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Daily Record
15-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Parents of week old baby who died at QEUH 'felt blamed' for their daughter's death
SUNDAY MAIL EXCLUSIVE: The family said they have faced a long wait for answers. The parents of a baby who died at Scotland's largest hospital have told how they felt blamed for the death of their daughter. Tiny Freya Murphy was born with significant brain and organ damage after a catalogue of failures at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow led to her death. Her parents Karen and Martin were devastated when they had to allow Freya's life support machines to be switched off when she was just seven days old. A Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) found staffing shortages, medics' failure to notice that the baby was in distress as well as a lack of screening for Group B Streptococcus were factors in the youngster's death. However the couple have said they have been left with more questions than answers after the FAI which took seven years to conclude. Dad Martin, 44, from Cambuslang, near Glasgow, said: 'It was the worst thing anyone could imagine happening to them. We left that hospital with no baby and no answers.' Karen, 40, says she had expressed the wish to have a natural birth in the early stages of her pregnancy. However she felt this was later 'held against her' when the FAI medics suggested her wishes as a reason why they failed to intervene sooner during her labour, claiming Karen had said she wanted 'minimal intervention'. She disputes this. Karen, a teacher of children with additional support needs, said: 'I wanted to have as natural a birth as possible which was noted down during the pregnancy and not mentioned again. 'Then suddenly it was mentioned by doctors during the FAI where it came across as an excuse or a defence for the fact they had made mistakes with Freya's birth as it was only mentioned years later. 'I would never, and did not, say I didn't want help. I wanted to do whatever was needed to get Freya out safely and I accepted whatever they told me at the hospital. It felt as if I was being blamed for what happened.' Karen arrived at the QEUH on June 20 2018, but was left in a waiting room for two hours before being checked by medics despite already being dilated and in active labour. She says she felt there was a 'lack of urgency' among staff. Karen had to endure an excruciating procedure to rotate Freya on a labour ward after medics realised the baby was in the wrong position for delivery but the theatre was occupied. Karen said: 'I had to have a manual rotation in the room because there was no other option. I had no pain relief, and it wasn't done in the theatre where it should have been. There was someone else in the theatre and there was only one available.' Martin added: 'The person who was in charge of the ward overnight was also dealing with the other patient who was in theatre so they were taken away from Karen who was the most critical.' Medics had also attached a heart rate monitor directly to Freya's head but failed to notice that she was showing signs of distress. During the FAI Karen's midwife claimed that she had alerted doctors to her concerns about the baby's heart rate but this was contradicted by both the consultant and junior doctor working that night. Sheriff Divers said he favoured the doctors' evidence over the midwife due to inconsistencies between her evidence and that of other witnesses. When medics realised Karen and Freya needed urgent help, it took a further 45 minutes for the youngster to be born - by which time it was too late. Meconium - a name for a baby's first bowel movement - was covering Freya and she was barely breathing when she finally arrived at 9.31am on Saturday July 21, 2018. Martin said: 'When Freya came out she was purple. They put her on to Karen and then over to the resuscitation area. Even at that point we were told this was normal.' Karen added: 'They had not grasped how unwell Freya was at all. Even when she was born we were told 'It's normal for babies not to cry straight away.' 'It was a junior paediatrician who looked at Freya and hit the emergency button. The staff delivering did not have the idea that things had gone so catastrophically wrong.' Doctors spent 17 minutes trying to resuscitate Freya and regain a steady heartbeat. She was transferred to neonatal intensive care and was immediately placed on a ventilator. Her parents looked on in horror after the baby they had been told would be healthy and normal was now in a fatal condition. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. They later learned that Freya had been starved of oxygen and she had significant brain and organ damage. Karen said: 'Although it was more painful for us to let her go, we knew it was kinder to her. It was absolutely terrible. For a parent it's just a horrendous position and you have to be the one to do it for the sake of your child.' Experts told the FAI the issues were as a result of an infection in the placenta, most likely from Group B Streptococcus, a bacterial infection common among mothers. Karen said if medics had screened for the bug, as they do routinely in many other countries, Freya could still be alive. She also believes staff shortages contributed to the death of her daughter. Karen said: 'If you have a baby outwith Monday to Friday 9-5, it's a completely different experience and the team of people there to support you is vastly different. It shouldn't be that way. Babies can't choose when to be born - they don't arrive to a schedule.' The couple, who now have three children, have never returned to the QEUH for any of the births. Martin said: 'It's been a challenge having more children after the trauma of what happened to Freya. Karen was pregnant again during the FAI which was really hard for her. We just do not want this to happen to another family, and we hope that mistakes are learned from Freya's death.' The couple are being represented by Alan Rodgers, partner at Thompsons solicitors and are now pursuing a civil case against NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Rodgers said: 'The courage shown by the Murphys to secure this FAI has been enormous and they have waited far too long for it to be held. The Inquiry has shone a light on the reality facing clinicians in the modern Scottish NHS. 'At times care is compromised or suboptimal decisions are made purely due to lack of facilities and resources. The cutbacks and penny-pinching in our NHS needs to stop.' Sheriff Barry Divers described the couple's wait for answers as 'simply too long', with the FAI taking seven years to conclude from when Freya died. An NHSGGC spokeswoman said: "We would like to extend our sincerest condolences to the family of Freya Murphy, and once again to apologise for the distress they have experienced. "Freya's death was the subject of a Fatal Accident Inquiry. We have received the recommendations of this and are working to implement them in full. This includes carrying out a review of staffing levels, and, in line with a recommendation on Group B Streptococcus, we plan to make a formal approach to the UK National Screening Committee."
Daily Record
15-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Cammy Day complainer says Labour should be ashamed for readmitting council chief
SUNDAY MAIL EXCLUSIVE: The former council leader was welcomed back to the party last week despite complaints. A man who complained about former council leader Cammy Day has blasted the Labour party for allowing him to rejoin. The man, who is a constituent of Day's in Edinburgh, complained that he was being sexually harassed in 2022. The party said to progress his complaint he would have to go through a formal process, which he declined and argued it was placing the onus on victims to take action. Now the man has criticised the decision to allow Day back in to the party after we revealed he had sent sexual messages to Ukrainian refugees. He was also the subject of several complaints to Edinburgh City Council. The man said: 'If a senior leader in the Labour Party can act in a sexually inappropriate manner with impunity, what message does that send to victims of sexual harassment? Scottish Labour have given the green light to misconduct by re-admitting Cammy Day and have sent an unequivocal message to victims about whose side they are really on. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. 'I believe this will significantly undermine the whole system and processes that are meant to protect victims of sexual harassment; and decrease the likelihood of victims coming forward in future. Shame on them.' Labour Party spokesperson said: 'The Labour Party takes all complaints seriously. They are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures and any appropriate action is taken.'
Daily Record
01-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Disposables vapes ban 'could be as profound for public health as smoking ban'
SUNDAY MAIL EXCLUSIVE: Glasgow MP Zubir Ahmed claims today's ban on sale and supply of single-use vapes will have 'material impact' on teen vaping rates. A surgeon-turned-MP has declared that today's disposable vapes ban could have as profound an impact on public health as the 2006 indoor smoking ban. From today, the sale and supply of single-use vapes is prohibited by law with shops facing £5000 fines and potentially up to two years in jail if they flout the rules. Labour MP Zubir Ahmed has said he believes the move will quickly have a 'material impact' on Scotland's teen vaping epidemic – with a quarter of 15-year-olds currently hooked on the nicotine-based gadgets. Glasgow South West MP Ahmed, a transplant specialist who worked in the NHS for 20 years, said: 'I feel like this is of a magnitude of when the smoking ban came in in 2006 in Scotland. 'There was lots of umming and ahhing about whether people would comply – but in the end, they did, because that's what people in Scotland and Britain do. They're generally law-abiding, good people that obey the law.' In the year following the ban on smoking in indoor places, the number of hospital admissions linked to smoking plummeted. Since then, youth smoking rates have fallen to historic lows. But the rise in teen vaping – with candy-flavoured e-cigs like Gummy Bear and Cotton Candy being cynically marketed at kids – has raised fears of a new generation being hooked on nicotine. Ahmed said: 'I think the ban will have a material impact immediately on youth vaping – but more importantly, for a lot of these kids, vapes can be a bridge into smoking and I think we'll finally break that link as well.' It comes as the ban sparked scenes of panic-buying as stores and online retailers tried to shift their stocks at bargain prices. Refillable vapes will still be available after today however tens of thousands of Scots are thought to have been stockpiling their favourite disposable vape flavours. Of Scotland's estimated 150,000 users of disposable vapes, around a quarter (27 per cent) have been stashing up to nine weeks' worth, a recent OnePoll survey suggests. There were reports of shops offering single-use vapes at 'everything must go'-style discount prices. One Spar store in Alloa told LBC Radio of a buying frenzy after they cut prices to three boxes of vapes for £30 – which with 10 vapes per box, works out at £1 each. It comes amid warnings that despite the landmark ban, the environmental toll of single-use vapes – which are difficult to recycle and contain critical materials like lithium batteries – will continue to be felt. In the UK, an estimated 8.2million vapes are thrown away or littered every week – or 13 vapes per second – according to Material Focus. Scott Butler of the anti-waste group said: 'The threat of a 'vapocalypse' remains and new big puff and pod vape models are already contributing to an environmental nightmare.' Gillian Martin, Scotland's acting Net Zero Secretary, said: 'Scotland was the first nation in the UK to commit to taking action on single-use vapes. 'This change to the law fulfils a Programme for Government commitment and will help tackle the threat that single-use vapes pose to our environment as well as to our public health.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Meanwhile, self-styled sustainable vaping firm Riot Labs have produced data this week suggesting more than a quarter of a million Scots are hoarding used disposable vapes in cupboards, drawers, pockets and cars as they're unsure how to dispose of them. They've teamed up with Scots eco campaigner Laura Young - who spearheaded the grassroots campaign to ban the devices in the UK - to tell users what to do with their old e-cigs. Their advice includes using online tools like Recycle Your Electricals to find your nearest drop-off point for old disposables, not trying to dismantle vapes yourself, and not sticking them in the regular bin where the batteries pose a fire hazard. Laura said: "Disposable vapes are the poster child of wasteful design, packed with precious materials, designed to be used once, then tossed. This ban is a vital victory for our environment and a wake-up call to the industry. "We cannot continue normalising single-use electronics that pollute our streets, endanger our health, and waste critical resources like lithium. "With the UK Government now taking decisive action, it's time to clear out our drawers, recycle properly, and use this moment as a blueprint to challenge other throwaway products."
Daily Record
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Union chief in warning over far right poverty fears
SUNDAY MAIL EXCLUSIVE: The STUC leader said mainstream parties don't have strong enough poverty policies One of Scotland's most powerful union leaders has warned the far right is weaponising legitimate poverty fears because main stream parties don't have policies to redistribute wealth. STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer has spoken out as John Swinney prepares to hold a summit on "democracy and respect' in Glasgow tomorrow which will be attended by churches, trade unions, charities and political leaders. She has challenged the First Minister to make sure the event is not just a 'talking shop' by confronting policy choices like nationalisation of key industries she believes would shift power out of the hands of unaccountable billionaires and spread money more equally. Foyer said: 'Across this country cynical forces are driving the rise of the far right, feeding like vultures off the alienation - indeed the desperation - of many in our communities. 'Legitimate fears and concerns are being twisted into false and hateful narratives which must be countered. 'No-one is more concerned about poverty, homelessness or the safety of women and children on the streets than we are. The difference is, we know who is really to blame. 'This summit must not just be a business-as-usual gathering of groups who, no doubt, mean well but aren't prepared to roll their sleeves up and tackle head on the threat we are facing. 'The Scottish Government knows this. We've made it clear to them. We take them at their word that this summit will mean hearing from those at the heart of our communities - unions, community groups, anti-racist campaigners and more – who are best placed to counteract the poison of the far-right. 'But we also know that there's a job of work to be done by all those involved to look in their own backyards too. Any organisation who turns up at this event thinking they and their members are immune from all this should stay at home. 'And yes, this includes unions too. We're seeing some folks within our ranks falling prey to the illusionary, false pledges offered by the populists and far-right who promise salvation to their ills but will deliver nothing but division and rancour. 'We know that centrist policies that prioritise the economic status quo has played a critical role in the rise of the far-right. The lack of hope and optimism for the future that working class people feel, with unaffordable energy bills, skyrocketing food prices and housing costs still stupidly expensive, means they're searching for an answer. 'That answer has not yet been adequately addressed within mainstream political parties.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Foyer believes a new age of nationalised industry is the only way to spread wealth more equally rather than allowing power and money to be increasingly centralised in the hands of a small number of billionaires. She added: 'The answer is to begin to shift power so that the wealth and assets are owned by the many. It means public ownership of our utilities to stop the billionaire energy giants ripping off members and public intervention to protect decent jobs. 'It means ensuring everyone has a decent standard of living. It means organising folk within our spaces to ensure that their valid and legitimate fears for the future are addressed and better, kinder and more collective solutions are found. 'So, let's be one hundred percent clear, migrants aren't to blame. It's a failure of our state, the failure of our political class, that has members within our community turning to the populist right and far-right for answers.' Foyer insisted the STUC was the first organisation to welcome the announcement of Swinney's summit to fight the rise of the far right and that it would also be a key theme of the STUC's upcoming Congress in Dundee next week. She added: 'We need to be ready to have hard conversations about how we got here and be ready to work on solutions that can build working class unity in our communities founded on hope not hatred. 'That hope comes from the brilliant individuals and organisations who campaign together collectively for healthier communities, to tackle poverty, campaign for better housing and celebrate the richness of our culture.'
