Sheriff Court	% Value in Arrears (%)	% with no payment received (%)
Q1 2010/11	Annan	-	-
Q1 2011/12	Annan	0%	0%
Q1 2010/11	Dumfries	19%	29%
Q1 2011/12	Dumfries	23%	28%
Q1 2010/11	Kirkcudbright	7%	18%
Q1 2011/12	Kirkcudbright	28%	33%
Q1 2010/11	Stranraer	15%	12%
Q1 2011/12	Stranraer	23%	31%

Local Labour politicians have said that there is “no room for complacency” on drugs misuse, as new figures show that the prevalence of drugs abuse in Dumfries and Galloway has fallen in recent years as a result of “the hard work and dedication of local organisations and charities”.

However, the politicians say that the SNP Government’s decision to cut the drugs misuse budget by £2.4 million over three years risks removing support programmes and causing the drugs problem to increase again.

Dumfries and Galloway Labour Group Leader Cllr Ronnie Nicholson said:

“While drugs misuse isn’t as high in Dumfries and Galloway as in more urban areas, our region is still in the top half of local authorities with problems. Everyone of these statistics hides a sad story and drugs abuse wrecks not only the individual’s life, but throws families into turmoil. The prevalence of drug misuse in our area has come down slightly in the last few years thanks to the hard work and dedication of local organisations and charities but there is no room for complacency.”

Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown said:

“The SNP Government’s decision to cut the drugs misuse budget by £2.4 million risks removing support programmes that help to tackle the drugs problem that plights so many lives. During these tough economic times we cannot walk away from the problem of drug abuse, and the SNP Government needs to wake up to the scale of the damage their cuts will do.”

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

Estimated prevalence of problem drug use in Dumfries and Galloway council area -

2006: 1.55%
2009/10: 1.40%

Source: http://www.drugmisuse.isdscotland.org/publications/abstracts/prevalence2009_10.htm

Local politicians are launching a campaign for formal recognition of local munitions workers – and they are calling on local people to get involved.The campaign follows meetings with the UK Government who have agreed to make progress towards formally recognising the nation’s gratitude for the contribution made by munitions workers during the First and Second World War.

Munitions workers, most of whom were women, were essential to the war effort during the First and Second World Wars and their dangerous work in factories produced the ammunition used by soldiers on the frontline. In total, there were 1.5 million women employed making munitions and Dumfries and Galloway was the base for a number of war time factories. While Armed Forces veterans, ‘Land Girls’ and ‘Bevin Boys’ have all been recognised for their contribution in war time, through special commemorative badges, no such official recognition has ever been awarded to the women who risked life and limb in the munitions factories.

One of the reasons munitions workers have never received formal recognition is because there is no comprehensive list of who worked in the factories. Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown, Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray and Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Armed Forces Champion Cllr Archie Dryburgh are asking for local people to get involved in the campaign by providing information about individuals in the region who worked in munitions factories.

The easiest way to get involved is by completing the online form on Russell Brown’s website by going towww.russellbrownmp.com and following the link from the homepage. Alternatively they can get in touch with Russell Brown’s office on 01387 247902 with the following details:

-          Name of munitions’ worker
-          National Insurance number (if known)
-          Date of birth
-          Details of when and where they worked
-          When they worked
-          Their current/previous contact details

Launching the campaign, Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown said:

“Munitions workers – the majority of whom were women – played a vital part in the war effort and deserve to be recognised by our country. Our nation owes a debt of gratitude to these heroes on the Home Front, many of whom were seriously injured or even killed during their hard and dangerous work. I have been pressing Government Ministers to take action and I am pleased that we are making progress, albeit not at quickly as I would like. While there is general agreement about the need to formally recognise munitions workers, we are still discussing what form this should take. While my preference would be individual recognition in a similar way to Veterans Badges, there are questions about whether this is feasible because no comprehensive list of munitions workers exists. An alternative option is a local memorial or a planting of trees in a public display of recognition.

“This is where we need local people to get involved. Since there is no list of women who worked in munitions factories, our best sources of knowledge are the communities themselves. Many local people knew someone or had a relative who was in the munitions factories and I want to bring all this knowledge together. I am asking that local people get in touch with whatever information you have  – we need the names of workers, where they worked and when they worked. The easiest way to do it is to go to my website at www.russellbrownmp.com and fill in the online form. Compiling this information is the first stage in our campaign to bring munitions workers long overdue recognition of the sacrifices they made during the Wars.”

Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray added:

“Dumfriesshire has a proud wartime history and I know many local people have family who worked in the factories here. The job they had to do was noisy, dirty and dangerous, but they knew it was vital and I am in awe of their bravery. We rightly recognise the heroics of our troops during the First and Second World Wars, and now it’s time to do the same for those who put life and limb on the line to make sure the soldiers had the ammunition they needed on the frontline. “

Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Armed Forces Champion Cllr Archie Dryburgh added:

“Munitions workers deserve a fitting tribute because without them the Wars wouldn’t have been won. As husbands, fathers and brothers went off to the frontline, women played a vital role in the war effort in the factories at home. Dumfries and Galloway was an important location for wartime munitions, with factories in many of our towns, so I know this is an issue close to many local people’s hearts.”

TORY-LED GOVERNMENT “FORCED TO ADMIT THEIR ECONOMIC PLAN HAS FAILED”Local politicians said that the Tory-led UK Government has today (Tuesday) been “forced to admit that their economic plan has failed” as the Chancellor George Osborne used his Autumn Statement in the House of Commons today to announce that Government borrowing would have to be increased.

Following the Chancellors statement, Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown said:

“The Tory-led UK Government has been forced to admit that their economic plan has failed. They have had to finally own up to what families, pensioners and businesses across Dumfries and Galloway have known for months – the Tory’s plan is hurting, but it’s not working. The Tory’s told us the pain was necessary to pay down the deficit, but the Chancellor revealed he will actually have to borrow more to fill the gaping hole left in our economy by his reckless cuts.“The deep cuts and tax hikes mean our region is in the grip of an unemployment crisis, growth is flatlining and bankruptcies are at an all time high. David Cameron made a catastrophic mistake by scrapping the Future Jobs fund within days of becoming Prime Minister. It helped over 100 local people get the training and skills they need to get a job. The actions of this irresponsible Tory Government mean that youth unemployment is at levels not seen for nearly 20 years. The grim reality is that until the Tory’s admit they need to change course, the future is bleak. Dumfries and Galloway desperately needs a jobs and growth plan.  That is why Labour’s five point plan for jobs and growth is so important with a VAT cut now to cut costs and bills, and tax breaks for firms taking on new staff.”

Commenting on an announcement of additional money for capital projects, Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray said:

“Any extra money for Scotland under the Barnett formula from capital projects should be sent on projects that create jobs right now and right here in Scotland and Dumfries and Galloway deserves our fair share. Local people are fed up of the SNP cutting here to spend money on roads and large infrastructure projects in the central belt and the north of Scotland. While everyone knows the Tory cuts are hurting local people, the SNP’s obsession with separation is causing uncertainty and costing Dumfries and Galloway jobs and investment. Rather than being focused on jobs and the economy, the SNP want to spend the next three years using taxpayers’ money to plot their own political campaign.”

ENDS

CALLS FOR SNP MSPs TO “APOLOGISE FOR BETRAYING LOCAL PEOPLE” ON PROMISE TO PROTECT NHS

Dumfries and Galloway Labour politicians have called on local SNP MSPs to “apologise for betraying local people” after their pre-election promises to protect the NHS have been “exposed” by the latest NHS workforce statistics published today (Tuesday).

In the three months between June and September this year alone, our local health service lost 31 staff, including 7 nurses and midwives. The figures show that since 2009 NHS Dumfries and Galloway has cut 157 of its total workforce, including 63 nurses and midwives.

In an article on her website in March this year, Joan McAlpline, now SNP South of Scotland MSP, said an SNP Government would “protect the NHS” (1). Similarly, in January of this year fellow SNP South of Scotland MSP Aileen McLeod boasted of their being “more nurses in our hospitals” (2). The First Minister Alex Salmond made similar pledges to protect the NHS prior to the election (3).

These figures follow a Government report over the summer that gave a future projection of the NHS workforce in Dumfries and Galloway for 2011/12, which shows that further reductions in staffing are expected over the coming months. In total the Government projected that by next year the total cut in NHS Dumfries and Galloway staff will be almost 190 since 2009. Frontline nurses and midwives will be forced to bear the brunt of the cuts, with their 115 job losses accounting for over half the total NHS staff cuts.

Earlier this month it was revealed that Dumfries and Galloway NHS is cutting nearly £15m from its budget, with cuts in drugs budgets and care packages alongside staffing reductions.

Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown said:

“The SNP should apologise for betraying local people with their false promises to protect the NHS. The latest NHS workforce statistics expose that once again Dumfries and Galloway has been let down by the SNP. When asking for votes before the Scottish Parliament election they promised to protect our local health service but the reality is that we’ve lost 31 staff since the summer alone. Quite clearly, their commitment to our health service wasn’t worth the paper it was printed on. I want to know whether the SNP ever had any intention of sticking to their pledges, or if they were nothing more than pre-election warm words. Either way, they’ve let Dumfries and Galloway down and people just won’t believe the SNP again when they say they will stand up for the NHS.”

Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray said:

“Local SNP MSPs promised one thing before the election and are now doing the opposite. They said they were going to protect our NHS, but they are cutting almost £15 million from our local health service and since 2009 we have lost over 150 staff. It is grossly unfair that frontline staff, like nurses and midwives, are being forced to bear the brunt of the cuts. I don’t see how the health service can lose as many frontline staff without patient care being affected. The SNP blame the cuts on the Tories, but they started cutting NHS staff long before the Tories came to power in London. My great fear is that even worse is to come. The SNP need to start being straight with people and come clean about the further NHS cuts they have planned.”

ENDS

CONTACT – ANDREW MACKENZIE 07769206856

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. http://joanmcalpine.typepad.com/joan_mcalpine/2011/03/labour-leader-ed-miliband-believes-the-scottish-parliament-elections-in-may-give-the-party-the-best-chance-of-stopping-the-uk.html

2. http://www.aileenmcleod.org/2011/01/25-01-2011-snp-launch-its-election-campaign-100-days-to-build-on-scotlands-success/

3. Prior to the election, launching the SNP’s election manifesto, Alex Salmond said: “We’ll protect the health service for the duration of the next parliament.”

http://news.scotsman.com/holyroodelections/SNP-launches-Holyrood-campaign-with.6701908.jp

4. ATTACHED – Latest NHS workforce statistics for Dumfries and Galloway.