• Scot Lib Dems set out plans to improve childcare for working families
• Scottish Lib Dems will fix NHS staffing as almost all GPs retiring early

Scot Lib Dems set out plans to improve childcare for working families

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today used a visit to a sports club in the Lothians to set out how his party will give parents more choice and help juggling work and family through funded early learning and childcare.

Scottish Liberal Democrats would ensure families can access flexible, affordable and fair early learning and childcare (ELC). As well as protecting the existing entitlements and ensuring they better fit around parents’ needs, the party’s manifesto will say that the next steps for expansion should be targeted at working parents and those entering work when funding allows.

This would include:

• Shifting the 1140 funded hours of ELC so that it starts on a child’s third birthday.
• Working with local authorities to ensure that parents who live in one council area but work in another can choose where their child attends nursery, guaranteeing that funding really does follow the child.
• Introducing a new support package for childminders in rural and remote areas.
• Increasing take-up of ELC among eligible two year-olds.

Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

Every child deserves the best start in life and the chance to flourish, no matter their background or personal circumstances. They need opportunities to have fun, discover their talents and grow in confidence and ambition.

In a modern, 21st century Scotland, parents should have the full support of the government in balancing their careers with having children.

Right now, there are too many gaps in childcare and too many families are struggling to make ends meet.

They should have real choice and flexibility over how to organise their lives and return to work if they want to. This should be backed up by increased support for private, voluntary and independent nurseries, preventing a loss of staff from the sector and giving parents more choice when accessing childcare.

It would also be the shot in the arm that our economy needs. If parents are better supported with childcare costs, they will find it easier to return to work, which will, in turn, raise tax revenues and increase the money available for public services.

Our aim is to make Scotland the best place to grow up or raise children by ensuring proper support is available whenever and wherever families need it. If that sounds good to you, you should back Scottish Liberal Democrats on your second peach regional ballot paper.

Scottish Lib Dems will fix NHS staffing as almost all GPs retiring early

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today said that only his party has a realistic plan to fix NHS staffing and ensure everyone can see a GP when they need one, as he revealed that 97% of retiring GPs have left the profession early since 2015.

A Scottish Liberal Democrat freedom of information request found that of the 2,529 GPs who have retired since 2015, 2,458 did so before their state retirement age.

This means that over the past decade, 97% of all retiring GPs have taken their retirement early.

Scottish Liberal Democrats would make it easier for everyone to see a GP and skilled staff locally by:

• Embedding 900 new multidisciplinary patient-facing staff based in GP practices and neighbourhood health teams, including nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists and mental health professionals.
• Freeing up GPs’ time by empowering pharmacists to do more prescribing, making use of secure health records.
• Establishing a rolling 10-year NHS Workforce Plan, ensures issues are addressed early on.
• Boosting access to housing for health workers to enable them to take up posts, creating new dedicated key worker housing.
• Creating a Health and Social Care Staff Assembly, putting the experience and exercise of those who know their service best at the heart of the Scottish Government’s response to the crises they face.

Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

Weighed down by constant workload pressures, GPs have very little incentive to stay on in the profession.

When almost all of retiring GPs are leaving early, staff shortages build up in the system, making it harder for patients to get the appointments and care they desperately need.

After nineteen years, the SNP cannot be trusted to help staff or patients. This is a party that hired less than 1 in 10 of the GPs they promised in 2017.

From hiring more specialist staff to work alongside GPs and manage patient need, to enabling pharmacists to do more prescribing, Scottish Liberal Democrats have got a realistic plan to get everyone the first-rate healthcare they need when they need it. You can turn those plans into a reality by backing the Scottish Liberal Democrats on your second, peach-coloured, regional ballot paper in May.