Author: Rhoda Grant

SCOTRAIL has defended its decision to cut a number of services after concerns were raised over social distancing during a potential Christmas travel spike.

In a meeting with Highlands & Islands MSP Rhoda Grant the rail operator insisted careful analysis of travel behaviour and demand predicted a quiet Christmas for the trains.

Mrs Grant said she remained concerned ScotRail was limiting the opportunities for people to travel by train at a time when students were returning home and people were moving to and from their families for Christmas.

She said: “I told ScotRail it would be unacceptable if an unexpected Christmas travel spike forced passengers to put their health, and the health of others, at risk when travelling on their trains. They tried to assure me that all their predictions indicated the trains would not be busy and there would be plenty of space for people to socially distance. But there’s no immediate magic wand that can be waived if a train service is unexpectedly busy. Carriages won’t necessarily be on standby. I hope their analysis turns out to be correct and I’ll be watching how this unfolds.”

Mrs Grant called for talks with ScotRail after bosses last month confirmed cuts to Highland railway services.

The train company has made what it stressed are “temporary” changes to some services in light of plunging passenger numbers following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mrs Grant added: “Any reduction in services are deeply disappointing. Although ScotRail have said these are temporary measures, given that they are being done to cuts costs in the firm and we are unlikely to see a significant rise in passenger numbers anytime soon, I fear that these services will not be reinstated.”

 

MORE needs to be done to ensure that a new harbour development planned for Uig on Skye is accessible to disabled people, MSP Rhoda Grant told a Parliamentary committee this week.

Mrs Grant called on the Public Petitions Committee to urge Highland Council to carry out an Equality Impact Assessment on planned infrastructure improvements needed to accommodate a dual fuel CalMac Ferry in 2022.

The Highlands & Islands Labour MSP has been supporting the community’s call for a floating pontoon and ramp access to tour boats and water activities. An online petition has gathered more than 800 names.

However, steps are currently being planned.

Mrs Grant told Tuesday’s committee: “I have been repeatedly asking the council to do an equality impact assessment on this scheme. In this day and age, we should be looking at making all new developments accessible to disabled people.”

She added: “Given the level of investment that is going to be there, it seems very strange that money cannot be made available to allow disabled people to have access to the water. We all know the amount of money that has been wasted by the Scottish Government in developing these new ferries.”

The committee was meeting to discuss a petition which had an overriding objection to the harbour steps plan.

The petition called on the Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to ensure that local authorities and service providers provide access for those with disabilities at public facilities such as piers and harbours.

Committee convener Johann Lamont said the council had, at the committee’s request, outlined in a comprehensively-written brief, its legal obligations with regards to Uig Pier.

The council had insisted its design consultation included members of the local access panels served by the Uig ferry, and it said that consultation was “extensive”.

It also said it had a duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people but highlighted some exemptions for smaller passenger vessels, and excursion or sightseeing tours which it said could well apply.

And it stressed that the community’s much-desired floating pontoon would be less durable, take up far more berthing space, and be more expensive to install and maintain.

It said the safe and more feasible option was replacement steps.

Mrs Lamont told committee members the Equality and Human Rights Commission had raised no specific objection to the council’s response.

Members agreed therefore to close the petition on grounds Highland Council had appeared to follow all due processes for the Uig port redevelopment regarding access for those with disabilities and would consult the public again on the plans.

However, Mrs Grant pressed for more.

She said: “I know the committee is keen to close this petition but I would ask them to go back and ask the council for an Equalities Impact Assessment because I think it is really important that we allow disabled people access going forward.”

Mrs Lamont agreed, adding: “It can’t be beyond the wit of humanity to work out how to make this scheme accessible to disabled people.”

The Committee agreed to write to Highland Council.

Ends

Previously:

https://www.rhodagrant.org.uk/2020/09/21/regional-msp-rhoda-grant-calls-on-council-to-find-silver-lining-in-scottish-governments-failed-attempt-to-fun

 

MSPs have heard a “compelling case” from a leading consultant neurosurgeon as to why Scotland should introduce a ground-breaking technology.

The Scottish Parliament’s Public Petitions Committee heard yesterday from Professor Dipankar Nandi, about the benefits and cost effectiveness of magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound technology for the treatment of patients with Essential Tremor.

The committee agreed in September to hear evidence from the professor, based at Imperial College in London, to support a Highlands and Islands campaigner’s petition to introduce the technology to Scotland.

Mary Ramsay, Chair of the Scottish Tremor Society, is asking the Scottish Government to back the provision of the equipment.

Professor Nandi, who answered questions from MSPs via a video link, told the committee he estimated 10,000 people would have a significant tremor in Scotland and would benefit from the treatment. He explained the technology and science was nothing new and the treatment was an alternative to Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) which involved invasive surgery and inserting a probes inside the head.

“The safety profile is probably its biggest advantage compared to where we are otherwise. It also opens the doors for treatment of some patients who unfortunately we have no answer for, people in 70s and 80s, people with serious medical conditions, who one would not contemplate for Deep Brian Stimulation, they have been left pretty much to fend for themselves. That is the kind of patient I am talking about,” he told MSPs.

Professor Nandi said NHS England had authorised the treatment for 150 patients a year at his unit and all that Scotland would need to do was to buy the machine, which he admitted was expensive, as it had two very eminent neuro centres in Edinburgh and Glasgow. “One machine could suffice for the whole Scottish population,” he added.

He also said that after the upfront cost of buying the machine, once you reach 20 patients it would recoup the cost of that machine through savings on more invasive treatments, adding that the waiting list south of the border was now at 300 plus patients.

Mrs Ramsay, from Dalneigh, Inverness, watched the virtual session from home on parliamentary television and welcomed the cross-party support.

She said afterwards: “I am delighted that the committee recognised the success of this treatment and that Professor Nandi could share his vast experience of the medical evidence.

“However, I am so disappointed that this is having to go back to the Scottish Government and Health Secretary who appear to remain unconvinced of what it could mean for patients here. It is frustrating!

“The professor pointed out the technology could be used for other conditions such as Parkinson’s and brain tumours, and that research should be investigated. It could save a fortune.”

Highlands and Islands Labour MSP Rhoda Grant, who is a long-time supporter of Mrs Ramsay’s campaign to get the treatment north of the border, also spoke at the committee and said Professor Nandi’s submission was fascinating.

“Given this is going to be available on the NHS in England, and the evidence they have is the same as the evidence we have, could we write to the Scottish Government and ask that this decision, not to make it available on the NHS in Scotland, is reviewed in the light of that,” she said.

“The evidence we heard this morning is absolutely overwhelming that we need this technology in Scotland.”

She added: “I think we need to push to ensure there is a level playing field in Scotland as there is in England.”

Convener of the committee, MSP Johann Lamont, thanked Professor Nandi for this time and said he had made a “such compelling case” which could inform any decisions that were going to be made by the Scottish Government and NHS here.

MSPs unanimously agreed to get back to the Scottish Government and the Health Secretary to respond to the evidence that the committee had heard and to look at other ways the technology could be used for research into other conditions such as Parkinson’s.

It is also going to raise what is happening to a fundraising campaign for a machine in Scotland.

Link to the committee:

https://www.scottishparliament.tv/meeting/public-petitions-committee-december-16-2020

• Deep Brain Stimulation is where electrodes are placed in the brain to help alleviate the condition which causes involuntary and rhythmic shaking affecting almost any part of the body.
• New information is that while NHS Scotland has previously rejected funding based on its interpretation of the evidence and NICE guidance, NHS England has now agreed to fund the Magnetic Resonance-guided Focused Ultrasound technology based on the same evidence and countries worldwide already use it
• The Specialised Commissioning Oversight Group provided its guidance to NHS England to fund MRgFUS from April next year.
• The guidance states that the treatment will be available to patients who have moderate to severe Essential Tremor, and where current medication has failed to adequately suppress the tremor or causes adverse effects.
• Fundraising for the equipment is being run by the University of Dundee. The technology uses MRI imaging to guide high powered, focused ultrasound to a very small point. At that point, molecules are vibrated extremely quickly, which creates intense local heat which destroys the tissue. The technology allows clinicians to target a very specific focal point – with very little heating produced in front of and behind that point, so only the targeted tissue is affected.

Highlands and Islands Labour MSP, Rhoda Grant, spoke at the Scottish Parliament today in support of a petition submitted by Caithness health campaign group CHAT.

Maria Aitken’s petition appeared before the Public Petitions Committee and called on “the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to ask all relevant health boards to review their maternity model to ensure that it meets the needs of remote and rural communities”.

The committee heard that the decision to change the status of Caithness maternity unit from an obstetric unit to a midwife unit in 2016 was made on the basis of safety.  Mothers and/or babies who are assessed as needing obstetric or neonatal care are transferred to Raigmore Hospital.

Mrs Grant said it was a really important petition and urged the committee to take it seriously.  She explained how she had been involved over several years in trying to find a solution to pregnant women from Caithness travelling more than 100 miles to Raigmore Hospital to give birth.

She explained that in Feb 2019 she raised at First Minister’s Questions the ‘horrendous circumstances’ of a mother whose twins were born 50 miles apart after a dash to Raigmore Hospital and the stress that also caused the staff involved.

The committee unanimously agreed to get back to the Scottish Government to ask what progress had been made on several initiatives which were looking at solutions for rural areas.

Initiatives include a Best Start North Steering Group, established under the direction of NHS Highland and NHS Grampian Chief Executives, to oversee and steer a review of maternity and neonatal services across NHS Shetland, NHS Orkney, NHS Highland and NHS Grampian and which seeks to understand the resources, constraints, challenges and opportunities in the current systems.

After the meeting Mrs Grant commented: “I have been asking so many questions about this over the years and, yet, have not seen any solutions forthcoming, including the need for a full risk assessment for transfer journeys to Raigmore.

“Of course, I realise that Covid-19 has seen some initiatives stalled but the Scottish Government really need to get on with this.

“I’ve been told that the air ambulance helicopter is ‘a highly unsuitable environment for the delivery of a baby’ and that means for any woman in labour and needing emergency help going by road ambulance is really the only option and air transfer is almost a non-starter.

“Emergency aircrafts should be large enough to carry medical equipment and be able take at least one qualified medic on board, particularly to cater for women in labour.”

She also said the ScotSTAR service, run by the Scottish Ambulance Service and used to fly in medical experts in emergencies to locations, does not have obstetric/midwifery staff and she has asked if that expertise can be added to its remit.

A NORTH MSP is “delighted” Dalfaber Road in Aviemore will be lit up next week with long-awaited street lights.

Labour MSP Rhoda Grant has been told by SSE the switch-on along the route, which runs parallel to the railway line and connects Osprey Grange, Dalnabay and Silverglades to the town centre, will take place on Monday. (December 14).

Mrs Grant campaigned for the work to be done after she received an email from Aviemore constituent Mike Kochalski.

He sought her help, saying lack of street lighting along the route made the pathway extremely dangerous for residents, particularly in the winter months.

Mrs Grant said: “The residents using this pathway can finally put away their torches.

“Highland Council told me it would not normally consider lighting unadopted roads like this one because it doesn’t have a budget. Thankfully, Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership (HITRANs) regarded this as an active travel route, and rightly so, and they were able to put up the funding for Highland Council to do it.”

Mr Kochalski said: “The route to the village centre along Dalfaber Road has always been dark and inhospitable during the winter months with residents having to carry torches to ensure their safety. In February, I decided to do something about it. I contacted Rhoda Grant our MSP and brought the matter to her attention.

“Her reaction was swift and I am pleased to say she worked tirelessly on the problem despite the restrictions of COVID this year.

And so, on Monday, the lights will be switched on. Well done to Rhoda and her team for doing a great job.”

Highlands and Islands Labour MSP, Rhoda Grant, is urging pensioners to check their eligibility for an annual winter fuel benefit after concerns were raised about possible delays in payments this year.

Mrs Grant was contacted by a woman in Inverness worried that some of her friends had reported problems with the annual tax-free Winter Fuel Payment from the UK Government, to help with heating costs, with some saying the money had not arrived yet.

“It’s difficult to know what’s happened here, without having specific cases to raise, but I would urge those who are concerned to contact the UK Government’s helpline,” said Mrs Grant.

“Charity Age UK says that there is slightly longer payment schedule this year and the time between a notification letter being sent and payment being made has increased.

“The advice is if you haven’t received it by January 13, call the Winter Fuel Helpline but I know there are pensioners out there who may be anxious about meeting their bills in the meantime and I feel if there are problems they should try to get advice now.”

Mrs Grant also noted that the MoneySavingExpert website, founded by financial journalist Martin Lewis, has already urged the tens of thousands of people who are eligible for the payment to check their details after 60,000 plus letters on the scheme were sent out with the incorrect information which could affect how much some people are paid.

If you were born on or before 5 October 1954 you could get between £100 and £300 to help you pay your heating bills through the Winter Fuel Payment.

You usually get a this automatically if you are eligible and you get the State Pension or another social security benefit, but there are restrictions for those on other benefits.

If you’re eligible but do not get paid automatically, you need to make a claim.

• The Winter Fuel Payment helpline number is 0800 731 0160
• More information on-line
• https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2020/12/winter-fuel-payments-letters-confusion/
• https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/winter-fuel-payment/

Rhoda Grant has been selected as Scottish Labour’s candidate for the Inverness and Nairn constituency to stand in the Scottish Parliamentary election in 2021.

Rhoda, who lives in Inverness, was born in Stornoway and brought up on the south shores of Loch Torridon in Wester Ross.

She is well-known for her local campaigning as a Highlands and Islands MSP and understands the challenges facing communities.

Rhoda has worked in both the public and private sectors in the Highlands. Employed for a number of years with the public sector trade union Unison and Highland Council, she has also been an MSP between 1999 and 2003, then again from 2007.

She has held many Shadow Cabinet roles including Rural and Connectivity Cabinet Secretary, Shadow Women and Equalities Spokesperson, Shadow Health Minister, Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Shadow Minister for Economy, Business Manager and Whip.  She is currently the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Justice.

Speaking after her selection by constituency party members, she said:

“Inverness is my home. It’s where I’m based when I’m not in parliament or, in normal times, travelling around the Highlands and Islands and I am proud to be Labour’s candidate for the 2021 Scottish Parliamentary election.

“People in Inverness and Nairn need a local representative that will put them first. Between now and May 2021, I will be working hard to set out Scottish Labour’s bold vision for a post-Covid society – including our plans for a National Care Service and a quality Jobs Guarantee Scheme.

“There must be no going back to the old, failed normal after the pandemic. The Tories and the SNP left Scotland unprepared for the public health crisis, unprepared for the education crisis and unprepared for the economic crisis. It’s time for a new vision for Inverness and Nairn and for Scotland, and only Scottish Labour and Richard Leonard are offering this opportunity.”

Rhoda’s Labour Highlands and Islands MSP colleague, David Stewart, said: “I’ve worked closely with Rhoda for many years and know that she works hard for the area. She is an excellent candidate to take on the opposition and I look forward to helping her campaign in the constituency.”

Scottish Labour’s Inverness and Nairn CLP Chair, Linda Stewart added:

“We are delighted to have Rhoda as our candidate for Inverness and Nairn. She has proved herself as a hard-working and dedicated MSP, who understands the needs of our constituency well and we look forward to campaigning with her – in whatever way we’re able – next year.”

MSP Rhoda Grant has welcomed Comhairle nan Eilean Siar’s “Covid-19” clothing grant for struggling families to buy extra school clothing layers for colder classrooms this winter. 

The Labour Highlands & Islands MSP wrote to the region’s six local authorities asking what specific sources of funding were available for families who are struggling financially to fork out for thermals and extra winter clothing layers.

Government guidance says classroom windows should be open more often to keep the room ventilated with fresh air as an anti-Covid measure.

 With replies in from all councils bar Highland, which is still processing, Mrs Grant said she particularly welcomed the “proactive” funding approach from the local authority in the Western Isles.

She said: “All local authorities have welfare funds for families to apply to but Comhairle nan Eilean Siar is reaching out to its families, taking a more proactive approach. They are writing to all their families who were in receipt of a £100 clothing grant this year and they’re inviting them to apply for a further £100 grant specifically for the purchase of additional winter clothing for the children.

“To me, that sounds like a really good way of ensuring children from the most disadvantaged families have warmer layers going to school to sit in classrooms that will probably be a bit colder than normal for this time of the year. I’m going to write to the other local authorities to ask if this is a model they could follow.”

She added: “It was clear from the responses I received from the other councils that a mountain of work is going on in schools to sensibly navigate this classroom window–open policy to ensure pupils are comfortable but at the same time at less risk of the Covid-19 infection.

“This is a really challenging time for our school leaders and staff and I applaud each and every one of them.”

Ends.

 

Highland health campaigner Mary Ramsay and MSP Rhoda Grant are calling for Scottish patients to have the same access as English patients to a new treatment for Essential Tremor.

Mrs Ramsay’s petition will again be heard by the Scottish Parliament’s Public Petitions Committee on Wednesday next week (December 9) when Consultant Neurosurgeon Professor Dipankar Nandi, a leading medical expert in his field, is due to speak on the ground-breaking technology.

The committee will also view a short video of a patient’s experience of the treatment.

Mrs Ramsay, who has Essential Tremor, has petitioned the Scottish Government to back the provision of magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) technology within the health service in Scotland.

However, NHS Scotland has previously rejected funding based on its interpretation of the evidence and NICE guidance. But NHS England has now agreed to fund the technology based on the same evidence and 16 other countries worldwide already use it.

Mrs Ramsay, Chair of the Scottish Tremor Society, has campaigned for many years for the new treatment to help others with the condition.

She has been supported along the way by Mrs Grant, who represents the Highlands and Islands, and local members of Inclusion Scotland.

“What I really want to know is the Scottish Government’s view on access for patients here, now that treatment has been given approval in England and is now endorsed by NHS England,” said Mrs Ramsay, who lives in Dalneigh, Inverness.

Mrs Grant added: “It would be a great pity if something that could improve the quality of life for thousands of people is only available south of the border and Scottish patients are left out in the cold. It has also been proved to save money which is an added bonus considering our country’s current cash strapped situation.”

Focus ultrasound is non-invasive and uses MRI imaging to guide high powered, focused ultrasound to a very small point. At that point, molecules are vibrated extremely quickly, which creates intense local heat which destroys the tissue. The technology allows clinicians to target a very specific focal point – with very little heating produced in front of and behind that point, so only the targeted tissue is affected.

The Public Petitions Committee previously agreed that the treatment had benefits and went back to the Scottish Government to ask why a decision has stalled, what was needed to achieve the introduction of the treatment and what the timescales were.

It is estimated that there could be 4000 people in Scotland with Essential Tremor. The main treatment at the moment is brain surgery or deep brain stimulation (DBS), where electrodes are inserted into the brain. Some people with the condition do not want to endure the operation and DBS is expensive. The focus equipment is cheaper and is also a much less invasive procedure.

Mrs Ramsay, who will be watching the committee virtually from her home, has had DBS. Her condition causes involuntary and rhythmic shaking and can affect almost any part of the body. She would not benefit from the ultra sound treatment but is passionate that others could.

• Rhoda Grant achieved cross-party support for a Scottish Parliament debate on Mary’s campaign in 2018.
• Fundraising for the equipment is being run by the University of Dundee.
• Essential Tremor [ET] has no known cause. It is most common in the elderly but two-thirds in a recent survey developed symptoms of ET before the age of 50. ET affects both sexes and all ethnic groups and children.
• People with ET may be so embarrassed by their tremor that they do not leave their home and become depressed. This embarrassment may impact on jobs and income. As many as 25% of patients are forced to retire prematurely, and in one study 60% said they had chosen not to apply for a job or promotion because of uncontrollable shaking. In a recent UK survey by the National Tremor Foundation, almost 20% of respondents had to stop working completely, 7% had to change occupation, and 6% had to reduce their working hours
• At present, the only non-pharmacological treatment for severe tremor that is having an unacceptable effect on someone’s quality of life is deep brain stimulation (DBS): as DBS is invasive surgery in which wires are permanently inserted into the brain, some people are not suitable for it because of other diseases (comorbidities) and some do not feel able to consent to a procedure which involves permanent implants and lifelong supervision.

Regional Highlands and Islands MSP Rhoda Grant is encouraged that a system failure within NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde that led to Argyll and Bute patients being given appointments that are too early has been addressed and is calling for the 10:30am policy to become “common knowledge”.

Numerous constituents from the area contacted Mrs Grant to raise issues relating to the inconvenient appointment times that they were given by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. It was thought that these appointment times were given with no consideration for travel – either by car or by public transport.

Mrs Grant raised this with the Chief Executive of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Jane Grant, and she was told that in 2017 a system was put in place to ensure that patients from Argyll and Bute were not receiving any appointments before 10:30am. It was thought that this was running effectively however, there were changes made to the booking system in reaction to the Covid-19 pandemic and that this change has caused the system to falter.

She concludes her letter by stressing that this 10:30am rule has been reinforced to the Medical Records Team and that they are willing to accommodate patient requests where possible.

Rhoda Grant said: “I’m grateful to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde for admitting the fault and moving quickly to resolve the issue. It’s nearly impossible for people in Argyll and Bute to travel and be on time for a 9am appointment however, it must be said that 10:30am is still quite ambitious and I will continue to raise this with them.”

Mrs Grant continued: “I want this information to become common knowledge to my constituents within the area so if they receive an appointment before 10:30am, that they know that this can be quickly rectified.”