Political Parties Unite to Beat Loneliness in Scotland

Scotland’s political parties joined together at the Scottish Parliament today to commit to beating loneliness in Scotland.

At a joint photocall this afternoon on behalf of the Action Group on Isolation and Loneliness organised by Age Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was joined by Lib Dem Leader Willie Rennie, Scottish Conservative interim Leader Jackson Carlaw, Green Co-Convener Patrick Harvie and former Labour Leader Kezia Dugdale.

The Scottish Government have recently published a new strategy to tackle social isolation and loneliness in Scotland, one of the first in the world.

According to research by Scotland’s national charity for older people, Age Scotland, 100,000 older people say they feel lonely all or most of the time, one on every street in Scotland. 200,000 go at least half a week without any human contact and half of all over 75s say their main form of company is their TV, Radio or pet.

Loneliness kills and is a public health crisis. It has the same effect as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

Age Scotland’s Chief Executive Brian Sloan said:

“We’re delighted that Scotland’s political parties have come together to commit to beating loneliness. For this to be a national priority it is important that our political leaders recognise it as such and do everything they can to improve the lives of people in Scotland affected by it. Loneliness is a public health crisis that we can all play a significant role in eliminating.

“It doesn’t discriminate by age, but the older a person gets the more likely they are to be lonely. Age Scotland is committed to tackling loneliness and we do so through various initiatives such as our Community Connecting service, Good Day Calls and though the information, friendship and advice offered by our free helpline.”

The Action Group on Isolation and Loneliness in Scotland is an unprecedented group of Scottish charities and organisations committed to tackling loneliness and were able to shape the Scottish Government’s recent strategy. They are made up of Age Scotland, Befriending Networks Scotland, British Red Cross, Campaign to End Loneliness, Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland, Community Transport Association Scotland, Contact the Elderly, Eden Project Communities Scotland, Generations Working Together, Health in Mind, Mental Health Foundation Scotland, Royal Blind and Scottish War Blinded, Samaritans, Youth Link Scotland.