The North Edinburgh community pledged to fight Health and Social Care funding cuts at a packed meeting at Muirhouse Millennium Centre last night. Continue reading Community organisations to fight funding cuts
Tag: Politics
Brexit: Call for Citizens’ Assembly
Campaigning organisation Compass is calling for a Citizen’s Assembly to extricate the country from a mess politicians seem incapable of resolving: Continue reading Brexit: Call for Citizens’ Assembly
Budget: saving public services?
The 2019-20 Scottish Budget provides Scotland with economic stability by making strategic long-term investments to strengthen and prepare the economy for the future, according to Finance Secretary Derek Mackay. However local government umbrella organisation COSLA says the budget will mean only more cuts to council services. Continue reading Budget: saving public services?
UK Government to reform workplace rights
The Westminster government will today set out the biggest package of workplace reforms for over twenty years, with ambitious reforms to ensure the UK leads the world in meeting the challenges of the changing world of work. However the TUC says platform companies are being let off the hook. Continue reading UK Government to reform workplace rights
Scotland’s Budget: stimulus and stability – or frustration and disappointment?
While media political attention focused on Westminster for the latest installment of the Brexit Show and Mrs May’s no-confidence vote, the Scottish Government’s budget was debated at Holyrood on Wednesday. Continue reading Scotland’s Budget: stimulus and stability – or frustration and disappointment?
Ben Macpherson and Deirdre Brock pledge their support to PCHP
Two local SNP parliamentarians have added their voices to the campaign to save Pilton Community Health Project. Continue reading Ben Macpherson and Deirdre Brock pledge their support to PCHP
Slight increase in GP numbers “too little, too late”:
Scottish GPs are still facing a crisis according to the latest figures released yesterday. Continue reading Slight increase in GP numbers “too little, too late”:
Safeguarding Scotland? Budget to support ‘transformation of essential public services’.
The 2019-20 Scottish Budget will seek to strengthen Scotland’s economy and deliver long term investments to transform public services, Finance Secretary Derek Mackay has said. Continue reading Safeguarding Scotland? Budget to support ‘transformation of essential public services’.
Edinburgh faces social care financial crisis
Edinburgh Integrated Joint Board have reported an overspend of 4.7m for the period to the end of July 2018, and that this is projected to rise to £11.9m by the end of the financial year. Scottish Conservatives are urging the Scottish Government to step in ease the pressure on Edinburgh’s IJB. Continue reading Edinburgh faces social care financial crisis
Music tuition: Greer challenges Swinney on private subsidy
Green MSP Ross Greer has challenged Education Secretary John Swinney to justify his Government’s long-running subsidy of around £1.2 million to the fee-paying St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh, at a time when many councils are axing free music tuition in schools due to budget cuts passed down by the Scottish Government. [1]
In an exchange during a meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s Education and Skills Committee, Mr Greer argued that by grant funding a small number of places at a private school, the Government risked exacerbating a deep sense of inequality – highlighting the evidence previously given by one young person who said the situation was ‘approaching Victorian levels’ of inequality. [2]
Scottish Greens Education spokesperson, Ross Greer MSP said: “We’ve heard countless stories about how cuts to council budgets are driving young people from less privileged backgrounds away from learning an instrument, with one young woman telling us this is approaching Victorian levels of inequality.
“So I just can’t see how the government justifies giving over one million pounds of public money every year to a small private school, without any clear assessment of whether that is value for money. Instead, for example, it could increase funding for the four centres of musical excellence that serve local authority schools.”
[1] http://www.parliament.scot/par
[2] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-