In her Scotsman column this week, Christine Jardine looks at the “perfect storm” of food and fuel shortages, health service crisis, Covid and high energy prices we are facing at the moment. She argues that the show how bad both UK and Scottish Governments are – and we shouldn’t let them away with blaming Covid […]
World Review: Afghanistan, child labour and vaccine passports in France
In this weekend’s World Review, Tom Arms reports the Taliban is proving to be a loose coalition that is quickly falling apart along centuries-old tribal lines and more contemporary political axes. He turns his attention to the impact that Covid is having on child labour in the developing world. And he reviews how Marcon’s insistence […]
Moran: Introduce Health Data Trust to protect private medical data
Today, at their Conference, the Liberal Democrats have backed ambitious plans to safeguard private health data. The party is calling for the establishment of a five-point ‘Health Data Charter’, which will set out key tests for whether data sharing is in the interest of the public and the NHS. They also propose a ‘Sovereign Health […]
Paul McGarry talks of his “chaotic” youth in debate on support for care leavers #ldconf
Earlier today, Conference passed a motion calling for better support for care leavers up until the age of 25. During the debate, Scottish Lib Dem Housing spokesperson Paul McGarry talked about why the measures outlined in the motion were so important and would have helped him. He describes the terrifying experience of being homeless at […]
Lib Dems call for Care Leavers education support
The Liberal Democrats have agreed upon a new deal for Care Leavers at their party conference today. The package calls for support measures for Care Leavers particularly in the area of education. The party is calling for further provision to support carers right the way through their education, with support measures proposed from the early […]
World Suicide Prevention Day: A councillor view from the hill farm
It is World Suicide Prevention Day. Tracey and Richard Huffer farm high on a hill in south west Shropshire. Tracey is also a health professional. Along with myself and four others, we are Lib Dem councillors in a very rural area. Sometimes it feels we can’t sit down for a chat without mentioning the “s” […]
No need to break any election pledges to fix social care
So, the Government is to pour more and more money into the first aid camp at the bottom of the cliff rather than building a fence at the top. Yesterday’s announcement on the funding for social care does nothing to enhance the quality of life of older people or reduce the demand for hospital treatment […]
COVID, holidays and vaccine hesitancy within Eastern European communities
If someone told me a few years ago that any other issue will divide our communities as much as Brexit did after the EU referendum, I would not have believed. This year, I was lucky enough to travel over the summer holidays. A lot of people like me, who live abroad, are often left with […]
Ed Davey: Johnson’s refusal to self isolate “Barnard Castle on steroids”
Boris Johnson’s blatant avoidance of self isolation as a staffer who tested positive for Covid further undermines confidence in this Government. I feel sorry for anyone who has to be around him over the next few days. He could pass a potentially deadly virus on to them or ultimately their vulnerable relatives. It is an […]
Mental health pressures on Olympic competitors
Liberal Democrats have been strongly campaigning on mental health for several years now. Here is the party’s response to Simone Biles’ acknowledgement of the pressures she has been under. She has won a total of 30 Olympic and World Championship medals in gymnastics and the expectations placed on her are exceptional. And if you are […]