For more than a decade now I have been campaigning to have our health services provided north of the River Clyde. And it looks like we may finally have our chance to make that happen.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has been working on a set of proposals to change the way our health services are delivered in future. We hope and expect that these proposals will include plans to transform our local health care by making provision for acute services, including full A&E services, north of the river.

We are now at the stage where the plans are being discussed with the Scottish Government and a public consultation could be launched in the new year. Although we expected this to happen sooner, I believe that if we can come together as a

community and fight for north of the river health care, then the prize will have been worth the wait.

I set up a campaign group last year so that we would be ready to respond to the health board‟s proposals. The campaign is cross-party and includes people from all walks of life in West Dunbartonshire and Helensburgh and Lomond. We are calling for services to be retained locally ...Continued on Page 2

Specialist and acute services could be delivered at the Golden Jubilee in Dalmuir

The Vale of Leven Hospital should continue to provide key

services right here on our doorstep

Rev Ian Miller, Alexandria “We have three simple demands: protect services at the Vale, give us access to the Golden Jubilee and return A&E north of the river. It‟s important that everyone responds to the consultation to show that we‟ll accept nothing less.”

Sheenah Nelson, Balloch “There have been examples of patients being stranded in Paisley or Inverclyde because there are no ambulances available to transfer them to the Vale. This is upsetting for patients and demonstrates why we must have health services north of the river.”

Gordon Wilkie, Helensburgh "Travelling to Paisley at the best of the times isn't easy but in an emergency it is unthinkable. It‟s not an exaggeration to say that moving the service to this side of the Clyde is quite literally a matter of life or death."

Continued from page 1… at the Vale of Leven Hospital and for acute services to be transferred from the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley to the Golden Jubilee in Dalmuir. We also want to see the return of a full blue-light Accident & Emergency service north of the river. Working together we can make this happen.

Over the past year the campaign group has been working hard to keep health care at the top of the agenda and raise support for our pe-tition. However when the consulta-tion is launched we will be ready to ensure a strong response from Dumbarton, Vale of Leven, Helens-burgh and Lomond in favour of a north of the river option.

I would like to thank all those who have helped the campaign over the years. Whether you have marched to Save the Vale or held hands around the hospital, filled out a post-card or signed the petition, it looks hopeful that all that effort will soon pay off.

By creating a partnership between the Golden Jubilee and the Vale of Leven Hospital we can better serve our local communities with specialist and acute services in an easily-accessible modern facility while protecting frontline services on our doorstep. There is a clear argument for a range of acute services and an A&E service based north of the river so it makes sense to give us access to the Golden Jubilee. Let‟s make it loud and clear that we will accept nothing less.

Over 10,000 people in Helensburgh, Vale of Leven and Dumbarton have already signed the petition calling for north of the river health care services. We have three simple demands. A&E should be available north of the Clyde The full range of services should be kept at the Vale Specialist and acute services should be available at the Golden Jubilee

Marian Bailey, Dumbarton "We already know that the RAH in Paisley doesn't have enough beds or facilities to cope with us so it would make sense for north of the river patients to have access to the Golden Jubilee."

I am always proud to stand up for carers in Dumbarton, Vale of Leven, Helensburgh and Lomond and highlight the selfless work they do every day. That‟s why I am happy to support the Scottish Youth Parliament‟s „Care Fair Share‟ campaign to ensure that young carers are properly supported. The campaign is asking the Scottish Government to extend the concessionary travel scheme to include all young carers; offer bursaries to young carers struggling to attend courses at college or university; and address the obstacles which often make it difficult for young carers to claim Education Maintenance Allowance. These measures would relieve some of the pressure on the 100,000 young carers in Scotland who make extraordinary sacrifices to look after a family member

affected by illness or disability. Young carers save the taxpayer £1.6 billion annually simply by caring so I hope that the Scottish Government agrees to put the right support in place. We need to ensure that young carers can access the same educational opportunities as their peers.

I had the pleasure of visiting First ScotRail to meet two of its newest Modern Apprentices in Customer Service who are from Dumbarton and Helensburgh. Over the past year there has been much talk about the start of an economic recovery but there are still too many young people from our area looking for work. Initiatives like ScotRail‟s Training Academy and West Dunbartonshire Council‟s apprenticeship programme deserve credit for providing the training opportunities and skills young people need during these tough times.

Craig Stirling from Dumbarton and Aisling Naughton from Helensburgh are two of First ScotRail’s newest apprentices

In September people across Scotland headed to the polls to decide on the best future for our country. After two long years of debate in the Scottish Parliament, it was finally time for the people to have their say and I am delighted that a record number of people across the country turned out to vote. Whilst the majority voted to remain in the UK, there is discussion, involving civic Scotland and the political parties, about how we can have the best balance of powers between the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament to the benefit of our communities.

Jackie recently met young carer Rebecca Gibb and staff at Helensburgh and Lomond Carers to highlight some

of the issues faced by carers every day

1. Write Constituency Office, 11 Castle Street, Dumbarton, G82 1QS 2. Email jackie.baillie.msp@scottish.parliament.uk 3. Phone 01389 734214 4. Fax 01389 761498 5. Website www.jackiebaillie.co.uk The Parliament is not responsible for the content of other internet sites.

6. Visit Jackie at one of her regular advice surgeries on the 3rd Friday of each month

2.45pm Alexandria Library, Gilmour Street, Alexandria

4.45pm Victoria Halls, Helensburgh

6.30pm Constituency Office, 11 Castle Street, Dumbarton

The costs of this publication have been met out of parliamentary resources

I am delighted that West Dunbartonshire Council will become one of the first local authorities in Scotland to benefit from the City Deal announced earlier this year. The £30 million investment includes plans for a new relief road built on the former Exxon site at Bowling to bypass congestion at the Milton bottleneck. It is estimated that by 2035 the City Deal could create up to 5600 additional jobs, at least 400 of which would be in West Dunbartonshire. As well as providing a significant economic boost, it will also help to solve the access problems for ambulances taking patients to hospital. This is a great example of what local councils can achieve by working together with the UK and Scottish Governments. As one of the main routes between Glasgow and Dumbarton, I hope that people in communities all across the constituency will feel the economic and social benefit once the road is complete.

Local families are currently facing a double whammy - rising childcare costs and the worst cost of living crisis in generations. Working parents in Dumbarton, Vale of Leven, Helensburgh and Lomond have been hit by increases in the cost of childcare of nearly 5% over the past year. The Scottish Government needs to look at all options, including capping the cost of childcare and guaranteeing childcare places at college, to make it easier for mums and dads to go back in to work or learning if they wish to do so. I would like to hear your views on how the cost of childcare affects your family. Visit my website to take part in a quick survey.

It is shameful that around one in five workers in Argyll & Bute and West Dunbartonshire earn less than £7 per hour. I have been a long time campaigner against low wages and this year I backed an amendment in the Scottish Parliament to pay the living wage to all companies that deliver taxpayer-funded contracts. Unfortunately the amendment was not successful but I believe we need to campaign for change. Paying the living wage would make a huge difference to those experiencing a real cost of living crisis. Raising the minimum wage to £8 an hour would put an extra £60 a week into the pockets of Scotland‟s lowest paid earners. I will continue to keep up the pressure on the UK and Scottish Governments to ensure that a fair day‟s work means a fair day‟s pay.

Jackie welcomes the investment at Milton and Bowling with West Dunbar-tonshire Council Leader Martin Rooney

Providing free childcare places at college would help mums and dads get the skills they need to find good jobs