Scottish Parliament e-Brief

Issue 103, 25^th February 2002

SECTION 1 - BUSINESS THIS WEEK

THE CHAMBER

IN COMMITTEE

The main items of business in the Committee Rooms this week are:

• Education takes Stage 1 evidence on the Scottish Qualifications Authority Bill and receives an update on the SQA.
• Social Justice discusses its report on the voluntary sector.
• Standards discusses confidentiality, then considers complaints in private.
• Procedures is still continuing with the CSG Inquiry. This week evidence comes from Alex Neil MSP and a range of unions and professional organisations.

SECTION 2 - NEWS

ENDING THE NHS "PAPER CHASE"
The Executive has launched a drive to cut the 10 million pieces of paper that are passed between GP practices and hospitals in Scotland each year – and reduce the delays and disruption that can result when papers go missing.

The new IT Strategy for NHSScotland, which also aims to speed up patient care, reduce the anxiety experienced by patients as they wait for hospital appointments or test results, and provide better access to patient medical information for staff and patients alike was outlined by Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm.

The new Strategy will be supported by £2m in new funding next year, on top of an existing three year £50m investment programme. The investment will ensure more staff have access to the new IT and will help ‘step up’ the implementation of IT initiatives throughout NHSScotland including Electronic Clinical Communications Implementation (ECCI), which is already receiving £11m of Executive funding.

By 2003, ECCI will be in place throughout Scotland, electronically linking GP surgeries and hospitals. Some of the key features are:

• Electronic booking of hospital out-patient appointments by patients and their GPs, via the GP surgery. This will provide greater convenience for patients and tackle the number of ‘no-shows’ at out-patient clinics by giving patients appointments at the most appropriate appointment time;
• Immediate exchange of test requests and results between primary care and hospitals, reducing the time patients wait for tests and test results, and easing the anxiety associated with waiting; and
• Enabling discharge letters, summaries and clinic letters to be sent to GPs as soon as possible so they can make arrangements for any necessary follow-up patient care and support.

By tackling the amount of paper information in circulation ECCI will also greatly reduce the administrative burden on GP surgeries and hospitals, and prevent time-consuming paper-chasing by NHS staff.

The £2m investment announced today is part of the £86m coming to health as a result of the pre-budget consequentials. It is in addition to the £50m currently being invested by the Executive, over three years, on NHS IT initiatives, including:

• £31m in NHS24, the new 24 hour, nurse-led health information and advice service, which is exploiting modern IT technology to help ensure that the best advice is available consistently throughout Scotland;
• £11m in ECCI to implement a programme of delivering clinical email, electronic referral and discharge letters, test results and appointments. Projects are now under way in each NHS Board in Scotland and the facility to exchange information electronically will be available in each NHS Board area by 2003. A sister project - Electronic Transmission of Prescriptions (ETP) has been underway in Ayrshire and Arran Primary Care Trust, piloting the sending of GP prescriptions to pharmacies; and
• £9m in the Scottish Care Information (SCI) programme delivering software, standards and services to support ECCI and work towards Electronic Patient Records and Electronic Health records. SCI - is developing the necessary computer programs to allow a variety of improvements in patient care.

Full Story

CHILDREN'S RIGHT TO LEGAL REPRESENTATION
Regulations requiring legal representation for some children at children’s hearings have come into force.

Minister for Education and Young People, Cathy Jamieson said:

"These regulations allow for public funds to provide a legal representative for certain children whose rights are affected by hearings’ decisions.

"This is a positive development for children and for the children’s hearings system. The Court judgement last year recognised that the children’s hearings system was broadly compatible with the ECHR Convention but that, in certain circumstances, free legal representation should be provided.

"The scheme meets this requirement within the existing law. It is an interim response as we consider that a more wide-ranging review should be undertaken. We need to examine how best the system can be improved further to respond to ECHR concerns - if necessary by amending legislation."

The Executive announced its plans for legal representation at children’s hearings on 21^st December 2001.

The Court of Session issued its final judgement on the case of S v Principal Reporter and the Lord Advocate on 7^th August 2001. The criteria articulated in the judgement indicated that legal representation may be necessary:

• In cases where secure accommodation was likely to be the disposal;
• In cases where the child was unable to understand proceedings (e.g. because of lack of maturity); and
• Where the case was unusually complex.

Under existing legal aid schemes, children may already obtain advice and assistance from a lawyer before attending a hearing and legal aid for representation at proof hearings an on appeal. The new interim scheme applies only to representation at children’s hearings.

Full Story

SECTION 3 - NOTES ON THIS WEEK’S CHAMBER BUSINESS

WEDNESDAY begins with Stage 1 of the Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Bill.

The Standards Committee last year considered how complaints against MSPs should be investigated, and came to the conclusion that an Independent Standards Commissioner should be appointed. This is the stage 1 debate on the bill to establish a Standards Commissioner with independent powers to investigate complaints against MSPs’ conduct.

As well as defining the remit of a powerful new watchdog, the Bill, which began its passage through Parliament on the 4^th of February 2002, also sets out details of a fully transparent appointment process and arrangements which will ensure that the Commissioner has security of tenure to protect his or her independence.

This Bill is an important one which will enable a new Standards Commissioner to investigate complaints against MSPs thoroughly and in an impartial manner.

Unlike the Standards Commissioner at Westminster, the Commissioner in the Scottish Parliament will have statutory powers to summon witnesses and compile evidence. This is essential in guaranteeing the independence and authority of the post. Overall this is probably a more robust package than that at Westminster.

It is anticipated that the appointment of the Commissioner will be made by way of an open recruitment process. The Bill also provides that the appointment is agreed by Parliament.

The Key Elements of the Bill are as follows:

• The Commissioner will carry out investigations independently of the Standards Committee. He/she will have statutory powers to summon witnesses and compel the production of evidence.
• The Commissioner may be appointed for an initial period of not more than five years with the possibility of reappointment for a further five years.
• The Commissioner may only be removed from office with the agreement of at least two-thirds of the Parliament.
• The Bill sets out a clear procedure for the submission of complaints against MSPs.

The Bill represents the culmination of the Standards Committee's nine month long inquiry into the handling of complaints against MSPs. The Committee took evidence from a range of witnesses, including academics, an employment lawyer and Elizabeth Filkin Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards at Westminster.

This is followed by a European Committee Debate on their report on Governance of the European Union and the Future of Europe.

Published on 11^th December 2001, the Committee's report calls for greater openness in Europe and a bigger role for Scotland. It says action should be taken in the run up to, and as part of, a major Inter-Governmental Conference (IGC) in 2004 to reconnect with citizens on European issues and address the democratic deficit at the heart of much of the EU's decision making process through a greater involvement for national and regional parliaments.

Other recommendations made by the Committee include:

• That the relevant Minister, or the First Minister, consider making an annual 'State of the (European) Union' speech to the Parliament or the European Committee at the time the European Commission publishes its annual work programme.
• Better standards for information flow between the EU institutions and national / sub-national Parliaments and their scrutiny committees.
• Consideration should be given to the creation of a 'Regional Affairs Council' involving Ministers from the various constitutional regions with legislative powers (where they exist in each Member State) and for the Committee of the Regions to enjoy observer status in relevant Council of EU meetings.
• Representatives from Scotland, not just Ministers, to play a full and active part as members of the Convention formed to prepare for the 2004 IGC.

Click here to read the report in full

The day concludes with a Private Member's Debate on the Plight of Chronic Pain Patients from Dorothy Grace Elder (SNP).

THURSDAY morning is dedicated to two Conservative debates on The Scotch Whisky Industry and Community Care.

Unfortunately, at the time of writing, neither motion has been published. The full text, though, should be available shortly in the Business Bulletin. Alternatively, the debate in full will be available from 08:00 on Friday in the Official Report.

In the afternoon, after Question Time and First Minister's Question Time, Stage 1 of the Education (Disability Strategies and Pupils’ Records) (Scotland) Bill is debated.

This is a relatively straightforward Bill brought forward to complement the provisions inserted in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 which state that it is unlawful to discriminate against school pupils and prospective school pupils on grounds of disability.

The Bill will require local authorities, independent schools and grant-aided schools to prepare accessibility strategies to improve access to education for children with disabilities. They will also be required to implement and review these strategies.

The Bill also empowers the Scottish Ministers to make regulations in relation to the keeping, transferring and disclosure of pupils’ educational records, reinstating the right of access to children’s school records for parents. This right was inadvertently removed by the Data Protection Act 1998. The Bill does not address Record of Needs, the document which summarises assessments undertaken and outlining the services to be put in place to meet any special educational needs which have been identified.

There then follows the third and final stage of the Marriage (Scotland) Bill.

This short, straight forward Bill proposes to:

• Permit civil marriages to be solemnised at locations other than registration offices;
• Authorise local councils to approve locations for that purpose and to charge fees to meet related costs; and
• Enable the Registrar General for Scotland to give guidance on the above to local councils.

Principally, the Bill allows places other than local registration offices to be venues for civil marriages, as long as they maintain the dignity of the marriage ceremony. Couples opting for a religious marriage have been able to select any location for their wedding, providing their chosen celebrant has agreed. However, couples choosing a civil ceremony have been limited to picking one of Scotland’s 247 registration offices. The Bill does away with this anomaly and enables more couples to select a different but suitable venue in which to be married.

The week's Parliamentary Business closes with a Private Member's Debate on a Rail Link to Edinburgh Airport from Lord James Douglas Hamilton (CON).

[ HOME ] [ News ] [ Articles ] [ Calendar ] [ Contacts ] [ Links ] [ E-Mail ]

[ Copyright ] [ UK Online ] [ Scottish Parliament ]

Previous Page