May has been another busy month for Ruth Maguire MSP, both in the Scottish parliament and at home in the constituency.
In Parliament
Ruth has spoken in a number of debates this month on important topics including; Education and the VAT Burn Campaign. In her contribution to the Scottish Government Debate on tackling social isolation and loneliness Ruth highlighting that loneliness and social isolation are public health issues closely intertwined with inequality and poverty.
On Firefighters Memorial Day held on the 4 May 2023 Ruth thanked all firefighters, past and present, nationally and internationally, who risk their lives to keep us safe and commemorated the career of firefighter, Tom Brown, Green Watch division at Kilwinning Fire station, who lost his life after 23 years of service.
Next on Ruth’s agenda was supporting and contributing to the Members’ Business debate VAT Burn Campaign. The members’ debate focused on banning VAT on sunscreen products to prevent cancer and save lives.
Ruth also took part in the Scottish government debate on transforming the justice system by continuing work in person-centred and trauma-informed approaches for the victims and witnesses of crime. She discussed the importance of putting witnesses and victims at the heart of our criminal system and ensuring that the justice system does not introduce new trauma into their lives.
During Portfolio Questions on constitutional, external affairs and culture, Ruth felt it important to ask what the Scottish Government were doing to support culture in her constituency and ensure that the arts were accessible to all.
Linking in with her committee work, Ruth contributed to the Scottish government debate, ‘Let’s Talk Education: The National Discussion’, where Ruth shared her views on education reform, expressing the importance of an inclusive education system with children’s rights at its heart.
Lastly, Ruth took part in the members’ business debate on supporting foster carers in the workplace regarding Fostering Friendly Employers Scheme. She shared some of the experiences of the fosters carers in North Ayrshire, explaining the vital role they play within the community and in the lives of the children they care for.
More of Ruth’s Parliamentary contributions can be viewed on her Youtube channel here.
Parliamentary Events
Ruth also attended a host of parliamentary events this month including the Nakba Event with the Palestinian ambassador, the Ahmadi Muslim documentary, and the Fair-trade event.
The Nakba: 75th Anniversary
Ruth had the pleasure of hearing from the Palestinian Ambassador at the Nakba 75th Anniversary event, which highlighted the continuing injustices faced by Palestinian people. The inaugural event held at the Scottish Parliament allows MSPs, like Ruth, to remember the catastrophe that saw the mass eviction of 750,000 men, women and children from historic Palestine.
Special Screening of ‘Section 298’
Ruth was also invited along to a special screening of the short documentary, ‘Section 298’ which focused on the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan due to Section 298 of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Ahmadi Muslims are known to be the most persecuted community in Pakistan, being targeted in places of learning, work and worship. The documentary was a insightful view into the really difficult experiences and danger faced by the Ahmadi community..
Fairtrade Event
Ruth attended the Fair-Trade event which celebrated 10 years of Scotland’s Fair-Trade status. The event hosted many informative speakers such as the Minister for Culture, who shared what the successes and next steps are for Scotland in terms of Fairtrade, Howard Msukwa from KASFA, Perth and Kinross Fairtrade Zone Group, and Chief Executive from the Scottish Fair-Trade Forum. The event also allowed the MSPs to chat with young people from Malawi, Karonga District and South Lanarkshire about their Fair-trade views.
In the Community
Aside from her busy month in parliament, at home in the constituency Ruth met with constituents and local organisations including,
At her visit to ‘Irvine and Troon Cancer Care’ she met with Chairman Dick McLachlan and Treasurer, Gordon Reaney who shared their experience with the charity.
Irvine and Troon Cancer Care provide essential travel for cancer patients who struggle to get to and from hospital appointments. The charity currently has 30 volunteers that provide the service to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Ayrshire, supporting patients at a difficult time. Dick and Gordon highlighted the growing need for volunteers to increase the number of people they can help, so if you are interested in helping out you can find out more information here.
In May, Ruth began her work with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and LINK to advocate as a Nature Champion for rare bird species, the Manx Shearwater. Ruth grabbed her binoculars and took a trip to Fairlie Sands with Nora and Scott from the RSPB, to see what they could spot. Although she was unsuccessful in spotting the species, Ruth received a ton of information on the bird and what she can do to help protect them from environmental factors that are putting the species at risk.
If you would like to find out more about Ruth’s work with the RSPB and LINK, click here.
Ruth held her regular monthly surgeries in Stevenston Library, Cranberry Moss Community Centre, Castlepark Community Centre and Dreghorn Library. Junes surgeries are listed here.
Ruth Maguire MSP (SNP) 