Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-22120

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government’s proposal to hold a free vote in Parliament on phasing out smoking in England, whether it will replicate such a proposal for Scotland.

The Scottish Government is committed to doing everything in its power to reduce smoking prevalence in Scotland, lowering smoking rates in our communities to 5% or less by 2034.

We are taking part in a UK-wide consultation on creating a smoke-free generation and tackling youth vaping, which includes the proposal on raising the age of sale for tobacco products by one year each year for those born on or after 1 January 2009.

Any decision to allow members of the Government a free vote would be a decision taken by Cabinet collectively, following analysis of the consultation responses and once a decision on next steps is taken.

Question reference: S6W-22122

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish all correspondence that it had with the British Dental Association Scotland between 1 October 2022 and 5 October 2023 regarding reform of the dental payment system.

Question reference: S6W-22128

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish its new palliative care strategy, in light of it initially being due in 2021.

Question reference: S6W-22129

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to tackle the reported rising number of cases of sexually transmitted infections.

The Scottish Government’s forthcoming Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Action Plan will set out priority areas for action over the next three years. Ensuring that people have access to the information and services they need to make informed choices and take care of their sexual health are key outcomes of the plan.

A national sexually transmitted infection (STI) awareness campaign led by Public Health Scotland launched in July with targeted work for groups who have seen the highest rates of STIs, particularly gonorrhoea.

The Scottish Government is also investing in a national roll-out of an online STI testing service.

Question reference: S6W-22126

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a detailed explanation of what the process will be for selecting the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland.

The Scottish Government is unable to provide a detailed explanation of the selection process. As a Parliamentary Commissioner, the selection of the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland will be a matter for the Scottish Parliament.

Part 2 of Schedule 1 of the Bill states that the Commissioner will be “appointed by His Majesty on recommendation of the Scottish Parliament”. This process is covered by Rule 3.11 of the Parliament’s Standing Orders. Selection will be carried out by a “selection panel” comprising the Presiding Officer, the convener of the relevant Committee and between 4 and 7 other cross-party MSPs selected by the Presiding Officer. Any member of the selection panel may propose that Parliament nominates the person recommended by the panel.

Question reference: S6W-22121

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its implementation of the short-term recommendations from the Independent Review of Audiology Services in Scotland.

There are a number of recommendations that have been made through the Independent Review of Audiology Services in Scotland, many of which are targeted specifically at Health Boards and other partners, as well as the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government is considering all of the recommendations made. Given the broad scope of the recommendations, and the seriousness of the issues raised, it is important that sufficient time is taken to fully plan how any actions will be taken forward.

We will provide an update to Parliament in due course.

Question reference: S6W-22123

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish its Diet and healthy weight: monitoring report 2023 update.

The Diet and Healthy Weight Monitoring report was not published in 2022 and, as set out at the time, we have engaged with users to decide on the future of this publication. An announcement will be made shortly informed by the outcome of user engagement. Most of the data previously included in the Diet and Healthy Weight Monitoring report is now presented in the Scottish Health Survey with the remaining few indicators available in other publications. Results from the 2022 Scottish Health Survey will be published on 5 December 2023. Data for the indicators on sales of soft drinks with added sugar, confectionery, biscuits, cakes and pastries are available on the Food Standards Scotland website and type 2 diabetes prevalence is available in the Scottish Diabetes Survey report.

Question reference: S6W-22127

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many of the 46 recommendations in the 2018 report, An Investigative Review into the process of establishing, managing and supporting Independent Reviews in Scotland, have been implemented.

Professor Britton’s 2018 Investigative Review gave 46 recommendations regarding the process of establishing, managing and supporting Independent Reviews in Scotland.

We accepted and agreed with the vast majority of her conclusions and recommendations. The recommendations have already been reflected in a number of inquiries and reviews established in recent years. We are also developing guidance to support inquires and reviews that will build upon Professor Britton’s recommendations and hope to publish that soon. The Scottish Government is also working on a handbook that will clarify and enhance the support that government can offer to independent inquiries.

This work has been fully informed and benefited from Professor Britton’s work and recommendations. All reviews and inquiries in recent years have also benefitted from Professor Britton’s work.

Question reference: S6W-21675

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Friday, 22 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 5 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether patients in Scotland can now view their bloodwork online, and, if so, for what reason there was reportedly a significant delay to this happening compared with England and Wales.

In Scotland, we have some instances where test results are available for patients already, including for those remote managing a condition through My Diabetes My Way and Patients Know Best (Renal). Learning from these digital tools will inform the development of the Digital Front Door for Scotland. The Digital Front Door is not currently a live service but will provide people with the ability to access, view and monitor their own information including medical records and test results over time. We expect the Digital Front Door to be available by the end of this parliamentary term.

Question reference: S6O-02558

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken any evaluation of the relative economic benefits of small modular nuclear reactors compared with other forms of energy provision.

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