Day: March 18, 2022

Government scheme that protected millions of jobs with £38 billion of support lent to businesses closes today

  • The Covid Corporate Financing Facility, which provided a quick and cost-effective way to raise working capital for large firms, comes to an end with every penny repaid.
  • The Bank of England facility provided almost £38 billion of support to more than 100 of the UK’s biggest firms, and made a profit for the taxpayer whilst protecting millions of jobs.
  • Firms that employ almost 2.5 million people were directly supported including those in the car industry, travel, hospitality, and high street stores.

The Chancellor has hailed the success of a Covid scheme that provided almost £38 billion of support to some of the UK’s biggest employers during the pandemic, protecting millions of jobs whilst making a return for the taxpayer, as it comes to an end today.

Household names, such as Gatwick Airport, the Football Association and the National Trust, were among more than 100 of the UK’s biggest employers that benefitted from the Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF). The scheme has recouped every penny that was lent – plus a profit of over £60 million.

Rishi Sunak said the Bank of England administered scheme, which was launched in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic, was another example of the government offering support at unprecedented speed to protect millions of jobs and taxpayer’s money simultaneously.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “We not only took unprecedented action but did so at unprecedented speed to protect jobs and businesses throughout the pandemic.

“The CCFF scheme ensured that many of the UK’s biggest employers could continue to pay wages and suppliers, protecting millions of jobs – and on top of that every penny has been repaid.”

The final CCFF repayments were made today, with all companies paying back what they owed. The scheme has made a profit of over £60 million for the taxpayer because the rate of interest applied to the cash provided by the Bank of England was priced at rates comparable to the market before Covid. Companies therefore paid back a slightly larger amount at maturity compared to the finance they borrowed initially.

Peter Vermeulen, Chief Financial Officer at the National Trust, said: “The HM Treasury team did an amazing job during the height of the pandemic. The National Trust, like many other large organisations, experienced an unprecedented liquidity squeeze, accompanied by enormous levels of uncertainty around the future.

“The CCFF was set up swiftly and in a highly transparent manner. The team at HM Treasury issued clear guidance and worked tirelessly to support us with the application and the associated legalities.

“We cannot commend the team highly enough for the excellent work they have done. It was an essential lifeline for the National Trust and has safeguarded some of the essential work we do on cultural and natural heritage, for the Nation. Thank you.”

Mark Burrows, Chief Operating Officer at The Football Association, said: “The pandemic was a serious challenge for The FA. We were faced with huge losses from cancelled events and competition disruptions affecting our broadcasting rights.

“As a not-for-profit organisation that reinvests its surplus into grassroots football, being able to rely on the security of CCFF as a quick and cost-effective way to raise working capital meant we were able not only to continue to support our business, but grassroots football across the country.”

Through the purchasing of short-term corporate debt – known as commercial paper – the CCFF provided a quick and cost-effective way to raise working capital for companies who were fundamentally strong but were at risk of experiencing severe disruption to cashflows.

Because it lent directly to large companies, the scheme also provided banks with the space to lend to a wider population of firms who could have otherwise gone bust during the pandemic.

The scheme helped companies across a range of sectors including the car industry, travel, hospitality, and high street stores. It kept cash flowing and delivered on the government’s commitment to do everything it could to support the economy and protect jobs.

Healthy Tip – Salt: We consume 40% more than what is recommended

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by the Health Promotion and Education Team at Heart Research UK

Healthy Heart Tip: Salt Awareness

14th to 20th March 2022 is Salt Awareness Week. It is estimated that in the UK we consume around 8.4g of salt a day which is 40% more than the recommended 6g a day. Too much salt in your diet can have a negative effect on your health and can increase the risk of water retention, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and kidney disease.  Here are some tips to help you reduce your salt intake:

  • Reduce salt gradually

By gradually reducing the amount of salt in your food, your taste buds will adapt over time. Try tasting your food before you add salt. You may find that your food is tasty enough. You could try experimenting with different flavours to replace added salt, such as herbs, spices, lemons, or limes.

  • Check food labels

Around 75% of the food we eat contains hidden salt. Food labels use a traffic light system, which allows us to see if a product contains a low (green), medium (amber), or high (red) amount of salt.

Check the labels to see how much salt is in your food before you buy. Different brands of similar products contain varying amounts of salt, so look at the label and choose products that contain less salt. Salt is made up of sodium chloride and sometimes the label will list ‘sodium’ but not ‘salt’.

You can work out how much salt is in a product by multiplying every 1g of sodium by 2.5.

  • Make a swap

Swap your high salt foods with foods lower in salt. Try snacking on fruit and vegetables, plain rice cakes, unsalted nuts and seeds or lower salt alternatives to your usual snacks.

Foods such as processed meats, stock cubes, ready-made sauces and powdered soups can contain high amounts of salt. Try swapping these for lower salt versions or make your own soups, with little or no added salt. You can also reduce the amount of salt in your diet by having smaller portions of foods that are higher in salt.

Adopting these tips can be challenging, but reducing your salt consumption gradually over time can help to reduce your risk of high blood pressure and coronary heart disease.

For more tips on how to stay healthy, sign up for our weekly healthy tips at www.heartresearch.org.uk/healthy-tips

To help keep your heart healthy, why not try out some of our Healthy Heart recipes from our website: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-recipes-2/

Or have a look through our Healthy Heart cookbook filled with recipes from top chefs, celebrities and food bloggers:

https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-cookbook/

Scottish Government sets up food security and supply taskforce

A short-life taskforce has been established to monitor, identify and respond to any potential disruption to food security and supply resulting from the impact of the war in Ukraine.

The Scottish Government has set up the Food Security and Supply Taskforce jointly with industry. It will be co-chaired by Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, Mairi Gougeon and Chief Executive of Scotland Food & Drink, James Withers.

Drawing on technical and scientific knowledge and expertise from across a range of sectors, agencies and organisations, the taskforce will include key food and drink industry leaders and will meet frequently over the coming weeks.

Ms Gougeon said: “The truly terrible events in Ukraine and the resulting western sanctions on Russia are, rightly, changing the way the world does business. Our immediate focus as a Government continues to be on doing everything we can within our power to support the people of Ukraine and address their humanitarian need.

“We need to take action now to better understand the potential impact of disruption to the food supply chain in Scotland, how industry and government might work together to manage and mitigate those, and be alert to the resulting impact on the cost of food products.

“Over the last two years, our food and drink sectors have experienced a series of shocks in terms of disrupted supply chains and new barriers to trade through COVID and Brexit.  It is clear that the unfolding tragedy in Ukraine will have further impacts – not least through the hugely challenging increases in energy bills which affect households and everyone in the food industry, from farmers to hauliers, processors to retailers.

“That is why the Scottish Government has convened a taskforce jointly with industry to monitor, identify and respond to these issues, as well as recommending actions that can be taken by business, the Scottish and UK Governments to mitigate the challenges.

“Crucially, the taskforce will also consider how we can continue to get products and food supplies to Ukraine we must not forget that there is a population still there that will desperately need our help and support in the weeks ahead.

“I welcome the involvement of food and drink industry leaders across Scotland and look forward to working together to strengthen food security and supply.”

James Withers said: “The establishment of this taskforce is a welcome and an important step. 

“The immediate focus from the war in Ukraine is on the humanitarian fallout.  However, it is also critical that we assess urgently the potential impact of the conflict on national food security and supply.

“From wheat and barley to sunflower oil, Ukraine and the surrounding region is a major player in terms of global food supply and agricultural production.

“Immediate supplies of food and animal feed are secure, even if prices are rising sharply. However, whilst much still remains unknown in terms of the impact of the war on global supply chains, there is clearly a shock to the system coming. 

“We must understand its implications for Scotland’s farmers, food manufacturers and consumers and consider any short or medium-term action we can take to mitigate their impact.”

SplashLearn announces SpringBoard Maths Challenge 2022

Opportunity for classrooms to collaborate and compete, with prizes worth over £8,000 up for grabs

The popular game-based learning programme SplashLearn has announced the second UK edition of its massively popular SpringBoard Maths Challenge.

The maths competition is a calendar marked event and is highly anticipated by teachers across the US and Canada. The SpringBoard Maths Challenge 2022 is open to all classes from Year 1 through Year 6 in the UK and will run from March 1 – May 8, 2022.

Participation in the challenge, which is free, is designed to give teachers and schools the opportunity to engage their primary school students through fun maths challenges aligned to the national curriculum. The 10-week competition provides the perfect opportunity for teachers in Scotland to engage pupils in maths learning to master their maths skills and boost their confidence, all whilst having fun throughout the process.

After creating an account on SplashLearn, teachers can enrol their classes for SpringBoard 2022. Once enrolled, students can immediately start solving maths problems that will earn them points individually as well as adding up and counting towards the total class score.

The best performing classes with the highest points win weekly prizes at both a county and national level. The final winners will be announced at the end of SpringBoard, with prizes worth in excess of £8,000 up for grabs.

Joy Deep Nath, co-founder, SplashLearn, said: “SpringBoard is a maths competition, but over the years it has grown to be a platform for social and emotional bonding for both students and teachers alike.

“Of course, it also helps teachers to tackle the attainment gap and ensures students are prepared for the next school year. There is a growing appreciation for SpringBoard as an effective tool to challenge students in a familiar, secure and friendly setting to practice with their peers, which is paramount in the present times.”

Arpit Jain, CEO, SplashLearn, said: “SpringBoard, over the years has become like a tradition. It brings teachers and students together in an environment that enables competition as well as collaboration but most importantly celebrates learning. 

“The fun and playful aspects of the competition ensures students stay motivated engaged, excited and continue learning, which is so important. I wish every school the greatest success, and every child a very happy learning journey.”

Catering for Year 1-Year 6 pupils, the SplashLearn programme is available completely free of charge to all schools and teachers in the UK, with the maths content covering more than 570 skills through 2000 activities and games.

Registration for teachers and entry to the competition is already open, and teachers can sign up for the SpringBoard Maths Challenge 2022 by visiting this page.

Deliberate fires ‘placing lives at risk’

Firefighters in Scotland were called to tackle almost 80 deliberately set fires every single day during Spring last year – more than two thirds than during the same period in 2020.

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) crews were mobilised to a total of 4,287 incidents of deliberate fire-raising between March and April 2021.

The figures have been released to coincide with the launch of the service’s #SpringSafety campaign.

This is an increase of 71 per cent on the year before, when SFRS crews were turned out to 2,493 needless emergency incidents.

The data shows how deliberate fires in Spring last year included 582 in the city of Glasgow (an increase of 54% on 2020) and 337 in Edinburgh (up 71%).

Other notable year-on-year increases included a 209% rise in the Perth, Kinross, Angus and Dundee area (up from 130 to 402); 94% rise in East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire and Inverclyde (up from

188 to 364); and 86% in Falkirk and West Lothian (up from 190 to 354). [See full regional year-on-year breakdown below]

The 4,287 deliberate fires were largely comprised of outdoor incidents impacting fields, refuse, and countryside, but also involved hundreds of building and vehicle fires.

This behaviour could place lives at risk, warned Deputy Assistant Chief Officer Alasdair Perry, Head of Prevention and Protection for SFRS.

DACO Perry said: “We take a zero-tolerance approach to deliberate fire-raising and it is a small minority of individuals who are potentially putting themselves, our firefighters and innocent bystanders at risk of serious harm and injury.

“Make no mistake – fire can cause injury and death, it can be devastating to properties, businesses and the environment.

“Last year, we witnessed a shocking rise in deliberate fire-raising during the Spring period.  The fact that our firefighters are called to thousands of deliberately set fires each year is completely unacceptable.

“These incidents are a needless drain on our resources and can impact on our response to genuine emergencies.”

DACO Perry warned that the SFRS will continue to do everything in its power to help Police Scotland trace those risking the safety of communities across Scotland. He said: “It absolutely goes without saying that we want to prevent fires – not fight fires.

“As a result, our firefighters work extremely hard to engage with the public and promote safety messages, and parents, guardians and carers can also help by making sure that children and young people are aware of the risks.

“But let me be very clear – we operate a strict zero tolerance approach to deliberate fire-raising. It is a criminal offence and can have devastating consequences.

“We will continue to work very closely with our police and local authority partners to provide evidence that will ensure those responsible are identified and held to account for their actions.”

Anyone with information about deliberate fire-raising should contact the free and confidential Crimestoppers helpline on 0800 555 111.

Crimestoppers: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/

https://youtu.be/Nbnbwb0WVTI

Young people can also contact Fearless – a reporting line for young people who have their own concerns which is completely anonymous.

Fearless: https://www.fearless.org/en

More information is available at: 

https://www.firescotland.gov.uk/your-safety/outdoors/deliberate-fires/

Is child poverty heading in the right direction?

FRASER of ALLENDAR INSTITUTE: – taking stock ahead of the second Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan

This month is a big month for tackling poverty in Scotland.  It sees the publication of the Scottish Government’s second Tackling Child Poverty Delivery plan.  March usually, however, also sees the publication of the official Poverty and Inequality statistics – the primary measures of success of action to reduce poverty.  They should have given us the main poverty statistics for the first year of the covid pandemic, i.e. 2020/21.

That Scottish Government has warned, however, that the estimates will not be robust enough to be published as official statistics, due to issues with data collection during the pandemic, which means that they are unlikely to be able to tell us whether relative child poverty rose or fell in 2020/21.

Persistent poverty, which measures whether children have been in relative poverty in three out of the last four years are in persistent poverty uses a longitudinal survey (Understanding Society) which has been less affected by pandemic restrictions and will be released as normal on the 31st March.

However, measures of relative and absolute child poverty, and measures of material deprivation, will effectively be void for 2020/21.

This gap in data is clearly problematic, particularly for those trying to understand the impact of the pandemic on people’s financial situations.

Looking over the long term however, 2020/21 would have no doubt been an outlier due to level of disruption and the impact of things like the furlough scheme and the temporary uplift to Universal Credit.

An important question (which future data will answer) is the extent the pandemic has permanently impacted financially on households, while for some the flux of 2020/21 will have been short-lived, for many it has added the challenges they already face and could have longer-term impacts.

It will be a number of years until we fully understand the long term scarring. In the meantime, as we discussed this time last year as we awaited 2019/20 data on incomes and poverty, pre-pandemic data is as good a benchmark as any to plan for future policy delivery as long as we bear in mind that there is more uncertainty than ever over these figures at the moment.

The second tackling child poverty delivery plan

Future policy delivery is exactly what the Scottish Government will be planning at the moment as they get ready to publish their second tackling child poverty delivery plan and a key part of this will be estimating the impact of measures in the first delivery plan, as well as the impact of announcements at UK Government level[i].

In the three years to 2019/20, relative child poverty was 24%. The continuing impact of the two child limit and the benefit cap are expected to exert upwards pressure on poverty, in the region of 1 to 2 percentage points by 2023/24.

However, there have been two major policy changes which should more than offset this upwards pressure. In the last year, we have seen the Scottish Government announce the doubling of the Scottish Child Payment to £20 a week and some significant changes made by the UK Government to Universal Credit to the work allowance and the rate at which the benefit is tapered away for those in work. Holding all else equal, these will have increased incomes for many low-income families with children, and therefore decreased poverty.

Our best estimate at the moment suggests that the Scottish Child Payment (£20 paid to all children under 16) will shift poverty downwards by 2 to 3 percentage points by 2023/24, with an additional downwards shift of 1 to 2 percentage points due to the changes to Universal Credit.

This implies that policy changes have put child poverty in Scotland on a downwards trajectory. However, even taking these into account, based on policies announced to date our modelling suggests that there is still likely to be a 3 – 4 percentage point gap between expected poverty in 2023/24 and the interim target of 18%.

There are other policy changes that may reinforce this further, for example, employability policies such as Fair Start Scotland and the rollout of 30 hours of free childcare to all 3- and 4-year olds that took place in August 2021 could help boost incomes by 2023/24 but even taking these into account, we are still likely to be above the target level unless new policies are announced. 

After the tackling child poverty delivery plan has been announced we will be able to reassess these estimates.

Beyond relative poverty

Inflationary pressures are unlikely to impact the relative poverty measure too much, as long as the impact on incomes is reasonably spread through the income distribution, which seems likely given that neither social security levels nor wages look likely to keep up with inflation.  That being said, the huge jump in energy prices will clearly impact on the spending power of low-income households in particular.  It is worth remembering, though, that energy costs are not included in the relative poverty measure, even though they are a significant area of expenditure.

Relative child poverty is often referred to as the headline measure of child poverty, but it is only one of the measures specified in the Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017. The other measures, by design,  provide greater insight into the impact of increases in the cost of basic goods and services.

Absolute poverty measures whether living standards for those in poverty are increasing over time. Large increases in the cost of living, both now and those expected in the future, will mean that meeting this target will be increasingly difficult.  Meaning that while people’s incomes may improve relative to others, they will not see the same improvement in their standard of living.  It will also impact on the material deprivation measure which measures whether or not people can afford basic goods and services.

Persistent poverty is based on a relative measure and therefore is also not likely to be impacted severely by inflationary pressures

Uncertainty still reigns, but meeting the 2030/31 targets will require new policy             

Tackling child poverty is a long term aim of the Scottish Government, and by the time the final targets need to be met in 2030/31, the pandemic should be long behind us.

Work published by FAI, MMU and the Poverty Alliance earlier this year found that structural policies such as childcare, social security and employability programmes could make substantial inroads in meeting the 2030/31 targets, with potential for some significant economic benefits as a result. However, the cost implications of these kinds of policies are large.

To get to the 2030/31 targets, waiting until the next delivery plan in 2026 to do all the heavy lifting may be too late for the required development and implementation (the Scottish Child Payment was first announced under the guises of an income supplement 4 years ago).

Much, therefore, rests on the soon to be published Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan.  While the 2030/31 targets are some time away, the required action to meet the targets is significant and will take time.  We will be working with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation to assess the potential of the plan to meet these ambitions once it has been published.

Record investment for active travel in Scotland

The Scottish Government announced record investment in active travel for 2022-23 yesterday. This includes new funding for footpaths, significantly increased funding for local authorities and more than doubling the funding to the National Cycle Network.  

Living Streets Scotland, part of the UK charity for everyday walking will receive £555k in 2022/23. The Transport Scotland funding will see the charity work with over 450 schools to run its walk to school programme, which successfully increases walking rates and decreases congestion levels.

It will also allow work to continue on ‘20-minute neighbourhoods’, to ensure local facilities are within a safe and pleasant walking distance.  

Commenting on Thursday’s announcement from Patrick Harvie MSP in the Scottish Parliament, Stuart Hay, Director Living Streets Scotland said:  “Today is an important milestone in helping to turn Scotland into a more active, healthy and sustainable nation. We are pleased steps are being made to give walking, wheeling and cycling a reasonable share of transport budgets.  

“We are thrilled to receive additional support to grow our work in Scotland, including plans to reach over 450 primary schools, high schools and nurseries. These projects will aim to boost walking to school and reduce car journeys by 10%. 

“With extra resources we hope to work in every Scottish local authority area on programmes such WOW – our walk to school challenge and Walk to School Week. These projects will contribute towards Scotland’s ambitious national targets to reduce road traffic by 20%. Nowhere is this needed more than outside schools. 

“We look forward to working with other partners including Cycling Scotland, Sustrans Scotland and Paths for all to address the very real challenges of creating good walking environments at a local level.” 

Join the Adventurers!

We are looking for young people P5 – P7 for our two Adventurers groups from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays!

The group involves learning how to safely have fun outdoor adventures!

To find out more email: aga@pycp.co.uk

Or Call: 073050 54162

Come join us!

Stewart Milne Homes Helps Community to Flourish

Residents in Danderhall have welcomed a donation from leading housebuilder, Stewart Milne Homes, which has been used to enhance the area with the creation of allotment space, flowering gardens and wildlife habitats.

The £1,000 funding for Danderhall Primary School has been used to support community-wide initiatives, implemented in partnership with local gardening club, Danderhall & District Guerrilla Gardeners.

The group, which has already made a range of outdoor community improvements over the last year, is currently working with the school to take groups of pupils outdoors each week in a bid to encourage them to get green fingered and engage them in protecting nature and the environment.

This month primary five pupils are planting a variety of fruit trees and making bespoke planters from recyclable pallet wood in a nearby allotment space that was previously unused land before the gardening team began the transformation.

The work undertaken by the group and pupils is helping to revive the space whilst encouraging children to enjoy the outdoors and adopt healthy lifestyle choices. 

The Stewart Milne Homes funding has been used to purchase starter gardening packs for pupils including gardening gloves, trowels and forks, pots, hyacinth bulbs and compost, craft materials and litter grabbers

It has also gone towards the purchase of wildlife habitats including hedgehog homes and bird boxes which have been installed across the village.

As well as the funding, Stewart Milne Homes also provided hi-vis jackets for the school children to wear when they are out and about in the village, helping to keep them safe.

As Stewart Milne Homes progresses the development of its new Shawfair community, a collection of three, four, five and six bedroom homes nestled on the edge of The Wisp and the village of Danderhall that will create 115 homes for the growing neighbourhood, the housebuilder plans to continue to support the school and work with local community groups on a range of different initiatives.

Kevin Moreland, Marketing Manager at Stewart Milne Homes, said: “The level of work undertaken across Danderhall by the Guerrilla Gardeners and youngsters is fantastic, and it is clearly creating a positive impact for the multigenerational local community. 

“Stewart Milne Homes is committed to supporting the communities where we build in and we are very proud to support the school with funding to enable a range of outdoor initiatives, which are integral to creating thriving neighbourhoods.

“It was great to get out and meet some of the keen gardeners to see first-hand the change they’re making which will complement our nearby Shawfair development which has been built with a people-first approach, with active travel links connecting the site to the wider village.”

David Halliday, Principal Teacher at Danderhall Primary School, said: “Encouraging and capitalising on the opportunity to experience learning and new challenges in the outdoor environment is integral to our curriculum, and the funding from Stewart Milne Homes is a brilliant boost to the opportunities that we can offer our pupils.

“The hi-vis vests will be used year-round as we encourage our pupils to get out of the classroom and allow themselves to experience new hobbies, such as gardening, as much as possible.

“We are looking forward to continuing our partnership with the Danderhall & District Guerrilla Gardeners as it is now a weekly highlight for the pupils who have developed a love for gardening and creating new areas in the village that they can be proud of. It really is a great example of a community coming together to create a force for good.”

Helen Graham, member of Danderhall & District Guerrilla Gardeners, said: “It has been a pleasure to meet local youngsters and encourage them to get outdoors to learn more about the garden, plants and wildlife.

“The Guerrillas have been busy working across Danderhall and surrounding villages to enhance the area with bright plants and foliage, and in turn it has brought together a number of likeminded individuals and created friendships and social opportunities, which is an added bonus.

“We have big plans to continue the revival of the village and we invite anyone in the local area with a passion for gardening or the outdoors to get involved as we work together to create a vibrant and inclusive neighbourhood.”

For more information about the Stewart Milne Homes’ Shawfair development, visit: https://www.stewartmilnehomes.com/new-homes/neighbourhoods/shawfair