Jackie Baillie MSP has expressed concern over newly published statistics showing people in West Dunbartonshire face spending less of their life in good health than before.

National Records of Scotland recently published their report on Health Life Expectancy covering 2018-2020.

Across Scotland, the number of years both men and women can expect to spend in good health has declined and the trend is mirrored in the figures for West Dunbartonshire.

A boy being born in West Dunbartonshire now can expect to remain in good health until they are 58, down from 59 when the statistics were last published.

And a girl being born in the region has a healthy life expectancy of almost 58 and a half compared with more than 60 and a half when the figures were published for 2017 to 2019.

Dumbarton constituency MSP Jackie Baillie said: “This is another grim set of statistics, following on from a historic fall in life expectancy last year.

“Years of public health failures, that pre-date the pandemic, and mounting pressure on our NHS are robbing people in Dumbarton, the Vale and Balloch of their best years.

“As is all too often the case, it is the worst off who are paying the biggest price – these shameful inequalities are nothing short of a national scandal.

“Our NHS has been plunged deeper into crisis since this point, raising the bleak prospect that things are set to get even worse.

“The SNP must act with the urgency needed to improve health and wellbeing across Scotland and tackle these disgraceful health inequalities.”