Questions and answers

Question reference: S6O-03043

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to ensure that pupils can interact with museums as part of their education to help address racism and the legacy of colonialism.

Question reference: S6W-24439

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the funding set out in the NHS Recovery Plan 2021-2026 has been allocated to improving audiology services in the (a) NHS Lothian and (b) West Lothian Council area.

We published the NHS Recovery Plan in August 2021, which sets out our plans for health and social care over the next 5 years, backed by over £1 billion of funding. The second annual progress update was published on 6 December 2023: NHS recovery plan: progress report 2023 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Whilst Scottish Ministers are responsible for determining the strategic policy of the NHS in Scotland, it is NHS Boards and healthcare professionals locally who have responsibility for service delivery and patient treatment. The Scottish Government welcomes the recently published Independent Review of Audiology Services in Scotland report and we fully recognise that there is work to be done to improve audiology care across the country.

We are continuing to work closely with NHS Boards, Independent Providers and the Third Sector to develop fully integrated and sustainable audiology care and treatment located closer to the local communities being served. This includes the roll out of a Third sector-NHS partnership after-care service RNID Near You.

Question reference: S6W-24374

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 19 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it plans to take to bring the Ferrymuir Gait access issue to a final conclusion.

Question reference: S6O-03009

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it holds Social Security Scotland to account to ensure that it is fulfilling its responsibility to help claimants, who request support, to provide supporting information, including obtaining it on their behalf.

Question reference: S6W-24022

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 16 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered expanding the Health Infrastructure Investment Plan to include funding for a new medical centre in East Calder.

Question reference: S6W-24250

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 22 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prevent non-communicable diseases (NCD), in light of a recent report by a group of cross-party MSPs and NCD Alliance Scotland calling for further action on NCD prevention.

The Scottish Government remains absolutely committed to our Public Health agenda as well as the range of priority actions that we have set out in relation to various health harming products, including tobacco, alcohol and less healthy food.

We know people living in poverty have poorer health outcomes and are at a higher risk of NCDs. In 2022-23, we invested an estimated £3 billion across a range of programmes targeted at low income households - with £1.25 billion directly benefitting children. This includes over £213 million on the Scottish Child Payment, over £169 million on School Meals, and £33.5 million Whole Family Wellbeing Funding.

In addition, we recently consulted on increasing the current rate of Minimum Unit Price from 50 pence per unit to 65 pence. We have consulted as part of a UK-wide consultation on raising the age of smoking and further restrictions on vapes. We are also committed to legislation to restrict the promotion of less healthy food and drink where they are sold to the public. Our new and ambitious Cancer Strategy and Cancer Action Plan for Scotland was published in June 2023, which outlines 11 ambitions and 8 outcomes.

Question reference: S6O-02983

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what safeguarding training NHS boards are required to provide to non-clinical staff who are handling interactions with members of the public.

Question reference: S6T-01726

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 08 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take to ensure that all people who were potentially wrongfully convicted as a result of the reported Horizon scandal are supported in coming forward if they wish for their conviction to be overturned.

Question reference: S6W-23937

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 15 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 29 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the provision of magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) from NHS Tayside and the subsequently reported removal of the cross-border referral of Scottish essential tremor patients to NHS England services, what plans it has to redirect any funding towards aiding a national commission for MRgFUS services across NHS Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-02940

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 December 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact of the proposed closure of 29 police stations across Scotland on antisocial behaviour.

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