THE rollout of the vaccination programme has dominated my enquiries from constituents over the last few weeks. While I welcome the fact that the numbers of vaccinations in Scotland are now starting to head in the right direction, there is no doubt that progress here has been slower than in other parts of the UK.

I want to be very clear that all the NHS staff and GPs involved in the programme are doing an incredible job and none of the questions on vaccines should be viewed as criticism of their dedicated work. It is, however, important that the Scottish Government’s decisions are scrutinised. For example, constituents have raised two important issues with me over the last week.

Firstly, delays in vaccine supplies getting to local GP surgeries have meant that some people in the older and most vulnerable categories have not yet received their vaccine and that others in younger age groups have. Of course, implementation will never be uniform but there is a reasonable expectation that the priority groups should continue to be first.

The second issue which has emerged over recent days is the distance some people are being asked to travel. Some constituents from North Berwick and Dunbar have reported being given appointments at the EICC or even Ingliston, a near-80-mile round trip involving them passing vaccination centres in Haddington and Musselburgh.

There have also been questions raised about wasted doses of the vaccine, the role of pharmacies in helping accelerate the programme, and the vaccine helpline, which has been unable to provide the necessary information in several cases.

Whatever the issues, I encourage everyone to take up the opportunity to get vaccinated when it is offered to protect themselves from Covid-19 and support a swift recovery for Scotland.