Tag: cuts

Industrial action warning over cuts at Edinburgh University

The University and College Union (UCU) Scotland has warned the principal of the University of Edinburgh that strikes and other forms of industrial action are a real possibility if senior management don’t roll back on threats of £140million cuts and take compulsory redundancies off the table.

UCU members at the university were asked in a consultative ballot if they would be willing to take strike action if the university didn’t rule out compulsory redundancies.  In a turnout of 59%, easily beating the anti-trade union threshold,  75% of members voting said that they would be willing to strike. 

85% said that they would also take part in action short of strike which could include working to contract and refusing to cover for absent colleagues or undertake voluntary duties.  If the same vote was repeated in a statutory ballot, which could open in the coming weeks, then the university will face the possibility of strikes and other action on campus.

The consultative ballot result follows the announcement on 25 February by the university principal, Professor Sir Peter Mathieson, that the university was looking to make cuts of £140million, and that cuts of this scale could not be made by voluntary redundancy alone. 

The announcement, sent by email, left university workers fearful that senior management are planning to sack staff using compulsory redundancies.

The union said that cuts of this size are unknown in Scottish higher education and questioned the role of management and the decision making at the university given there is currently no deficit, and to date, unions have not been shown any evidence that there is the prospect of one. 

The union cast doubt* on the necessity of the cuts, and said that, instead, the university should look to using some of its reserves to mitigate job cuts, as well as cutting back on capital expenditure.  Recent accounts for the university show net assets of over £3billion.

Jo Grady, UCU general secretary, said: “Edinburgh University management need to listen to their staff.  The consultative ballot results show a clear willingness to take action against cuts and to defend jobs. 

“Instead of pressing on with plans to make the biggest cuts ever seen in Scottish higher education, Peter Mathieson needs to work with UCU, use the university’s reserves and rule out compulsory redundancies. 

“Politicians need to up their game as well and make clear that cuts of this scale are completely unacceptable, unnecessary and will cause lasting harm to one of Scotland’s most respected universities.”

Branch president, Sophia Woodman, said: “This is a strong vote for industrial action by members in this consultative ballot.  Senior managers at the university should be under no illusion about the strength of feeling of staff. 

“Instead of manufacturing a crisis, senior managers should be sitting down with the union for talks and looking to resolve this dispute before it escalates further.  Members have been clear that they strongly oppose compulsory redundancies and we expect the principal to heed that message.”

*See the Edinburgh University Joint Unions Finances Working Group posts: ‘Management Is Manufacturing a ‘Financial Crisis’ to Impose Staff Cuts’ and ‘Cuts could kill our University’

Sarah Boyack: SNP’S £600M raid on Edinburgh revealed

Scottish Labour has revealed the SNP has cut an eye-watering £660 million from Edinburgh Council’s coffers over the last 12 years.

Local authorities across Scotland are currently being forced to make difficult choices to keep services afloat.

New analysis by Scottish Labour has shown that the SNP government cut a cumulative total of £7.8 billion from core Council budgets across Scotland between 2013-14 and 2025-26.

This includes an eyewatering £660 million in Edinburgh Council alone.

Scottish Labour has said these cuts have pushed Edinburgh Council to breaking point and left Scots paying the price for SNP failure.

The effect of this financial vandalism has been evident with core council services facing extreme financial pressure.

Edinburgh is also in the grips of a brutal housing crisis.

Commenting, Scottish Labour MSP for Lothian Sarah Boyack said: “Services in Edinburgh are under immense pressure because of the austerity the SNP has inflicted on Councils.

“The SNP government has short-changed Edinburgh Council year after year.

“These brutal cuts have pushed Councils across Scotland to breaking point and forced them to make impossible choices to protect lifeline services.

“Our capital is in desperate need of fair funding as the Council is struggling to deliver vital services with less and less resources.

“The Labour UK Government decisively ended the era of Tory austerity, but Scots are still being forced to pay the price for SNP failure.

“A Scottish Labour Government will put an end to SNP mismanagement and cuts and deliver fair funding for Edinburgh so working people don’t have to plug the gaps of government cuts.”

Scottish Labour Lothian MSP Foysol Choudhury added: “Years of the SNP Government underfunding our councils is hitting residents harder than ever.

“From social care, third sector services or the extortionate cost of housing the public are being forced to bear the consequences of SNP mismanagement yet again; Edinburgh and Lothian need a new direction.”

Cumulative cuts to core Council budgets, 2013-14 to 2025-26:

Local authorityTotal (£m)[FIGURE A]
Aberdeen City-107.7
Aberdeenshire-51.1
Angus-132.2
Argyll & Bute-376.9
Clackmannanshire-74.1
Dumfries & Galloway-329.0
Dundee City-231.1
East Ayrshire-136.1
East Dunbartonshire-45.1
East Lothian-49.7
East Renfrewshire-59.4
Edinburgh, City of-660.9
Eilean Siar-251.2
Falkirk-184.0
Fife-303.8
Glasgow City-1,544.0
Highland-443.3
Inverclyde-200.3
Midlothian3.6
Moray-28.8
North Ayrshire-158.7
North Lanarkshire-613.0
Orkney-92.3
Perth & Kinross-102.2
Renfrewshire-233.1
Scottish Borders-143.3
Shetland-223.6
South Ayrshire-120.1
South Lanarkshire-483.6
Stirling-100.8
West Dunbartonshire-217.0
West Lothian-88.7
Total-7,781.6

Unite CEC branch: Budget Demo

The City of Edinburgh Council will decide its budget for financial year 2025 to 2026 at the Full Council Meeting next Thursday – 20th February 2025.

A demo will take place outside the City Chambers on the High Street from 8.30am to 9.30am on the day.

The council budget debate starts at 10am and is also broadcast live on the City of Edinburgh Council webcast site

Our branch will send a deputation to the meeting to speak on behalf of our branch members.

Look at the council budget papers on the council website for more details on what is being planned

COSLA: National Insurance Funding Won’t Cover Costs For Councils

£96 MILLION SHORTFALL, warns COSLA

COSLA is clear that the proposed funding from Scottish Government won’t cover additional Employers National Insurance costs, and councils still face an extremely challenging financial position as they set their budgets.

COSLA Resources Spokesperson, Councillor Katie Hagmann, commented: “We note that the Scottish Government has announced it will fund £144m of the additional direct staffing costs that will result from the UK Government’s policy decision rise to Employers National Insurance. However, this leaves  a gap of £96 million Councils will still need to fill within their budgets.

“While we acknowledge that the UK government is still to announce additional resources, it is important to note that there has been no additional funding for commissioned services, the biggest of these being adult social care, which are also vital services and will see significant impacts.

“Given the mounting challenges for local government, this additional funding will not solve the crises councils and communities are facing, which are exacerbated by the Employers National Insurance increase.

“Difficult decisions will still need to be made as councils look to protect essential frontline services.”

Edinburgh’s Budget

Councillor Mandy Watt, Finance and Resources Convener, looks ahead to Council Budget day on Thursday 20 February:

Very soon, councillors will be making tough financial decisions to balance the council’s budget and set the rate at which Council Tax will be charged.

Given the increasing need for investment in infrastructure and services, we’ll have to raise Council Tax, parking charges and other fees to fund the delivery of services we all rely on. We are considering a recommended 8% rise in Council tax.

An 8% increase adds £9.65 per month to a band D property and would provide a total of £26 million across all bands for investment and service priorities.

A huge amount of work has already been done to consider options, with detailed proposals considered yesterday at a Special meeting of the Finance and Resources Committee. This has been informed by a huge consultation exercise with residents, and I want to thank all 3,260 people who took part.

We know from the consultation responses that people are aware of the financial challenges we face following years of underfunding, and many are open to a fair rise to Council Tax after last year’s freeze. Other councils are proposing increases of 10% and above, but we’re trying to keep Edinburgh’s increase lower because that’s what the majority of residents would prefer.

Residents also told us they’d like to see Councillors focus on several key priorities when setting this year’s budget. These include spending on education, investing in local facilities and upgrading our roads and pavements. We’ll use the money from an increase in Council Tax to protect and improve these services.

Investment proposals include continuing the extra £12.5 million for roads and pavements that was added last year, with a further £5 million for road safety, especially around schools. There will be five new schools and five extensions of existing schools and £26 million for special needs infrastructure. Fox Covert Joint Campus will be replaced and there’s £15 million for permanently replacing Blackhall Library.

The decision to recommend an 8% Council Tax increase was not taken lightly. Over the last decade cuts in core grant funding of over £400 million have been mitigated by council staff continually delivering more with less resources.

This year’s financial challenges are the UK Government’s increase in national insurance, costing the council £9 million and the Scottish Government changing the stability funding floor, taking away £6.3 million. Fortunately, the UK Government passed on £18million of pEPR (‘producer pays’) funding, which filled those gaps.

While we can expect a slightly better government grant this year following yesterday’s Scottish Parliament budget, the consequences of last year’s cuts to affordable housing remain clear to see.

Huge pressures on health and social care remain unaddressed by national governments. Yet again, Edinburgh is expected to be the lowest funded local authority in Scotland per head of population and we’ll still need to find best value efficiency savings to deal with service pressures of £40million and keep the books balanced this year.

National Insurance funding ‘vital for councils’

Finance Secretary calls for clarity as local authorities set their budgets

The employer National Insurance increase must be fully funded to ensure local authorities have the resources they need to serve their communities, Finance Secretary Shona Robison has said.

Ahead of an appearance before the local government committee next week, Ms Robison again called on the UK Government to provide urgent clarity over the funding to help the Scottish Government and local authorities finalise their budgets.

The Finance Secretary said: “Scotland’s public services face a bill of more than £700 million as a result of the UK Government’s increase in employer National Insurance Contributions.

“There have been indications of likely funding reported in the media, but these fail to take account of the fact that we have a larger public sector per person than other parts of the UK, leaving us some £300 million short.

“It feels like Scotland is now being punished for having decided to employ more people in the public sector and to invest in key public services.

“We know local authorities are already under significant financial pressure. This will only continue to build unless the UK Government reimburses us in full for their tax increase. Councils are in the process of setting their Budgets now, so the sooner we have clarity over this issue the better – this is needed urgently.

“The Scottish Government will continue to work closely with COSLA to press the UK Government to provide the funding needed to support public services in Scotland.”

The First Minister and President of COSLA wrote to the Chancellor on 3 January, supported by 48 public and voluntary sector organisations to raise concerns at the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance contributions and to seek clarity on funding.

National Insurance Contributions: public sector costs – gov.scot

New Year, Old Challenges?

EDINBURGH SOCIAL CARE ANTI-CUTS CONFERENCE

Preliminary Notice of Anti Cuts Conference – Saturday 18th January 2025

Augustine United Church – George IV Bridge Edinburgh

9.30 am – Doors Open – Tea/Coffee and Biscuits

10.00am – 1pm  Conference 

The Conference is being convened by Edinburgh Trade Union Council and the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC).

The purpose of the Conference is to consider how best to fight the social care and health service cuts that are being planned by the Edinburgh Integration Joint Board (EIJB).

Crucial budget decisions are going to be made by the Scottish Government and the City Council over the next two or three months which will determine the level of cuts.

The conference will discuss how best to lobby to obtain the resources  needed to meet service demands. This will include the services provided by  the  64 third sector organisations Edinburgh that are threatened with cuts and redundancies.

The conference is open to the public. The agenda will be an introductory session, workshops and a final plenary session. The conference will have input from speakers from the STUC. We will invite a speaker from amongst the Councillors on the EIJB and a speaker representative of Edinburgh community health organisations. 

We hope the conference will be able to draw up a City wide plan for lobbying and campaigning.

More details of the conference will be circulated on Monday 6th January 2025. Any comments or queries in the meantime will be responded to on 23/12/24 and 27/12/24.

Regards,

Des Loughney

Secretary, Edinburgh Trade Union Council

EIJB funding crisis: The Third Sector relationship with the EIJB

THIRD SECTOR INTERFACE BRIEFING NOTE:

The financial situation of the Edinburgh Integration Joint Board (EIJB) is very challenging. In 2025/26, the IJB seek to realise around £51m of savings. Future years will see further savings required, currently estimated to be £76m in 2026/27 and £105m in 2027/28.  

These savings will be difficult and their impact will be substantial.  So, managing change, and ensuring key services are delivered to communities will require collaboration by the IJB and city partners, including the Third Sector.

Reference Group

On November 1 2024, Third Sector representatives presented deputations to the EIJB challenging proposals around the Third Sector Grants Programme and an in-year cut (2024/2025). The IJB did not approve the proposal for the in-year cut with an alternative proposal being approved. 

Following that meeting, the IJB invited Third Sector representatives to talk through concerns and identify areas to work together. To inform those meetings, EVOC and their TSI partners collaborated with the Edinburgh Community Health Forum and representatives of other Third Sector interests across the city to create a Reference Group.

The purpose of the Reference Group is to:

  1. inform governance and city partnerships
  2. assert the value of the Sector
  3. shape investment
  4. support change
  5. distil the voices of the Third Sector to effectively represent the sector on the IJB

EIJB Engagement and Proposals

The Reference Group has rapidly considered the short-term issues around funding, and the longer-term issues of future partnership models, sharing a briefing note with the IJB on issues and options in early December. The engagement with EIJB has been positive given the difficult circumstances, and this positive engagement has resulted in an EIJB paper to the December Board which recommends:

  • That the Health Inequalities grants programme, due to end on 31 March 2025 should be extended for three months into 2025/26 which will help provide time for the organisations affected to adapt.
  • The Board support work currently underway to undertake a series of collaborative workshops which will inform some of the savings proposals and invest-to-save opportunities that will be submitted for consideration by the EIJB in March 2025.

In the current landscape this is a positive outcome for the Third Sector, informed directly by the voice, needs and priorities of the Sector.

City of Edinburgh Council Engagement and Proposals

Given the challenges to funding for the Third Sector and the impact cuts will have to the viability of Third Sector Organisations, the Reference Group have also argued the need for a cross city partnership approach to investment.

Following the November 1 EIJB meeting, the TSI wrote to the Chair of the EIJB, the Chief Executive of City of Edinburgh Council and NHS Lothian asserting the need to [a] reset investment [b] reform ways of working [c] repair relationships. In the immediate term, a key priority is to secure a commitment from City of Edinburgh to invest to mitigate the risks to critical and anchor organisations.

On December 10 the Council Policy and Sustainability Committee considered and approved a proposal that recognised that the Council may need to provide core or foundational funding to stabilise vital third sector organisations. The TSI with ECHF collaborated to present a joint deputation, welcoming the Council proposal, and offering support.

Council officers were instructed to:

  • Work on a briefing paper for the Council’s political groups on what the Third sector needs now, specifically transitional funding, medium term, ahead of the Council setting its budget in February;
  • Undertake a review of all grant funding, exploring the provision of longer term, sustainable funding;
  • Work with the Edinburgh Partnership and Third Sector to co-design solutions, and agree terms of reference for a short life group and report back to Policy and Sustainability Committee in March.

Priorities: December EIJB meeting and Future Planning

The Reference Group will continue to meet and shape the next steps. An immediate priority is to agree on Terms of Reference and confirm representatives in the Group. We will be sharing a set of proposals before Christmas for your consideration.

A strong voice is essential to shape the long-term relationship with the EIJB and in particular the workshop series in spring 2025.

The Edinburgh TSI with EVOC and others from the Reference Group will support the paper to the EIJB on December 17 on progress on the Third Sector Grants Programme and the next steps in working collaboratively with the Sector, and also with the City of Edinburgh Council.

The EIJB Paper is available here: 6.3 Third Sector Commissioning 25-26 Engagement Update.pdf

If you need any further information in advance of the IJB meeting tomorrow (Tuesday 17 December), please get in touch with us or reach out to any member of the Reference Group.

We will also provide regular briefings on progress, through the fortnightly EVOC E-news and targeted updates on key information as necessary.

Dairmaid Lawlor, TSI Chair

NHS Lothian: Veterans First Point service to be closed down

NHS Lothian has taken the difficult decision to withdraw joint funding from a service that provides support to veterans in Lothian, following a stark financial review.

The health board has told Veterans First Point Lothian staff and patients that it can no longer provide its share – £214,778 – of the total budget required, to maintain the service amid the significant financial challenge facing health boards.

Veterans First Point Lothian was jointly funded by Scottish Government and NHS Lothian as a “one-stop shop” offering support, advice and mental health care for veterans. It is a multi-award-winning service that has provided support to over 2500 different veterans throughout the last 15 years.

By April 2025, the service will cease to exist in its current form and a significant redesign and move of premises is planned by March 2025.

It comes as NHS Lothian is forced to review all services and departments in a bid to make efficiency savings of seven per cent following the budget allocation made earlier this year.

Further reductions in part of the mental health budget of 4.6 per cent means that the health board can no longer continue to find its share of this service.

Tracey McKigen, Director of Royal Edinburgh Hospital and Associated Services, NHS Lothian, said: “This has been a really difficult decision and we apologise to all of our patients and staff who are affected. We would like to thank the team for their dedication and commitment to supporting our veterans over the years.

“This is no reflection on the quality of the Veterans First Point Lothian service, but it does serve as a stark reminder of the extremely difficult choices that we are facing every day as we balance the need to provide safe and effective healthcare while meeting the severe financial challenges facing health board and other public sector organisations.”

Scottish Government will allocate its 40 per cent share of the funding and NHS Lothian is currently reviewing the future service provision possible within the remaining budget.

However it does mean that Veterans First Point Lothian will no longer be able to accept new referrals or commence any new episodes of treatment. Veterans, who are impacted by the change, are urged to contact the team to discuss alternative support.

If veterans feel they need help or support and are not already part of Veterans First Point Lothian, they should contact their GP during the day, and at evenings and weekends they should contact NHS 24 on 111.

Spending slashed as urgent action taken to balance Scottish Budget

£500 million in savings to ease ‘enormous’ pressure on public finances

Holyrood’s Finance Secretary Shona Robison has outlined the urgent action being taken to balance the 2024-25 Scottish Budget in the face of “enormous and growing pressure on the public finances”.  

Highlighting the continuing effects of Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the cost of living crisis, alongside UK Government spending decisions, Ms Robison said difficult decisions were required.

The total savings, worth up to £500 million, include:

  • Implementing emergency spending controls across the public sector, particularly targeting recruitment, overtime, travel and marketing
  • Ending the ScotRail Peak Fares pilot
  • Mirroring the UK Government’s policy to means test Winter Fuel Payment
  • Making additional savings across portfolios, including in sustainable and active travel and in health and social care

The Finance Secretary said she was also currently planning to use up to £460 million of additional ScotWind revenue to address in-year pressures in 2024-25.

Ms Robison said: “This Government has consistently warned of the significance of the financial challenge ahead.

Prolonged Westminster austerity, the economic damage of Brexit, a global pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the cost of living crisis have all placed enormous and growing pressure on the public finances.

“In the last three years alone cumulative CPI inflation has seen prices increase by 18.9%, diminishing how far money will go for households and governments alike.

“In the face of these challenges, the Scottish Government has stepped in to support people and services where it has been needed most: on social security, health and public services. But we have done so without equivalent action from the UK Government, which has repeatedly failed to properly review the adequacy of funding settlements.

“We cannot ignore the severe financial pressures we face. We will continue to be a fiscally responsible government and balance the budget each year, as we have done every year for 17 years and as we will do again this year. But this will mean we must unfortunately take difficult decisions along the way.”

Responding to today’s statement by Scottish Government Finance Secretary Shona Robison, Poverty Alliance chief executive Peter Kelly said: “People in Scotland believe in justice and compassion. They know that we need a strong social foundation so we can look out for each other and help people build a life beyond the injustice of poverty.

“But we’re now being left with holes in the fabric of Scottish society that will likely make life even harder for people on low incomes who are already being pushed towards debt, hunger, homelessness, and destitution. That is completely unjust, irresponsible and unnecessary.

“We are a rich country, and our collective wealth has grown massively over the decades. Past generations used that wealth to plan and budget for the public good, and MSPs and Ministers must now urgently use their powers over tax and investment to build a better, fairer future for all of us – and especially those in poverty. Economic growth will not fix the holes in society, unless it comes along with increased social investment.

“We are very concerned about the effect of cuts to mental health support and adult social care. We know that people in poverty are more likely to need that support, and data shows a growing risk of poverty for disabled people.

“We are deeply disappointed that plans to expand concessionary bus travel to people in the asylum system have been scrapped, along with a return to peak fares on ScotRail. We all need the freedom to travel, but too many of us simply can’t afford the fares.

“Organisations like the STUC and IPPR Scotland have published concrete plans that show how the Scottish Government can use powers over tax to invest billions of pounds every year in our shared society.

“We can build better budgets that give people the means to build a better future, to create a true wellbeing economy that supports fair work, and a just transition to the net zero future that we urgently need.”

Reacting to the Scottish Government’s Pre-Budget Fiscal Statement, STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer: “With every cut announced by the Scottish Government today, workers and communities across Scotland will be scarred for generations to come.

“For over two years now, we’ve told the Scottish Government they had almost £3.7 billion worth of untapped revenue at their fingertips through increasing tax on the rich. They could have acted. They chose not to. We are in no doubt that brutal Tory austerity has had an undeniable impact on Scotland’s finances. But the Scottish Government must take responsibility for their own cuts. They cannot be allowed to escape scrutiny.

“Public sector workers have faced more than a decade of falling real wages, lagging far behind those in the private sector. Those workers not only have the right to demand above inflation pay rises, but, if our public services are to improve, improvements in pay are non-negotiable. 

“All eyes now turn to the Chancellor but it’s a shambles that we’re awaiting some form of salvation, if any is forthcoming, from the UK Government when our government in Holyrood could have done so much more.

“The people of Scotland do not want a Scottish Government that administers cuts while annunciating the droopy mantra of ‘it wizny me’. They want politicians that choose to govern – and that means taxing the rich to invest in the services that we all rely on.”

The Finance Secretary has outlined the savings in a letter to the Finance and Public Administration Committee (FPAC).

Ms Robison also proposed that the next Scottish Budget takes place on the 4th December, subject to the agreement of FPAC and the Scottish Fiscal Commission.