Tag: Politics

Nasty Party?: Council Tories vote to force EU nationals to pay to stay

City Council votes to pay EU nationals’ application appointment fee – despite Tory opposition

Thursday’s city council meeting passed a motion to make application appointments for EU nationals in the Capital free. The city’s application services will now sign up to help EU nationals apply quickly for those finding the online application process challenging.

The Council will now allocate £25,000 to help the Council’s application service keep appointments free.

Council leader Adam McVay said: “By making it easier and free for EU nationals to apply through the Council’s application services we are doing all we can to help people through this appalling process and remind them that Edinburgh is their home and we stand with them as our residents.

He added: “The UK Government’s EU National application programme is a shameful way to treat our citizens, many of whom have been part of our city and community for decades.

“It’s somewhat ironic that the Tories, who can complained about a charge for people’s bin registrations, voted against removing the charge for EU nationals applying to register their lives in the Capital. When Tories believe registering a bin is a more important than applying to register your family to protect your rights, something has went badly wrong with their moral compass.”

SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Gordon MacDonald, said: “The SNP has been clear across the board that we will support EU nationals in every way we can. Yet again, the Tories in Edinburgh have shown themselves as no better than the xenophobic party in Westminster that sent disgusting “go home” vans into our communities.

“I hope that despite the Tory’s treatment of EU nationals, they feel kindness and respect from the rest of us who are proud that they have done us the honour of making Scotland their home.”

City of Edinburgh Council – Full Council Meeting – 14 March 2019

Motion By Councillor McVey – EU Registration

“That Council:

  • Notes the UK Government’s appalling decision to force EU nationals to “register” to sustain their rights.
  • Notes that Edinburgh’s registration services took part in the Home Office settlement pilot which ended in late autumn 2018 which included an application assistance scheme to help “read” chipped EU passports to smooth the process.
  • Notes that the Home Office settlement has now gone live and residents can register for free from March 30th 2019 and fees paid before this time can now be reclaimed.
  • Agrees that Edinburgh City Council will use existing resources to publicise the free UK Government based service and existing support services available through citizen’s advice to citizens across the City.
  • Agrees that to help further support EU nationals remaining in Edinburgh, Council authorises use of up to £25,000 from the Council’s priorities fund to support Edinburgh’s registration services and avoid any administration fees being applied to any EU nationals registering with the Home Office settlement scheme through Edinburgh’s registration services.
  • Agrees that this expenditure will be monitored on a monthly basis and reported through the business bulletin of the Finance and Resources committee and delegates authority to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Leader and Deputy Leader, to limit free registrations to citizens who live in Edinburgh, subject to service demand.
  • Agrees that the Leader will write to the Home Office to request this funding is reimbursed in return for providing this service.”

Court ruling raises concerns over proposed roll-out of Right to Rent

Concerns over the roll-out of the UK Government’s Right to Rent scheme have once again been raised by Scotland’s Housing Minister Kevin Stewart in light of a recent High Court ruling. 
Continue reading Court ruling raises concerns over proposed roll-out of Right to Rent

Funding to prepare for Brexit

Grants for Scottish businesses expanded

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced £2 million is now available to help even more businesses in Scotland prepare for Brexit.

The Brexit Support Grant, administered by Scottish Enterprise, will now be available to help small and medium sized businesses manage a wide range of Brexit impacts with funding of up to £4000 each. The grant, previously only open to exporters, is now available to SME’s in Scotland for a wider variety of Brexit preparation.

The grant can be accessed by businesses employing up to 250 staff and can be used for activities including consultancy support, professional fees, external training, and international market research.

The announcement was made during a visit to Allied Vehicles in Glasgow where the First Minister met with the company and one of their suppliers, the manufacturing firm William Johnston, to discuss concerns about Brexit and how the two businesses are preparing.

The First Minister said: “Businesses like Allied Vehicles and William Johnston are critical to Scotland’s economy and it is unacceptable that they are facing this level of uncertainty so close to the UK leaving the EU.

“The Scottish Government is firmly opposed to Brexit and we continue to hope that it can be avoided, but with every passing day, the UK Government is getting closer to taking our economy off the cliff.

“Scottish Government analysis shows that all Brexit outcomes will damage our economy so it is essential businesses prepare for a range of scenarios. This funding goes hand in hand with practical support and advice and I encourage business to take advantage of this assistance.

“We will continue to work with our partners in the coming weeks and months to do what we can to minimise the impact Brexit will have on our economy and communities.”

Sandy McEwan, Managing Director at William Johnston & Company, and one of the first businesses to apply for the grant, said: “Since Brexit was announced in 2016, we have been hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.

“As a manufacturer we have found the Prepare for Brexit website a helpful tool for highlighting some of the issues Brexit may bring our business. Today, we are in the eye of the Brexit storm but, hopefully, this grant will help us to be in the best position possible to deal with the potential changes in the business environment.”

Allied Vehicles chairman Gerry Facenna said: “Exporting can be a real challenge for us, given currency differences and much higher transport costs than our continental competitors.

“Despite this, over the past couple of years we’ve started to gain significant traction selling our wheelchair accessible vehicles across Europe.

“We see huge potential to add another hundred or more jobs here in Glasgow through continued export growth – but the last thing we need is any form of trade barriers or tariffs, which would make it virtually impossible for us to compete effectively overseas.”

Steve Dunlop, CEO, Scottish Enterprise, said: “It is critical that Scottish businesses continue to assess the challenges presented by Brexit and take necessary action to safeguard their growth.

“Preparing your business for Brexit is about developing a flexible planning approach so you can adapt and be resilient across a range of potential Brexit outcomes. We are stepping up support with additional financial and people resource to make sure businesses have access to support that will help them meet challenges head on.”

Businesses can identify if they are eligible for the grant and find more information on how to prepare for Brexit on the Prepare for Brexit website.

The Brexit Support Grant, previously ‘International Project Support’, is now available to SMEs who do not export as well as exporters, and can be used for a much wider variety of Brexit preparation.

The Brexit Support Grant fund is £2 million – £500,000 in the 2018/19 financial year and £1.5 million in 2019/20.

An SME is an enterprise employing fewer than 250 persons with an annual turnover not exceeding 50 million euro, and/or an annual balance sheet total not exceeding 43 million euro and is independent.