Category: North Edinburgh News

Change of heart? Parents and guardians given extra time to claim back childcare costs with Universal Credit

Have the Tories got a heart after all? An extra month to claim back childcare costs could mean parents avoid missing out on up to £1,100 per month … Continue reading Change of heart? Parents and guardians given extra time to claim back childcare costs with Universal Credit

Appeal after Royal Mile whisky robbery

Police are investigating following a high-value break-in and theft in the city centre. The incident happened sometime between 10pm on Friday 7th September and 6.40am on Saturday 8th September at the Whisky Trail licensed premises on the High Street.

After entry was forced to the store, almost 50 bottles of valuable whisky were stolen. Continue reading Appeal after Royal Mile whisky robbery

World Suicide Prevention Day: Scottish Government announces new lived experiencepanel

People affected by suicide will join a new panel to inform and educate on the ways to prevent suicide.

The panel will be made up of those who have previously attempted suicide or who have experienced suicidal thoughts and those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Continue reading World Suicide Prevention Day: Scottish Government announces new lived experiencepanel

A quarter of all iPhones are smashed: 5% are totally unusable

27% of smartphones have smashed glass at any one time, survey finds

We’ve all got the friend with a smashed smartphone – trying to view their phone screen in between shards of broken glass – putting off the day when they must spend £100 to get it sorted. Continue reading A quarter of all iPhones are smashed: 5% are totally unusable

More Brexit help for EU citizens

Advice and support to stay in Scotland

EU citizens affected by changes to the immigration rules as a result of Brexit are to be offered extra support and advice.

The EU Citizens’ Rights Project, backed by £50,000 from the Scottish Government, will deliver nationwide events to raise awareness about what they need to do to stay in Scotland after Brexit.

The focus will be on helping vulnerable EU citizens who may have more complex needs or who may face barriers to applying for settled status, and may need additional support. Immigration lawyers will offer expert advice and interpretation will be available where appropriate.

Migration Minister Ben Macpherson said: “EU citizens significantly enrich our society and make a huge contribution to Scotland’s economy and public services. My message to them is simple: you will always be welcome in Scotland, we want you to stay and we will support you to stay. That is why the Scottish Government launched our Stay in Scotland campaign earlier this year.

“It is deplorable that the UK Government is forcing EU citizens to apply to retain their existing rights, and we continue to urge the UK Government to implement a declaratory system. However we also want to ensure that people remain in Scotland and that they are informed and supported when applying for settled status.

“That is why we are funding the Citizens’ Rights Project to deliver a series of outreach and information events for EU citizens and their families across Scotland. These events will raise awareness of the EU Settlement Scheme, provide applicants with the necessary information, and signpost to available support to help people to stay.”

Noelia Martinez, Project Coordinator for the Citizens Rights Project, said: “This type of support is extremely important for EU citizens in Scotland who are concerned about what would happen to their rights after Brexit.

“Many, like myself, have successfully applied for Settled Status, but we know from our previous outreach and information work that there are still lots of EU citizens who are not sure about how to apply, or have faced difficulties in making application.

“This further funding is very welcome, as it will allow us to continue our work, with an emphasis in particular on reaching vulnerable EU citizens, and those who live in more remote areas of Scotland.”

 

“Broken economy” is driving record levels of household debt, warns TUC

Low pay, insecure work and austerity are feeding a growing debt crisis, the TUC has warned.

New TUC analysis published today shows that:

  • Unsecured debt per household rose to £15,880 in the first quarter of 2019, up £1,160 on a year earlier.
  • Over half of households report having unsecured debt, most commonly in the form of credit card debt (60%), overdraft (28%), personal loans (25%) and car finance (25%).
  • Young people are disproportionately likely to be in debt. 70% of 18-34 year-olds report having a type of unsecured debt. This drops to 33% among people over 65.

The TUC believes that persistent low pay is the key driver of household debt. Real wages are still lower than they were before the 2008 crisis and working families are struggling to make ends meet without going into the red.

The latest analysis also shows that of those households with unsecured debt:

  • 1 in 5 say repayments are a “heavy burden on their finances”.
  • 1 in 7 (14%) have fallen more than two months behind on repayments in the last year.
  • 45% don’t feel that they have enough money set aside for emergencies.

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Our broken economy is forcing working families deep into debt.

“Low pay, insecure work and austerity have pushed millions of households to the financial cliff edge. Big corporations are raking in huge profits at working people’s expense. And successive governments have done nothing to avert the crisis.

“It’s time to reset the balance of power in our workplaces and our economy. Government must make more employers negotiate pay and conditions with unions. That will lift wages for everyone and stop working families having to rely on credit cards and overdrafts to get through the month.”

The TUC has published new proposals to ensure that workers get the chance to negotiate better pay and conditions through trade unions. These include:

– unions having access to workplaces to tell workers about the benefits of trade union membership, following the model in New Zealand

– new rights to make it easier for unions to gain the right to negotiate at workplace level

– new rights for unions to negotiate right across sectors, starting with hospitality and social care

The TUC is also calling for:

  • a £10 National Minimum Wage to be introduced as quickly as possible
  • a ban on zero-hours contracts, and a crack down on insecure work that means people don’t know how much they’ll earn from one week to the next