Politics: More support is needed to see us through this winter
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On Monday, the contest for the new leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party, reached its conclusion with Liz Truss named as the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
I congratulate Ms Truss on her election and I know from working directly with Liz when she was International Trade Secretary, the passion and commitment she puts into all she does.
I also congratulate Rishi Sunak and all the other candidates who took part in this contest – who showed the broad range of backgrounds and talents that exist in my party at the very top of British politics.
At the top of the new Prime Minister’s in-tray will of course be the increasing costs of living – particularly of energy – which I know is of great concern to my constituents
While this crisis is a global phenomenon, fuelled by the uneven recovery from the pandemic lockdowns and the conflict in Ukraine, the UK Government has already put in place a massive £37 billion support package meaning the most vulnerable households will receive £1200.
The new Prime Minister has already said that more support will be available and we look forward to hearing more detail
Throughout this year’s summer surgery tour in the constituency, I heard a wide range of local concerns – including, but not limited to – access to healthcare, decent broadband and other public services, which were already being eroded before the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
With Parliament back in session and a new Prime Minister and Government in place in the coming days, I look forward to getting stuck into providing support on those local issues.
Last month, I hosted a public meeting on the subject of access to local health services – in particular, access to Turriff Health Practice, Minor Injury Unit (MIU) and Ambulance provision.
I have followed this up with meetings with the organisations responsible for providing these services to Turriff and the surrounding area.
As reported in last week’s Advertiser, I received assurances that increased ambulance provision would be provided in Turriff.
In a meeting with the Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership (AHSCP), we discussed ongoing plans to remobilise the MIU in Turriff.
AHSCP acknowledged to me that, in the process of implementing revised processes for prioritising patients and ensuring they received the best medical attention at the most appropriate locations, process for the patient have become more complex and cumbersome.
AHSCP also agreed that communication to patients of how these new processes are intended to operate, needed to be improved.
It is still AHSCP’s intention to remobilise Turriff MIU – even on a reduced capacity – and they assure me that there are no plans to close the facility permanently.
By the end of this week, I will also have met with Turriff Medical Practice to discuss concerns raised by both patients and medical professionals who work there.
Also, this week, I will be meeting with Scottish Ambulance Service to hear more detail about plans to increase ambulance cover.
Last Saturday I was delighted to join Turriff and District councillor, Iain Taylor at a street surgery at the Turra Coo.
It was great to speak to those who came to speak to Iain and myself about local issues.
As always, I am available most Fridays for face-to-face surgeries in Banff and Mintlaw.
You can contact my office on 01261 818744 or David.duguid.mp@parliament.uk to make an appointment.
