Scotland Demands Better!

The Scottish Government has been warned not to ‘abandon’ communities as Scotland’s largest trade union body, equality and anti-poverty organisations launch Scotland’s largest national campaign against the cost-of-living emergency.

Ahead of SNP Conference and as Challenge Poverty Week ends, The Scottish TUC, the Poverty Alliance and groups across the country launched the ‘Scotland Demands Better’ campaign. The campaign outlines the ‘People’s Plan for Action’ demanding nine actions from the Scottish Government to alleviate the crisis.

Demands include increased public sector pay, rent controls, wealth taxes and universal free school meals. The campaign further calls for increased social security payments, doubling the Scottish Child Payment and increasing Carers Allowance payments. The plan follows the STUC and Poverty Alliance joint summit on the cost-of-living crisis earlier this year.

Launching the campaign, STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer and Poverty Alliance Director Peter Kelly have written to the First Minister calling for a joint roundtable meeting to help implement the plan.

Commenting, STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer: “This campaign represents the voices of our communities. Government cannot abandon them in their hour of need and we’re seeking an urgent meeting with the First Minister to directly support workers impacted by this crisis.

“The People’s Plan for Action sets out exactly what we need to see from the Scottish Government. Whilst Westminster remains unwilling and uncaring to help ordinary workers, the Scottish Government must take a different path.

“Increasing public sector pay, accelerating rent controls and implementing wealth taxes gives Scotland’s poorest the lifeline they need to survive this emergency. Poverty and destitution are political choices. Scotland demands better than the devastation and hardship wilfully inflicted upon our most in need.”

Peter Kelly, director of the Poverty Alliance, said: “We want to put justice and compassion back at the heart of public life in Scotland – so we can build support for practical action to tackle poverty.

“With this plan, we can start to rebuild and renew our social security, boost incomes for workers, invest in the public services we all rely on, and give people the urgent help they need with rocketing costs.

“This crisis is a moment for decision for all of us – and especially our politicians. We can create a better Scotland where poverty is a thing of the past.”

To tackle the cost of living for the people of Scotland, we demand the following –

1. A real pay rise for all public service workers

2. A social security system that loosens the grip of poverty

3. Warm homes, through municipal energy companies

4. Sustained action to tackle rent costs

5. Share the wealth, through income, wealth and business taxes

6. Universal free school meals

7. Cheap, publicly controlled public transport

8. More support for childcare

9. Enforcement of Fair Work