Ten years of change and many memories

Jul 3 2009 by MSP Irene Oldfather, Irvine Herald

THIS week marks the tenth anniversary of the Scottish Parliament.

In recognition of this, a series of events are being held both in the parliament and at the Palace in Holyrood over the next week to celebrate the occasion. I won’t make it to everything but I am attending the event at the Palace. I am acutely aware when I attend such celebrations that I am representing the people of Cunninghame South, the community where I was brought up and where I now live. That is very important to me.

In the 10 years as an MSP, I have seen many people suffer hardship not just financially but emotionally. I think that the day when you stop caring about what happens to the people that you represent is the day to stop doing the job and I can honestly say that I have never failed to be moved by the broken hearts and lives that too often I have seen.

Sometimes, situations and cases stick in your mind and I will never forget my very first surgery as an MSP when “Mary” came to see me exhausted and heartbroken. She was a very elderly lady in her 80s looking after her terminally ill son. She had collapsed the week before and signed herself out of hospital to look after him. We managed to get an emergency care package in place and two weeks later she came back to see me smiling instead of crying.

Unfortunately Mary died a year later but I like to think that we helped make her last year just a little bit easier. Since that first surgery I have made a point of championing the rights of carers and their loved ones.

I think of my first “official” visit as an MSP to the Maritime Museum to learn about the issues facing it and to view their WW2 exhibition. I am delighted that 10 years later the museum is still going strong and that is a testament to the hard work and commitment of many of the people involved.

As someone who has been an MSP since those heady days in 1999, I feel that I can say with confidence that we have changed the country for the better.

From a personal perspective, Free Personal Care has helped thousands of our elderly and less fortunate receive the assistance that they require. While there continues to be concern with regards to long term costings, I am proud to have voted for this policy.

The ban on smoking in public places has made another huge difference in our society. I think we can all agree that, while having to go outside for a smoke causes difficulties for people during the winter, our restaurants and bars have a much more pleasant atmosphere.

However, the work of parliament is never finished and even as we have tackled some of the fundamental problems within the country, new ones inevitably emerge.

The year so far has been challenging but productive. In February the Scottish Government agreed to implement a series of measures formed by myself and members of the Cross Party Group on Alzheimer’s that will help people with dementia when they enter Accident and Emergency Departments.

This has been followed up with a national consultation to create a Charter of Rights for some of society’s most vulnerable people and their carers. Work will be ongoing over the summer months in order for the Charter to be completed by World Alzheimer’s Day in September.

I was also pleased to see that during budget negotiations, Scottish Labour managed to secure several thousand more apprenticeship placements for the coming year and a £60 million town regeneration fund. I look forward to working alongside North Ayrshire Council and the Irvine Bay Regeneration Company in ensuring that the local area gets its fair share of the pie.

I have been honoured to represent the people of Cunninghame South over the course of the past 10 years and rest assured that I never take that for granted.

As the school holidays are upon us, let us hope for some good weather for the kids. And finally, I know that I speak on behalf of women everywhere – please, no Christmas cards till at least the end of summer.