First Minister urges Prime Minister to act with humanity and compassion
A lack of clarity from the UK Government around settlement programmes and complex visa processes is delaying Scotland from welcoming refugees from Ukraine, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said.
In a letter to the Prime Minister co-signed by the leaders of Scottish Labour, the Scottish Liberal Democrats and the Scottish Greens, the First Minister urged the UK Government to waive visa requirements for Ukrainian nationals seeking refuge in the UK, and for a comprehensive and funded settlement programme and package of support to be established.
The Scottish Government is working with local authorities and the Scottish Refugee Council to ensure Scotland can welcome Ukrainian refugees with the support they need as soon as they are able to come here.
The First Minister said: “As we witness the worst humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II, and with more than two million Ukrainians now having fled since the Russian invasion began, the UK must take action and respond fully, with humanity and compassion.
“It is neither reasonable nor morally acceptable to expect people fleeing war to go through complex bureaucratic processes in order to reach safety within the UK. We must provide sanctuary first and treat people with respect and humanity.
“Scotland stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine and deeply wishes to provide them with practical support, aid and refuge. We are ready to provide that to people in need right now.
“More than a week after it was announced on 1 March, we urge you to set out the details of the humanitarian sponsorship pathway, including when it will open and confirmation that the UK Government will provide the flexibility and the financial support needed to allow us in Scotland and communities across the UK to contribute.”
As we witness the worst humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II, and with more than two million Ukrainians now having fled since the Russian invasion began, the UK must take action and respond fully, with humanity and compassion. The desperation of those fleeing and displaced by the war in Ukraine are clearly distressing and heart-rending. We cannot and must not turn our back on the people of Ukraine.
The Home Secretary’s announcement today, detailing the introduction of an entirely online application processes for Ukrainian family members seeking to come to the UK without the requirement to attend a Visa Application Centre, is a welcome step in the right direction. As is the decision to further extend the Ukrainian Family Visa Scheme. It is clear though that it is not enough.
It is neither reasonable nor morally acceptable to expect people fleeing war to go through complex bureaucratic processes in order to reach safety within the UK. Therefore we urge you to follow the example of European countries including the Republic of Ireland by waiving all visa requirements for any Ukrainian nationals seeking refuge in the UK, as well as implementing the temporary protection regulations. We must provide sanctuary first and treat people with respect and humanity.
Scotland stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine and deeply wishes to provide them with practical support, aid and refuge. We are ready to provide that to people in need right now.
The Scottish Government is already working with local authorities and the Scottish Refugee Council to make sure that our communities are ready to welcome Ukrainian refugees as soon as they are able to come here, and ensure that they have the support that they need. More than a week after it was announced on 1 March, we urge you to set out the details of the humanitarian sponsorship pathway, including when it will open and confirmation that the UK Government will provide the flexibility and the financial support needed to allow us in Scotland and communities across the UK to contribute.
As a further demonstration of this solidarity, the following leaders of Scotland’s political parties have co-signed this letter. I hope you will agree with our collective call for urgent action to be taken by the UK Government in dealing with this crisis; to allow people to enter the UK and provide a comprehensive and funded settlement programme and package of support for those seeking refugee here.
I am copying this letter to Liz Truss, Michael Gove, Priti Patel, Alister Jack and Angus Robertson.
Changes will make the Ukraine Family Scheme quicker and simpler
Home Secretary Priti Patel has announced changes to the Ukraine Family Scheme to make the process quicker and simpler for those fleeing Putin’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine.
From Tuesday, Ukraine passport holders will no longer need to attend in-person appointments to submit fingerprints or facial verification before they come to the UK, after the Home Secretary received assurances that the necessary national security checks could be maintained while not requiring biometrics for the initial application.
The remaining checks continue to ensure we provide the robust scrutiny required for all applicants.
Confirmation of permission to travel to the UK will also be provided, meaning the majority of applications can be completed entirely online without ever attending a visa appointment centre, speeding up the process and allowing people to come to the UK faster.
Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “The Ukraine Family Scheme provides an immediate pathway for those Ukrainians with family already settled in the UK to come to our country. It is designed to allow as many people as possible to come to Britain and gives them immediate access to the support they need to not just survive but to thrive.
“The scheme was developed in close consultation with Ukrainian leaders and the diaspora community and we continue to work with them to make changes as necessary. That is why we are now making the process quicker and simpler by removing the need to physically visit Visa Application Centres for many of those who are making the perilous journey across Europe. This will mean we can welcome more families here more swiftly.
“Given the real and varied threats we face, we must consider national security alongside our humanitarian instinct and desire to help as many people as possible in the shortest possible timeframe. I can reassure the British people that the changes announced today have been made in close consultation with relevant officials and agencies so as to ensure our national security is not compromised.”
Under the new application process passport holders will apply online and be granted 6 months’ leave to enter the UK outside of the rules, enabling them to work, study and claim benefits immediately. Once they have submitted biometric data in the UK they will have their leave extended to 36 months.
This applies only to passports – not ID Cards – however this will be kept under review, in line with security advice.
The changes are designed to get as many people their visas as quickly as possible, while reducing pressure on visa application centres and ensuring those who pose a threat to the UK are prevented from entering.
The Home Office has already ramped up visa application capacity in other countries bordering Ukraine, including Hungary, Romania, Poland and Moldova. A new pop-up Visa Application Centre in Rzeszow, Poland, has been opened, while the combined total number of appointments across Europe has increased from 2,000 to 13,000 appointments.
The Ukraine Family Scheme allows people settled in the UK to bring immediate and extended family members from Ukraine to the UK. This week the eligibility was increased to include aunts, uncles and in-laws.
The Ukraine Family Scheme is part of a series of measures that have already been announced:
Last month the Home Secretary confirmed that flexibility would be available to support Ukrainians who are on work, study or visit visas to switch to different visa routes extending their stay and those on seasonal work visas would have their leave temporarily extended.
The Prime Minister also announced that we are working at pace to establish the Local Sponsorship Scheme for Ukrainians with no ties to the UK to come here. The uncapped route will allow sponsors, such as communities or local authorities, to bring people to the UK. Sponsored individuals will be able to work and the sponsor would provide housing and integration support.
The routes and changes to visas come alongside the UK’s ongoing efforts to tackle the emerging humanitarian crisis, which were bolstered this week by additional funding, with total emergency and aid support for Ukraine now at £400m, alongside the 1,000 troops who are on standby to help those forced to flee.
In response to the government’s review of the Human Rights Act, René Cassin, the Jewish voice for human rights, has brought together cross communal Jewish support for its call to protect the Act.
Twelve rabbis and 29 communal organisations and individuals have signed up to support René Cassin’s submission of 8 March 2022 to the Ministry of Justice consultation on Human Rights Act reform. The signatories are very concerned that the plans, put forward by Secretary of State for Justice, Dominic Raab, in December 2021, will reduce human rights and also access to those rights.
The Human Rights Act helps ordinary people in their everyday lives.
In relation to the right to freedom of religion, it has allowed people of faith to wear religious symbols to work and Muslims and Jews to bury their dead in line with their religious beliefs.
Other examples of those helped by the Act are an elderly couple able to stay together in the same care home and women seeking protection when fleeing domestic violence.
The law on same sex marriage came via the Human Rights Act as did the change in the police code that allows 17 year olds to be treated as children if they are arrested but not charged.
The Jewish community voices particular concern that the government proposals weaken human rights for minorities such as asylum seekers, offenders or foreigners.
Mia Hasenson-Gross, Executive Director of Rene Cassin, said: “Through our experience of the Holocaust, we know where targeting minorities can lead. We reject the framing of the Human Rights Act review, which pits undeserving people against the majority.
“As a minority community ourselves, the Jewish community stands with other minority groups, such as Gypsies, Travellers and Roma, asylum seekers and refugees, victims of modern slavery and disabled people in demanding equal human rights.
“Reducing the rights of minorities and vulnerable people reduces the rights of everyone.”
Lothian MSP Lorna Slater has written to the Consul General of Russia in Edinburgh, Andrey Yakovlev, urging him to consider his position and the damage that Putin’s war has inflicted.
Her letter condemns the war that Russian forces have inflicted and supports calls from the Scottish Government for all Russian diplomats to be expelled from the country.
In the letter, Lorna Slater writes:“Like my colleagues in the Scottish Greens, and the Scottish Government, I condemn this attack on Ukraine’s sovereignty. It is an immoral and illegal war, and we reject it in the strongest possible terms.
“Every day that it continues will see more misery, more atrocities and more deaths.”
She goes on tooutline some of the steps being taken by the Scottish Government: “I am proud that the Scottish Government is contributing £4 million of humanitarian aid, as well as medical equipment and supplies to Ukraine. The First Minister has sought urgent advice on the “maximum possible action” that the Scottish Government can take against individuals and organisations that are linked to Vladimir Putin’s government and have assets and connections in Scotland.”
Ms Slater concludes: “You are a representative of Putin’s regime in Scotland. You may not be responsible for what is happening, but you are a figurehead for the Kremlin. The Scottish Government has called for all Russian diplomats to be expelled from the country, and, as a statement of solidarity with people in Ukraine, I support this position.
“I hope that you understand the anger and distress that the immoral, illegal and totally unjustified invasion has caused in Ukraine and beyond. I urge you to consider your position and the crisis that has been inflicted on Ukraine.”
Trade unions and the TUC have written to the Chancellor calling on him to use his spring statement to introduce ‘emergency support’ in response to the conflict in Ukraine.
This includes measures to support Ukrainian refugees, ensure that sanctions are effective, and protect UK families from the impact of rising energy prices.
The TUC has condemned the invasion of Ukraine, expressed its solidarity with the Ukrainian people, and called on governments to pursue all diplomatic efforts towards peace.
The letter from the TUC and unions says that the Chancellor must now step up with new financial measures to both support the Ukrainian people, and respond to the impact of the conflict on the cost-of-living crisis in the UK.
The letter calls on the Chancellor to:
Ensure that sanctions are effective by increasing enforcement funding for measures in the economic crime bill that would crack down on money-laundering in the UK; and consider a 100 per cent windfall tax on the profits of companies still invested in Russian state enterprises.
Provide safe routes to the UK for those fleeing the conflict, and scrap legislation plans that would close the door on all people fleeing war and threats to their lives.
Fund wider humanitarian assistance for displaced people, including essential medical supplies.
Protect working families against further energy price rises as a result of the crisis, by giving grants rather than loans to recued energy bill, increasing the warm homes discount, increasing universal credit, and accelerating a home energy efficiency retrofit programme.
The letter also calls on the government to ensure that those working in supply chains are protected from disruption, including by considering the use of a short-time working scheme.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Trade unions condemn the illegal invasion of Ukraine. We know that working people in Ukraine, Russia and across Europe want peace. The UK government must pursue all diplomatic efforts to achieve that goal.
“The Chancellor must use his spring statement to act too. That means ensuring that sanctions are more effective, with funding to crack down on money-laundering in the UK. And he should fund greater humanitarian assistance for Ukrainians, including safe passage for those fleeing the war.
“Working people in the UK will need protection from even steeper hikes in gas bills from the conflict. The Chancellor should introduce grants to help with energy prices, roll out an emergency programme of home insulation, and fund it with a windfall tax on excess energy profits.”
“The government must provide safe routes to the UK for those escaping conflict. And ministers should scrap their Nationality and Borders Bill, which will close the door to people fleeing war and threats to their lives.”
Full text of the letter to the Chancellor:
Dear Chancellor
Protecting working people from the impact of the invasion of Ukraine
The trade union movement is united in its condemnation of Russia’s illegal invasion of a sovereign nation. Our solidarity is with the working people of Ukraine. Working people always suffer in conflict and the pursuit of peace is a fundamental trade union value, an essential condition to secure safety, social justice and workers’ and human rights.
The UK government must now take further action to support and strengthen international efforts to impose significant and effective sanctions on Russia and to support all diplomatic efforts towards peace. And it must play its part in supporting humanitarian assistance for forcibly displaced people and welcoming refugees seeking to come to the UK.
The government must also ensure that it takes every step possible to protect working people here at home from the impact of the conflict and measures taken in response to this. We urge you to use your forthcoming budget to act. We call on you to:
Target sanctions on wealthy elites linked to the Russian government – and ensure they are effective. We welcome the proposed register of overseas owners of UK property through the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill, but this needs to be backed up by sufficient powers and funding for Companies House to enforce.
Fund humanitarian assistance for displaced people, and welcome refugees to the UK. The new Ukrainian visa proposals are inadequate and fall well short of what is needed. Limiting asylum to Ukrainian immediate family members of those already settled in the UK will not reassure Ukrainians fleeing war and bloodshed that they will be able to seek sanctuary in our country. The government must establish a safe route, so all Ukrainian families, who through no fault of their own have been forced from their homes, can easily apply for a humanitarian visa to travel to the UK. The Nationality and Borders Bill must be scrapped. Thousands of Ukrainians fleeing war may try to find sanctuary in the UK. If the Bill is passed many of these Ukrainians, along with others around the world fleeing conflict, threats to their lives and seeking safety may find themselves treated as criminals and deported, instead of being offered sanctuary.
Protect working families against rising gas prices, by raising funds through a windfall tax on energy profits and a new tax on profits made by UK companies invested in Russian state businesses. The current energy price crisis is hitting workers hard, and prices are likely to rise further. Government should implement existing TUC calls for:
Support for households in the form of a grant, not a loan (replacing the energy price rebate proposed by the government).
An increase in the warm homes discount, and a permanent increase in Universal Credit.
Rapid implementation of an accelerated and expanded domestic home retrofit programme, delivered by local councils who are best placed to deliver fast
Funding for these measures by the implementation of a windfall tax on north sea oil and gas companies.
An immediate increase in the national minimum wage to at least £10 an hour and a strategy to protect pay across the economy, including public services.
In addition, the government should consider implementing a new 100 per cent tax on additional profits made by UK based companies from their shareholdings in Russian state-backed enterprises that have profited from the gas price crisis. For example, this includes profits made by oil companies Shell and Vitol from their shareholdings in oil and gas fields in Russia in joint ventures with state-controlled companies Rosneft and Gazprom.
Protect jobs in supply chains now and build future supply chain resilience. Forcompanies sourcing parts and supplies from Russia, sanctions could have a significant impact. To protect jobs, the UK government should:
Re-introduce the furlough scheme or a permanent short-time working scheme in order to allow companies to protect jobs while they seek to shift their supply chains.
Begin an urgent programme to provide investment support to help companies to invest in UK supply chains and jobs.
Trade union leaders would be happy to meet you to discuss these issues, and the steps we must take now to support working people in Ukraine and in the UK,
Yours sincerely
Frances O’Grady, General Secretary, TUC
Sue Ferns, President, TUC
Christina McAnea, General Secretary, UNISON
Sharon Graham, General Secretary, Unite
Gary Smith, General Secretary GMB
Kevin Courtney and Mary Bousted, Joint General Secretaries, NEU
Paddy Lilis, General Secretary, Usdaw
Patrick Roach, General Secretary, NASUWT
Dave Ward, General Secretary, CWU
Mark Serwotka, General Secretary, PCS
Mike Clancy, General Secretary, Prospect
Ged Nichols, General Secretary, Accord
Ukraine: what you can do to help
Everyone wants to do their bit to support those who have been forced to flee their homes because of the invasion. Here is how you can help.
Financial donations
If you want to donate money, there are a number of charities providing humanitarian relief in Ukraine.
The UK Government will match public donations to this appeal pound-for-pound up to £25 million.
Make your donation safely
There are lots of organisations across the UK and internationally who have launched appeals, and you may wish to donate through these organisations instead. There are some simple steps you can take to ensure your money is safe and being used effectively:
Most charities with an income of £5,000 or more must be registered, which means they are regulated by The Charity Commission
Make sure the charity is genuine before giving any financial information
If in doubt, ask the charity or organisation for more information
Donating essential supplies
One of the best ways to help is by donating cash through trusted charities and aid organisations, rather than donating goods. Cash can be transferred quickly to areas where it is needed and individuals and aid organisations can use it to buy what is most needed. Unsolicited donations of goods, although well-meant, can obstruct supply chains and delay more urgent life-saving assistance from getting through.
Organisations across the UK are gathering essential supplies, such as clothes, first aid and sanitary products. Many charities and community groups will have lists of items they need.
Charities with experience of responding to disasters are best placed to reach victims on the ground.
Apply to be a sponsor
The government will be launching a new sponsorship scheme to make sure that Ukrainians who have been forced to flee their homes have a route to safety.
The scheme will match people, charities, businesses and community groups to Ukrainians who do not have family ties to the UK.
The UK Government, Ukrainian Government and others have been sharing messages of support on social media using the hashtag #StandForUkraine
Take care what you share! There is a lot of false information about the conflict circulating online – this is often called misinformation and disinformation. You can do your part to stop the spread:
Ask yourself – does this look right? Does this sound right? Does this information come from a source I recognise?
The SHARE checklist can help you decide if information can be trusted, before you interact with or share it on your social media channels
Cyber security
The National Cyber Security Centre is not aware of any specific cyber threats to the UK in relation to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However we strongly encourage organisations and citizens to follow NCSC guidance on steps to take when the cyber threat is heightened.
Visit the Cyber Aware website where you find practical steps and tools to help keep you, your family or business more secure online.
Concerns over parallels emerging in the UK’s response to Ukraine crisis
The UK Government failed to work effectively or quickly enough to provide support for aid workers and the Afghan people, says a new report from the International Development Committee – Afghanistan: UK support for aid workers and the Afghan people.
The Committee is also concerned about the pace at which the UK Government has disbursed pledged UK aid to Afghanistan and whether it will act swiftly enough to disburse pledged UK aid to Ukraine.
MPs say that the UK Government, in its response to Afghanistan and now Ukraine, has:
been inflexible in its response to an acute humanitarian situation by only making limited concessions to pre-existing UK immigration routes;
failed to provide sufficient clarity on what routes are available; and
dragged its feet in setting up new or variations to existing routes.
The UK Government has a moral duty towards aid workers who helped to deliver UK aid projects in Afghanistan, asserts the report.
This moral duty also extends to the people of Afghanistan, impacted over decades by the UK’s military and political interventions.
Chair of the International Development Committee, Sarah Champion MP, said: “We are deeply grateful to aid workers – be they British, Afghan or of other nationalities – for all they have done for the people of Afghanistan. The work that they do is phenomenal.
“But we are ashamed that the Government did not give them the support that they needed during the UK’s withdrawal, or now, during the complex task of delivering an aid programme under Taliban rule.
“More than 23 million people, over half the population of Afghanistan, are facing starvation. The Government must provide the support and the clarity that people working in the aid sector in Afghanistan have told us that they need.”
The Chair draws parallels with the developing situation in Ukraine. She said: “By only making limited concessions to pre-existing UK immigration routes, the response from the Home Office to the situation in Ukraine shows an inflexible and begrudging approach to an acute humanitarian situation.
“As in Afghanistan, there has been a lack of clarity – and agonizing slowness of pace – in explaining what UK immigration routes are available. The UK Government should be significantly more agile in establishing or adapting existing UK immigration routes in response to acute humanitarian crises. The safety of countless people and their families depends on it.”
UK and allied forces left Afghanistan in August 2021. The Taliban takeover was rapid. The scale of the humanitarian response required, had – to that date – been unprecedented. The humanitarian jeopardy has been extreme.
At the same time, the safety of aid workers has been compromised. Today, the cross-party Committee thanks aid workers for all their work, past and present, and reveals ‘shame’ that the UK Government has not given them the support or clarity that they need.
The Government’s contingency plans for the evacuation of aid workers from Afghanistan were neither apparent to the aid sector, nor scaled adequately. Government schemes have not adequately supported those aid workers seeking safe passage to the UK.
The report reveals that some Afghans who worked on projects funded by the UK Government are reporting that their lives are at risk of reprisals from the Taliban authorities.
The UK Government has pledged significant sums of aid since its withdrawal from Afghanistan, but the release of that aid to the people who desperately need it has been excruciatingly slow. A cash liquidity crisis is strangling the remaining life out of the country. Sanctions against the Taliban have stifled the provision of aid and women, children and minority groups are suffering disproportionately.
The Committee concludes that the Government should have worked faster to disburse the UK aid it pledged to Afghanistan in 2021. It should also have liaised more effectively and swiftly with the aid sector, international allies and financial institutions to help to resolve the challenges of sanctions to the aid sector; address the collapse of the banking system in Afghanistan; and free up the nominated funds frozen in the World Bank’s Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund.
Some of the Committee’s key recommendations in respect of aid workers and the Afghan people are:
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office should take steps to better identify and assess the particular risks facing aid workers so that it can respond more effectively to those aid workers when they are in need of support in countries or regions where there is acute instability or signs of a rapidly deteriorating security situation.
The Government should accelerate without further delay all pathways of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) and ensure that aid sector staff are explicitly recognised and prioritised for protection under the ACRS.
The UK Government should be taking more urgent steps to collaborate with its international counterparts, economists, representatives of the banking sector and aid organisations to find ways to help address more rapidly the banking crisis in Afghanistan to ease the humanitarian suffering of, and enable the delivery of humanitarian assistance to, the people of Afghanistan.
The UK Government should do more to encourage the World Bank to swiftly release the remaining funds from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund so that aid organisations can use that money to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.
The Government should maintain its focus on working to try and ensure that the Taliban adopts a moderate position whereby it commits to behaving pragmatically towards the inclusion of women, girls and other minority groups in Afghan society.
The UK Government should further step up its efforts on working with the UN to ensure that aid organisations can effectively operate under the exemptions that UN resolution 2615 (and consequent UK law) permits. It should also urge the UN Security Council to extend those exemptions beyond their initial 12 months review period.
The UK Government should consult with representatives of aid organisations to ensure that it has issued adequate guidance on how to operate further to the adoption of UN resolution 2615 into UK law. Furthermore, the UK Government should press for UN resolution 2615 to be extended, or further resolutions to be adopted, to provide exemptions for development assistance, closely linked to the performance of the Taliban on upholding human rights and international law.
‘For two years now, we have demonstrated incredible resilience as a Council’ – Finance Convener Cllr Rob Munn
A budget ‘designed to support residents through the cost-of-living crisis and invest in local communities’ has been set by the City of Edinburgh Council.
Agreed by elected members on Thursday (24 February), millions of pounds from the Council’s annual budget for 2022/23 will be spent towards shaping a more sustainable, fair and thriving future for Edinburgh post-pandemic.
A fair city?
Councillors have agreed to direct an extra £1.1m towards easing the cost of living crisis for the city’s most vulnerable and £150 for 33,000 low-income households across the city at a total cost of £4.95m. This is on top of national cash grants announced by the Scottish Government.
Alongside this, an extra £100 will be provided for every child within a low-income home (identified via free school meals qualifications) and an additional £450k will be made available by the Council in crisis grant funding.
Frontline services will continue to be protected and the Council’s rent freeze for tenants will remain in place for another year.
Together with the Council’s ongoing £2bn programme to build 5,500 sustainable, quality Council homes and invest £1.3bn over the next 15 years in a new, green, well-connected neighbourhood at Granton Waterfront, around half a million pounds will be spent to provide social care adaptations to people’s houses to allow them to live more independently in their own homes.
£112k has been earmarked to make sure every school in the city is equipped with a life-saving defibrillator, and the Council will continue to invest £454m in capital investment for new school facilities across the city over the next ten years, together with an annual £48m to help families access 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare.
The roll out of 40,000 digital devices to school pupils across the city to close the digital divide will also continue, thanks to investment of nearly £18m. In recognition of pressures faced during Covid, £1m of additional funding will be provided for Children’s Services, while a further £2m will be invested adopting the recommendations of the Tanner review.
A welcoming city?
A one-off £1.1m ‘deep clean’ will remove graffiti and address street cleansing in the city centre and local wards, while quarter of a million pounds will see a new, Neighbourhood Action Team created to tackle hot spot areas of unkept land and deal with issues like overgrowth and fly tipping.
An extra £1m will be set aside for road and pavement maintenance to improve movement around the city and £450k will help to improve park facilities, creating even better green spaces in every ward and improved lighting. Meanwhile an extra £325k will be invested in playparks and £130k in expanding provisions for food growing across the city.
There will be £200k invested towards temporary toilets in select parks – repeating successful arrangements from summer 2021 – and £60k will be set aside to provide seasonal improvements and rangers to Pentland parks. An additional £60k will be contributed towards works to complete the restoration of the Portobello Kilns.
This is alongside £150k to be spent regulating and monitoring short-term lets in Edinburgh and related issues of anti-social behaviour.
A thriving and sustainable city?
An additional half a million pounds will support Edinburgh’s Net Zero ambitions, accelerating the city’s One Million Tree City programme, and £200k will be invested in Energy for Edinburgh, the Council’s publicly owned ESCO, to allow a zero-carbon energy project to move forward.
Up to £100k will be spent through Participatory Budgeting, supporting local communities to be involved in the running of the city, and £200k will be used to support local community festivals, including Edinburgh’s Diwali and the Leith Festival.
A commitment of £60k will support the re-opening of the city’s libraries after use as Covid testing facilities and the new Meadowbank Sports Centre will open later this year.
Spend of £160k will be directed towards taxi regulation and enforcement; £180k of funding will be set aside to cover potential costs relating to the temporary Hostile Vehicle Mitigation arrangements protecting the city centre; and £50k will be used to upgrade the ForeverEdinburgh website to further drive footfall to local businesses as Edinburgh recovers from the pandemic.
Finance and Resources Convener SNP Councillor Rob Munn said: “This Budget signals a more sustainable, fair and thriving future for Edinburgh post-pandemic.
“For two years now, we have demonstrated incredible resilience as a Council and as a City, banding together to support those who have needed extra help. We have been at the forefront throughout and as life finally – and thankfully – starts to return to normal, we will continue to safeguard our services and focus on getting things back up and running.
“Our city centre and local high streets have suffered through lockdown restrictions and due to the cost of living, families on low incomes are struggling to make ends meet. The decisions we’ve made today aim to challenge these disadvantages and help our City and communities thrive in the year ahead.
“We’ll direct £1.1m each towards a ‘deep clean’ of the city centre and local areas and improving roads, helping to make Edinburgh a more welcoming place to be, and a further £1.1m will address poverty and inequality to create a fairer future.
“These are just a few of the very welcome spending decisions we’ve been able to make and I’m grateful to members in all parties for shaping these plans, but we do need to remain prudent. Times are hard and we know that the impact of Covid on our budget will continue into future financial years and significant savings will have to be made.”
Vice Finance and Resources Convener Labour Councillor Joan Griffiths said: “This Budget is about giving Edinburgh the chance to recover and grow as we safeguard our frontline services.
“The impact the pandemic continues to have on residents, on businesses and in our communities is clear. We’re now facing a cost of living crisis and it’s vital that we prioritise support for those who need it most.
“As we recover from everything the last two years have brought, investment enabled by a modest increase in Council Tax rates will help people in every single one of our communities, with the extra money raised used to maintain critical frontline services.
“We’re determined to use this budget to help us close the poverty gap, and we’ve also committed to keeping rents frozen this year for Council tenants. We’re putting more money into crisis grants, into new schools and new homes – while spending millions on community improvements.
“All of this will go towards making Edinburgh the most welcoming, thriving, and sustainable place it can be.”
This will be the SNP-Labour ‘Capital Coalition’s’ last budget before May’s council elections.
New Council Tax rates will be brought into effect on 1 April 2022 as follows:
Face Masks No More – unless you choose to wear one
A new staged approach to easing protective measures will help Scotland manage and recover from the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
In a statement to Parliament yesterday, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed the details of the updated Strategic Framework to manage COVID-19 primarily through public health advice, vaccination, and treatment rather than legal restrictions.
The First Minister also set out an indicative timescale for remaining legal protections to be lifted:
vaccine certification will no longer be legally required from Monday 28 February, although the app will remain available so any business that wishes to continue certification on a voluntary basis to reassure customers will be able to do so
current legal requirements on the use of face coverings, the collection of customer details for contact tracing purposes, and for businesses, service providers and places of worship to have regard to guidance on Covid and to take reasonably practicable measures set out in the guidance are expected to be lifted on 21 March, subject to the state of the pandemic
access to lateral flow and PCR tests will continue to be free of charge, ahead of a detailed transition plan being published on the future of Scotland’s test and protect programme in March
People who test positive for COVID-19 will continue to be asked to self-isolate to reduce the risk of infecting other people. Any changes to the recommended period of self-isolation will be considered on an ongoing basis.
The First Minister said: “Covid is unfortunately still with us and we must therefore remain vigilant and prepared for the threats it poses. But today’s new framework is an important moment in our recovery.
“It marks the point at which we move away, hopefully sustainably, from legal restrictions, and rely instead on sensible behaviours, adaptations and mitigations.
“Our return to normality must go hand in hand with a continuing determination to look out for and after each other. All of us have a part to play in ensuring a safe and sustainable recovery, so please continue to follow public health advice on getting vaccinated, testing as regularly as appropriate, wearing face coverings when required or recommended, and keeping rooms ventilated.
“All of this still matters, even as we lift the remaining legal requirements. It is how we can keep ourselves and each other safe, as we recover from Covid and look forward together to brighter and better days ahead.”
TheScottish Licnsed Trade Association has welcomed the end to Covid passports as ‘common sense’ but says Scottish Government’s messaging needs to be more ‘positive’
While welcoming the news, however, the trade association expressed disappointment that the legal requirement to wear a face covering in indoor settings must continue until March 21. Similarly, the requirement for businesses to retain customer contact details must also continue for another month.
Colin Wilkinson, SLTA managing director, commented: “Calling a halt to Covid passports is common sense and fantastic news for hospitality businesses, particularly the late-night sector where restrictions over the last two years have had such a severe impact.
“However, the legal requirement to wear a face covering in indoor hospitality and other settings for another month is not the news we wanted to hear today from the First Minister at a time when our sector needs more positivity and confidence – confidence that will encourage customers to start getting out and about again.”
Mr Wilkinson also expressed concern for the viability of some town and city centres over the Scottish Government’s advice to adopt “hybrid” working patterns.
“We need to see more people in our town and city centres – if they’re working from home there are no office lunches or after-work drinks.
“It is encouraging for Scotland’s licensed hospitality venues to see more people returning to their offices and workplaces in recent months as this will breathe life back into our city and town centres – but let’s be more positive about the messaging.
“There is still a very, very long and uphill struggle ahead for many hospitality businesses with ongoing issues to overcome and an onus on the Scottish Government to support our industry which is key to the economy and jobs.”
The Scottish Parliament’s Constitution Committee has concluded that the UK’s Internal Market Act (UKIMA) places more emphasis on open trade than regulatory autonomy, when compared to the EU Single Market.
In a new report out today, the Scottish Parliament’s Constitution Committee has concluded:
· There are significant challenges in managing the tension which exists in any internal market between open trade and regulatory divergence, and that the UK internal market has significant economic benefits;
· In resolving this tension within the UK internal market, it is essential that the fundamental principles which underpin devolution are not undermined;
· The fundamental basis of devolution is to decentralise power so as to allow policy and legislation to be tailored to meet local needs and circumstances;
· Policy innovation and regulatory learning are one of the key successes of devolution.
The Committee also reports that it is essential as recognised by the Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in 2017 that devolution outwith the EU continues to provide “as a minimum, equivalent flexibility for tailoring policies to the specific needs of each territory as is afforded by current EU rules.”
The Committee will invite the UK Government to explain how, in its view, UKIMA will provide for this equivalent flexibility.
The Committee’s report also noted that Common Frameworks in certain policy areas may ease this tension by managing divergence on a consensual basis. This could be achieved through creating opt-outs from UKIMA, allowing for divergence in certain areas.
However, the Committee has voiced concerns that because Common Frameworks are agreed between the UK and devolved governments, there is a lack of Parliamentary oversight and public consultation.
The Committee is working with counterparts in other parts of the UK as it seeks to press the Governments to open up the Common Frameworks process towards greater consultation and scrutiny.
Speaking as the report was launched, Committee Convener, Clare Adamson MSP, said:“We believe that policy innovation – being able to pass laws that are tailored to the situation in Scotland – is one of the key successes of devolution.
“As a Committee, we believe it is essential that outside the EU, devolution continues to provide at least the same level of flexibility.
“However, we have found that UKIMA places more emphasis on open trade than autonomy for the Scottish Parliament compared to the EU Single Market.”
Ms Adamson continued:“While the Common Framework process may resolve the issues between UKIMA and devolution, we have concerns about how these are created between UK and devolved governments, as well as their operation.
“Our view is that there needs to be a much wider public debate about how to deliver appropriate levels of parliamentary scrutiny and public engagement at an inter-governmental level.
“At present, we are concerned that lack of processes in place mean less democratic oversight of the Executive, and a less consultative policy-making process.”
Ms Adamson concluded: “The UK internal market has created tensions. We will seek answers from the UK and Scottish Governments on issues raised in the report, as well as continuing to work with our counterpart Committees across the UK.”
Funds spent protecting Scots from Tories means less money available to fight cost of living crisis, says SNP
The SNP Scottish Government had to spend £57.3 million in Edinburgh to mitigate vindictive Tory UK Government policies in Scotland this financial year, meaning there is less money available to support hard-pressed Scots families through the deepening Tory cost of living crisis.
Across Scotland as a whole, the range of Scottish Government spending commitments to counter negligent Westminster policies is now an astronomical £594 million a year. And the figures do not include almost £3.5billion of social security benefits which, while devolved, are needed to support and supplement insufficient welfare benefits paid by the Tory UK Government.
The figures also do not include the £290m announcement by Finance Secretary Kate Forbes last week to give hard-pressed households £150 each.
SNP MSP Gordon Macdonald said: “To protect the people of Edinburgh, the SNP Government is having to commit an estimated £57.3 million – a substantial amount from its restricted budget – to mitigate vindictive and immoral Tory policies inflicted on our community.
“If these Tory policies – which bring misery to the country’s most vulnerable – did not exist, then it would free up Scottish Government cash to spend the equivalent of an extra £109 for every man, woman and child in Edinburgh to deal with the spiralling cost of living.
“Devolution was meant to provide Scotland with the opportunity to do things differently but, with Westminster holding the key economic levers like borrowing, the Scottish Government is severely constrained.
“That opportunity is even further restricted if it is continually having to commit eye-watering amounts simply to right the wrongs of the Tories’ underhand austerity agenda at Westminster which is targeted at ordinary people and families.
“It says something about their priorities that, while they cut funding to help ordinary people, they pursue a tax cut for banks that will benefit them by £4bn at the expense of public spending.
“Scotland’s opposition parties are constantly demanding the Scottish Government spends its limited budget on opposition priorities without ever identifying where the money is coming from. Well, this is many millions of pounds that could be diverted to these areas if it was not being used to protect Scots from the worst elements of Westminster control.
“And it’s not just the Tories to blame. Labour and the LibDems, through their support for Westminster control, perpetuate vindictive Tory governance on the people of Scotland. In 2014 those parties promised that Westminster would be better at tackling those problems for Scotland. The sad fact is that those promises of Westminster support were empty.
“Almost £600million is a vast amount. If the Tories at Westminster would only properly fund the areas in which the SNP Scottish Government must spend to mitigate and protect people, jobs and businesses, this cash could be redirected to make transformational changes in other areas of Scottish life.
“Sadly, the direction of travel of this Westminster Government means things will only get worse. It is why the people of Scotland will have the opportunity to choose a different path with a post-pandemic independence referendum once the crisis has passed.”
