29 October 2024 – yesterday’s press releases

  • Social Care Crisis: We need cross party talks now
  • Cole-Hamilton: SNP have left A&E in permanent crisis
  • Cole-Hamilton comments as thousands wait on social care support
  • More than a quarter of kids have tooth decay

Social Care Crisis: We need cross party talks now

Responding to Wes Streeting’s comments on the morning round about the social care crisis, Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care Spokesperson Helen Morgan MP said:

The Government must urgently start cross-party talks on social care before it is too late.

The previous Conservative Government turned a blind eye to the crisis for far too long, leaving the care sector in the gutter.

This must be a budget to save the NHS from the brink of collapse, and that cannot happen without a proper plan to fix social care.

Cole-Hamilton: SNP have left A&E in permanent crisis

Responding to new figures showing only 63% of people attending A&E were seen within the 4 hour target in the week ending 20th October, while 3,408 people waited over 8 hours and 1,546 waited over 12 hours, Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

Under this SNP government A&E has been locked in a state of permanent crisis for years. Waiting times are already as long as they are in past winters, and it is only October.

These waits are intolerable for staff and patients alike, neither should be expected to just accept this level of waits as the norm, but under this SNP government it is the norm.

Scottish Liberal Democrats would overhaul the SNP’s failed NHS Recovery Plan, get you fast access to GPs and help people leave hospital on time through a new UK-wide minimum wage for care workers that is £2 higher.

Cole-Hamilton comments as thousands wait on social care support

Responding to today’s publication from Public Health Scotland showing 5,987 people waiting for a social care assessment and a further 3,220 people waiting for a care at home package, Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson and leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said:

Far too many people are waiting for social care assessments and support.

This is bad news for everyone stuck in hospital when they should be in the community, and bad news for NHS staff and patients waiting for hospital beds to free up.

It’s ridiculous that the SNP and Scottish Greens have already wasted £30million on the much-criticised National Care Service Bill, rather than using this money to support frontline services.

Alongside cancelling the botched nationalist care legislation, Scottish Liberal Democrats would help people leave hospital on time through a new UK-wide minimum wage for care workers that is £2 higher.

More than a quarter of kids have tooth decay

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today urged the SNP government to finally end the crisis in NHS dentistry after new figures revealed that more than a quarter of P1 pupils are suffering from tooth decay.

The National Dental Inspection Programme, published today, assesses how many P1 children have ‘obvious decay experience’- the sum of teeth which have decay into dentine, filled teeth and teeth that are missing due to decay.

It shows:

  • 26.7% of P1 children had obvious tooth decay experience.
  • In Fife, 35.5% of children had obvious decay experience, while in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, the number was 31.4%.
  • An estimated 22.4% of P1 children had untreated decay.
  • Child oral health inequalities remain with 60.1% of children living in the most deprived areas having no obvious decay experience, compared to 83.6% in the least deprived areas.

Mr Cole-Hamilton said:

The SNP are leaving NHS dentistry to rot when far too many children are suffering from tooth decay.

In huge parts of the country, there isn’t a single NHS dentist currently open to new patients. Toothcare should be like any other form of medical treatment; it should be readily available and close to home.

Scottish Liberal Democrats were instrumental in introducing free dental checks and in pressing for a new dental school, but SNP ministers are unpicking all that good work.

We need to end dental deserts and bring back local NHS dentists. That’s why my party want ministers to rewrite their failed NHS Recovery Plan, prioritise workforce planning and boost the number of dentists taking on NHS patients.

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This entry was posted in News, Press releases and Scotland.
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4 Comments

  • Martin Gray 31st Oct '24 - 6:08am

    If a child arrives at a dentist with poor dental hygiene – ultimately that’s a parental responsibility…

  • Nonconformistradical 31st Oct '24 - 8:26am

    @Martin Gray
    If a child’s parents have never been in the habit of cleaning their teeth it’s hardly surprising if the child doesn’t learn good dental habits.

    Alex makes the point that the problem in Scotland is worst in the most deprived areas. I’ve lived in SE England all my life (I’m old) but I do recall a fellow pupil at (grammar) school mentioning her mother having to take the dirty dishes out of the sink for the child to clean her teeth. It doesn’t surprise me if children in deprived areas today don’t clean their teeth regularly.

    And learning to floss properly ought to be part of the process – flossing is very effective at cleaning the nooks and crannies in one’s mouth.

  • “If a child’s parents have never been in the habit of cleaning their teeth it’s hardly surprising if the child doesn’t learn good dental habits”….
    Exactly – poor parenting ….That’s what it actually boils down too – in all honesty.
    Depravation can’t be an excuse given the cost of a toothbrush & paste…

  • Nonconformistradical 31st Oct '24 - 10:35am

    Martin – yes I get that.

    But from what I see in the media there are a lot of kids with poor teeth – do you just leave them to suffer? Or mightn’t it be a good idea to try to educate the parents?

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