Rhoda Grant
Scottish Labour · Scotland
“To correct the minister, I say that the agricultural funding was rolled up into the block grant rather than being Barnettised. The exact same amount of money is being received because of that. Stakeholders are concerned about the lack of detail in tiers 2 and 3 of the rural support plan.”
“It feels a little like groundhog day. South Uist and Barra face yet another chaotic holiday period. South Uist faces an 85 per cent cut in its ferry service during the Easter period. The First Minister knows that this community has suffered from cuts for years, and that has caused businesses to struggle.”
“We have given certainty about what the payments will look like between now and 2030. The funding has been Barnettised—it may well be rolled up into the block grant, but it has definitely been Barnettised. The funds from the United Kingdom Government have been frozen.”
“This will be my last speech in the Parliament, and it feels apt that it is about crofting, because the cross-party group on crofting was one of the first cross-party groups that I was involved in setting up, and it feels as though things have come full circle. It would be wrong of me, in my last speech, not to pay tribute to some people.”
“I thank Tim Eagle for his kind remarks. There will be a lot of thank yous in this contribution, because I also want to thank all those who helped us with our work on the bill, including Parliament staff on the committee and in the legislation team, as well as those who gave evidence to the committee and the bill team and the minister, for…”
“As MSPs, we should remember that we could achieve only a fraction of what we do were it not for those who work with us, so I thank them for their support. I also want to thank our Scottish Labour staff pool and the parliamentary staff who support us so well.”
The complete record
Every one of 428 lines we hold for Rhoda Grant, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 9 of 9.
“To ask the Scottish Government how it is dealing with delayed discharge from hospitals in the Highlands and Islands. (S6O-04229)”
“Jim Fairlie: I cannot give all the circumstances in which force majeure will come into play, because they could be many and varied, and decisions will have to be based on individual circumstances. I give the member my reassurance again that the aim is to make the process as simple as possible for the producers so that we can ensure that they are not unduly damaged in circumstances that are beyond their control. I have given that assurance before and I will continue to give it. However, the restriction to 410 days is proof positive that the Government is taking action, alongside the industry, to reduce emissions from and criticism of the sector. We are doing everything in our power to ensure that we support the sector.”
“Last month, the Parliament passed legislation to restrict calving intervals to 410 days to qualify for support, having been reassured by the minister that the force majeure clause would deal with issues such as weather and ferry cancellations. However, the Scottish Government guidance remains unchanged and quotes circumstances such as severe natural disasters to qualify. The minister will be aware that ferry cancellations are all too common, and the news that CalMac Ferries has said that it can no longer carry livestock on ferry journeys lasting more than three hours without a transport authorisation licence will simply make matters worse. Will the minister now put on record the circumstances in which force majeure will come into play, giving my constituents the reassurance that they require to stay in the cattle industry?”
“In relation to Barra, the Scottish Government must reinstate its commitment to the Castlebay campus and provide people with the hospital that they need. I could cite many other issues. I know that we are tight for time, but I want to turn to the Government-initiated Scottish graduate entry medicine programme. Although it aims to boost rural GP numbers, it has delivered only two trainee doctors in the Highlands since 2016. We know that allied health professionals are not available, so people cannot access services that are no longer provided by GPs. We need a review to be carried out of the GP contract, and we need that to be done with a vision for rural areas in mind. I urge the Government to do that as soon as possible. 17:27”
“That is surely not a human rights-based approach. The situation is even worse when the roads are blocked. Hospitals and services in the Highlands and Islands have been impacted by budget cuts. The Caithness health review is on hold, as is NHS Highland and NHS Grampian’s joint maternity redesign. We have had more positive news about the Belford, but the go-ahead for the replacement hospital has been given only for the planning and design stage. The planning and design stage for the new hospital on Barra was completed, but then the project was unceremoniously dropped by the Scottish Government. That provides cold comfort to the people of Lochaber in the context of the Belford, who must keep up the pressure for their hospital.”
“Neil Gray: On Rhoda Grant’s point about social care, the progress that we are seeking to make in relation to a national care service is about enshrining a human rights-based approach to decision making and budgeting. Does she agree that, as we seek to reconsider the issues around a national care service, we should maintain a human rights-based approach to decision making and budgeting at all levels on social care? Rhoda Grant: I agree that a human rights- based approach to budgeting must be taken at all levels to meet people’s human rights. That was clear from the Scottish Human Rights Commission’s report. I return to the issue of gynaecological services and maternity care in rural areas. It is unacceptable that mothers are having to travel 100 miles to give birth when they are in middle of labour.”
“Back in 2021, the Feeley review recommended a human rights-based approach, whereby people are aware of and can advocate for their rights, and can easily access and maintain the care that they need. That recommendation has not been met and, sadly, things have simply got worse. The situation is even more distressing for those who are in their final days. Time that should be spent at home, surrounded by loved ones, is spent trapped in hospital. The Scottish Human Rights Commission recommends human rights-based budgeting that provides services that fit the needs of the people who access them. The lack of access to gynaecological services and maternity care in rural areas is unacceptable.”
“I, too, thank Tim Eagle for securing the debate. Access to health and social care in the Highlands and Islands is poor, which is borne out by the Scottish Human Rights Commission spotlight report that we debated earlier today. The availability of social care is declining. Since 2022, 218 social care beds have been lost in the Highland Council area alone, and the lack of social care is putting pressure on primary care when people await discharge to suitable accommodation. The lack of suitable support or accommodation means that people are trapped in hospital and, because of that, hospitals cannot admit other people for treatment, which leads to lengthening waiting lists all over the place.”
“That is not part of today’s debate, but we need to ensure that safety measures are put in place for the A9 north, which has been blocked on a number of occasions. Imagine being pregnant and in labour, being driven more than 100 miles to Inverness maternity unit from Caithness and coming up against a road closure. The road is partially closed at Scrabster, which is one of the main ports and economic drivers in the far north. To protect the economy of Caithness, we need to ensure that that is not ignored. We hoped to celebrate the opening of the dual carriageway between Inverness and Perth this year, but Highland communities have been badly let down. The Government needs to level with people. It should stop hoodwinking them with promises that it knows it cannot keep, and it needs to pull out all the stops to deliver by 2035 or earlier.”
“There are contingencies but, if the problem is again funding, that will build in a delay to the 2035 deadline. Fiona Hyslop: I refer to my opening remarks— that issue absolutely will not cause a delay. In my opening statement, I made a point of providing assurance on funding. Rhoda Grant: I am grateful for that assurance, and I hope that the issue will not cause a delay. Past experience has been that funding mechanisms led to the delay that has already taken place. Mark Ruskell and others talked about safety and improvements, which it is important to have in place. Roads are there to mitigate risk to drivers, and it is important that we have a dual carriageway, because that is the best form of mitigation. Beatrice Wishart and others talked about the A9 north.”
“Foysol Choudhury pointed out that the Government knew as far back as 2014 that the NPD funding route would not work. Claire Baker told us that the Government had been warned in 2018 by Transport Scotland that there would be a delay. Fergus Ewing laid out the timeframes in which those decisions were made and said that the Moy to Tomatin stretch of the A9 could take more than eight years from procurement to build. It has become quite obvious that it should have been known a decade ago that the promised timeframe would never be met, yet it took until 2023 for that to be admitted. Covid was blamed for the delay, rather than the Government admitting that the issues had started a long time before that. There may be delays ahead, because the cabinet secretary said that she was not sure that the MIM contract will work.”
“Fergus Ewing turned that on its head by saying that other projects that are happening will require a huge workforce, that having one contract would be much more attractive to those who might bid to complete the A9 and that all the contractors will be competing for the same workforce. There is a risk in not trying to speed up the A9 work because, if it coincides with those other developments, that might force prices up as well as slowing things down because there is a lack of a workforce. I ask the cabinet secretary to consider that. Emma Roddick highlighted that most of those who responded to the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee were keen for the timing to be sped up. The committee was told that the main reason for the delay and for not meeting the 2025 deadline was funding.”
“These are not just numbers or statistics; they are human beings who have been at the heart of their communities and are a loss to them, too. That is why Foysol Choudhury mentioned that Laura Hansler, the petitioner, is keen to have a memorial to those people. Maybe if we had a committee to look at the A9, it could lead progress on a memorial for those who have lost their lives. Claire Baker talked about the economic impact that the A9 situation is having on the far north. Jackson Carlaw spoke about the number of organisations that are waiting for the road to be dualled, because SSE and others—such as those involved in renewables—need to use the A9 to operate projects.”
“That was the case for the Queensferry crossing and it is surely good enough for the A9. Fiona Hyslop: On a point of factual accuracy, there was a separate committee for the legislative aspects of the Queensferry crossing, but the monitoring thereafter reverted to the relevant committee. Rhoda Grant: That should be the case for the A9, because many aspects of it would benefit from having a committee to look at issues and monitor progress. Many members talked about the loss of life on the A9. Emma Roddick described graphically the dangers of driving on the road, and Foysol Choudhury and Claire Baker talked about the high and unacceptable numbers of fatalities. Every fatality brings heartbreak for a family.”
“I, too, start by paying tribute to Laura Hansler, who lodged the petition and has worked for so long to get improvements on the A9. I thank the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee for its report, which shines a light on the broken promises and the mismanagement of the project to dual the whole A9. The Scottish Government kept repeating a promise that it knew would never be kept, and the lack of transparency and honesty with the public and the Parliament was breathtaking. Because of that, the committee has recommended a duty of candour. This must never happen again. We must have regular updates on progress and timelines so that we cannot be hoodwinked for decades. The committee recommends that there should be a committee with the sole responsibility of oversight of major projects.”
“It is hard enough to access a food bank in an urban area because of stigma, so imagine doing that when the whole community will know. I know that food banks go to extraordinary lengths to disguise their interventions, but confidentiality is still a concern that stops many people accessing that support. The report talks about choices being made between heating and eating. In rural areas, people also need to factor in the cost of running a car, because public transport is inadequate or non- existent. Therefore, they require fuel not only for heat but in order to access work, education, food and healthcare.”
“As a result, I still hope to pursue a right to food bill to enshrine the human right to food in Scots law. Everyone has the right to food so that they can feed themselves and their families. Emergency food should be required only in dire circumstances such as war and famine, but the report highlighted that access to food is a significant problem in the Highlands and Islands. It pointed out that, in some areas, food supplies could be at risk due to ferry failures and blocked roads disrupting supplies. Food also costs much more in sparsely populated rural areas. Independent shops cannot make economies of scale, which means that the food that they sell is more expensive. There are also barriers to accessing emergency food in rural areas, because of issues around privacy and confidentiality.”
“The report references cases in Argyll and Bute in which women who have been sexually assaulted need to travel long distances to access forensic examinations. They need to do that in the same clothes that they wore when they were assaulted. That is a common situation throughout the Highlands and Islands. The reason given for that inhumane treatment was that it would cost more to bring services to those women. A human rights- based approach would have come to a different conclusion, resulting in a process based on upholding the rights of the person who had been attacked. Our human rights are just that: they are our rights. However, in Scots law, there is no redress if someone does not have access to their human rights. The proposed Scottish human rights bill was anticipated to address that but, unfortunately, it has been shelved.”
“It was also striking to see all those findings in one report. Across all the rights that the report examined, “there is not a single human right that meets all the conditions of adequacy under international law. This means that there are significant failures in how policies and services are being designed and ... delivered.” Too often, service design focuses on urban areas and fails to address the unique needs of rural communities. However, when services are designed to meet the needs of rural areas, they work effectively in all settings, regardless of whether they are in an urban area or a rural area. The commission recommends that the Government should use a human rights-based budgeting approach to ensure that all citizens are provided with services that meet their needs, regardless of where they live.”
“I thank members who signed my motion and allowed this important debate to take place. I also pay tribute to the Scottish Human Rights Commission for its spotlight report, “Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the Highlands and Islands”. In the past decade or so, our human rights have been eroded: we need food banks, there is a housing crisis and our national health service is at breaking point. Nowhere has that been felt more keenly than in the Highlands and Islands. Centralisation of services has led to poorer outcomes, even fewer houses being built and greater difficulty in accessing health services. All of that leads to depopulation. Citizens know that, so the Scottish Human Rights Commission findings were not a surprise. However, to be consulted and have their concerns validated is a significant step forward for my constituents.”
“I move amendment S6M-16034.3, to leave out from “thanks” to end and insert: “that there have previously been successful models of differentiated migration schemes, tailored to Scotland’s specific needs, such as Fresh Talent; recognises the impact of rural depopulation on Scotland’s communities and their sustainability, including the survival of the Gaelic language; calls on the Scottish Government to use its existing powers to encourage population retention and internal migration where it would benefit Scotland’s communities and economy; understands that the conditions in Scotland’s rural and island communities are challenging due to the centralisation of services and the degradation of infrastructure, and that migration alone will not fix these systemic problems, and calls on the Scottish Government to build homes, provide high quality public services, provide local education and ensure sustainable transport links in rural and island communities in order to ensure that populations are sustainable in the long term.” 15:25”
“Therefore, my question is: how on earth can we deal with that through inward migration? Migrants need homes, access to services and jobs for their partners, and—even more than locals—they must be able to travel to stay in touch with family and friends. Let us be honest: this debate is the usual SNP Government tactic of creating a diversion and passing the buck when it fails. It can provide the skills, housing and infrastructure that would allow our communities to thrive, retain our workforce and make Scotland—and, more importantly, rural Scotland—a confident and growing community. Scottish Labour would do just that. We would invest in skills, homes and infrastructure to ensure thriving communities that can retain their own as well as welcome new talent.”
“Scottish Labour understands that, if we are to support, sustain and grow the Gaelic language, we must support and sustain Gaelic communities, which means putting economic prosperity front and centre. Lack of basic infrastructure also causes problems. Even now, there are digital not-spots throughout Scotland. That is especially the case in rural Scotland. That prevents people from working from home, setting up businesses and accessing services, all of which makes it more difficult for them to live and remain in a community. An ageing ferry fleet makes travel uncertain. When people are unable to confidently plan travel that is necessary for business, health or social reasons, that makes life much more difficult, and we end up in a position in which only the very determined remain in such communities.”
“That pattern is all too familiar to those of us who live and work in rural Scotland. Local education and training are virtually non-existent, which means that young people are forced to move away to gain skills and qualifications at a time in their lives when they are more likely to put down roots and meet their life partner. When that happens, they seldom move back. Even if there was a career available for them, there might not be one available for their partner, and that stops them coming back, which fractures our communities. The reports that have been published on the decline of the Gaelic language highlight those issues. Young people in particular are being forced out of their communities, taking their language skills with them. That explains the decline in the number of native Gaelic speakers.”
“Although that report focused on the Highlands and Islands, much of rural Scotland faces similar challenges, and, because of that, it faces depopulation. While the Scottish Government seeks to import skilled workers, it does nothing to skill our own people. Colleges are no longer able to reskill the workforce, as the part-time courses that used to enable them to do so have been totally decimated. I will give an example. The University of the Highlands and Islands used to run a midwife conversion course that allowed trained nurses in the region to retrain as midwives. That course, which was run locally, worked well for nurses who had already settled in communities in the Highland and Islands and who could not move to access training in the central belt. However, that course was discontinued in the Highlands and moved south.”
“The fundamental issue with attracting more workers to rural Scotland is not the mechanism by which we attract them but the ability for those people to stay, live and work in rural Scotland. There is a lack of housing, there is poor access to services and there is very little infrastructure. That situation is a result of Scottish Government policy. Such neglect forces people to leave. Therefore, even if we could attract inward migration, the very issues that force local people out will prevent incomers from settling. That reality was highlighted by the Scottish Human Rights Commission’s report. The SHRC said that, across all the rights that it examined, no human right was delivered in a way that met all the conditions of adequacy under international law.”
“The fresh talent initiative, which was launched by Jack McConnell’s Administration in 204, demonstrated that Scottish Labour is not against inward migration. The success of that initiative, which was also known as the working in Scotland scheme, was down to the collaboration between the Scottish and UK Governments at that time. By working together rather than separately, policies can be developed to serve Scotland well, and I was really pleased to hear that the minister committed to working with the UK Government on that issue. In relation to workers and graduates, we should be training our own staff and taking steps to ensure that we retain them in our own workforce. Workforce planning should never be dependent on inward migration. The problems are more acute in rural Scotland, as populations are declining.”
“We recognise the valuable contribution that is made by those who migrate to Scotland. In every walk of life, new Scots provide new knowledge and experience. However, that is not unique to Scotland. Indeed, Scots have travelled extensively around the globe and made their mark, and that still happens today. We know that a large proportion of those we train as doctors go abroad to seek better conditions and training opportunities. That has happened for years, but we have not addressed that loss of talent. Instead, we continue to do the same in attracting doctors, medical staff and carers to move to Scotland to fill our vacancies. Many of them have trained in countries that are less wealthy than Scotland, and that has a social and financial cost to those countries, as well.”