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Chamber and committees

National Day of Reflection 2023

  • Submitted by: Bob Doris, Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn, Scottish National Party.
  • Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 March 2023
  • Motion reference: S6M-08195

That the Parliament supports the National Day of Reflection, which falls on 23 March 2023, on the anniversary of the first COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in 2020; acknowledges that the National Day of Reflection is in support of thousands of people who have been bereaved in Scotland, including during the pandemic, and to remember the family, friends, neighbours and colleagues who have died; recognises the UK Commission on Bereavement’s key findings that, in 2020 and 2021, in Scotland, there were an estimated 649,000 bereavements, and that this was an additional 64,000 bereavements compared to what would have been expected, based on the five-year average from 2015 to 2019; further recognises the Commission’s findings that over a quarter, 28%, of adult respondents to the Commission’s consultation received no support from family, and almost half, 46%, received no support from friends, following bereavement; acknowledges the findings that over 40% of adult respondents who wanted formal bereavement support did not receive any; recognises the work of Marie Curie research, which projects that 10,000 more people in Scotland will be dying with palliative care needs by 2040, meaning that there will be a significantly increased number of people who will be bereaved in the coming years; believes that the recommendations proposed by the UK Commission on Bereavement make a crucial contribution to driving forward the required efforts to improve and expand Scottish bereavement support in the short, medium and long term to ensure that people’s bereavement needs are met; looks forward to a constructive response to these recommendations from all stakeholders, including the Scottish Government; highlights the collective responsibility of the Scottish Government, local government, education providers, and employers to enable better access to the appropriate support through all stages of bereavement, and recognises that this can include support before a loved one has died.


Supported by: Karen Adam, Jackie Baillie, Colin Beattie, Miles Briggs, Siobhian Brown (Registered interest) , Alexander Burnett, Finlay Carson, Maggie Chapman, Graeme Dey, Natalie Don, Jackie Dunbar, Annabelle Ewing, Kenneth Gibson, Pam Gosal, Dr. Sandesh Gulhane, Emma Harper, Bill Kidd, Gillian Mackay, Ruth Maguire, Stuart McMillan, Jenni Minto, Emma Roddick, Mark Ruskell, Paul Sweeney, David Torrance, Mercedes Villalba, Sue Webber, Annie Wells, Tess White, Brian Whittle