Colin Smyth: Last News

Care homes in the region are “at breaking point” as figures show falling capacity amid a growing workforce crisis.

Ayrshire and Arran are falling behind the national average.According to the figures, as of last Tuesday, 47.7 per cent of 40-49 year-olds had received at least their first dose of the vaccine which was below the Scottish average of 68.9 per cent.Labour’s South Scotland MSP Colin Smyth said that “with the threat of new variants appearing all the time” it is vital that as many people as possible are vaccinated as quickly and safely as possible.He added: “I have had a number of constituents aged between 40 and 49 getting in touch and asking why the vaccination programme in England is now covering those aged 30 to 39 but we in Scotland are falling behind.“It is all the more important to catch up as Covid restrictions start to ease and we begin

Ayrshire and Arran were waiting for a mental health service appointment at the end of last year, new statistics show.Government data reveals that at the end of 2020, a total of 249 people were still waiting for CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service) treatment – that's an increase of 10 per cent compared to the previous year’s figure of 227.In Ayrshire and Arran during 2020, there were 1,758 referrals to CAMHS but 476 of those referrals were rejected, representing 27 per cent.The total number of patients seen by CAMHS was 1,075, however, 60 of those were forced to wait over the legal waiting time target of 18 weeks for an appointment.South Scotland MSP Colin Smyth admitted that the slip in waiting times in Ayrshire and Arran is a

them.” MSP Colin Smyth said: “No stone should be left unturned to stop job losses at Brown Brothers.“This is really devastating news for the staff that could be affected by job cuts and my thoughts are very much with them and their families. It was always my fear that when the UK Government began ending the job retention scheme that many staff who had been furloughed by the companies in the region would be made redundant.“That’s why I have been calling for the scheme to be extended to give companies time to adapt and rebuild.

A fresh call has been made to deal with the “chronic” problem of bed-blocking in the region’s hospitals.