“WITHOUT change now, we’re putting at risk the sustainability of our National Health Service”.

These are not the words of a politician, but those issued last week by a leading medical professional — Theresa Fyffe, director of the Royal College of Nursing Scotland.

We are all committed to an NHS that is free at the point of need. However, every day we are witnessing the huge strain it is under as demand grows and funding struggles to keep up.

Indeed, we only have to look at Inverclyde Royal Hospital to see this. At periods during this winter, for example, a number of wards were operating at 100 per cent capacity, well above the level deemed to be safe by experts.

Furthermore, my recent freedom of information request revealed that between January 2014 and March 2015 over 1,000 patients moved wards to relieve pressure on the hospital.

Theresa Fyffe also said last week, “tinkering around the edges and simply putting more and more money into the current system is not the answer”.

It’s clear a fundamental rethink is required about what our priorities are for our NHS and the way in which we deliver health services.

And while it’s important that the medical professionals and politicians debate these issues, it’s even more important that the public who rely on the NHS every day have their say too.

This is why last week I tabled a motion in parliament calling for a full public debate on the issues facing our beloved institution which can be seen on my website at www.duncanmcneil.com We need to have this debate to ensure that that there is a consensual approach to future changes to Scotland’s NHS, so that it does not only survive, but evolves to meet the future needs of Scotland.