George Foulkes

The negative stories and articles being peddled by so many of the UK newspapers about Gordon Brown are not just mischievous and vindicative but are downright wrong. Clearly there is a combination of a vindictive vendetta and anti- Labour feeding frenzy underway which is being orchestrated by certain sections of the media- the Tory dominated media. What disappoints me is that a few Labour MP’s (and contrary to reports it is just a few) are being taken in by the propaganda.

I have had the advantage of knowing Gordon Brown for the past forty years and have seen him in action close up in various roles over those years. He has a brilliant mind which resulted in him being fast tracked from school in Kirkcaldy to Edinburgh University at the age of 16. There, while gaining a first- class honours degree and a doctorate, he was also elected as Rector of the University while still a student, and chaired the governing body of the University which included Judges, Professors and businessmen  with consummate skill and to great effect. 

In that role and in each of those roles he has undertaken since, I have seen a decisive man who knows exactly what he wants and not conforming to any extent to the alleged indecisiveness currently being canvassed. I’ve seen him recently on two occasions.  On the first where he met members of the Intelligence and Security Committee, all members, including the Tories, were impressed by his grasp of detail, his understanding of the issues and his abilities. At the other, where he met Labour members of the Scottish Parliament, he was relaxed, confident and assured. 

The same media, who are now portraying him unfavourably, sang his praises as Chancellor when that served to help them to undermine Tony Blair. We should not be fooled by the Tory media into blaming Gordon for problems which are facing all in the global community and for tackling with strength and determination the problems of terrorism and the difficulties of balancing our public revenue and expenditure. 

As someone who was labelled a Blairite for all the years of Tony’s premiership, I have no hesitation in giving my total 100% support to Gordon, and am sure he has all the qualities necessary to lead Labour to victory at the next UK general election.

Children are the key to the future of Scotland’s success.  What we as a society and country equip them with today will shape who they are and what they achieve tomorrow.

This is why Labour has launched its paper ‘A Positive Start for Every Child’, and I am proud to support it.

The Paper has two purposes.  It is Labour’s vision hold for the thousands of children across the country, but is also an opportunity for you to have your say in not only what should be done, but the way it should be achieved.  Whether it’s recommendations on how to make a play park suit you and your wee ones, what services should be on offer to help the most vulnerable children, what the key challenges facing parents and carers are, or what the challenges are facing the health of the next generation, we want to hear from you.

On launching the Policy Document, Wendy Alexander said, “We don’t pretend to have all the answers.  Parents- not politicians bring up children.  That’s why we intend listening to those parents, teachers, experts and children themselves on how we insure every child in Scotland grows up getting the most from their childhood”.

The Document is one of a series of measures Labour are introducing and working through here in Scotland to ensure that your voice is heard, and that we as a country are looking in the right direction towards your priorities.

Every child born today in Scotland faces different challenges than one that was born yesterday, and so reviewing ourselves and allowing our policies to reshape and mould into our new world is so important.  Labour’s Spokesperson for Education and Children, Rhona Brankin, recognised the life of children is different today, saying, “Modern life is faster, more technologically driven and children are exposed to a far greater variety of influences than ever before”.

In today’s world, allowing children to be children is something which is often lost.  Their creativity and creationism is so often stamped out rather then being encouraged to flourish.  Childhood should be childhood in its own right, and we want to hear from you to ensure that, together, we can all make this happen.

One of the towering values which under-lines the Labour Party and some of the achievements of the Labour Party, especially in Scotland, is opportunity for all.  It is vital that in this world of increasing globalisation and economic uncertainty, that we have the ability to deal with the challenges of today and tomorrow. 

John Park, Labour MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, has launched his consultation for an Apprenticeships Scotland Bill. This bill would ensure that every qualified 16 to 18 year old would have a right to an apprenticeship. 

Whether it building new aircraft carriers on the Clydeside, the replacement Forth Road Bridge or a new stadium for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, Scotland needs skilled workers, and the over 5000 young people not in education, employment or education need these opportunities.  

BT claims it gets 75 applications for each apprenticeship it offers, Ericsson recently saw 250 applications for 4 apprenticeships, CR Smith received 400 applicants for just one post in Falkirk, and City Building in Glasgow got 2400 applications for 75 construction based apprenticeships. 

“Lies are half way round the world before the truth has got its boots on.” 

This applies to Alex Salmond’s selective misquotations from an Interview I did on the BBC’s Scotland at Ten programme with Colin Mackay. I pointed out that services were better in Scotland but were not all done since May, many of them even pre-dated devolution. 

But now the Nats are deliberately hyping them up and pushing them in the faces of the English to stir up discontent so they can ferment growing resentment between England & Scotland. 

Now SNP propagandists are touting around the misquotation. First it has been picked up by bloggers, but now it is being represented by gullible fools like the appropriately named diarist Alba in the Scotsman and Joan Burnie in the Record. 

It is sad that mainstream professional journalists like these no longer check with the original source – in this case the full transcript – before reporting SNP propaganda. 

ROUGH TRANSCRIPT…

LORD GEORGE FOULKES : “The SNP are on a very dangerous tack at the moment. What they are doing is trying to build up a situation in Scotland where the services are manifestly better than south of the Border in a number of areas.”

COLIN MACKAY : “Is that a bad thing?”

LORD GEORGE FOULKES : “No. But they are doing it deliberately I think to fuel resentment. They could do it without saying much - that was happening before devolution , before the SNP took over, quietly, but now it’s almost a “ya boo sucks look at what we’re doing…”, people in England are saying - hey wait a minute this our taxes, whether or not that is true -  that is how they feel. I think the SNP are doing this in order to Fuel the case for independentce, by building up resentment ... “

Sick Kids Saved 

Last Friday I visited our Sick Kids Hospital in Edinburgh, I couldn’t have been more impressed with the facility, its staff, and of course, the children who depend on the very specialist services the unit provides.   

Until recently, the future of sick kids in Edinburgh was under threat as a proposal to centralise specialist services to Glasgow was looming over the heads of staff, parents and children.  A situation that resulted in a great deal of anxiety, anger and frustration for the people whose lives depend on the unit remaining local to ease the strain of an already difficult and challenging set of circumstances.   

I got involved in the campaign to retain these services along with around 20,000 people who signed the petition to save Sick Kids and who all appreciated the central part played by the news in this campaign. This hard fought campaign resulted in the Health Minister, Shona Robison ruling out a move to centralise neurological services to Glasgow.   

The sense of relief was evident amongst all those I met at sick kids on Friday.  I witnessed doctors, nurses and support staff doing a remarkably professional, skilled and essential job in supporting sick children and their families both clinically and emotionally.   

The warm and informal atmosphere that greeted me on arrival gave me a sense of the ethos that has been present there for many years.  The experience and compassion of the staff shone through which supported by appropriate resource and provision makes this unit a centre of excellence.   

But whilst we have been given the welcome assurance that Edinburgh’s Sick Kids Hospital will continue to provide specialist neurological services to Edinburgh and the rest of Scotland, the future of the facility remained uncertain as the retention of specialist cancer services hadn’t been confirmed.   In addition NHS Lothian has exisiting plans to relocate the sick kids hospital to Little France and are still awaiting approval by the Scottish government to go ahead with the project.  

Since the Labour-led Scottish Executive approved NHS Lothian’s initial agreement to replace the existing building in 2006 a lot of hard work has gone into making this dream a reality and a public consultation showed an overwhelming majority of 98% support for the move.   

The Health Ministers announcement today to keep specialist cancer services in Edinburgh is very welcome and further strengthens the case being put to the Scottish government to approve the existing plans for a new sick kids hospital. 

It was apparent to me that the hospital services were used to full capacity on a regular basis and therefore more up to date facilities would make this environment and service better for the many people who use it and the staff who run it, both locally and nationally.   

The level of commitment that I saw from staff was superb and they deserve 21^st Century equipment and the very best working environment that allows them to deliver the highest level of care possible to our children and their families who also deserve the very best.   

With both specialist neurological and cancer services now secure, NHS Lothian will need to finalise its plans for the new hospital at Little France, approve it as part of their financial plan and seek the approval of the Scottish Government. 

The Scottish Government will need to move quickly on this so that we can have this new facility up and running as soon as possible.  I will continue to put pressure on ministers to work with NHS Lothian, involving staff, patient’s representatives and parliament to move in the right direction now, so that we can see a facility that is loved, fit for 21^st Century health care by 2012, continuing to serve patients in Edinburgh and the rest of Scotland.

   Opininion Piece; Evening News, 8^th March, 2008