Young people riding motorbikes dangerously on our streets, green space, cycleways and even pavements has been causing anger and alarm in North Edinburgh for a long time now, so local residents will be delighted to hear that city police have launched a new operation dedicated to tackling motorbike theft and associated antisocial behaviour in the Capital. Continue reading Cracking down on motorbike crime
CBBC’s Awesome Authors is coming to the capital this weekend, giving Edinburgh’s children the chance to take part in this fun and exciting national event. Continue reading Awesome Authors coming to Edinburgh
Theresa May delivered her first statement as Prime Minister in Downing Street last night:
I have just been to Buckingham Palace, where Her Majesty The Queen has asked me to form a new government, and I accepted.
In David Cameron, I follow in the footsteps of a great, modern Prime Minister. Under David’s leadership, the government stabilised the economy, reduced the budget deficit, and helped more people into work than ever before.
But David’s true legacy is not about the economy but about social justice. From the introduction of same-sex marriage, to taking people on low wages out of income tax altogether; David Cameron has led a one-nation government, and it is in that spirit that I also plan to lead.
Because not everybody knows this, but the full title of my party is the Conservative and Unionist Party, and that word ‘unionist’ is very important to me.
It means we believe in the Union: the precious, precious bond between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. But it means something else that is just as important; it means we believe in a union not just between the nations of the United Kingdom but between all of our citizens, every one of us, whoever we are and wherever we’re from.
That means fighting against the burning injustice that, if you’re born poor, you will die on average 9 years earlier than others.
If you’re black, you’re treated more harshly by the criminal justice system than if you’re white.
If you’re a white, working-class boy, you’re less likely than anybody else in Britain to go to university.
If you’re at a state school, you’re less likely to reach the top professions than if you’re educated privately.
If you’re a woman, you will earn less than a man. If you suffer from mental health problems, there’s not enough help to hand.
If you’re young, you’ll find it harder than ever before to own your own home.
But the mission to make Britain a country that works for everyone means more than fighting these injustices. If you’re from an ordinary working class family, life is much harder than many people in Westminster realise. You have a job but you don’t always have job security. You have your own home, but you worry about paying a mortgage. You can just about manage but you worry about the cost of living and getting your kids into a good school.
If you’re one of those families, if you’re just managing, I want to address you directly.
I know you’re working around the clock, I know you’re doing your best, and I know that sometimes life can be a struggle. The government I lead will be driven not by the interests of the privileged few, but by yours.
We will do everything we can to give you more control over your lives. When we take the big calls, we’ll think not of the powerful, but you. When we pass new laws, we’ll listen not to the mighty but to you. When it comes to taxes, we’ll prioritise not the wealthy, but you. When it comes to opportunity, we won’t entrench the advantages of the fortunate few. We will do everything we can to help anybody, whatever your background, to go as far as your talents will take you.
We are living through an important moment in our country’s history. Following the referendum, we face a time of great national change.
And I know because we’re Great Britain, that we will rise to the challenge. As we leave the European Union, we will forge a bold new positive role for ourselves in the world, and we will make Britain a country that works not for a privileged few, but for every one of us.
That will be the mission of the government I lead, and together we will build a better Britain.
Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network’s (ESEN’s) mascot Doogie Goodstuff, who promotes great social enterprise products and services across the city with his Buy The Good Stuff campaign, took to the streets of Edinburgh yesterday to sell The Big Issue. Continue reading Read all about it – Doogie sells The Big Issue!
A thousand new paramedics will be trained to work in the ambulance service over the next five years, the Scottish Government has committed today. Continue reading A thousand new Paramedics to be trained
David Cameron made a statement in Downing Street on his departure as Prime Minister:
When I first stood here in Downing Street on that evening in May 2010, I said we would confront our problems as a country and lead people through difficult decisions, so that together we could reach better times.
It has not been an easy journey, and of course we have not got every decision right, but I do believe that today our country is much stronger.
Above all it was about turning around the economy. And with the deficit cut by two-thirds, two and a half million more people in work and one million more businesses, there can be no doubt that our economy is immeasurably stronger.
Politicians like to talk about policies, but in the end it is about people’s lives.
I think of the people doing jobs who were previously unemployed.
I think of the businesses that were just ideas in someone’s head and that today are making a go of it and providing people with livelihoods.
I think of the hard-working families paying lower taxes and getting higher wages because of the first ever National Living Wage.
I think of the children who were languishing in the care system and who have now been adopted by loving families.
I think of the parents now able to send their children to good and outstanding schools, including free schools that simply didn’t exist before.
I think of over 200,000 young people who have taken part in National Citizen Service, the fastest growing youth programme of its kind in the world, something that, again, wasn’t there 6 years ago.
I think of the couples who have been able to get married, who weren’t allowed to in the past.
And I think of the people on the other side of the world who would not have clean drinking water, the chance to go to school, or even be alive, were it not for our decision to keep our aid promises to the poorest people and the poorest countries in our world.
And we have used our stronger economy to invest in our health service. When I walked in there, there were 18,000 people waiting over a year for their operation. Today it’s just 800. Too many. Still too long.
But our NHS is a national treasure, and one whose staff perform miracles as I’ve seen every day.
And we’ve strengthened our nation’s defences, with submarines, destroyers, frigates and, soon, aircraft carriers, rolling out of our shipyards to keep our country safe in a dangerous world.
These are the choices and the changes that we have made.
And I want to thank everyone who has given so much to support me personally over these years.
The incredible team in No10, the civil servants, whose professionalism and impartiality is one of our country’s greatest strengths.
And my political advisers, some of whom have been with me since the day I stood for my party’s leadership 11 years ago.
I want to thank my children, Nancy, Elwen and Florence, for whom Downing Street has been a lovely home over these last 6 years. They sometimes kick the red boxes full of work. Florence, you once climbed into one, before a foreign trip, and said take me with you. No more boxes.
And above all, I want to thank Samantha, the love of my life. You have kept me vaguely sane and, as well as being an amazing wife, mother and businesswoman, you have done something every week in that building behind me to celebrate the best spirit of voluntary service in our country.
We will shortly be heading to Buckingham Palace to see Her Majesty the Queen, where I will tender my resignation as Prime Minister and I will advise Her Majesty to invite Theresa May to form a new administration.
I am delighted that for the second time in British history the new Prime Minister will be a woman, and once again, a Conservative. I believe Theresa will provide strong and stable leadership in fulfilling the Conservative Manifesto on which we were elected, and I wish her well in negotiating the best possible terms for Britain’s exit from the European Union.
Let me finish by saying this. The spirit of service is one of this country’s most remarkable qualities.
I have seen that service day in and day out in the incredible work of our armed forces, our intelligence agencies and our police. It is something I always knew. But as Prime Minister you see it so directly that it blows you away.
And of course writing those heart-breaking letters to the families who have lost loved ones is a poignant reminder of the profound scale of what these men and women give for us in the defence of our freedoms and our way of life. We must never forget that.
In a different way, I have seen that same spirit of service in the amazing contributions of countless volunteers in communities up and down our country who are making our society bigger and stronger.
And I am proud that every day for the past 2 years I have used the office of Prime Minister in a non-political way to recognise and thank almost 600 of them as Points of Light whose service can be an inspiration to us all.
For me politics has always been about public service in the national interest. It is simple to say but often hard to do.
But one of the things that sustains you in this job is the sense that, yes, our politics is full of argument and debate, and it can get quite heated, but no matter how difficult the decisions are, there is a great sense of British fair play, a quiet but prevailing sense that most people wish their Prime Minister well and want them to stick at it and get on with the job.
So I want to take this moment to say thank you to all those who have written letters and emails offering me that support, people who I will never get to meet and never get to thank personally.
It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve our country as Prime Minister over these last six years, and to serve as leader of my party for almost eleven years. And as we leave for the last time, my only wish is continued success for this great country that I love so very much.
The UK Government must reassure workers they will not lose out after the EU referendum outcome, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and STUC General Secretary Grahame Smith said yesterday. The STUC also supported the call to give all EU citizens currently resident in the UK reassurance they can continue to live, work and study here without restriction.
The appeal comes as Theresa May prepares to take over as Prime Minister later today.
On Monday the Westminster government said there has been no change to the rights and status of EU nationals in the UK, and UK nationals in the EU, as a result of the referendum.
In a joint statement, the Cabinet Office, the Home Office and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office said:
The decision about when to trigger Article 50 and start the formal process of leaving the EU will be for the new Prime Minister. The UK remains a member of the EU throughout this process, and until Article 50 negotiations have concluded.
When we do leave the EU, we fully expect that the legal status of EU nationals living in the UK, and that of UK nationals in EU member states, will be properly protected.
The government recognises and values the important contribution made by EU and other non-UK citizens who work, study and live in the UK.
There has been no change to the right of EU nationals to reside in the UK and therefore no change to the circumstances in which someone could be removed from the UK.
As was the case before the referendum, EU nationals can only be removed from the UK if they are considered to pose a genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat to the public, if they are not lawfully resident or are abusing their free movement rights.
However the First Minister is seeking reassurance from Theresa May that these exisiting EU workers rights will be protected.
Ms Sturgeon met the STUC General Council yesterday to discuss fair work and progressive workplace practices in light of the immediate and long-term implications for the Scottish economy of the referendum result, where she also reiterated her message that her government will pursue all options to protect Scotland’s position in Europe.
The First Minister said: “I welcome today’s discussions with the STUC General Council. I want to stress that this government will work with STUC and trade unions to share information, listen and understand priorities and concerns, and make clear, here and further afield, that Scotland remains a stable, attractive and fair place to do business.
“Scotland has a fundamentally strong economy and we will continue to work with employers and trade unions to boost productivity, innovative workplaces and inclusive growth. We will pursue every option to protect Scotland’s position in Europe and, by extension, the interests of EU citizens who live and work here.
“I call on the new Prime Minister, Theresa May to give an immediate guarantee that the existing rights of the 173,000 EU nationals in Scotland will be protected.
“In Scotland we have fostered a distinctive and a positive approach to fair work focusing on economic and social benefits for all.
“The European Union has been instrumental in strengthening and protecting workers’ rights and enshrining key employment rights relating to pay, safe working conditions and the right to unionise. I firmly believe that EU membership delivers many social, economic and cultural benefits for individuals, business and communities across Scotland.
“We will pursue every option to protect Scotland’s position in Europe, and all the many benefits which that brings in terms of workers’ rights and social protections. That includes our place in the single market and the free movement of people.”
Grahame Smith, General Secretary STUC said: “We share the view of the First Minister that the best place for Scotland is firmly within the European Union. We are further assured that the FM is exploring every available option to retain Scotland’s membership within the European Union and is moving to positively address some of the challenges that have arisen in respect of the attitude of the Westminster Government. We look forward to continuing to work closely with the Scottish Government to ensure that our shared commitments to inclusive sustainable economic growth continues.”
New Chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament Terri Smith MSYP has joined the board of Young Scot. She’ll sit alongside 17 year old Abbie Wilson, who joined the board last year and has now become the youngest Vice Chair in Young Scot’s history! Continue reading Terri Smith joins Young Scot board
Disabled campaigners take action across Scotland
Disabled campaigners will be protesting at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, a disability benefits centre in Glasgow and in City Square, Dundee tomorrow as part of a UK-wide day of action against disability benefit changes.
Protests will be held at many assessment centres run by Atos and Capita, the private companies who hold contracts with the Department for Work and Pensions to test disabled people’s eligibility for the Personal Independence Payment benefit. Continue reading Rotten to the core!
