Biography
Mr MacDonald has engaged extensively on health and social care through 14 debate speeches, with a particular focus on palliative and end-of-life care, maternity services, and mental health. He has repeatedly highlighted challenges specific to remote and rural Scotland, including the centralisation of healthcare services, difficulties accessing maternity hospitals, and the financial pressures facing hospices and mental health charities. His contributions reflect consistent advocacy for rural communities facing healthcare access issues and investment in community-based care provision.
Generated from their own Hansard record, below
“…Our kids leave—they go to Inverness or Glasgow, never to return—so we have a greatly ageing population. The highlands has seen a 71% increase in the number of over-75s, and that is set to increase by a further 34% in the next five years.”
Record by topic
- Palliative & end of life care80th of 56818.0
- Mental health386th of 8809.0
- A&E & ambulance response55th of 2586.0
- Heart disease & stroke75th of 3986.0
- Hospital discharge / bed-blocking41st of 1393.0
- Learning disability & autism654th of 8993.0
- Maternity & neonatal238th of 4383.0
- Elderly care & frailty76th of 2363.0
- Assisted dying193rd of 3713.0
What they’ve said
“…It should have been had as the debate on assisted dying was, where people from across the House could stand up and make their own case. Indeed, many Members from across the House have been supportive of what I am about to say.”
Puberty Blockers · 2026-06-23 · Read on Hansard ↗
“…What they really wanted to see was investment in hospices, and there has been remarkably little to move that forward. I suspect if this Government made a major investment in hospices and the Bill came back in a few years’ time, it would make a big difference.…”
Progression of Bills through Parliament · 2026-06-08 · Read on Hansard ↗
“…I want to speak briefly about mental health charities. Fundamentally, we have an enormous problem in the UK: the public sector no longer funds the mental health sector properly, and the charities cannot fill the gap.”
Small Charity Sector · 2026-03-03 · Read on Hansard ↗
“…It was an enormous shock for the area. Lewis Knox’s father, Alan, is the head of the ambulance service in the area. He and his wife, Elizabeth, are calling for graduated driving licence schemes, such as those mentioned by the hon. Member for Shipley (Anna Dixon). When I was a young lad, I drove like a complete idiot.”
Road Safety · 2026-02-05 · Read on Hansard ↗
“I thank my hon. Friend very much. I do not think that many people in urban Britain know how important the ambulance services are to remote and rural areas, so her point is bang-on.”
Community Helipads: Rural Access · 2025-10-15 · Read on Hansard ↗
Contributions reproduced under the Open Parliament Licence.