Tag: Iain Duncan Smith

Civic Scotland urges halt to Universal Credit roll-out

An open letter to Iain Duncan Smith:

DuncanSmith

We – the undersigned – are writing with a united voice from across civic Scotland to call on the UK Government to immediately suspend the further implementation of Universal Credit in Scotland until the process of legislating for new powers for the Scottish Parliament is complete.

We know from the Smith Agreement that the bill for further powers that is currently being drafted, will include significant new welfare powers. The detail of how these powers will interact with the Universal Credit system will be complex and require careful consideration and planning. The legislation around welfare is complex and is regularly being adapted: since the enactment of the Welfare Reform Act 2012, there have already been over 40 Statutory Instruments passed by Westminster to bring into force many of its provisions.

Any system of welfare has to be safe and secure. Driving through Universal Credit in Scotland at this stage will create unnecessary administrative complication in an already complex process. The sensible way to roll out Universal Credit in Scotland is to do it once, when the Scotland-specific elements have been carefully planned and incorporated into it. This would avoid wasting precious time and scarce resources, and would protect vulnerable people from bureaucratic change that could wreak havoc.

A key recommendation of the Smith Commission was to significantly improve intergovernmental working between Westminster and Holyrood; this is a golden opportunity to do just that. So we ask you to act immediately to suspend the next phase of the roll-out of Universal Credit in Scotland, before it is scheduled to start in February.

Our diverse, united voices demonstrate that our call is not about politics. It is about protecting the most vulnerable people in our society and creating an effective, robust new system for delivering welfare. Our call is about responsible, effective governance.

Mary Taylor, Chief Executive, SFHA on behalf of my 56 co-signatories, listed below:

Age Scotland – Brian Sloan, CEO

Business for Scotland – Brandon Malone, Interim Chair

Church of Scotland – Rt Rev John Chalmers, Moderator of the General Assembly

Coalition of Care Support Providers in Scotland – Annie Gunner Logan, Director,

Common Weal – The Board

Constitutional Commission – John Drummond, Chairman

Council of Mortgage Lenders – Kennedy Foster, Policy Consultant, Scotland

Cyrenians – Ewan Aitken, CEO

Development Trusts Association – Ian Cooke, Director

East Lothian Tenants and Residents Panel – Mark Ormiston, Chair Person

Edinburgh Tenants Federation – Betty Stevenson, Convenor

Engender – Emma Ritch, Executive Director

Food Train – Michelle McCrindle, CEO

Glasgow & West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations – David Bookbinder, Director

Health & Social Care Alliance Scotland – Ian Welsh, CEO

Inclusion Scotland – Bill Scott, Director of Policy

Money Advice Scotland – Yvonne MacDermid OBE, CEO

Quarriers – Alice Drife, CEO

Scottish Association of Social Work – Trisha Hall, Country Manager

Scottish Children’s Services Coalition – Sophie Pilgrim, Member

Scottish Community Alliance – Angus Hardie, Director

Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations – Martin Sime, CEO

Scottish Out of School Care Network – Irene Audain MBE, CEO

Scottish Trade Unions Council – David Moxham, Deputy General Secretary

Scottish Women’s Aid – Lily Greenan, CEO

Sense Scotland – Andy Kerr, CEO

Social Enterprise Scotland – Fraser Kelly, CEO

Social Firms Scotland – Pauline Graham, CEO

St Martins Parish Pastoral Council, Tranent – Fr James Smith. Parish Priest

The Equality Network – Tim Hopkins, Director

The Jimmy Reid Foundation – Bob Thomson, Convener

The Poverty Alliance Peter Kelly, Director

The Wise Group – Laurie Russell, CEO

The Trussell Trust – David McAuley, CEO

Turning Point Scotland – Martin Cawley, CEO

Who Cares? Scotland – Duncan Dunlop, CEO

Voluntary Action Scotland – Calum Irving, CEO

Voluntary Health Scotland – Claire Stevens, CEO

YouthLink Scotland – Jim Sweeney, CEO

Zero Tolerance – Laura Tomson, Co-director

Signatories from Housing Assoc. due to be part of the next stage of Universal Credit roll-out:

ARK Housing Association – Jane Gray, CEO

Barony Housing Association – Rebecca Wilson, CEO

Bield Housing & Care – Brian Logan, CEO

Blackwood – Fanchea Kelly, CEO

Cairn Housing Association – Jason MacGilp, CEO

Castle Rock Edinvar Housing Association – Alister Steele, Managing Director

Dunedin Canmore Group – Ewan Fraser, CEO

Hanover (Scotland) Housing Association – Helen Murdoch, CEO

Knowes Housing Association – Pierre De Fence, Director

Lister Housing Co-operative – Alistair Cant, Director

Manor Estates Housing Association – Lynn McDonald, Director

Melville Housing Association – Andrew Noble, CEO

Prospect Community Housing – Brendan Fowler, Director

Trafalgar Housing Association – Paul McShane, Director

Trust Housing Association – Bob McDougall, CEO

West Granton Housing Co-operative – Gerry Gillies, CEO

And a song for May Day

North Edinburgh activist Willie Black has been immortalised in song!

Lifelong socialist Willie (pictured below), who’s from Granton, hit the national headlines back in March when he famously harangued DWP minister Iain Duncan Smith at an Edinburgh hotel. The story made the national news broadcasts and proved to be a big internet hit, and the incident has now been captured in ‘The Ratbag Song’, which you can hear here:

It’s thought unlikely that Citizen Smart, the song’s composer and performer, will be appearing on ‘The Voice’ any time soon!

WillieBlack

Left wing firebrand and IDS are ‘old chums’

WillieBlack

Left wing campaigner Willie Black (pictured above) hit the headlines last week when he branded Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith a ‘scumbag’ at a conference in Edinburgh’s posh George Hotel. The Granton man’s attack on the Tory minister was seen by millions on news broadcasts and across social media sites – but what viewers didn’t know is that Black is actually related to some of the noblest families in the land, and that he and Duncan Smith are in fact old friends!

“It’s true”, said retired merchant banker Farquhar Finlay-Cameron. “William does indeed have blue blood in his veins and he can trace his family history back many generations. The Blackstone-Cuthbertson family seat was in the western highlands, as I recall. William and I roomed together at boarding school and he often stayed with our family over the school hols. We got up to some really jolly japes, I can tell you! We lost touch when William went down to Oxford and I went to Cambridge, but we still meet up at the start of the grouse shooting season every year. It was rather a shock to see him attacking IDS on television as I know the pair were inseparable at Oxford – they were known as ‘Laurel and Hardy’! Mother was very upset when she saw William’s outburst on television – he used to have such a cultured voice and she felt he sounded rather uncouth! I shall certainly rib him about this if I see him at Royal Ascot this summer!”

IAIN DUNCAN SMITH 'inseperable'
IAIN DUNCAN SMITH ‘inseperable’

Theatre impresario Sir Cyril Westmacott-Smythe was an Oxford contemporary, studying Classics with ‘Laurel and Hardy’. He recalls: “I was one of the less privileged students but IDS and Wills always treated me as an equal – I remember Wills was kind enough to give me one of his old smoking jackets and the occasional morning suit. He was like that – so generous to us poorer types. I shall always be grateful for his support – and I still treasure the opera glasses Wills and IDS bought me as a graduation gift.

“Oh, we had such fun – there were some memorable characters but Wills and IDS were the life and soul of every soiree. Wills was a particularly good pianist and he and Iain would regularly entertain us with songs from the Gilbert and Sullivan songbook. They were supremely talented and much admired, and I had rather hoped to take the pair up to Edinburgh for the Fringe, as a Hinge and Bracket type duo. Sadly politics prevailed and it wasn’t to be – theatre’s loss was the class struggle’s gain, as it were – although they do say that politics is pantomime, so you could say the chaps are still performing and putting on a show! I do hope to meet up with them at Klosters next winter when we can relive those halcyon days.”

Willie Black claims to be a lifelong socialist and is currently a leading light in the North Edinburgh Fights Back campaign group. One comrade, who asked not to be named, said: “A few of us have had our suspicions about Willie for some time. Aye, he talked a good talk about the working class struggle and that, but when we went for a drink after our meetings he only ever sipped Pimm’s and lemonade. And after one demo when we stopped for chips Willie brought a silver knife and fork out of the pocket of his donkey jacket – and a clean napkin! Aye, some of us had our doubts and we’ve been proved right – another champagne socialist!”

Willie Black  – or rather William Blackstone-Cuthbertson – was unavailable for comment, but his friend Rupert suggested he may be salmon fishing on the Balmoral estate with Toby and Crispin.

Iain Duncan Smith was also unavailable for comment but a spokesperson said the minister ‘hopes to do some recreational angling over the Easter holidays’.

OXFORD dreaming spires
OXFORD dreaming spires