Ruth Maguire MSP has today welcomed investment of £2.4 million by the Scottish Government to offer free debt advice to households across Scotland. The money will be distributed among a number of advice organisations to expand their services and invest in more effective methods to assist individuals with debt. This is also aimed at helping... Continue Reading →
Patient Experience to be at the Core of Cancer Services Remobilisation
Ruth Maguire MSP has welcomed Scottish Government plans to restart NHS Scotland’s cancer services that puts patient experience at its heart. Focus on the remobilisation plans, due to launch in the autumn, will centre on improving services and ensuring access for patients to the best possible treatments. The pandemic has resulted in significant disruption, with... Continue Reading →
Additional £63 Million Announced to Support Bus Services
Ruth Maguire MSP has welcomed additional funding of £63 million to support bus services from 17 August until 8 November. The funding from the Scottish Government is to cover the expected loss of fare-paying passenger revenue for bus operators due to continued compliance with physical distancing guidelines and reduced capacity in the midst of efforts... Continue Reading →
New Support to Help Young People in North Ayrshire into Work
Ruth Maguire MSP, has welcomed a new Scottish benefit introduced today that will help 16 to 24-year olds into work if they have been unemployed for over six months. The SNP Scottish Government’s Job Start Payment is a one-off grant of £250 to help with the costs of starting a new job. The upper age... Continue Reading →
Original Predicted Grades for SQA Exams to Be Awarded
Ruth Maguire MSP has today welcomed an announcement from the Deputy First Minister that school students whose exam results were downgraded by SQA modelling would now receive reissued grades according to original teacher predictions. In a statement made in the Scottish Parliament, Deputy First Minister, John Swinney confirmed that all downgraded exam results would be withdrawn... Continue Reading →
‘Harmful’ Tory Benefit Cap Hits Over 200 Families in North Ayrshire
The number of households in North Ayrshire hit by the Tory government's 'harmful' benefit cap has soared by 46 per cent since the Covid-19 pandemic started. New statistics show that as of May this year, a total of 6,034 households in Scotland were hit by the benefit cap - an increase of almost 76 per... Continue Reading →
Hospitality Rules Tightened as More Indoor Public Places Mandate Face Coverings
Ruth Maguire MSP has urged local hospitality premises to adhere to the Scottish Government’s new rules before they come into law. From Friday (14 August) it will be mandatory for premises to record customer details in line with NHS Test and Protect guidelines. Ahead of the change in rules, the Scottish Government have noted that... Continue Reading →
Phased Return of Visiting Family and Friends in Hospital
Ruth Maguire MSP has welcomed new guidance from the Scottish Government which will allow people in hospital who do not have Covid-19 to have a designated visitor. Until 13 July, hospital visits during the pandemic had only been permitted in limited essential circumstances. These included where a patient is reaching end-of-life, where a patient needs... Continue Reading →
Hairdressers and Barbers to Re-Open
Ruth Maguire MSP has welcomed guidance from the Scottish Government which will allow barbers and hairdressers to reopen today (15 July). As part of Phase 3 of the Scotland’s exit from lockdown, guidance has been published to ensure that salons are able to safely reopen to customers. The guidance also covers services such as beauty... Continue Reading →
Brexit Used as Cover for Power Grab on Holyrood
Ruth Maguire MSP has repeated calls from the Scottish Government for Westminster to scrap a proposed law which has been described as an effort to undermine devolution. Constitution Secretary, Michael Russell wrote to the Cabinet Office minister, Michael Gove, to urge the UK Government to shelf the proposed enshrinement of the “UK internal market”. Concerns... Continue Reading →
Ruth Maguire 