Scottish Press Association
Several thousand anti-war protesters marched on the Scottish Labour Party Conference today to highlight their anger at the Iraq conflict.

Several political parties marched together under the anti-war banner including the Scottish National Party, Scottish Socialist Party, Green Party and members of the Labour Party.

Evening Times
PROJECT set up to help keep kids off the streets could shut due to a funding crisis, it was claimed today.
Parkhead Youth Project is used by around 500 youngsters aged eight to 24 but it faces the axe amid funding cuts.

Socialist MSP Rosie Kane has tabled a parliamentary motion demanding a reprieve for the project.
Ms Kane, a former youth worker, said: "I was approached by one of the youngsters who uses the centre. She told me there was nowhere else for young people like her to go to.
"The future is bleak for young people if we are going to close a well-used centre like this and at the same time start punishing kids for hanging about the streets, where they often end up in the criminal justice system.
"How are these young people going to find an outlet for their energy and needs if this place is closed?"

Evening Times
JUST five doctors will be on duty for overnight home visits to cover more than 623,000 people in Lanarkshire under a new GP contract, it was revealed today.

MSP Carolyn Leckie warned what is happening in Lanarkshire is not untypical.She said patient care throughout Scotland would suffer under the new contract unless there was a substantial increase in the number of hours available for out-of-hours provision and a commitment to maintain locally-based services.
Ms Leckie has tabled a parliamentary motion expressing concern at the numbers and warning the contract, which will allow surgeries to opt out of out-of-hours provision from next year, will lead to a "woefully inadequate" service.

SSP Research, Policy & Media Unit
Press Release: 25/02/04

Socialist MSP defends Doctor Wakefield

Scottish Socialist Party Health Spokesperson Carolyn Leckie MSP today lodged a motion in the Scottish Parliament in defence of Doctor Andrew Wakefield and pointing up fundamental conflicts of interests in UK vaccination policy bodies.
Carolyn's motion is in response to the propaganda onslaught against Doctor Wakefield and those campaigning for further research into the MMR vaccine.
Carolyn said;
"Our research shows conclusively deep seated conflicts of interest on the Committee on Safety of Medicines, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and the Medicines Control Agency, including direct financial interests in pharmaceutical companies that manufacture vaccines.
"We are calling on the Scottish Executive and the Chief Scientist Office to proactively seek to fund and enable replicative clinical research to identify the cause, or causes, of autism, with particular reference to gastrointestinal dysfunction identified by parents, Dr Wakefield and others."
[ends]

Editors notes

Full text of motion to Scottish Parliament

S2M-00956 Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): Conflicts of Interest and Vaccination Policy - That the Parliament notes the lecture given by Member of Congress, Representative Dave Weldon, M.D. to the Institute of Medicine, of the United States of America on 9 February 2004 in which he cites the in-built conflict of interest of the Center for Disease Control, which "is tasked with promoting vaccination, ensuring high vaccination rates and monitoring the safety of vaccines", which means that "they serve as their own watchdog - neither common nor desirable when seeking unbiased research"; recognises that this same conflict is replicated in the United Kingdom by our system and believes that such a conflict fatally undermines confidence in vaccination policy and is untenable; notes the interests, including direct financial interests in pharmaceutical companies that manufacture vaccines, of members of bodies such as the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, the Committee on Safety of Medicines and the Medicines Control Agency; notes that Dr Andrew Wakefield has issued a full statement robustly defending the allegations against him and welcoming any investigation into his research; recognises that his findings have been replicated by, for example, Dr Arthur Krigsman, consultant paediatric gastro-enterologist at Harvard University and Kawashima, Takayuki et al, in "Detection and Sequencing of Measles Virus from Peripheral Mononuclear Cells from Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Autism", Digestive Diseases and Sciences vol. 45, No. 4, April 2000, pp723-729; is concerned to note the lack of government-funded medical research and examination of autistic children; notes with concern the physical findings of persistent measles virus in the guts and cerebro-spinal fluid of autistic children with bowel problems who have been examined, and believes that the Scottish Executive and the Chief Scientist Office should proactively seek to fund and enable replicative clinical research to identify the cause, or causes, of autism, with particular reference to gastrointestinal dysfunction identified by parents, Dr Wakefield and others.
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Members of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation who have declared interests in pharmaceutical companies:
Professor Lewis D. Ritchie: Links with Glaxo Wellcome and Zeneca Dr Barbara Bannister: Educational sponsorship by SmithKline Beecham, holds portfolio of shares including Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham Dr. David Goldblatt: Occasional member of expert panels for SmithKline Beecham, Wyeth and Pasteur Merieux.
Professor Roy Anderson: Directorships of Wellcome Trust, Decode, IBHSC; share holdings in Glaxo, Zeneca and SmithKline Beecham.
Dr. Karl Nicholson: 'Consultant' for Glaxo.
Professor Keith Cartwright: industry part-funding of his team to evaluate candidate meningococcal vaccines.

The 37 members of the Committee on Safety of Medicines claim 82 "personal interests" in the pharmaceutical industry.
Professor J. Chipman: Research grants from Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham.
Professor H. Dargie: consultancy with SmithKline Beecham.
Dr M. Donaghy: shares in Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham.
Dr B. Evans fees from SmithKline Beecham, shares in Glaxo Wellcome.
Professor J.F. Smyth has carried out clinical trials for SmithKline Beecham and declares "occasional" meetings with the company.
10 of the 37 have interests in SmithKline Beecham.

Edinburgh Evening News
NURSERY nurses across Scotland have voted for an all-out strike after bosses refused to meet their demands for better pay and working conditions.

Scottish Socialist Party leader Tommy Sheridan said: "The nursery nurses deserve a proper national settlement and are having to take strike action to get it. They don’t want to strike but are left with no alternative because of Cosla and Scottish Executive intransigence.
"All Scots should support them. They carry a huge burden in delivering pre-school education and care to Scotland’s kids."

SSP Research, Policy & Media Unit
Press Release: 24/02/04

SSP attacks COSLA chief's "double standards" and calls for solidarity with Scotland's nursery nurses

Tommy Sheridan today attacked what he called the "double standards" of COSLA boss Pat Watters in relation to the nursery nurses' dispute and remuneration for councillors.
Mr Watters, leader of South Lanarkshire Council and Convenor of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, addressed the Parliament's Local Government Committee last month. He argued for all councillors to receive a "flat rate" payment set "nationally". He also suggested the "flat rate"should be 50% of an MSP salary, resulting in a councillor's wage of £25,000 a year.
Tommy Sheridan, SSP MSP and National Convenor, said today:
"Here we have New Labour double standards exposed.
“Pat Watters and COSLA refuse to negotiate a national pay and conditions settlement for Scotland's nursery nurses, but he demands just such a national package for Scotland's councillors.
“It reeks of hypocrisy.
“Sure councillors should be entitled to a proper salary set nationally, but that's what people like Pat Watters are denying Scotland's underpaid and undervalued nursery nurses."
"The nursery nurses deserve a proper national settlement and are having to take strike action to get it.
“They don't want to strike but are left with no alternative because of COSLA and Scottish Executive intransigence.
All Scots should support them.
They carry a huge burden in delivering pre-school education and care to Scotland's kids."
[ends]

Sunday Mail
Rosie Kane makes a dramatic call for young people to come forward with positive ideas to deal with territorial violence between gangs of Glasgow teenagers.
"I also want to make an appeal to young people who feel left out, who feel like the only thing to do is to kick back, who don't feel part of the community or society to think long and hard before they batter the hell out of other young people.
"You are all in the same boat. If you were able to find a way of getting together, you could make such a difference you could be involved in shaping your communities."