Nurses, doctors, midwives and other frontline healthcare staff have been ringing an alarm bell for months now. They have repeatedly warned that NHS workers face unprecedented workloads at a time their pay and conditions are being battered by the cost-of-living crisis.
Unions representing healthcare staff have understandably had enough. Dr Iain Kennedy wants to resolve issues with pay and pensions as well as workloads. He has praised Health Secretary Humza Yousaf for listening to his concerns but now wants action.
It’s vital Holyrood ministers get health staff back onside. Too many are demoralised and there are fears the NHS is already haemorrhaging staff.
These are the people our families will all rely on at some point to care for us or our loved ones. A successful health service will only function to its full potential if staff feel valued and looked after.
Public finances are being stretched to breaking point and there is no denying tough choices must be made on spending. But paying our NHS workers a fair wage is not just a political necessity, it is a moral imperative.
Homeless crisis
Scotland’s ongoing homelessness situation lurches from one crisis to another. Measures that were meant to ensure humane treatment were introduced in 2014.
But for too many, things have not improved. Particularly if you’re one of the homeless families stuck in a bleak hotel for months on end.
The Record’s revelation that one council alone breached the Unsuitable Accommodation Order more than 2,000 times in 2022 is chilling. It shows how our society is moving backwards fast, meaning problems the Scottish Government hoped to eradicate have become even worse.
It is accepted that Glasgow City Council has been forced to meet a flood of demand as more and more people present as homeless in these difficult times. But the £52million in the Scotland-wide Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan is plainly not going to be enough to stem the ever growing tide.
Calls by Shelter Scotland for funding to build a proper bank of social homes must not fall on deaf ears.
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