Edinburgh councillor given leave of absence as colleagues wish her a 'speedy recovery'
A leave of absence has been granted for an Edinburgh councillor facing a long stretch of ill health.
Green councillor Jule Bandel, representing Inverleith, has been unable to engage in council business since 24 January 2025.
The Local Government (Scotland) Act says that if a councillor does not attend a meeting for six months, they lose their role, unless the council agrees there is a reason for the absence.
A report seen by the full council on Thursday said that officers had seen a letter written by Cllr Bandel's doctors which said she was unable to work or attend meetings.
As such, officers recommended that councillors approve a leave of absence for her.
Greens co-convener, councillor Chas Booth, said: 'Unfortunately Jule is still extremely unwell. She has been effectively bedridden since mid-February and is unable to even join a Teams call.
'We all miss her greatly and wish her a speedy recovery and we hope that this report, together with the Green addendum, will allow some time for that recovery.
'In many ways the requirement to go through this process has highlighted some of the inherent ableism in the way in which holding elected office does not offer the same workplace protections as other forms of employment.
'As the council continues to work on tackling barriers to elected office, I hope that this is something we will be addressing.'
Lord Provost Robert Aldridge replied, saying: 'I don't think there is any disagreement, so if we could just agree the report?'
Councillors proceeded to verbally agree to the report. If the report had not been agreed to, Cllr Bandel would have ceased to be a councillor on 25 July.
A Green group addendum to the report added the requirement that the October full council meeting will contain an updated report on Cllr Bandel's condition.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
I refused to wear hats so I could show off my long hair -my silly decision gave me cancer
A 'VAIN' mum who refused to wear a sunhat was stunned when a scab on her scalp turned out to be cancer. Donna Mckellar said she would regularly slap sunscreen on her arms, legs and body when it was sunny but admitted she neglected her head so that people could admire her luxurious locks. 2 The 54-year-old visited her GP after her hairdresser spent a year urging her to get the 50p-sized scab on her head looked at. The bar manager believed the itchy mark, which she'd had for four years, was innocuous and caused by catching a childhood scar with her hairbrush. But a biopsy revealed she had basal cell carcinoma in July 2023 and she had surgery to remove it in December 2023. Now cancer free, the mum-of-two is now urging people to protect their scalps in the sun by wearing a headscarf, hat or applying suncream. Donna, from Glasgow, said: "Whenever we were on holiday I was always putting suncream on my legs and on my body. "But you don't really think of your scalp which is the thing that's getting directly hit by the sun first. "Not wearing a hat was probably a bit of a vanity. "I thought 'I'm not wearing a hat, I've got nice long hair'. I wanted to show it off and not wear a hat. It's a bit silly. "I just don't think I actually gave my scalp any thought. "I was devastated when I heard the word 'cancer' because I lost my parents and my sister in the space of five years to three different cancers." Jessie J gives health update as she reveals her hair has been 'falling out like crazy' during breast cancer treatment Donna says she regrets not donning a hair covering and protecting her scalp when out in the sun. She added: "Since the diagnosis when I've been abroad I've always got a hat on or a headband. "I've got to wear a headband to cover the wound when I'm on holiday because it's more susceptible to the sun now. "My hairdresser did help to save my life by encouraging me to go and get checked. "I had a scab on my head. I had an old scar from when I was a child, I just thought that I'd caught it with my brush and it had scabbed over. "My fingers were always at it and I used to keep picking at it and it used to bleed quite a lot. WHAT IS BASAL CELL CARCINOMA? Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common type of skin cancer. It develops in the top layer of the skin (epidermis). Basal cell carcinomas can occur anywhere on the body but are most common in areas that are exposed to the sun such as the face, head, neck, and ears. They are often first noticed as a scab that bleeds and does not heal completely or a new lump on the skin. "I had that for a number of years and it was my hairdresser who kept saying 'Donna will you please go and get that checked out, I don't like it at all'. "Eventually I went to my GP who referred me to dermatology, they diagnosed it as basal cell carcinoma." Donna's first surgery was to remove the cancer from the scalp - taking a piece of skin from her clavicle for a skin graft onto that. The two surgeries afterwards cut the skin graft back, so that she's not left with such a big bald patch on her head. Donna is now encouraging other people to wear head coverings or buy a specific suncream to use on their scalps. She said: "Get a hat on or get some suncream - you can get specific ones for your scalp. "Make sure you're covered up. People think they look ridiculous with a hat on, but I'd rather look ridiculous.
The Sun
8 hours ago
- The Sun
I tied flesh back to my bones with string after truck wheel shredded my arm in moped smash…there were bits of me on road
PULLING on her helmet, Charlene Morrissey fastened her harness and swung her leg over the scooter. It was July 2024, and having quit her job as a sales and accounts manager, she was on the adventure of a lifetime in Bali - a dream holiday that quickly turned into a living nightmare. 11 11 While riding her scooter to a local hiking spot, 34-year-old Charlene from Airdrie, Scotland, collided with a truck - and her arm was sucked into its rear wheel. She describes seeing her skin and fat scattered across the roadside in the horrific crash, which severed a main artery and required a 14-hour op that doctors feared she would not survive. She says: 'Looking at my arm after the crash, I could see all the skin, fat, muscle and tendons from my forearm had been peeled back, leaving my bones completely exposed. 'I was panicking and howling in agony, sure I was going to die.' While it might have ended in horror, the start of Charlene's holiday was idyllic. In December 2023, she decided to fly to Southeast Asia alone. Using her savings, she had purchased a one-way ticket to the tropical island, with no immediate plans to return. 'I was staying in a private villa in Canggu,' she explains. 'I spent my time making friends, practising yoga and eating delicious, nutritious food. 'I'd also obtained my motorbike driving licence, so I could learn to ride a scooter. And, with a few lessons, I became a confident rider. 'I was happier than I'd ever been.' I caught brain-swelling virus after snorkelling on holiday After being in Bali for just a few weeks, Charlene met her then-partner, and together they rode all over the island in search of adventure. She says: 'Mount Agung, an active volcano, was on our bucket list and we planned to hike to the summit at sunrise.' 'Searing pain' Packing up their hiking and camping gear into rucksacks, the couple set off on separate scooters for the nearly three-hour ride to the base of the volcano. 'We were about halfway there when the sun began to dip in the sky,' she recalls. 'My boyfriend suggested that we set up camp.' Turning onto a main road in the middle of nowhere, Charlene's boyfriend went first, before she pulled out. At that moment, a huge truck carrying metal rods came hurtling alongside her, going in the same direction. 11 11 11 'As the truck roared along, it felt terrifyingly close, so I slowed and put my feet down to steady myself,' she says. 'That's when the rear of the truck smacked into me. 'Instinctively, I put my right hand up to shield myself. But as the truck sped past, my right arm was sucked straight into the rear wheel arch, knocking me off my bike and dragging me along the ground. 'It all happened so fast and suddenly, a searing pain tore through my arm. 'As blood gushed from the wound, it looked like my arm had been put through a shredder. Chunks of mutilated flesh were splattered on the road.' Unaware of the accident, the truck driver - who was never identified - didn't stop, but Charlene's partner witnessed the horrific collision. She says: 'I lifted my butchered arm and I could see straight through it to my boyfriend, who was rushing towards me.' He carried Charlene to the side of the road where locals raced over to help, dialling emergency services. Charlene recalls: 'My boyfriend was beside himself, so using a piece of camping string I'd found in my rucksack, I tried to tie my skin and fat back onto my arm – but it was no use.' 'Didn't have long left' The ambulance didn't arrive for another hour and a half. 'I begged paramedics to not let me die,' Charlene says. 'They placed my arm on a wooden plank and wrapped it in a towel to help keep it straight and stem the bleeding.' At the hospital, 30 minutes later, doctors offered a grim prognosis, warning that Charlene had severed a main artery in her arm and wouldn't survive. An hour and a half later, the couple were advised to go to Bali International Hospital, which was better equipped to help her. MILLIONS of holidaymakers are missing out on free travel cards that could save them thousands of pounds if they become unwell abroad. Global Health Insurance Cards (GHIC) let you access state healthcare in the European Economic Area and several other countries, on the same basis as a resident of that country. The free GHIC cards replaced European Health Insurance Cards (EHIC) after Brexit. But just 4.6million people applied for a card last year, according to exclusive figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request by Compare the Market. This is 1.1million less than in 2023, when 5.7million cards were issued. But 86.2million people travelled abroad in 2023 alone, which means millions of people are travelling without a GHIC. During this time the NHS spent more than £300million on medical treatment abroad for UK citizens with EHICs or GHICs. In Spain, a trip to A&E can cost around €200 without a GHIC, with extra fees for blood tests, overnight stays and consultations, while a broken bone could cost thousands. Although the GHIC card provides help with necessary medical care, it does not offer the same medical protection as travel insurance. You also cannot use a GHIC to pay for private treatment, evacuation such as mountain rescues or repatriation costs if you need to be flown back to the UK. And some insurers will not pay for a medical claim unless you have a GHIC so it's important that you register for one now to avoid invalidating your insurance. 'Back in an ambulance, I was transferred without painkillers to the next hospital two hours away,' Charlene says. 'By now, I'd lost half my blood supply, and I was sure I didn't have long left. 'I asked my boyfriend to tell my family I loved them before I blacked out.' It was 15 hours later when Charlene woke up in recovery, drifting in and out of sleep as she was heavily medicated. Waking up three days later, she saw that her mum, Kathleen, 54, and sister, Alana, 32, were by her bedside. 'My mum told me she thought she'd lost me,' Charlene says. 'My boyfriend told me that, as soon as we'd arrived at the hospital, I'd been rushed in for emergency surgery, and he'd called my family, who flew over immediately.' 11 11 To save her life, surgeons worked for 14 hours to reattach the flesh, fat, muscle and tendons to Charlene's arm. They also inserted 10 pins into her hand to hold the bones together. 'Due to the massive blood loss, I'd needed five blood transfusions,' she says. 'It was a miracle I'd survived.' Over the next week in hospital, Charlene had several more surgeries to remove gravel from her wounds. Sadly, surgeons weren't able to save her skin and fat, so they did grafts using skin from her left thigh. After three and a half weeks in intensive care, she managed to take her first steps. 'Seeing my arm for the first time, it looked like something out of a horror movie,' Charlene says. 'The skin was black and dying, and the veins and tendons were raw and still exposed. 'Thankfully, over time, the skin grew over.' Charlene, who separated from her partner shortly after, returned to the UK in August 2024. There, she spent another week in hospital before she was discharged. Now, almost a year on and after intense physiotherapy, she's continued to defy the odds. She adds: 'While I don't have feeling in most of my fingers and struggle with simple tasks like using cutlery and brushing my hair, I'm back in the gym doing push-ups, pull-ups and headstands. 'I've even learnt to write again.' In February this year, Charlene moved back to Bali, where she works as an empowerment coach, and in July, she's returning to Mount Agung to finally complete her hike. 'Today I'm sharing my story to empower others to navigate trauma and change their mindset," she says. 'Although my scars took time to get used to, they're a reminder of just how strong I am and for that, I'm forever grateful." 11 11
Daily Mail
20 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Now NHS Fife admits it DID break the law by giving trans doctor access to female changing rooms
A health board has admitted it broke the law after it failed to complete a legally required assessment before letting a trans doctor use the women's only changing room. NHS Fife said it had not completed an equality impact assessment before allowing male-born medic Dr Beth Upton to use the female-only facilities at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has now ordered the under-fire health board to 'carry one out immediately' in yet another extraordinary intervention. NHS Fife has been plunged into turmoil amid an employment tribunal veteran nurse Sandie Peggie brought against it, in which she has claimed being made to get changed next to the trans-woman was unlawful. The watchdog first wrote to NHS Fife bosses in February, following the first two weeks of the landmark tribunal, to 'remind' them of their obligations under the Equality Act and how they had a duty to 'assess how their policies and practices affect people with protected characteristics'. But this week the EHRC revealed the health board 'failed' to meet the requirement of having a equality impact assessment, which is a legal duty. Tess White, equalities spokesman at the Scottish Conservatives, said the latest revelation showed senior health board bosses must go. The MSP said: 'This damning directive from the EHRC confirms that, on top of being negligent, incompetent and biased, NHS Fife broke the law in relation to the Sandie Peggie case. 'It's just one failure, and one revelation, after another. It's abundantly clear that the positions of the Chief Executive and senior health board colleagues are completely untenable. 'The shameful admission from the health board confirms that Sandie Peggie was hung out to dry from the very beginning of this tawdry scandal simply for standing up for her rights as a woman. 'Fairness and accountability must prevail. Surely John Swinney and his SNP colleagues can no longer retain confidence in those in charge of this dysfunctional health board? 'The First Minister must clear out those at the top of NHS Fife and finally demand that it, and all other public bodies, upholds the clear and unequivocal Supreme Court ruling entitling women to single-sex spaces.' Mrs Peggie had encountered Dr Upton in the female-only changing room in 2023, but had waited outside until the trans-identifying medic left. But on Christmas Eve that year she challenged the junior doctor - the exact circumstances of which are disputed - and was suspended from work and her actions subject to an internal investigation. Baroness Kishwer Falkner, chairman of the EHRC, said all Scottish health boards must comply with the 2010 Equality Act. She said: 'Earlier this year we asked NHS Fife to provide us with information on the provision of single-sex changing facilities for staff and the rights of different groups in the application of these policies. 'At that point NHS Fife confirmed that no equality impact assessment was available. 'Undertaking an equality impact assessment of relevant policies or practices, and publishing the results, are requirements of the PSED [Public Sector Equality Duty] Specific Duties in Scotland. 'We believe NHS Fife failed to meet these requirements and told them to carry one out immediately.' Maya Forstater, chief executive of human rights charity Sex Matters, said: 'This directive to NHS Fife is an unprecedented intervention from the EHRC and the kind of muscle that has been lacking from regulators across the board since gender ideology first took hold of public institutions. 'While long overdue, this is a clear instruction to NHS Fife - and in fact all employers - that it cannot get away with continuing to flout the Equality Act.' An NHS Fife spokesman said: 'We are committed to working constructively with the EHRC to provide assurance that we fully understand, and are meeting, our obligations under the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty. 'This includes considering the implications of the recent Supreme Court ruling and the EHRC's interim guidance. 'A comprehensive review and audit of our facilities has been completed, and an Equality Impact Assessment is underway. This will be concluded and published by 30 September 2025. 'Our priority is to ensure that all NHS Fife policies and practices protect the rights of our staff and comply fully with equality legislation.'
