Latest news with #FirstMinister'sQuestions
Daily Record
01-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Ayrshire road maintenance jobs at risk as Amey plan cuts
Up to 100 road maintenance workers could be made redundant after trunk road operator Amey announced job cuts. Road maintenance workers in Ayrshire could be facing redundancy after trunk road operator Amey announced job cuts. The firm has began a 45-day consultation period with "a very small proportion of employees" after an operation review of their business. Up to 100 workers could be made redundant across Southwest Scotland including many in Ayrshire as a result of the plans. Unite the Union have said that they will "do all we can" to support the people affected and have called on Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop to take action. Transport Scotland have said they are aware of the situation but are awaiting further details from Amey. South Scotland MSP Carol Mochan raised the issue at First Minister's Questions last week and highlighted the A77, one of the trunk roads maintained by Amey, as "one of the most dangerous roads in Scotland". Ms Mochan has also said she will fight to ensure no one employed by Amey in Southwest Scotland loses their job. Speaking in the Scottish Parliament, she said: 'The First Minister might be aware that Amey plans to make up to 100 road maintenance workers in Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway redundant. 'Those workers are funded by a Scottish Government contract. The A77 is one of the most dangerous roads in Scotland and causes constant disruption to the economy of the southwest due to its poor state of repair. 'My constituents have frequent lengthy waits at road works and often face miles of diversions. 'Will the First Minister travel that road with me and explain to my constituents why 100 workers who should be helping to maintain that important road are losing their jobs?' In response, First Minister John Swinney said: 'I understand that those issues are the subject of consultation between Amey and the relevant trade unions. 'I want to make sure that that consultation is done properly and in accordance with the Government's fair work principles. I understand the importance of Carol Mochan's point, but there is a process to go through on those issues, and the outcome that will be achieved through that might not be the one that Carol Mochan fears. 'I will ask the Cabinet Secretary for Transport to consider the issues that have been raised and to reply to Carol Mochan about how those points can be properly and fully addressed.' David McGurk, Unite industrial officer, said: "Unite has been informed by Amey that up to 100 jobs are at immediate risk. The workers are currently employed on a road maintenance contract funded by Transport Scotland and directly supported by the Scottish Government across Dumfries and Galloway, Glasgow and Ayrshire. "Unite will do all we can to support these highly skilled workers who are ensuring that our nation's infrastructure is safe, reliable and up to the highest possible standard. "We have asked Fiona Hyslop, the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and Infrastructure, for action from government to ascertain what can be done to save these jobs including an immediate review of the contracts awarded to Amey." A spokesperson for Amey said: 'Due to the changing needs in the delivery of the service we have reviewed the operational structure of the business. As a result, Amey has entered a 45-day consultation process with a number of employees on our South-West Scotland Network Management contract. 'A very small proportion of employees will be impacted with most of these achieved through the offer of voluntary redundancy. 'We will continue to deliver value for money services and will work closely with all affected employees and trade union representatives to ensure the consultation is fair, transparent, and supportive.' A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: 'We have been made aware of the situation at Amey and are awaiting further details of the confidential process they are currently undertaking. 'It is essential that a robust level of service is maintained as part of our maintenance contract in the South West trunk road unit.'
STV News
26-06-2025
- Health
- STV News
Swinney faces questions after Scotland's cancer waiting times worst on record
John Swinney is set to face questions about cancer waiting times hitting the worst level on record. A report from Public Health Scotland on Tuesday revealed that waiting times in Scotland are at an all-time high, with nearly a third of patients with an urgent suspicion of cancer waiting longer than 62 days to start treatment. Only 69% of patients started treatment within the 62-day national target in the first three months of 2025, compared with 74% in the previous quarter and 84% at the end of 2019. One of Swinney's ministers later admitted that people may be dying as a result of later cancer diagnoses. Public health minister Jenni Minto said the situation is 'not where we should be' and admitted that the Scottish Government could do more, while speaking to STV News. The figures are expected to be raised at First Minister's Questions on Thursday, and Swinney will likely be forced to defend his SNP Government's record on health care. It's also the last chance for opposition leaders to question Swinney before the Scottish Parliament breaks for summer recess. FMQs will be streamed from Holyrood at noon on Thursday. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
STV News
19-06-2025
- Business
- STV News
FM to face questions over winter fuel payment recovery from better-off pensioners
John Swinney is set to face questions from opposition parties at First Minister's Questions on Thursday, following the Scottish Government's announcement that new winter fuel payments will not be issued on a universal basis. On Wednesday, the Scottish Government set out plans for a slightly more generous winter fuel payment, with some households receiving up to £5 more than other areas of the UK. The benefit will be made available to all Scottish pensioners with an income below £35,000. However, Scottish ministers said they are in discussion with the UK Government to recover payments from pensioners with income over £35,000 a year through the tax system – matching the UK government system. Speaking to STV News on Wednesday, social justice secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said ending the universal aspect of the benefit would ensure the payments were helping those with the greatest need. The First Minister is likely to face scrutiny for the decision on Thursday. Tory MSP Maurice Golden is also set to challenge the First Minister to respond to reports that up to 100 truckloads of Scotland's waste will be moved each day to England as a result of the landfill ban on biodegradable waste. The Scottish Tories have been critical of the reports, calling on the SNP to 'get a grip of this situation' before the ban comes into force in December. The First Minister will also be asked about the Government's most recent position on University funding. Labour MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy is preparing to ask the First Minister about his Government's up-to-date position on funding Scotland's universities. The question comes less than 24 hours after MSPs were told Scotland's colleges have been left in a 'fragile' state following years of underinvestment. Angela Cox, chair of the Colleges Principals Group at Colleges Scotland, told Holyrood's Education Committee on Wednesday that the further education sector was 'hanging on by our fingernails'. FMQs will be streamed live from Holyrood at noon on Thursday. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
The National
12-06-2025
- Business
- The National
John Swinney and Anas Sarwar clash over reports SNP secret meeting
It came as the pair discussed the hundreds of job losses at a Scottish bus manufacturer during First Minister's Questions (FMQs) on Thursday. The Scottish Labour leader pointed to reports that senior SNP figures had held a meeting to discuss Swinney's future as party leader, during an exchange discussing the closure of the Alexander Dennis factory in Falkirk. On Wednesday, Alexander Dennis announced it will look at consolidating its UK bus body manufacturing operations into a single site in Scarborough as part of a restructuring which is putting 400 jobs at risk. Swinney said he was 'deeply concerned' by the looming closure and said that ministers are engaging 'closely and firmly' to avoid any 'negative implications' for Scottish workers. Sarwar claimed that the Scottish Government procured more busses from China than Scotland, and Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham had bought more than Scottish ministers. READ MORE: Fraser of Allander calls out Labour's Spending Review claim He then said that the FM had given a 'weak response', before bringing up reports that SNP figures had given Swinney two weeks to come up with ideas to save his job. 'If he hasn't come up with a good idea to improve Scotland in 18 years, what chance have you got coming up with something now?' Sarwar asked. The FM replied: 'What I'm doing, and what the workforce of Alexander Dennis will not be surprised at, is that I'm focussing on the situation facing Alexander Dennis. That's what I'm doing.' He added that the Scottish Government had provided £58 million in funding for the firm for zero emissions buses, and that Scottish Enterprise has also given the firm £30.3m for research and development. The FM continued: 'The stark reality is that current UK policy does not allow for the incentivisation or reward of local content, job retention or creation, nor does it encourage any domestic economic benefit. 'That is the implication of the subsidy control act.' (Image: Scottish Parliament) Sarwar replied: 'If John Swinney can't figure out a way to order busses in Scotland, I suggest h picks up the phone to Andy Burrnham and see how he managed to do it five times, almost five times as many bus orders. 'John Swinney and the SNP are out of ideas, out of steam, and out of time. 'Failing to support Scottish manufacturing jobs is just one example.' He added: 'One SNP MSP said about John Swinney, there is no energy, no fire, no boldness, no long-term vision. 'They're right, aren't they?' Swinned fired back: 'Listen, Mr Sarwar can conjure up all the stuff he wants. 'He can go through his press cuttings, he can practice it in the mirror in the morning to see how it sounds. 'I'm going to be focussed on delivering answers and solutions for workers who face difficulty in the country. 'And while Mr Sarwar postures, I'm going to deliver for the workers of Scotland.' More to follow…
Press and Journal
06-06-2025
- Health
- Press and Journal
Elgin mum-of-four's cancer shock after going private to end 18-month NHS wait
An Elgin mum-of-four only learned she had cancer after paying around £15,000 to go private when faced with an 18-month wait on the NHS. Sarah Beaton first visited her GP in June 2024 after suffering from heavy periods. Following multiple visits to her surgery, she was referred for a scan which she received in January this year. The results showed there were anomalies. It was initially thought to be a fibroid, which is a benign non-cancerous growth. But the 43-year-old, who lives just outside of Elgin, was told she would need referred to the gynaecology department at NHS Grampian. Speaking to the P&J, she said: 'I was told there would be an 18-month waiting list for a consultation with a gynaecologist. 'I wasn't very happy because obviously I've been suffering with it for quite a while, and they said to just carry on with the same tablets until I could get a consultation.' The GP told her they would probably recommend a hysteroscopy, a test to look inside a woman's womb, to remove the fibroid which should solve the problem. Frightened by the length of wait, Sarah and her husband Bill Beaton, who run a farming contractor company, decided they would pay for private treatment. Within a week, she had a scan at Albyn Hospital in Aberdeen and a hysteroscopy was scheduled for the following month. But the results proved to be a shock as what was removed wasn't in fact a fibroid, but a mass of cells, which turned out to be endometrial cancer. The mum-of-four last month received a total hysterectomy to remove her womb at the private hospital. Now recovering from the operation at home, she is waiting to find out if further treatment is required. Reflecting on her experience, Sarah told the P&J: 'Had we not gone private, I'd be sitting here still waiting. 'You'll be going about your day and thinking 'I'm lucky' but if I hadn't done that, where would I be in 18 months time? 'What sort of stage would it be? Would it be recoverable? 'We're in a position where we can find that money to do that but there are hundreds who are not like me and are not in that position who at the end will have to incur a lot more treatment than if they were seen sooner.' She added: 'There was no inclination it was anything else until we got that result. It was quite a shock.' Highlands and Island Tory MSP Douglas Ross raised Sarah's 'intolerable' wait at First Minister's Questions on Thursday. John Swinney described the situation as 'unacceptable' and insisted the SNP government is investing more in early intervention to avoid these long waits. Mr Ross said: 'It doesn't bear thinking what the outlook for Sarah may have been had she sat on an NHS waiting list for 18 months before being seen by a specialist and the cancer being uncovered.' The latest NHS Grampian waiting times figures for June show that where gynaecology patients are referred with a suspicion of cancer, 90% are seen within nine weeks. Urgent cases are seen in around 25 weeks, while cases assessed as routine are a 64-week wait. An NHS Grampian spokesman said: 'Behind waiting time figures are real people, with real concerns about their health, and an extremely hard-working clinical team doing their utmost to care for them. 'We are aware patients are often waiting longer for services than they or we would like and we'd apologise to anyone affected by this. 'As a health board we cannot comment on individual patient cases. When a patient, or their representative, makes direct contact with us we are more than willing to discuss their case with them – including their diagnosis, treatment and any further care they received.'
