Gulhane on Politics

On Gulhane on Politics this week: Incompetence - how the SNP rewards failure; Awareness - improved treatments for those suffering with asthma; and Importance - cervical screening, it really does make sense. Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust www.jostrust.org.uk

On Gulhane on Politics this week: From Long Covid to NHS Dentistry, Humza Yousaf really did make a hash of it; Patient Safety - following the UK Government's lead, a Bill to establish a Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland; And private rental housing - how owners are exiting the market in Scotland, courtesy of the SNP and Green Government.

On this week's Gulhane on Politics: The ongoing saga of the SNP in crisis; Tackling less survivable brain cancers; and a father's heart breaking story of his daughter's life limiting condition. The SNP drama is playing out like a Netflix mini series. Police Scotland pitched its tent on Nicola Sturgeon’s front lawn and arrested her husband, Peter Murrell – all in connection with an ongoing investigation into the SNP’s murky finances.  Officers also turned up at Mr Murrell’s 92 year old mother’s driveway in Dunfermline and towed away a luxury campervan. A newly-minted and mortified First Minister Humza Yousaf then had to admit that the SNP’s auditors resigned way back in October last year and that the Party’s executive kept this secret.  Then the SNP’s own Treasurer was arrested – which begs the questions, who will be next ? It seems that no audit firm in Scotland wants to touch the SNP’s accounts, so Humza found a small firm near Manchester to look at his books – a firm that’s being closely watched as its own record in regulatory compliance and tax matters has certainly raised eyebrows. You really couldn’t make this up !  And I for one, can’t wait to find out what’s going to happen in the next episode of “Desperate Humza”. Delegates at the Scottish Conservatives Spring Conference certainly lapped-up the many gags about the SNP’s ongoing woes. That said, my main focus was on policy and how our Party will deliver on Scotland’s real priorities. My key speech focused on “Rebuilding our NHS”. Over many months, I’ve listened to NHS professionals, healthcare charities, universities, health economists and patient groups in order to develop a plan for our NHS that is far advanced than anything the SNP has ever dreamt of over the past decade. Policies must be fit for purpose, fit for the 21st century – which means embracing technology, prioritising investment, incentivising staff and strengthening preventative healthcare.  We need to focus more on what keeps us healthy rather than using the NHS as a repair shop.  Our NHS must be modern, efficient and focused on local delivery so healthcare is accessible for all of our population. And this will be a key focus during this series of Gulhane on Politics – policy and solutions on how to achieve a modern, efficient and local NHS for Scotland. Brain cancer is one of the six common cancers with poor survival rates.  Along with lung cancer, liver, oesophagus, pancreas and the stomach, we call these less survivable cancers as their average five-year survival rate is just 16%. Over 9,000 people will be diagnosed with one of these cancers in Scotland each year – a quarter of all cancer diagnoses.  And these six cancers account for 40% all cancer deaths, claiming over 7,000 lives in Scotland annually.  So can we do more to identify brain cancer and provide better treatments ? I recently spoke about brain cancer in the Scottish Parliament. Epidermolysis bullosa, or EB, is the name for a group of rare inherited skin disorders that cause the skin to become very fragile.  Any trauma or friction to the skin can cause painful blisters. EB is caused by a faulty gene and is usually diagnosed in babies and young children, as the symptoms can be obvious from birth. To understand more about caring for a child with EB and also to find out if there are new treatments on the horizon, I had a 3 way call with Andy Grist, father of Isla; dermatologist Dr Sagair Hussain and Laura Forsyth from the national EB charity, DEBRA. www.debra.org.uk Thank you for listening - Please be sure to subscribe.  

On Gulhane on Politics this week, we reflect on the SNP membership’s choice of the ranting, gaff-prone Humza Yousaf as their Party’s leader – and OUR First Minister; we take a quick look at Mr Yousaf’s eye opening appointments to his government; And we have a message for Graeme Dey, the new Minister for Higher and Further Education, on the urgent need to back Scotland’s colleges so more Scots can be trained for the workplace. The self-styled First Activist is now in charge of Scotland’s Government. SNP members selected Holyrood’s most incompetent minister to lead their Party, well only just. In the second round of voting, Humza secured 52.1% of the vote, rival Kate Forbes 47.9%. So Humza was sworn in as FIRST Minister, keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland. And MSPs were CLAPPING like seals on his side of the SNP’s divided ranks when Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross reminded Parliament of Humza’s priorities. Hapless Humza Yousaf is not only the worst Health Secretary in the history of devolved government, his undignified record includes spells as an ill-fated Transport Secretary who drove a car without insurance. He was also the power-obsessed Justice Secretary - who thought heated discussions over dinner at home should be treated as hate crimes. Humza Yousaf, with little experience outside of politics, is an SNP princeling - having worked in a call centre for a year after leaving university in 2007. He was then employed as an SNP office assistant before being elected as MSP in 2011. Humza has been well mentored for the top job – by both Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon. So what does Humza stand for – politically ? Well, the SNP princeling wants to scrap the Monarchy. He regards the UK Government as a foreign power. He dreams of establishing Scotland as an independent republic. With regret, under Humza, expect the days of SNP failures to continue -  as he obsesses over breaking-up the United Kingdom   Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf has decided on his new-look government line up. Well he actually retained key figures from Nicola Sturgeon’s government, at least the ones that supported him during his leadership campaign. He also kept the 2 Green MSPs as ministers. But he didn’t keep the best TALENT from the Sturgeon years – including Kate Forbes who wouldn’t accept a demotion and her supporter Ivan McKee, the only former minister who knew how to run a business. The First Minister and Deputy First Minister are both failed former Health Secretaries. And their line-up of Cabinet Secretaries and Ministers has been described as a B-list of politicians. But what a B-List ! Of the 64 SNP MSPs, 26 are now Ministers.  And the make-up of Humza Yousaf’s Government reflects his priorities: independence. Tourism may account for 7% of employment in Scotland and 5% of Scotland’s GDP.  Yet Humza Yousaf, in all his wisdom, thinks this industry doesn’t need his attention. And as a flavour of what to expect during his time in office – however long that may be - Humza Yousaf has stated there will be no relaxation of the tax burden on higher earners. There’s no disguising the fact that Scotland now has an anti-business, anti-growth…. First Minister. The new Cabinet Secretary for Higher and Further Education, Graeme Dey should listen carefully ! Scotland needs to train and upskill its workforce. This is particularly the case in health and social care. Training programmes at our colleges of further education provide the essential link between people and employers, yet they don’t receive the level of support that universities enjoy. To find out more, I visited the City of Glasgow College and its simulated hospital ward training suite…..where I spoke with College Principal Paul Little and Vanessa Telfer, Associate Dean of Health and Early Years. https://www.cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk/

On Gulhane on Politics this week: Long Covid - 175,000 Scots suffer with this debilitating condition; Cancers - tackling those with the poorest survival rayes; and Crime - we need to do much more to support victims. Well, it’s fair to say that the SNP leadership contest has descended into farce. In fact, even the President of the SNP, Mike Russell, says his party is in a tremendous mess.Lies, cover-ups, tens of thousands of once loyal supporters leaving the Party, resignations – you couldn’t make this up. Come next week, we should know who will replace Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and First Minister – that is, if the election process isn’t challenged in the courts by those who question the contest’s integrity. As if rising above the turmoil, gaff-prone Humza Yousaf the Health Secretary is still favoured by the SNP hierarchy to get the top job, despite his abysmal record in charge of Transport, Justice and now, the NHS.  That said, it’s the 70,000 SNP members who get to decide, not Nicola Sturgeon’s cabal at Party HQ. It’s not a done deal. On Humza’s record as a Minister, hardly a week goes by in Holyrood when we don’t have to home-in on his failure to grasp the health brief. The latest debate focused on Long Covid, which now impacts over 175,000 Scots. Six common cancers have a poor survival rate: lungs, liver, brain, oesophagus, pancreas and stomach. We call these less survivable cancers as their average five-year survival rate is just 16%. Over 9,000 people will be diagnosed with one of these cancers in Scotland each year – a quarter of all cancer diagnoses.  And these six cancers account for 40% all cancer deaths, claiming over 7,000 lives in Scotland annually.  To understand more and to discuss how we can increase awareness of symptoms, I had the pleasure to speak with Lorraine Dallas, Director of Prevention, Information and Support at the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation and Heather Dearie, who was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2009.   Scotland has a prison population of around 7,500 with 25% of prisoners on remand. Many prisoners have families in our community - partners, children, elderly relatives. By committing their crimes, they’ve knowingly put their own loved ones at risk. There’s financial hardship, stigma, mental burden. In recent years, our courts have seen a marked upturn in common assault, rape, attempted rape and threatening behaviour. The number of prisoners charged with sexual offences has indeed doubled over the past decade.  Earlier this month, we debated the impact of prison on the families of our prison population – and there were calls from the SNP and Greens for alternatives to prison,  non-custodial sentences. The one big concern that the SNP and Greens miss, however, is the impact of crime on victims. The SNP and Greens don’t speak up for them. This was the thrust of my speech – which, unsurprisingly did not go down too well with those seeking a soft-touch justice system.

On Gulhane on Politics this week, we focus on: Spite - and the SNP in civil war; Bite - Scotland's NHS is in crisis; and Tight - Scotland's ever expanding waistline and the country's obesity crisis. They say a week is a long time in politics – far less 2 or even 3. Since our last series, Nicola Sturgeon has resigned as SNP Party leader. A three-horse race campaign is underway for SNP members to elect a new leader - and the SNP faithful are now reduced to tearing lumps out of each other. Leadership candidate Kate Forbes, the Finance Minister, equates Health Minister Humza Yousaf as mediocre – adding she would roll back some of Nicola Sturgeon’s flagship policies. Humza, the SNP hierarchy’s preferred candidate, or Mr Continuity, shows contempt for Kate and her faith as she is a member of the socially conservative Free Church of Scotland. That leaves candidate number three, Ash Regan, who says the SNP has lost its way – not exactly a robust endorsement of Nicola Sturgeon. At First Minister’s Questions in the Scottish Parliament, the Scottish Conservative’s leader Douglas Ross was quick to rub it in. Aside from this and knowing who will next lead the SNP and become First Minister, there is another question on everyone’s mind: Why did Nicola Sturgeon resign so suddenly ? I reflected on this at a recent conference of the Scottish Conservatives West of Scotland Region. On March 27th the SNP membership will decide on its new leader and Scotland’s next First Minister. For now, we can just sit back and watch the SNP in civil war and prepare to continue taking them to task – whoever ends up in our sights at First Ministers Questions – or, in my case, has the Health Secretary’s job when all the dust settles. The British Dental Association says NHS dentistry in Scotland is in crisis. And this is on the SNP Government’s watch. Yet the Health Secretary Humza Yousaf – he who wants to be First Minister – well, Humza thinks he’s doing a great job ! So what’s the real picture ? I caught up with Charlotte Waite, Director of the BDA Scotland to find out more about dentistry on the front line. From mouths to waistlines: modern life, modern diet, and, for many, inactivity - this can result in obesity. And in Scotland, the rate of obesity is seriously impacting the country’s health. So what can we do about this ? To look for answers, I met up with Lorraine Tulloch of Obesity Action Scotland - and we started by weighing-up, the true scale of the problem.

On Gulhane on Politics this week: The rapist and Nicola Sturgeon - why won't the First Minister admit Adam Graham / Isla Bryson is a man...or a woman ? I also explain my own position on the controversial Gender Recognition Reform, which I voted for. And we pay a visit to Clyde Gateway - a publicly owned company that operates Scotland's largest and most ambitious urban regeneration programme.

On Gulhane on Politics this week: Stumped: Tackling racism, change at Cricket Scotland; Creep: The SNP welcome a sex pest back into its ranks; and the amazing Men’s Sheds – pushing for funding. Last July, an independent review into racism at Cricket Scotland concluded that those who raised complaints were ignored or side-lined - and a culture of racially aggravated micro-aggression was allowed to develop.The review, called Changing the Boundaries, highlighted 448 examples of institutional racism -  and the entire Cricket Scotland board resigned the day before the report’s  publication. As a result of the damning findings, the operation of Cricket Scotland was placed in special measures until October, with Sportscotland effectively taking control. Back then I called for the Scottish Parliament’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee to question Sportscotland and Cricket Scotland’s new management team. And last week, we received a further update from the sport’s executives – who assured Committee members that progress has been made in terms of governance, and leadership – and that there were clear signs of a cultural change, which is vital for Cricket Scotland to recover from this crisis. In contrast, we have the Scottish National Party, the SNP, which appears reluctant to rid its Party of sexual predators. Patrick Grady is an influential SNP Member of Parliament for Glasgow North. The former SNP Whip was suspended from the SNP following a House of Commons probe which found that Grady was guilty of sexual misconduct – having inappropriately touched a 19 year old teenage staffer’s head and neck while in a London pub. Grady is now back in the SNP fold, all smiles, while the sex pest’s victim has paid the price for launching the complaint as he lost his job ! Regular listeners may remember our report from mid November when we visited the Shettleston Men’s Shed. This is a focal point for retired men in the east of Glasgow where they can meet-up, play pool, learn computer skills or a musical instrument - or make things in the carpentry workshop. Men’s Sheds really help mean avoid social isolation, which many experience as they grow older. The trouble is, the Scottish Government had decided to cut funding for Scotland’s Men’s Sheds. So a number of MSPs, myself included, wrote to ministers and lobbied government to have this funding decision reversed.

On Gulhane on Politics this week: Spin: We're accused of misrepresenting the data in an Freedom of Information response from NHS Grampian. But we didn't - and we have the proof that we simply communicated what they said. The SNP leadership have also weighed in, trying to deflect from their failures. The Bin - This is the best place for the SNP Health Secretary's performance review. Humza Yousaf has failed miserably, is out of his depth - and should step down. And on a positive note, we speak with the Homeless Veterans Project who work tirelessly, for no personal monetary reward, helping those who served get back on their feet. https://www.homelessveteransproject.org/

Greetings for the New Year and welcome to the 3rd Series of Gulhane on Politics. The Scottish Parliament has returned from its winter recess. And during the break from Chamber politics, in the real world outside Holyrood, Scotland's health service faced near collapse - while the SNP's man in charge, Humza Yousaf, was missing in action. We've seem record Accident and Emergency waiting times, record numbers of patients stuck in hospital when they were well enough to leave - while 2 regional health boards have paused all non-urgent surgery. Yet, with the NHS in crisis, the SNP-Green Government chose to focus the first debate in Parliament on independence and holding another referendum - which the Supreme Court has ruled that they have no authority to decide on. So, in this week's podcast, we focus on the government's poor management of Scotland's NHS, its obsession with holding a referendum - and we consider the new action plan to tackle drugs deaths in Scotland, the country with the worst, by far, record in Europe.