Author: Rhoda Grant

Funicular Railway, Cairngorm
cc-by-sa/2.0 – © Peter S – geograph.org.uk/p/1975585

Labour MSP Rhoda Grant has raised questions in Holyrood about Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and Natural Retreats over the operation of Cairngorm Mountain.

Mrs Grant raised a Topical Question today (Tuesday) asking the Scottish Government what action it was taking regarding its dealings with HIE and the company, in the light of a special investigation by the BBC.

She also pushed for the community to take over the running of the mountain to save the local economy.

“Cairngorm Mountain is crucial to the economy of Badenoch and Strathspey,” Mrs Grant, who represents the Highlands and Islands, told MSPs.

“The community there have been expressing concerns for some time about the management of the Mountain by Natural Retreats and the flow of money in and out of the Cairngorm.

“As this is a complicated web involving a public body and its interaction with private companies, can the Cabinet Secretary tell me what financial checks were made of both Natural Retreats and Natural Assets Investments Ltd before they gained the management contact and while it was running?

She went on the ask Rural Economy Secretary, Fergus Ewing :

“Were Cairngorm Mountain Ltd in breach of contract when they went into receivership?  If so could HIE have cancelled the contract rather than have to pay the receiver to take it back into ownership?

“Given the community’s desire to own this asset, will the Scottish Government now look a transferring it to them, while ensuring that all monies owing to HIE and the Government are recouped from Natural Retreats?”

Mrs Grant’s questions came against a background of a number of constituents and organisations who were concerned about the running of Cairngorm, especially in the light of Natural Retreats going into administration in November last year, weeks after the funicular was closed due to safety fears.

“However, questions were being asked about the private company and its apparent lack of investment long before it went into administration,” said Mrs Grant following her question in Parliament.

“The complexity of the financial situation made it very difficult to discover exactly what was happening with the flow or money.

“This is not only a question about what happened to get the mountain into this state, but what happens now and what investment can be given to the community which has plans to improve the hill for the future.

“Cairngorm is crucial for the economy of this jewel in the crown of the Highlands and crucial for all those who live and work there.”

In his reply Mr Ewing told Mrs Grant that he had asked HIE for a full account of the situation and will be meeting with them.

He agreed that Cairngorm was extremely important for Badenoch and Strathspey but also for the whole of the Scottish sports industry and he was “well aware” of questions being asked by the media and others in the community.

On the issue of any breach of contract and if public money could be paid back, Mr Ewing said these were “perfectly reasonable questions”, but stressed these were legal questions and it would be imprudent to answer off the cuff.

He said the questions were matters of concern to the public and of considerable public interest.

• The infrastructure of the mountain, the lifts and railway, are owned by the public, under the wing of HIE. In 2014 Natural Retreats took it over the running of Cairngorm. The BBC investigation highlighted that the company was then sold to Natural Assets Investments Limited – a company with many of the same directors as Natural Retreats. Natural Retreats had the lease to operate the mountain – but the assets had been transferred to the wider group.

Ends

Note to editors:

The Topical question:

Rhoda Grant S5T-01570

2. To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recent BBC investigation, what action it is taking regarding its dealings with Natural Retreats and CairnGorm Mountain Limited.

 

Highlands & Islands Regional MSP, Rhoda Grant, has strived for many years to persuade the local Authority and the Government to expedite improvements to either the existing Stromeferry Bypass or to build another road. Her driver was always to make the route safer for all road users, particularly the children who travel the route twice a day from and to Lochcarron and the surrounding area.  However, after meeting face to face with the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Michael Matheson she was left feeling very disappointed.

 

Rhoda said ” I asked for this meeting at the end of last year, as the whole issue of the Stromeferry bypass keeps getting kicked into the long grass and it is an issue that has gone on now for nearly forty years. I doubt very much whether there would be this dragging of feet if the route passed a more urban area down in the central belt.

 

” The fact of the matter is a simple one to understand. Highland Council have responsibility for this route currently, as it is part of the massive 7000km of road that they have to look after. The Council like all others in Scotland have had to face making drastic cuts thanks to the cuts in funding received from the Government after their budget pact with their bedfellows the Greens. Highland Council cannot afford the funding for the options proposed to address the Stromeferry bypass problem, which amount to somewhere between £70 million and £120million. So they and indeed I, have for some time been asking for Government assistance. I have suggested on more than one occasion that the Government should take over responsibility for this road given it is the gateway to Southwest Ross and the Uists. Highland Council for their part have asked for extra funding because of the geographic nature of the vast area of roads and infrastructure that they have to cover.

 

” The Government have consistently knocked back all proposals and suggestions.

 

” Yesterday, I met with Michael Matheson, the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and to be frank, I was less than impressed. Put simply, the Cabinet Secretary has absolutely no intention of the Government or Transport Scotland adopting this route as a trunk road and I got the distinct impression that he was washing his hands of any responsibility stating repeatedly to me that this was an issue for Highland Council and they had to deal with it, despite me emphasising that lives were at risk.

 

Rhoda Grant concluded “This whole matter is frustrating. Those in authority keep passing the buck and all the time the people who use this route have to do so knowing it is not safe. What will happen before action to be taken and how long will this issue be allowed to drag on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Highlands & Islands Regional MSP, Rhoda Grant, who wrote to the Department of Digital Culture Media and Sport condemning the proposal to do away with the free TV licence concession for those over 75,has received a response from Margot James MP the Minister for Digital and Creative Industries.

 

” I am advised by Margot James, that her Department are continuing with this concession until June 2020 at which point the responsibility passes over to the BBC” said Rhoda Grant.

 

” The BBC currently are consulting on this issue and they are not going to make a decision until June 2019″.

 

Rhoda Grant concluded ” As I highlighted in my letter to the Department it is essential that those over 75 have this concession as for many the TV is the only company that they have and is the only means of communication and learning available to them. To have to pay the annual licence fee would further impact on the majority who are living on the bread line anyway. Margot James MP,  advises that the Government expect the BBC to honour it’s commitment and will continue to provide this valued concession to those over 75. That said one thing is for sure, the Government will no longer fund it which would mean drastic cuts to the BBC services to enable them to continue the scheme.

Thurso’s Community Fridge project is receiving the backing of Labour MSP Rhoda Grant who says it’s a ‘cracking’ community scheme.

Mrs Grant, who represents the Highlands and Islands, found out more about the project from Joan Lawrie, of Thurso’s Community Development Trust, when she was in Caithness last week.

The scheme aims to set up a communal fridge in Thurso town centre, open from 8am to 8pm, and available for anyone to take what they need from it.

“This is a great idea which will not only tackle food waste but will also tackle food poverty in the area,” said Mrs Grant.

“Everyone be able to look in and see what’s available in the fridge and take their pick, but it will definitely fill the gap for people who find themselves short of food at a certain time.

“For instance, many families may find the pinch near to pay day or are between jobs and needing a helping hand for a few meals. Also, keen growers may have surpluses from their own gardens at certain times of year and would only be too pleased to donate produce to the fridge.

“I’m a real supporter of this ‘sharing and caring’ initiative and congratulate all the volunteers behind it. I hope to see the result when it is launched later this year.”

Mrs Grant ask to meet Ms Lawrie who explained the thinking behind the project which is also being backed by local supermarkets and smaller food businesses.

The Fridge will fulfil food hygiene regulations with a band of volunteers to run it. When it comes to food waste, the group plans to record how much food is being saved from going to the landfill site. Volunteers also stress that it is in no way stepping on the toes of the Food Bank which does sterling work in Caithness.

Ms Lawrie, a project officer for the trust said: “Since learning about the Community Fridge Network and hearing that 32 Communities across the UK have been able to establish a Community Fridge we have really wanted to bring this to Thurso.

“Not only will the fridge combat food waste and educate regarding waste in our community it will also help those most in need without anyone feeling stigmatised. We’re currently running a Crowdfunder to help with the costs of establishing the fridge which is only £110 away from target. ”
• The organisation is looking for donations for the project at:
www.crowdfunder.co.uk/thurso-community-fridge

Labour MSP Rhoda Grant is warning train passengers not to expect a two hour and 45 minute journey time on the Highland Main Line anytime soon.

Scottish Government Transport Minister, Michael Matheson, has stated the quicker journey time is now ‘a long-term aspiration’ despite a commitment made by Alex Salmond, the then First Minister, in August 2008, to reduce train journey times between Inverness and Edinburgh to at least two hours 45 minutes by 2012.

“That promise has disappeared down the track, like many given by this Government,” explained Mrs Grant, who represents the Highlands and Islands.

“The fact that the Transport Secretary hasn’t given a possible date to achieve that past commitment is very concerning. Yet again our region is being placed at the bottom of the pile when it comes to being top of the list of improvements to our rail service.

“Last year campaigners stressed that there was just a paltry few minutes saved on journey time, which is just woeful. There is no doubt the rail system should be nationalised, but in the meantime the Scottish Government needs to live up to their previous promises.”

In reply to a Parliamentary Question, Mr Matheson told Mrs Grant: “The long term aspiration remains to deliver a fastest journey time of 2 hours 45 minutes between Inverness and the Central Belt.”

He said the Highland Main Line Rail Improvement project would be completed in phases between 2014 and 2025. In 2012 services increased from 9 to 11 trains per day in each direction, reducing journey times by an average of 6 minutes at a cost of £1.2 million.

He added phase two will see a £57 million investment providing an hourly service between Perth and Inverness, delivery of a reduction in average journey times by around 10 minutes and more efficient freight operations.

Mrs Grant added: “Until we get more investment in services and infrastructure people will still take to the roads instead of the train and adding to that decision are recent train cancellations. Increase in ticket prices and carriage over-crowding. We deserve better.”

SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT
WRITTEN ANSWER
1 February 2019 (Holding Reply Issued 29 January 2019)
Index Heading: Transport Scotland
Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Scottish Labour): To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to fulfil the commitment that was made by the then First Minister in August 2008, following a Cabinet meeting in Inverness, to reduce train journey times between Inverness and Edinburgh to at least two hours 45 minutes, and an average of three hours, with the aim of making “railway travel to the heart of the Highlands, in terms of time, competitive with roads… by a mixture of projects, including line improvement, additional passing loops, double-tracking and signalling upgrades”; what improvements projects were introduced, broken down by what progress has been made with each, and, in light of the comment that “the timescale for implementation is 2011-12”, for what reason the target date was not met, and by what date this level of service will be operational.

S5W-20998

Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government’s Infrastructure Investment Plan, published in 2011, stated that the Highland Main Line Rail Improvement project would be completed in phases between 2014 and 2025.

Phase one was delivered as planned in December 2012, increasing services from 9 to 11 trains per day in each direction, and reducing journey times by an average of 6 minutes at a cost of £1.2 million.

Phase two, which is currently scheduled to be completed in December 2019, will see a £57 million investment providing an hourly service between Perth and Inverness, delivery of a reduction in average journey times by around 10 minutes and more efficient freight operations. A fleet of refurbished High Speed Trains is planned to be used for this new timetable offering customers greater comfort and more capacity. We are engaged with local communities regarding calling points with the aim of providing calls at stations which represent maximum benefit for users of the service. The new timetable will also include improvements to the first and last trains. Overall, these plans will provide passengers with better connectivity with the Central Belt and Inverness whilst boosting the economic growth for the whole of Scotland.

The long term aspiration remains to deliver a fastest journey time of 2 hours 45 minutes between Inverness and the Central Belt.

 

Two Highland GPs have joined MSP Rhoda Grant for a meeting in Holyrood with Health Secretary Jeane Freeman.

Mrs Grant, Dingwall GP Miles Mack and Inverness GP Phil Wilson, also a Professor of Primary Care and Rural Health at the University of Aberdeen, outlined their concerns for rural and remote practices under the new GP Contract.

Mrs Grant asked Ms Freeman for the face-to-face meeting and was grateful for the opportunity to outline key issues which other GPs across the Highlands and Islands had also raised with her and with her Labour colleague David Stewart.

The GPs used Caithness facts and figures to outline the problems, stressing that five of the 11 permanent GPs in the area were almost certain to retire because of age in the next five years.

In Caithness, since 2004, almost half of all permanent GPs posts have been vacated with partial replacement with short term locum provision. Three practices have ceased to be independent contractors and have been taken over by NHS Highland.

There were also general concerns about the capacity for under-graduate teaching and the effect on retention and recruitment of GPs in remote areas.

GPs have told the MSPs that the new Contract fails to recognise the unique workload in rural areas where surgeries deal with a far greater range of medical problems – including emergencies that would be dealt with in hospitals in urban areas.

“The main concern is that what’s on the table with the new Contract is an urban model and this just doesn’t suit remote and rural areas,” explained Mrs Grant, who represents the Highlands and Islands.

“GPs are worried it will cause poor continuity of care for patients and that procedures, currently performed at surgeries, are being centralised – for instance for blood tests or vaccinations. This will inevitably inconvenience patients and worsen health outcomes by raising barriers to care.

“The contract states that other health care professionals will be employed to deal with these extra tasks but with rural GP posts remaining unfilled, and shortages of nurses in many areas, how can we expect to find these extra people in our out of the way places?

“There must be flexibility for GPs to retain the old system of care. The new contract’s funding formula has been based, under this new system, on the number of appointments and does not take account of issues in rural areas such as patient and doctor travel.

“GPs in our region cannot wait for another three years to see some movement on this and I’m hopeful that the Health Secretary will find a suitable way forward.”

Prof Wilson added: “We were able to discuss some of the key issues about general practice in rural areas, particularly the loss of permanent GP posts.

“This is a central issue because losing local GPs and replacing them with a range of other practitioners is both expensive for the NHS and deeply unsatisfying for patients.

“Loss of continuity of GP care is also damaging to patients’ health: there is now good evidence that this leads to worsening mortality statistics and it may underlie some of the worrying premature death rate trends recently seen in several rural areas of Scotland.”

At the meeting Ms Freeman said she had “genuinely taken the issues seriously” and discussion would continue with colleagues. Mrs Grant was promised an update in two months.

 

 

Labour has pressed the Scottish government to bring forward a statutory right to food.

 

Labour Highlands & Islands Regional MSP Rhoda Grant pressed the government to outline when a proposed Good Food Nation bill would finally be brought forward.

 

The MSP is also writing to foodbank organisations across Scotland to ensure they take steps to make their users’ voices heard.

 

Rhoda Grant said:

 

“We live in a developed nation in the 21st century and it is a national scandal that foodbank use is increasing year upon year upon year. Scottish Labour believe that there should be a statutory right to food, which brings together all of the current policies, gives them a guiding force, and has the power to measure the government’s success in feeding its people. In developing legislation, we believe that people who are most affected by food insecurity should have the opportunity to contribute to how the government can make things better.

“However, we accept that this is challenging, as those most affected by food insecurity tend to be the most marginalised and vulnerable people in society, who are unlikely to have their voice heard.

“I am writing to foodbank organisations in Scotland to find out whether they have any plans to make service users aware of the consultation, and how they are supporting them in submitting their views to the outcome of the consultation.

“While I understand that engaging with the government’s legislative process is not going to be the first thing on people’s minds when visiting foodbanks, I think that it is important that we listen to people who are most affected by the issues discussed, and take account of their views”

 

ENDS

 

Notes to editors

 

Labour’s secured a Parliamentary victory on 13 September 2018 on creating a right to food.

 

Text of Labour amendment:

 

“Calls for a Good Food Nation Bill that has tackling food poverty and the Right to Food at its heart, ensuring a joined-up approach across Government, local authorities, trade unions and public bodies to realise our Good Food Nation ambition.”

 

http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.aspx?r=11657&i=105646&c=2109722#ScotParlOR

 

 

 

 

Highlands & Islands Regional MSP Rhoda Grant was concerned to learn that five patients travel from Skye to Raigmore Hospital three times a week for kidney dialysis treatment.

When a patient’s kidneys fail, dialysis treatment keeps the body in balance by removing waste, salt and extra water to prevent them from building up in the body.

The MSP communicated with the Elaine Mead, Chief Executive of NHS Highland to ask if they had considered installing one dialysis machine into Broadford Hospital for the use of locally based patients. In the response Rhoda Grant was advised that up until two years ago nobody was requiring haemodialysis in the area. They concluded that they were trying to find a local solution to respond to the current need.

Rhoda Grant said: “Patients traveling from Skye three times a week to Raigmore Hospital for treatment is not acceptable in this day and age. This is a particularly long journey to make and also expensive for those having to travel and NHS Highland with regard to expenses. I understand that this is a challenging situation for NHS Highland to address given the fluctuations in demand for such services in the Isle of Skye, but I would have thought having a dialysis machine located in Boardford Hospital would be the answer.”

Highlands & Islands Regional MSP Rhoda Grant was concerned to learn that five patients travel from Skye to Raigmore Hospital three times a week for kidney dialysis treatment.

When a patient’s kidneys fail, dialysis treatment keeps the body in balance by removing waste, salt and extra water to prevent them from building up in the body.

The MSP communicated with the Elaine Mead, Chief Executive of NHS Highland to ask if they had considered installing one dialysis machine into Broadford Hospital for the use of locally based patients. In the response Rhoda Grant was advised that up until two years ago nobody was requiring haemodialysis in the area. They concluded that they were trying to find a local solution to respond to the current need.

Rhoda Grant said: “Patients traveling from Skye three times a week to Raigmore Hospital for treatment is not acceptable in this day and age. This is a particularly long journey to make and also expensive for those having to travel and NHS Highland with regard to expenses. I understand that this is a challenging situation for NHS Highland to address given the fluctuations in demand for such services in the Isle of Skye, but I would have thought having a dialysis machine located in Boardford Hospital would be the answer.”

Highlands & Islands MSP, Rhoda Grant, welcomes the news that the Ocean Great White rig,  en-route from Singapore to the Kishorn Yard in Wester Ross is the start of a new engagement between the yard and the oil and gas sector. The yard which has been dormant for a while was last in use in the 1990s when the support structures for the Skye Bridge were built there. In 1978 the Kishorn Yard was utilised in the construction of the largest moveable man made structure in the world when the Ninian Central platform was build. At that time up to 4000 people were employed on the site.

 

Rhoda said ” This is excellent news and I hope this first major contract will herald a new beginning for the Kishorn Port which was a company formed in 2008 by Ferguson Transport and Leith’s Scotland. As well as the building of the iconic Ninian Central, other smaller projects were undertaken, but this is the first major contract for 40 years. If the senior Management at Kishorn Port can attract contracts such as this ,then there is a real possibility that the local economy around the scattered communities of Wester Ross will prosper again with new found jobs, which in turn attract more workers and then more money is spent in the area locally.

 

” This is positive news and further supports my plea some months ago for the upgrade of the road that extends between Achnasheen and Kishorn (A890/A896). If we are to promote the availability of this location as a future specialist refurbishment yard for the oil and gas sector we have to do something about the infrastructure, starting with the roads.

 

The rig is being made ready for a drilling programme early next year West of Shetland.