Day: May 8, 2018

Greens bid to bolster ethical aims of new Investment Bank

The Scottish Greens will today outline distinct plans for the proposed Scottish National Investment Bank to have robust policies on ethical investments, a push towards a zero carbon economy and overall greater scrutiny.

Green MSP Andy Wightman will attempt to win backing from Holyrood’s parties for his amendment to provide the new bank with better “social and environmental outcomes”, including an obligation to deliver strategic housing investment.

Wightman is also expected to challenge Scottish Labour to ditch its proposals for a bank focussed on “increased growth” and to instead put forward a strategic programme in line with the left-wing ideology embraced by the party’s leadership.

Mr Wightman, a Lothian MSP, said: “As a national financial institution, we all have vested collective interests to ensure that this bank will invest in projects and programmes that deliver a sustainable future. With our proposals, the bank will be required to have a strategic focus on the future of the Scottish economy by investing in new low-carbon technologies to build energy resilience.

“It’s surprising to see Labour insist that the bank’s main focus should be for it to ‘drive increased growth’. It’s far from being even remotely socialist and their insistence on profit being the bank’s key goal is disheartening. No economy can be sustainable when growing numbers of its young people cannot afford basic, affordable and warm homes. With social renting off-limits to all but the most financially challenged and affordable housing not worthy of the descriptor, an investment bank has a key role to play in providing the kind of strategic housing investment that is desperately needed.

“We also want Holyrood to have a key role in establishing the bank’s ethical investment code, which in our view should be enshrined in the primary legislation establishing the bank. We also propose that the bank could provide a Scottish payments company to reduce the costs to small businesses of processing payments. This cost reduction will lower GDP, but increase productivity. Currently around 2% of the value of payments is lost to the Scottish economy – some £1 billion per year at a rough estimate.”

Friends of Granton Castle Walled Garden AGM report

Dear Friends Group members and supporters, 

Following our AGM on the 5th May we have a streamlined steering group of eight to take us into our second year at the walled garden with a newly elected chair and one new committee member to go forward in 2018. A massive thank-you to all those who have contributed time and energy over the last year, and even before this too when we began back in 2013 in earnest trying to raise awareness and safeguard this forgotten garden.

Continue reading Friends of Granton Castle Walled Garden AGM report

Finding the right person for the job costs UK plc £1.7 billion

Delays and skills shortages are making recruiting staff with the right skills for the job so difficult, it is costing British businesses £1.7 billion a year], highlights the first of a series of Skills Shortage bulletins published today the Edge Foundation. Continue reading Finding the right person for the job costs UK plc £1.7 billion

Arrests follow Aberdeen Hibs clash

Around 15,000 fans were in Aberdeen at the weekend to watch as Aberdeen FC welcomed Hibernian FC to Pittodrie. Officers would like to thank the vast majority of these fans who were extremely supportive of police on the ground and who were clearly there to enjoy the game – but a very small number of people were charged in connection with various offences before and during the game despite repeated warnings that anti-social behaviour of any kind would be robustly dealt with. Continue reading Arrests follow Aberdeen Hibs clash

Housing and Economy Convener wants ‘prosperity for everyone’

Housing and Economy Convener, Cllr Kate Campbell, has sets out her vision to bring prosperity to every neighbourhood in the city:

It is very well known that Edinburgh remains the most prosperous UK city outside London. In my new role as Housing and Economy Convener of the City of Edinburgh Council, my first priority is going to be to ensure that this prosperity reaches everyone, in every neighbourhood of the city.

I recognise that jobs growth alone has not been sufficient to deliver sustained improvements in living standards for everyone and the time has come to take a good look at why there are still people living in Edinburgh who are not sharing in this prosperity. At the heart of our economy strategy is the message that everyone must have the opportunity to benefit from Edinburgh’s success.

Our economy is going from strength to strength and has shown great resilience during tough economic times but we need to be fairer to everyone in terms of wages, opportunity, access to housing, education and good careers if we are to help it to grow further. It is also vital to the city’s economy that housing remains affordable in the city.

The economy strategy, which will be presented in June 2018 for approval, will set out an action plan to tackle inequality and poverty. This is an important shift in the focus of our work.

My passion lies in tackling Edinburgh’s chronic housing shortage.  My first task, as chair of the homelessness task force, is to stop families with children being temporarily housed in bed and breakfasts by June, as we know this can make schooling children and access to cooking facilities difficult.  I will also reduce the number of people being temporarily housed in B&Bs and the time they spend in them. It is also vitally important that we reduce the number of people sleeping rough.

Along with our housing association partners, we are delivering the biggest council-led affordable housing programme in the UK with 20,000 affordable homes planned for the next decade. This will help us to tackle the shortage of good quality homes for people on low and middle incomes in the city. There are currently over 2000 affordable and low cost homes under construction on 31 sites across the Edinburgh.  This will make a big difference, but it’s just the start.

To help support the Capital’s continued growth, as a Council, we are also taking a proactive approach to stimulate development.

One of our priorities is to unlock brownfield sites for house builders and developers so that they can deliver the quality housing that we so desperately need and the space to allow businesses to start up, grow and thrive.

Last month we bought the National Grid site at Granton on Edinburgh’s Waterfront. This purchase is another step towards the delivery of The Granton Masterplan. An ambitious vision that will see the area transformed into a vibrant new community. This is hugely important to us as the Waterfront is one of seven key strategic development areas identified in the Edinburgh and South East City Region Deal, signed by all partners last summer.

In addition to the land for housing, community and business development, the site, set in parkland, includes an iconic last remaining gas holder in the city and the former Granton railway station, both of which are grade B listed buildings. Given the significance of these structures they will form a key role in the development proposals for the land and give a focus and identity to the new community.

Over in the west of the city we built industrial units after carrying out research which identified an increasing shortage of good quality industrial space. These units are now fully let. It is clear that there is a need for quality accommodation for businesses that are struggling to expand. Although all of the units are now let, officers are still receiving enquiries and this is a model we are keen to replicate elsewhere in the future.

The population in Edinburgh is at an all-time high and continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. This growth brings challenges of increased pressure on housing, transport and public services and I look forward to playing my part in ensuring that everyone in the city has the opportunity to access quality jobs and housing in the future.

This article first appeared in The Scotsman on 4th May.