On Thursday we celebrated 70 years of our much loved NHS, arguably Labour’s greatest achievement.

Established by a post-war Labour Government, the NHS ensures that services are available to people from the cradle to the grave no matter their means.

But health services in Greater Glasgow and Clyde are changing as a result of the board’s decision to have an acute services review which they have branded the ‘Moving Forward Together’ programme.

There is yet no indication of how these changes will affect local hospitals like the Vale of Leven, or indeed the patients who rely on accessing services there.

Areas under review include cardiology, cancer treatment (such as chemotherapy) and out-of-hours GP services, all are currently available at the Vale of Leven. I will keep you informed, but I am insisting that there is a full consultation undertaken on every area of change.

Unfortunately our sole representative on the board, council leader Jonathan McColl, has been posted missing from crucial meetings, despite changes to the Vale being on the agenda.

We know that the board Vale of Leven hospital has struggled to staff the Vale’s Out of Hours service on several occasions over the past two years. This is the most basic service, and one which should be prioritised by the health board. Yet, At the beginning of June, the service at the Vale was not staffed for almost a whole week.

And we learned this week that the health board are paying locum doctors more than £100 per hour to cover the service. The health board’s review must ensure that the out of hours service is always staffed, continues to be based at the Vale and operates for the same hours as at present the current service.

The Moving Forward Together programme states that they will make services available locally. If the health board truly want to achieve this, they must accept that Paisley is a bridge too far, and that health services must be available to patients at the Vale of Leven hospital, with increased access to the Golden Jubilee when necessary. Until they realise that, the fight goes on.