Anti-cuts meeting goes ahead tonight

RWCC (2)

The anti-cuts meeting will take place tonight at 6.30 in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre. We hope to finish by 8pm.

Edinburgh Anti-Cuts Alliance will be there to give us an update on what’s happening in other parts of the city and local councillor Cammy Day will join us after his surgery to answer any questions you might have about the proposed budget cuts and how they will affect our area.

We will then discuss plans for the mass lobby of the Council on 12 February when the budget will be set.

We hope you can join us.

Anna Hutchison
On behalf of WIG (Womens International Group) 

Active Citizenship asks: The Vow delivered?

Edinburgh Active Citizenship Group is holding a free public seminar on Scotland’s changing democracy next month:

vow

The Smith Commission – The Vow delivered?

Speaker: Professor Nicola McEwen, University of Edinburgh

  • What exactly is being proposed?
  • How likely is it to happen?
  • What difference will it make?
  • How can we influence the outcome?

Wednesday 4 February 7-9 pm

Thomson’s Land, Moray House, St John’ Street (off the Canongate)

No need to book – just turn up. If you have any specific requirements please let us know at least a week in advance.

For more info telephone: 0131 558 3545

or email ActiveCitizenshipGroup@@gmail.com

Granton & District CC to meet 26 January

RWCC (2)
Please note that the next meeting of the Granton & District Community Council will take place on Monday 26th January at Royston & Wardieburn Community Centre at 7.00 pm. 
Various items will be discussed:
  • Update on the cuts
  • Granton Harbour Development
  • Waterfront Development
  • 20 mph campaign.
Hope to see you there.
Dave Macnab, 
Secretary, Granton and District Community Council
Follow us on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/GrantonDistCC

Council budget cuts: meeting at Royston Wardieburn next week

Womens International Group (WIG) are holding a follow up meeting from our 9 December one – the council budget Cuts will be announced  soon. 
The meeting will take place on:
Wednesday 14  January
at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre at 6-30pm.
We are hoping the local councillors will be in attendance to be able to answer questions regarding the cuts .
All welcome
Anna Hutchison (on behalf of WIG) 
COUNCIL BUDGET NEWS:
CityChambers
 It was announced this week that more than 1,200 council jobs could go over the next three years under proposals to plug the city’s £67m funding gap.
The council insists there will be no compulsory redundancies and said the planned ‘transformation of services’ was designed to make them more efficient and customer focused.
City council Finance Convener Cllr Alistair Rankin said: “Of course change on this scale brings challenges but we need to take decisive action now to meet our targets and create a stronger, leaner, more agile council to better serve the people of Edinburgh.”Among the proposals under consideration are offering more services online, having a neighbourhood approach for face-to-face services and cutting grants to the voluntary sector by as much as 10%.The latest restructuring proposals will be considered by the Finance and Resources committee on Thursday and consultation with staff and trade unions is also being planned.

See below for relevant Council reports:

Item_7.3___BOLD_business_cases___delivering_a_lean_and_agile_Council

Item_8.1___Organise_to_Deliver___Next_Steps

Soapbox: A partly political broadside!

While the referendum was the big political story in Scotland last year, the rise and rise of UKIP hit the headines south of the border. Now it’s General Election year, and Broughton High School student ROSS COWPER thinks the country may be going backwards …

Ukip-s-Revolution-poster-538909

This is a party political broadcast by the UK independence party …

With the re-election of Mark Reckless to parliament in the Rochester and Strood by-election in November, it is safe to say that UKIP are gaining some ground in the political dog race.

Over the past year the party seemed to attract more and more under 30 year old’s to join them in getting rid of foreigners together, and turning good old Blighty back to the 50’s.

UKIP recently served up a slightly ironic new poster to the public, copying Russell Brand’s Revolution, which has turned the letters ‘evol’ around to spell ‘love’ – not something immediately thought of when thinking of UKIP!

Maybe UKIP are trying to appeal to Russell Brand’s younger audience (not necessarily supporters of Brand), in the hope of making them bigots from an early age. They will hopefully stay with the party to their dying day, where Britain is safe from those damn Europeans!

Perish the thought that if you went back far enough into a person’s history you will find they are actually originally through blood from southern France, for example, and not ‘truly English’ at all. No that would never do, it’s inconceivable!

So what can teens really expect under the ‘purple revolution’? It feels like I am repeating myself here but I guess that’s what UKIP wish. On their site the caption: ‘love Britain again’ and to accompany is the Winston Churchill’s famous ‘V for Victory’ gesture. Tell me again if I am repeating myself. Yes, it is great that Britain was part of the victory through World War Two, and Winston Churchill commanded that era, but you can’t go back and try to live off this forever – and if some people don’t like it, they’re seen as Nazi lovers! Seems like blackmail to me – and who are the real fascists now anyway?

I can’t imagine Russell Brand reacting positvely to this UKiP message; although he doesn’t think people should vote anyway, but instead rise up to challenge the establishment. Ironically this is where UKIP may have the upper hand: they don’t appear to be part of that ‘establishment’.

Farage has manifested himself (and his party) to look like a beer-swilling man of the people; people who know immigrants are to blame for all our troubles. If UKIP were a man, that man would be Farage, I guess.

UKIP supporters feel disenfranchised and believe that the political class ignores ordinary people, so why not change? I am all for change, to redistribute wealth, to help other countries in corrupt situations and for every human to have their rights.

I do want change, just not this change: I call UKIP’s change stepping backwards in time.

Sturgeon ‘confident’ over votes for young people

Entente cordiale over votes for 16 and 17 year olds

cross

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has expressed confidence that the powers necessary to allow 16 and 17 year-olds to vote will be devolved to Holyrood in time for the next Scottish Parliament elections.

Speaking outside Number 10 Downing Street yesterday after her first meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron since she took office, Ms Sturgeon said she believed both Scottish and UK governments would give the matter the required focus to allow the franchise to be extended before the 2016 vote.

The First Minister said the talks had been “constructive and cordial” and that there was a will on behalf of both governments to work together in the interests of the people in Scotland.

But she warned that the early devolution of the necessary powers via a Section 30 order, would offer a significant early test of Westminster’s desire to implement the wider Smith Commission proposals.

The First Minister said: “The talks with the Prime Minister in Downing Street were constructive and cordial. Clearly David Cameron and I have big political differences and different views on the constitutional future of Scotland, but there was a real appetite on the part of both to find ways of working together in the interests of the people of Scotland.

“Following the meeting, I am confident that we now have the basis of a deal on the necessary devolution of powers to extend the franchise to 16 and 17 year-olds in time for the 2016 election, giving us the opportunity to build on the huge success of the engagement we saw in the referendum.

“But we need to move quickly if this is going to happen. We need to see a Section 30 order that will transfer the legal power to the Scottish Parliament before Westminster breaks up for the General Election to give us the requisite time to enact primary legislation. Following my discussions today, I think that timetable has been accepted and we now need to see a focus by both governments to make it happen.”

Ms Sturgeon added: “The process necessary to transfer the franchise powers is not just important because it will extend the right to vote to 16 and 17 year olds in Scotland. It offers a significant early test of the desire on the part of Westminster to implement the wider proposals contained within the Smith Commission.

“Given the goodwill outlined by both parties during today’s discussions, there is no reason that the focus and desire to take forward this particular change so swiftly should not be extended to the rest of the Commission’s recommendations.”

s300_number10Downing Street said the first official meeting between the two leaders had been ‘very cordial and constructive’.

A spokesperson said:  “They discussed the Smith Commission’s recommendation on the Scottish Parliament having the power to extend the vote to 16 and 17 year olds, and the Prime Minister told the First Minister that he will do all he can to ensure 16 and 17 year olds can vote in next Holyrood elections.

“They also agreed to establish a joint ministerial working group with UK and Scottish Government ministers to look at practical implementation and transitional issues around Department for Work and Pensions programmes.

“The Prime Minister made clear that he wants to work with the First Minister, forging even stronger ties between our governments and our Parliaments and working together on the big issues for the future of Scotland and the United Kingdom.”

Muirhouse & Salvesen Community Council

JAMES McGINTY reports on Muirhouse Salvesen Community Council’s annual general meeting:

ccThe Community Council held their Annual General Meeting in Muirhouse Millennium Community Centre on 20 October. Eight people were present to hear Chairperson Roy Douglas welcome everyone, gave the apologies for the four councillors and introduce guest speaker Christine Mackay, manager of the Total Craigroyston project.

Mr Douglas then stated that “during the meeting we would be looking at the year past and the year ahead.”  The Chairperson later laid out in the form of a document the aims and goals of the Community Council and listed the achievements for 2013/14.

He highlighted the community council’s input to the Pennywell & Muirhouse Master Plan and new Health Partnership Hub and the support given to local groups and organisations in the Muirhouse.

These groups and organisations to benefit from the Council’s support were:

  • The Centipede project (The Old Kirk and Muirhouse Church) started by Linda Dunbar, who has now moved on to a new position within the Church of Scotland.
  • The highly acclaimed Community Shop in Pennywell shopping centre.
  • My Adventure and the forthcoming £200 donation to the bothy project in the borders from the Community Council.
  • Assisting Friends of Linear Park and finally cleaning up the lane between Salvesen and the Waterfront.

The Financial Report was then discussed and approved.

christineGuest speaker Christine Mackay (above) then gave an in depth report on the Total Craigroyston project and conducted a question and answer session centred on this far reaching and ambitious Project.

WPCWPC Helen Lyon (above) gave a police report, highlighting the area’s problems and the steps towards alleviating them.

All in all, a very well structured and transparent AGM, but we would ask members of the community to come along and give more support to what is your own communities’ council – especially as more powers are being handed down from the City of Edinburgh Council.

James McGinty

Muirhouse & Salvesen Community Council

Youth Parliament Chair encourages candidates to stand for election

 ‘grasp this opportunity to ensure young people are continually at the forefront of shaping our society’ – Louise Cameron, Chair SYP

syp

The Scottish Youth Parliament elections will be held in March next year and the call is now open for young people all over the country to register their interest and stand as candidates to represent young people in their area.

The Scottish Youth Parliament is the democratically elected voice of Scotland’s young people and campaigns on a wide range of issues, and represents young people all over Scotland. It gives young people a national platform to voice their issues, turn them into positive actions, and influence Scotland’s decision makers.

To register interest to represent a local constituency, young people aged 14-25 should complete a Candidate Expression of Interest Form by Friday 31 October. Further information is available atwww.syp.org.uk/elections.

Louise Cameron, Chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament, said: “During what is such an exciting time to be involved in the heart of Scottish politics, I am delighted to announce that the call for candidates is now open for the SYP Elections 2015.

“The Scottish Youth Parliament is an entirely youth-led organisation, and Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament represent the views of young people across Scotland and strive to make a real difference by campaigning on the issues that matter the most to young people.

“Being a Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament is a truly life changing experience. I would like to encourage young people from all over the country to consider standing as a candidate and to grasp this opportunity to ensure young people are continually at the forefront of shaping our society.”

Current Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYPs) have produced a promotional video to encourage others to get involved in this opportunity to stand as a candidate and potentially become an MSYP.

The SYP Elections promotional video can be viewed at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdPFjHPgD6Q&list=UU3lS9jY21U4jVSnhYkAK3kw

Granton and District Community Council meets on Monday

Granton&district

Granton & District Community Council meets on Monday 27 October at 7pm in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre, Pilton Drive North.

Guest speaker is Total Craigroyston project manager Christine Mackay. All welcome.

For further information visit http://grantonanddistrictcommunitycouncil.com/

Agenda _Oct 2014_Final