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: S7W-01258

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 20 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that all regions in Scotland can provide adequate 24/7 access to interventional radiology services.

The 2026-27 Budget provides almost £22.5 billion investment in health and social care services, exceeding consequentials and providing a real terms uplift to enable more sustainable and resilient services, including those for interventional radiology. Delivery of individual services is the responsibility of each NHS Scotland Health Board. The Scottish Government expects NHS Boards to provide high quality care, including interventional radiology services that are safe, effective and person-centred.

The Scottish Spending Review 2026 sets out the Scottish Government's indicative capital spending plans for the four years to 2029-30. This includes £4.1 billion health capital investment across major infrastructure projects, essential maintenance and replacing and upgrading vital medical equipment as part of the commitment to invest £10 billion over the next decade. This includes the Scottish Government commitment to fund the national rolling radiotherapy equipment replacement programme to ensure that up to date radiotherapy equipment is available across Scotland's cancer centres.

Over the last ten years we have increased the Consultant Radiologist workforce by 24% (from 325.4WTE as of March 2016 to 403.8WTE as of March 2026).

Question reference: S7W-01727

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many children are currently placed in each of Scotland's four secure accommodation centres on welfare grounds only, and in how many cases such children are accommodated within the same living unit as children detained under criminal justice legislation.

Question reference: S7W-01726

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that a 13-year-old girl accommodated at St Mary's Kenmure secure accommodation centre had her request to be transferred away from young male offenders with whom she was placed, denied, for what reason the request was denied and what risk assessment was undertaken in relation to her safety and wellbeing before that decision was made.

Question reference: S7W-01729

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of the disproportionate use of restraint of girls at St Mary's Kenmure, what the outcome has been of the Care Inspectorate and Mental Welfare Commission's 2025–26 shared visits to secure accommodation centres, and what action, if any, has been taken as a consequence.

Question reference: S7W-01730

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Children (Care, Care Experience and Services Planning) (Scotland) Act 2026 and the Restraint and Seclusion in Schools (Scotland) Act 2026 receiving Royal Assent in May 2026, what its timescale is for implementing the provisions of these Acts and for issuing the statutory guidance required to prohibit face-down prone restraint of children in secure accommodation.

Question reference: S7W-01731

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that no external review of restraint practices at St Mary's Kenmure has been commissioned, and that the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture has requested a copy of any such review, whether it will commission or require an external review to be undertaken.

Question reference: S7W-01728

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether housing girls placed for welfare reasons alongside older male offenders detained under criminal justice legislation is compatible with its obligations under the Equality Act 2010.

Question reference: S7W-01257

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 14 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential implications for its policies of the findings from the Royal College of Radiologists' paper, 2025 Clinical Radiology Workforce Census Report, which was published in June 2026 and suggests that there is a 27% workforce shortfall of interventional radiologists across Scotland.

The Scottish Government acknowledges the findings of the Royal College of Radiologists' 2025 Clinical Radiology Workforce Census Report. The findings will be considered as part of ongoing workforce planning processes. Following annual reviews of the number of specialty training places needed to meet anticipated future service demand and consultant need, the Scottish Government has funded the creation of approximately 850 additional posts across multiple specialities since 2014, including in radiology. Over the last ten years we have increased the Consultant Radiologist workforce by 24% (from 325.4 WTE as of March 2016 to 403.8 WTE as of March 2026). Over the last five years, a total of 162 Clinical Radiology specialty training places were advertised for recruitment in Scotland, of which all posts were filled successfully.

Question reference: S7W-01259

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 14 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, what steps it is taking in partnership with medical schools and NHS Education for Scotland and via the Scotland Deanery to increase exposure to clinical oncology for medical students and foundation doctors.

The Scottish Government works with medical schools and Public Services Delivery Scotland (PSDS) (previously NHS Education for Scotland) through the Scotland Deanery, to ensure that medical students and foundation years doctors receive appropriate exposure to oncology as part of a balanced medical curriculum and training programme.

Oncology is embedded within undergraduate medical education across Scotland and forms an integral part of the curricula delivered by medical schools. Universities design and deliver their programmes in line with the General Medical Council’s Outcomes for Graduates and the UK Medical Licensing Assessment. This ensures graduates develop the knowledge, skills and professional capabilities required to recognise, investigate and contribute to the management of cancer across a range of clinical settings.

Medical education is designed to prepare graduates for the management of cancer across a wide range of settings and specialties, rather than concentrating on increased exposure to any one specialty in isolation. This ensures graduates are equipped to recognise, investigate and contribute to the management of cancer as part of holistic patient care in a wide range of clinical contexts.

Students are introduced early to the scientific basis of cancer, including genetics, pathology and tumour biology, before developing clinical knowledge and skills through integrated teaching across specialties where cancer is a major component of practice. This is complemented by clinical placements in oncology, haematology, palliative care and general clinical settings, alongside training in communication, multidisciplinary working and patient-centred care.

Following graduation, foundation training is managed by PSDS through the Scotland Deanery. Foundation doctors typically gain exposure to oncology through rotational placements as well as through general medical and surgical placements where cancer care is a significant component. Where oncology is not included in a rotation, doctors are able to undertake taster days or short placements aligned to their interests. There has been sustained and increasing interest in oncology, with growing uptake of these opportunities.

The most recent specialty training recruitment cycle has been the most successful to date, with over 98% of posts filled across Scotland. Performance within Clinical Radiology has consistently achieved a 100% fill rate between 2023 and 2025, while Clinical oncology has risen from a 33.33% in 2023, to 50% in 2024 and 92.86% in 2025.

Question reference: S7W-01470

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 9 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the current level of nursing and midwifery vacancies compared with the number of appointable graduates unable to secure posts is consistent with NHS boards' duties under the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019.

The Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 places duties on Health Boards to ensure that at all times suitably qualified and competent individuals are working in such numbers as are appropriate for the health, wellbeing and safety of patients, the provision of high-quality care and the wellbeing of staff.

Whilst the Government's role is to set the strategic policy direction, operational matters such as staffing, including recruitment of newly qualified nurses is a matter for the individual health boards as they are the employer. The Scottish Government expects Boards to make recruitment decisions in line with their duties under the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019.

We are fully engaging with health and care providers to understand their position in relation to posts for graduates. Whilst it is hoped that all nursing graduates secure a post in Scotland upon graduation, this is not always immediately possible as vacancies can, due to many factors, fluctuate significantly each year.