THIS month marks a year since 30 Tillicoultry homeowners were forced to evacuate their properties – with nothing but two hours' notice – due to reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete concerns.

A year since the RAAC crisis began, a year of anger and distress. A year of waiting for answers, taking a huge emotional toll on those affected.

I joined distressed local residents earlier in September as they marched on Kilncraigs after Clackmannanshire Council cancelled a meeting with them just a mere day before it was due to go ahead.

And I will continue to stand with Tillicoultry's RAAC victims, having written to ministers and having spoken up on the issue in Westminster.

Imagine working day and night to ensure you have a roof over your head – or even achieve the dream of home ownership – only for it to be ripped away with a sudden knock on the door.

Imagine living a life in limbo or a nomadic existence. For a full year now, many have still been unable to collect valuable items from their properties.

Residents, who face homelessness due to something they simply could not control, deserve much better.

I will continue to work with those affected and ministers to find a solution.

On a more positive note, I was delighted to pop-down to Sauchie Resource Centre just after the RAAC protest to help mark the ninth anniversary of Wee County Veterans.

This vital support group, founded by Jo Wilkinson all those years ago, has done so much for those who have served in our armed forces.

The social group continues to punch above its weight, supporting our veterans' mental health and standing shoulder-to-shoulder when someone finds themselves in financial hardship.

While the Grangemouth petrochemical complex is not situated in Clackmannanshire, I am aware there will be many in the Wee County who are rightly worried about its future, whether they are employed at the site or in the wider supply chain.

A "just transition" to greener industries simply cannot mean job losses at the site.

Workers and unions are calling for the lifetime of the refinery to be extended along with investment to safeguard the plant and highly-skilled jobs – I echo those words and stand in solidarity with them.

Energy is one of the pillars of our national security and we simply cannot allow private and foreign interests to have such high levels of influence on our critical infrastructure and our future.

Communities, workers, people and our country must be placed before corporate profit.

That is why I have launched a petition to bring the refinery into public ownership, please visit https://chng.it/ZxhWbbsRQ8 to add your voice to the campaign.