INVERCLYDE needs a 'radical' action plan to tackle the shocking gap between the life expectancy of the area's poorest and richest residents.

 

The call comes from two of the area's senior councillors after new data on life expectancy was published yesterday.

The National Record of Scotland figures show that life expectancy in Inverclyde is among the lowest in the country, with men expected to live, on average, for 75.5 years and women for 79.6 - well below the national average.

But according to Inverclyde Council's own records - published within the latest locality plans - the differences within the region are stark.

In  Kilmacolm a man can be expected to live to 81, but in Greenock Central and East, the most deprived area in Inverclyde and one of the most deprived in Scotland, it is only 70.

Calls for an intervention are being led by Councillor Robert Moran, chair of the Inverclyde integrated joint board, which oversees the work of the area's health and social care partnership, and his colleague Francesca Brennan, who chairs Inverclyde Council's social work and social care scrutiny panel.

Councillor Moran, who also sits on the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board, told the Tele: "There needs to be a focus on Inverclyde and what is happening here. We cannot continue to work in isolation. We need action.

"They used to tell us the health problems and death rates were because of the shipyards. Well, they have been gone now for 40 years.

"We need answers. People in Inverclyde deserve better. We all have to take responsibility.

"This is about poverty and the life chances of people who live here. 

"We know from speaking to local GPs about the concerns in places like Port Glasgow, where doctors are worried about what families can afford to eat.

"Within the council we are doing what we can. We are the only local authority to offer free school meals to all primary school children. But we need help.

"It is just one poor statistic after another - drug death rates, alcohol deaths, and now life expectancy."

From birth, according to the NRS data, males and females can both expect to live a year less than the Scottish average.

The figures show that in the last decade life expectancy for men in Inverclyde has stayed the same - but the figure for women has fallen by almost a year.

Inverclyde has among the highest levels of deprivation in Scotland which has a direct result on life expectancy.

The life expectancy tables are topped by East Renfrewshire, where men can expect to live almost six years longer than their counterparts in Inverclyde, and where the female life expectancy is almost five years longer.

 

The figures for Scotland are 80.9 years for females and 76.9 years for males born in 2021-23, with the numbers for Greater Glasgow and Clyde slightly lower, at 80 and 75.5 respectively.

Life expectancy in Scotland was 80.9 years for females and 76.9 years for males in 2021-2023 while in Greater Glasgow and Clyde it was 80 and 75.5 respectively. 

Inverclyde Council's own locality plans, published in June, reveal that in Kilmacolm, men can expect to live to 81 and women to the age of 81.2.

But in Greenock Central and East, the figure is 70.7 for men and 77.5 for women.

Councillor Brennan said: " The figures show that Inverclyde's levels of multiple deprivation continue to impact on life expectancy. 

"The case for a special approach to Inverclyde’s health is stronger than ever.

"When we see these local trends, which of course translate into real people’s lives, and also the national statistics, it is simply not good enough.

"Scotland continues to have lower life expectancy than England and Wales.

"Here in Inverclyde we need support and interventions to radically change the health trends we currently see."

Greenock and Inverclyde MSP Stuart McMillan said: “Ultimately, deprivation has the biggest impact on life expectancy and is one of the key drivers behind local health inequalities, which is why I keep focusing on the need to tackle this issue head on.

“Personally, I am hosting cost of living surgeries to help make sure local people are accessing all the welfare support they’re entitled to, including help with energy bills and making people’s homes more energy efficient.

“I’ll continue to advocate for investment to come to Inverclyde so we can implement targeted measures that look to address deprivation and continue to drive up life expectancy rates.”