Meeting of the Parliament 19 December 2024
I absolutely agree with my colleague that things are going to get worse. We are having this debate today so that the Scottish Government can let us know what its plans are in this regard.
I recently read the story of Leesa Mckay. Leesa is a bilateral amputee who was crossing a road in Paisley in the rain and, as she approached a dropped kerb, her wheelchair clipped a pothole that was filled with water. As a result, Leesa came right off her chair, landed with full impact on her right stump and passed out. She was taken to the Royal Alexandra hospital, where she was treated for fractures to her leg. That shows that potholes and bad road conditions affect not only drivers but pedestrians—particularly those in wheelchairs.
As I mentioned earlier, bad weather can lead to the creation of potholes. As we go through the winter months, we can only expect road conditions to get worse. Unfortunately, our local authorities do not always have the necessary resources to repair their roads. Research undertaken by the Scottish Parliament information centre shows that the percentage of local government allocation as a percentage of total Scottish Government spending dropped from 29 per cent in 2014-15 to 23 per cent in 2023-24 and, more recently, to 21.4 per cent in the latest Scottish budget for 2025-26.