This week Ruth visited met with folk from Broomlands and Bourtreehill at Age Concern’s local centre in Irvine, including Jayne Armour, Action on Hearing Loss Scotland’s Welfare Rights Officer and Betty Weir, Age Concern Bourtreehill chairperson.
On Tuesday, Ruth spoke as Convener of the Equalities and Human Rights Committee in a debate on the Age of Criminal Responsibility Bill, which aims to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland from 8 to 12, and to ensure that no child below 12 will be treated as a criminal, or gain a criminal record:
In the evening, Ruth also attended a parliamentary reception to provide feedback on the Send Your MSP to Prison campaign, organised by Families Outside, in which she recently participated by visiting HMP Kilmarnock.
On Thursday, Ruth led a debate in her name about the Day of the Imprisoned Writer, in which she highlighted the need to demonstrate our solidarity with persecuted, exiled and imprisoned writers across the world.
In the evening she also sponsored a reception about the Day of the Imprisoned Writer, which was introduced by the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
Also on Thursday, Ruth asked Mike Russell, Cabinet Secretary for Government Business and Constitutional Relations, if following the UK-EU agreement on Brexit, if we are now heading for a ‘blind Brexit’?
And Ruth also met up with representatives of Community Pharmacy Scotland, to support NHS vaccination provision in the pharmacy network.
Ruth Maguire MSP 