Funding for general practice has always been too low for service provision and currently sits at 8% of the total NHS Scotland budget, while accounting for approximately 80% of the work done in healthcare provision.
The impact of poor funding is multifaceted and adversely affects areas of socio-economic deprivation, like Drumchapel, as well as highland and rural areas. This causes widening health inequalities and poorer health outcomes for communities.
Many primary care buildings are well overdue renovation or complete replacement throughout the country, and often hospital buildings get preference for capital funding.
Improving the building stock of general practice, by ensuring enough treatment rooms that meet health and safety and infection control requirements, will significantly improve appointment availability. Better community health, as well as having a positive impact on presentations to emergency departments, is much easier to achieve as a result.
MSPs continue to ignore Parliament’s motion of 26.09.2012: “Parliament acknowledges the sovereign right of the Scottish people to determine the form of government best suited to their needs and declares and pledges that in all its actions and deliberations their interests shall be paramount”
The First Minister recently stated “I have complete faith in the People of Scotland to take the right decisions about their future. If we give them the tools, they can build whatever country they want” (SNP 2024 Annual Conference)
This petition provides access to such tools - direct Political Rights (e.g. Initiatives and Referendums) applicable to devolved legislation. Access to other ICCPR rights would allow the People to guide nation-building.
The Scottish Human Rights (HR) Commission has stated “The Scotland Act 1998 requires both the Scottish Parliament and Government to observe and implement all the UK’s international HR obligations” (4th Feb.2024 Report to the UN HR Committee, page 15)
Expand ScotRail’s Inter7City routes to include Dunfermline
- 140 Signatures
[The Scottish Government has announced it will seek a replacement for the High Speed Train (HST) fleet which operates on its InterCity routes] (https://www.transport.gov.scot/news/scotland-to-get-new-intercity-fleet-1/#:~:text=The%20Scottish%20Government%20announced%20today,Edinburgh%2C%20Aberdeen%2C%20and%20Inverness.) and is committed to moving more people from road to rail.
This creates an opportunity to expand the InterCity routes to include Dunfermline. This would improve connectivity between all of Scotland’s major cities whilst helping boost the long awaited Alloa-Dunfermline link.
Current express services have seen tangible benefits to similar sized cities of Stirling and Perth whilst boosting access between Inverness, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, and Glasgow.
Dunfermline has 1 train a day in each direction to Perth; all other services only serve Edinburgh.
Providing hub stations in Fife, at Inverkeithing and Markinch, allows express services to connect with commuter communities. The West Fife area is underserved by rail, which sees huge numbers across all stations, set on the backdrop of new housing developments.
The Education (Scotland) Act 1918 integrated Catholic schools into the public system, ensuring support for their religious identity. However, the absence of standardised demand assessment and funding support has led to regional inconsistencies in access to Catholic education. Councils like Aberdeen face barriers to establishing Catholic schools despite demand, unlike councils in Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Dundee. This petition calls consistent and equitable standards that ensure access to Catholic education across Scotland.
A set, standardised criteria would provide standards to objectively assess demand, which would help local authorities avoid arbitrary thresholds or inconsistent measures in their decision making. A standardised consultation process would guarantee that all community voices are given equal representation, thus creating a more inclusive process.
Grant Scottish rivers, including the River Clyde, the legal right to personhood
- 470 Signatures
The [Universal Declaration of River Rights (UDRR, 2020) was first developed by Earth Law Center in 2017] (https://www.earthlawcenter.org/river-rights) and provides a framework of six minimum rights that are possessed by rivers.
Our podcast, 'Who owns the Clyde?', centres around the unrealised potential of the Clyde due to fragmented ownership and inconsistent stewardship. Granting the Clyde legal personhood would enable ecological and common human interests to thrive.
International examples of granting legal personhood to rivers as a means of protecting natural habitats and the common good include:
* Whanganui River, New Zealand granted personhood in 2017
* Hundreds of Bangladesh's rivers were legally designated as living people in 2019
* 2021, Canada's Magpie River, called the Mutuhekau Shipu by the Innu First Nation, gained legal personhood.
We held three well-attended events joined by residents, Leader of the Glasgow City Council Susan Aitken, Councillor Graham Campbell, Paul Sweeney MSP, Councillor Holly Bruce, and former MSPs Sandra Whyte and Andy Wightman.
While on the waiting list myself, I discovered that post mastectomy (delayed) breast reconstructions were stopped in the UK during COVID restrictions in 2020 and that there is still a long waiting list for this procedure. The information about waiting times is not clear when patients are told that they have breast cancer and need a mastectomy. Patients can still opt for a delayed reconstruction not knowing that it could take years or never happen at all!
It’s a disgrace and the Scottish Government needs to address the waiting time for delayed reconstructions immediately. Communication with patients about waiting times must be improved to make sure they are aware of the realistic timeline for undergoing this procedure.
The Scottish Government’s vision is for Scotland to have the best air quality in Europe. Progress has been made to meet the legal limits for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5), with 2022 being the first year, excluding lockdown years, Scotland has not breached the limits. Local authority reports in 2023 showed all automatic monitoring sites recorded NO2 and PM2.5 under the limits of 40 µg/m^3 and 10 µg/m^3 – the legal limits enacted in the Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010, based on the 2005 World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guidelines.
In 2021, [WHO produced updated air quality guidelines] (https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/345329/9789240034228-eng.pdf) which halved the previously recommended limits. Using the 2023 local authority annual reports, Asthma + Lung UK Scotland found that only 60 of the 85 automatic monitoring sites would meet the new 2021 guidelines for NO2 and 35 of the 82 monitoring sites would meet the guidelines for PM2.5.
Develop a new Digital Connectivity Plan for the Highlands and Islands
- 129 Signatures
The Scottish Government should introduce a new comprehensive Digital Connectivity Plan specifically designed for the Highlands and Islands.
Despite progress, rural and island communities still face significant broadband and mobile coverage gaps, impacting local businesses, healthcare, education, and quality of life. 25% of Shetland households experience speeds under 30Mbps, and mobile service is unreliable in many areas, reducing opportunities for growth and tourism. The upcoming retirement of copper phone lines by 2027 and the shutdown of radio teleswitch meters by 2025 adds urgency to the situation.
This petition urges investment in digital infrastructure, public-private partnerships, and regular progress updates to improve coverage and bridge the digital divide.
Enhancing connectivity will enable economic development, support remote healthcare services, and improve educational access, ensuring these communities can thrive in the modern economy.
The Witches of Scotland campaign highlights 3,837 people were accused of witchcraft in Scotland, with 84% being women. Granting posthumous justice to these victims acknowledges a dark chapter in our history driven by misogyny. This remains relevant today, given the increasing misogyny in our society and ongoing witch accusations and persecution in other parts of the world.
The [public consultation for Natalie Don’s proposed Member’s Bill] (https://www.parliament.scot/-/media/files/legislation/proposed-members-bills/final-consultation-summary--witchcraft-convictions-pardons-bill-proposal-withdrawn-1.pdf) gathered 1,443 responses, with 82% fully supporting the Bill. Those in favour highlighted that:
* Scotland should acknowledge and apologise for the errors of its past and honour those unfairly persecuted under the Witchcraft Act 1563.
* If passed, the proposed bill would convey a strong message of equality and opposition to misogyny in contemporary society.
* Enacting a pardon would send a powerful message globally to nations that continue to persecute individuals on grounds of alleged witchcraft.
Ms Don withdrew the proposal following appointment to the Scottish Government.
Permanently remove peak fare pricing from ScotRail services
- Final Signatures: 742
The recent trial abolishing peak fare pricing was a positive step towards making public transport more accessible and affordable. However, the short-term nature of the trial was insufficient to create lasting behavioural change or fully address the potential benefits of long-term fare reform. A permanent removal of peak fares would allow for a more sustained cultural shift, encouraging greater public transport usage and contributing to the broader goals of reducing car dependency, lowering carbon emissions, and promoting social equity across Scotland.
We urge the Scottish Government to recognise the economic, social and environmental benefits of permanently scrapping peak fare pricing on Scottish railways. The removal of peak fares would support fair and equal access to transportation, reduce financial pressure on commuters, and help achieve Scotland’s climate change goals by making public transport a more attractive option.