C) five years, also broken down by how many have undergone a review or reassessment, and what the outcome was.
Answer
Social Security Scotland regularly publishes statistics on its benefits, including Adult Disability Payment, which covers the current number of clients in receipt of the payment, their age breakdown, and the information on completed reviews and outcomes.
The latest Adult Disability Payment statistics are available at: Adult Disability Payment statistics to 30 April 2026.
The specific breakdown of information requested is not routinely produced and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost, in line with Scottish Government guidance on Parliamentary Questions.
- Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government how many buildings in the NHS estate have been assessed as category C or D in relation to (a) Condition and (b) Functional Suitability.
Answer
Condition and Functional Suitability assessments are undertaken and recorded for individual buildings within the NHS estate. However, the Scottish Government does not routinely hold information on the number of buildings assessed as category C or D for either Condition or Functional Suitability.
Based on the latest available NHS estate data, 34% of the estate by floor area was assessed as being in Condition C or D, while 26% of the estate by floor area was assessed as having Functional Suitability rated C or D.
- Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to backlog maintenance, how many buildings within the NHS estate have been assessed as (a) significant risk and (b) high risk.
Answer
Backlog maintenance within the NHS estate is assessed and reported at the level of individual maintenance items rather than buildings. Consequently, individual buildings are not assigned an overall risk rating, as they may contain multiple backlog maintenance items with different risk ratings.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, since May 2024, how many clinical breast cancer patients are estimated to have undergone chemotherapy from which they derived no clinical benefit, and what steps it is taking to prevent such treatment that would be determined to be of no clinical benefit and to protect resources through the immediate expansion of genomic testing.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold an estimate of how many clinical breast cancer patients have undergone chemotherapy from which they derived no clinical benefit.
We are committed to ensuring that people with cancer receive the treatment most appropriate to their individual circumstances. The Scottish Government has commissioned the NHS Scotland Cancer Collaborative (NSCC) to develop National Clinical Management Pathways (CMPs). CMPs outline the patient with cancer journey from diagnosis onwards and support consistent decision-making across Scotland on optimal treatment options at the various points in a patient’s pathway. They help clinicians and patients to work in partnership to consider the likely benefits and risks of treatment options and allow people to make an informed choice about their care, as well as reducing waste, potential harm and regret about treatment decisions, in line with the principles of Realistic Medicine.
The process for the development and review of CMPs has been previously described in S6W-42977 on 20 January 2026.
The Scottish Government is committed to delivering equitable access to genomic testing and precision medicines and continue to work with NHS Scotland partners to explore opportunities to expand our genomic testing provision in Scotland, in line with our strategy and resources.
All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.
- Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what the timeline is for publishing transparent data on referral pathways and routes to diagnosis for brain tumour patients so that any inequalities in access and diagnostic delays can be identified, monitored and addressed.
Answer
Public Health Scotland (PHS) publishes information on routes to cancer diagnosis, which includes emergency presentations for brain and other central nervous system (CNS) cancers: Routes to Cancer Diagnosis, Cancer Stage and Curative Treatment for Cancer Information to Support Visions from the Cancer Strategy 26 August 2026 - Routes to Cancer Diagnosis, Cancer Stage and Curative Treatment for Cancer Information to Support Visions from the Cancer Strategy - Publications - Public Health Scotland.
Given the relatively small number of brain tumour diagnoses in Scotland, publication of more detailed tumour-specific data may not be possible due to statistical disclosure risks.
Through the Cancer Strategy for Scotland 2023-2033 and accompanying Cancer Action Plan for Scotland 2023 – 2026, the Scottish Government is working to improve outcomes for brain tumours and other less survivable cancers.
Scotland's Earlier Cancer Diagnosis Vision aims to reduce later-stage disease and health inequalities, and recognises that alternative measures, such as emergency presentations, are needed to monitor progress for cancers that cannot be conventionally staged.
Earlier and more equitable diagnosis is also supported through national clinical pathways, improved access to diagnostic imaging, the Brain Tumour Pathway within the Managed Service Network for Neurosurgery, and the National Headache Pathway.
- Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that Police Scotland officers investigating rape and serious sexual offences have sufficient time and resources to deliver trauma-informed investigations and maintain meaningful communication with victims throughout the investigative process, and what measures are in place to ensure that victims and survivors of rape receive appropriate support where investigations are delayed because of investigative capacity or workload pressures.
Answer
Operational policing decisions and workload considerations are for the Chief Constable who is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority - not to Scottish Ministers.
Investigating rape and sexual offences remain one of the top priorities for Police Scotland. Specialist sexual offence liaison officers (SOLOs )are available to support victims. SOLOs ensure that victims are kept informed of progress and understand the reasons for any significant delays. Police Scotland also work closely with specialist support organisations and partners to ensure victims continue to have access to appropriate support and advocacy.
The Scottish Government provides funding for trauma specialists at Public Services Delivery Scotland to support the criminal justice organisations to embed the Trauma Informed Justice Knowledge and Skill Framework. They have been working with Police Scotland to develop and deliver training at the trauma enhanced practice level of the framework, across evidence gathering, interpretation and presentation roles.
- Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 3 August 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the number of clinical nurse specialists who specialise in neuro-oncology, and what steps NHS Scotland is taking to ensure that all brain tumour patients have access to a named clinical nurse specialist.
Answer
On 2 June 2026 PSD Scotland published data on the number of Clinical Nurse Specialists across NHS Scotland for the first time since 2018, Clinical Nurse Specialists | Turas Data Intelligence. These data are published as Official Statistics in Development and PSD Scotland have a published plan to develop these into Official Statistics, New statistics on Clinical Nurse Specialists.
Through the Cancer Strategy and Cancer Action Plan, we are supporting NHS Scotland to improve access to named contacts for cancer patients, including through the Single Point of Contact (SPoC) approach. Evaluation has shown that SPoC services saved almost 4,000 hours of Clinical Nurse Specialist time over a 12-month period, enabling CNSs to focus on patients with more complex needs.
The 2024 Scottish Cancer Patient Experience Survey found that 93% of patients were given the name of a Clinical Nurse Specialist or other named contact during their care.
