Meeting of the Parliament 21 December 2023
That is a very well-made point. We have addressed how much Scottish people value hospices, and they would do everything that they can to ensure that that funding continues. Therefore, we, in the Parliament, have a responsibility, as does the Government, to do everything that we can to fill that funding gap and have the sustainable plan that Bob Doris and others mentioned.
We need to not only value the work of our colleagues in hospices but recognise the pay gap and ensure that it does not continue. We do not want to lose staff or discourage people from moving to the sector, because it is so important.
Finally, I will raise a point that I have raised many times in the chamber, which is the injustice of inequality. Others have mentioned it, so I will not labour the point. Members have spoken about the dying in the margins exhibition, and we all know that a picture expresses 1,000 words. The richest of us can often afford to stay at home and receive daily care directly in the places in which we have lived and prospered, but for those who have suffered through their life and struggled to make ends meet, often no such option exists. They leave their life with the same sense of powerlessness that they had in aspects during their life. It is simply not right that that happens.
Surely, in a time of need such as the end of life, we must look to find solutions to provide all the care and comfort necessary.
14:24