Further funding to support immediate relief projects
First Minister Humza Yousaf has pledged a further £250,000 to support displaced people in Gaza access food, water, shelter and medical supplies.
The additional money takes the total given to assist relief efforts in Gaza via the United Nations Relief and Works Agency’s Flash Appeal (UNRWA) to £750,000.
The UNRWA Flash Appeal is specifically for Gaza where the unfolding humanitarian disaster is, with an estimated 1.4 million people displaced by conflict and military evacuation orders.
More than 670,000 people are currently seeking shelter in UNWRA shelters in Gaza.
First Minister Humza Yousaf said: “I have been repeatedly calling for a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, but while we press this vital issue it’s important we support the Palestinian people as much as we can.
“The situation in Gaza is catastrophic which is why I’m pledging this additional funding to support in helping to stop the humanitarian disaster we are witnessing. As supplies run out in Gaza, the lives of innocent civilians are at grave risk from a lack of food, water, medical supplies and fuel.
“My thoughts remain with all of those caught in the middle of the escalating conflict in Israel and Gaza. The killing of innocent civilians can never be justified, wherever it occurs.”
Marta Lorenzo, Director of UNRWA Representative Office Europe said: “Scotland has proven that they stand hand in hand with Palestine refugees and those suffering in Gaza.
“Scotland is helping UNRWA provide shelter, food, medicines and water to entire families that had to flee their home. We are extremely grateful for the additional contribution from Scotland demonstrating the increasingly strong support to UNRWA.
“With this vital funding the Agency will be able to continue providing essential and life-saving aid. With the ongoing crisis deepening further each day it is vital for more donors to step forward and support the millions of people suffering in the Gaza strip.”
New bill will make system more efficient and effective
Improving the way the Scottish system of social security delivers for people in need of support is at the heart of new legislation.
The Social Security (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill enhances the rights of Social Security Scotland clients in a number of ways:
A right to late re-determinations and appeals in exceptional circumstances
The right to withdraw a request for redetermination
The right to challenge a decision that someone is liable in a situation where an overpayment has been made
The Bill will also continue to enhance the design of the system, maximising choice for those who use it while delivering good value for money.
It will also enable the Scottish Government to recover the cost of devolved social security benefits from compensation awards in situations where someone has had to claim payments as a result of a third party’s fault.
Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “The changes proposed by this legislation are part of our commitment to continuously improve the Scottish social security system in ways which put the needs of those who require assistance first.
“They will help make the social security system more efficient and effective, contributing to our mission to tackle poverty and protect people from harm.
“The measures it contains advance equality and non-discrimination and ensure the system is efficient and delivers value for money.”
Measures to support women experiencing difficult menopause or menstrual health symptoms in the workplace are being introduced by NHS Scotland across their workforce.
As one of the medium term actions in the Women’s Health Plan, the policy reflects recommendations from a study of NHS employees by Professor Kathleen Riach, supported by the Scottish Government.
The new policy aims to create an environment where women feel confident in raising health issues so solutions can be put in place.
Minister for Women’s Health Jenni Minto said: “It’s important to foster a culture of awareness and compassionate management in the workplace so women feel confident and comfortable in raising issues around their menopause or menstrual health.
“NHS Scotland’s policy will recommend a number of measures that will make work life easier such as flexible breaks and working arrangements.
“This is a positive example of an employer taking proactive steps to reduce barriers to women’s health in the workplace and we hope it promotes equivalent efforts across the public, private and third sectors.”
Professor Kathleen Riach said: “NHS Scotland’s new Menopause and Menstrual Health Workplace Policy marks a vital step in ensuring all employees are valued, supported, and recognised as an integral part of the country’s workforce, no matter their age or stage of their reproductive lives.
“Healthier women mean a healthier economy. By identifying and scaling some of the best practice currently existing across the NHS Scotland workforce, as well as introducing new evidence-based practises, this policy will ensure the menstrual status of women is no barrier to jobs and careers in healthcare.”
More school building projects across Scotland will benefit from a share of the £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme (LEIP) to build new, modern, state of the art facilities – but Edinburgh loses out this time around.
Ten local authorities are to be awarded funding in the third phase worth £450-500 million, which includes three Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools and a total of six projects which include ASN capacity.
The £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme is a joint programme with COSLA and follows on from the successful £1.8 billion Scotland’s Schools for the Future Programme, which delivered 117 new or refurbished learning facilities across Scotland from 2009 to 2021.
The successful projects are:
Hazlehead Academy (Aberdeen City)
Mull Campus (Argyll and Bute)
Lochies ASN School (Clackmannanshire)
Lenzie Academy (East Dunbartonshire)
Carrongrange ASN School Extension (Falkirk)
Forres Academy (Moray)
Chryston High School Extension (North Lanarkshire)
Kirkwall ASN Centre (Orkney)
Brae Campus (Shetland)
Riverside and Letham Primary School (West Lothian)
Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said: “I am determined to deliver excellence and equity across Scotland’s schools, and ensuring that pupils are educated in modern, state of the art facilities is an important part of that.
“This latest phase of the £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme will continue to support local authorities to deliver improvements in our school estate, and ensures continued progress in ASN provision in particular. This latest round of investment means that every Scottish local authority which submitted a bid has now received funding for a project in Phases 1, 2 or 3 the Learning Estate Investment programme.
“As a direct result of Scottish Government investment, the proportion of schools in “good” or “satisfactory” condition has increased from 61% in April 2007 to 90.7% in April 2023 and this investment will build on this remarkable progress.
“We will continue working with COSLA to explore how we can deliver further improvements in the school estate, as well as ensuring provision in those areas experiencing population growth.”
Councillor Tony Buchanan, COSLA Spokesperson for Children and Young People, said: “We welcome today’s announcement of the projects which will benefit from phase three of this joint Learning Estate Investment Programme.
“Creating the very best possible learning environments to allow children to thrive is a top priority for our councils. Scottish Local Government funds 50% of the programme and we are delighted to that more children and families will benefit from access to the improved educational environments while also contributing to our net zero goals.
“These council led projects really demonstrate the innovation from Local Government and partners that makes positive change a reality in people’s lives.”
Stephen Long, Learning Estate Team Lead at the Scottish Futures Trust, said: “We are pleased to continue our support to improving the learning estate in a wide range of communities across all parts of Scotland.
“This new phase will build on the ambition of previous phases by addressing embodied carbon, utilising zero emission heating, creating healthier learning environments and encouraging outdoor learning.”
Phase 3 projects are expected to be completed by 2027.
Access to potentially life-saving naloxone kits, which reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, is being expanded to community pharmacies across Scotland.
All community pharmacies will now hold at least two naloxone kits – either a nasal spray or injectable.
The Emergency Access Naloxone Scheme, which is backed by £300,000 of Scottish Government funding, began yesterday (Monday).
Drugs and Alcohol Policy Minister Elena Whitham said: “Through our National Mission to reduce drug deaths and harms, we have invested more than £3 million in widening access to Naloxone, including through our emergency services.
“Police Scotland recently completed a force-wide rollout to 12,500 officers who have used the kits more than 300 times and, according to the most recent statistics, 70% of those who are at risk of opioid overdose are being provided with a lifesaving kit.
“However, we want to do even more. This new nationwide service is a welcome addition to existing services. It provides a substantial increase life-saving emergency access and I’m grateful to all those in community pharmacies who are supporting our £250 million National Mission to reduce drug deaths.
“We’ll also continue to focus on getting more people into the form of treatment and support they need, expand access to residential rehabilitation and drive the rollout of life-saving Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Standards where we are making significant progress.”
Community Pharmacy Scotland incoming CEO Matt Barclay said: “CPS is pleased to have community pharmacy participating in delivering this key role to support a reduction in drug deaths across Scotland.
“It once again sees community pharmacy at the heart of the community, delivering care for the citizens of Scotland.”
A meeting organised by Sarah Boyack MSP with the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Michael Matheson, to discuss the delayed Edinburgh Eye Pavilion has left patients and campaigners even more concerned about its future.
At the meeting it was confirmed that all previous work on designing and building the Edinburgh Eye Pavilion will be wasted as a new full business case will have to be written, costing many more millions of pounds.
Michael Matheson also failed to provide clarity on the timescales expected for the new building, confirming it may not even come in this funding cycle.
Commenting Scottish Labour MSP Sarah Boyack said, “This flip flopping has been going on for too long. One minute the Scottish Government are committed to a new Eye Pavilion, next they are not.
“Michael Matheson’s failure to provide clarity today will leave patients worried, confused and angry.
“It did not have to be this way, if it had been built on time we would have saved many millions of pounds and patients would not be left in the dark.”
Also commenting Sylvia Paton, chair of KEEP said, “While Mr Matheson assured us that a new Eye Hospital would be built at some point, we are very disappointed about the lack of clarity over when.
“The prospect of further delays raise serious concerns about the Scottish Government’s future commitment to the project.”
Minister says councils must have UK Government support
Migration and Refugees Minister Emma Roddick has urged the UK Government to provide financial support for local authorities as it presses ahead with plans to close asylum hotels.
In a letter to Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick, Ms Roddick welcomed measures to end the inappropriate use of hotels to accommodate people seeking asylum along with UK Government measures to tackle the backlog in asylum decisions.
However, she said the move was placing further pressure on local services and called for increased funding to enable councils to meet the needs of refugees when they receive a positive asylum decision.
Ms Roddick said: “The Scottish Government has long been clear in our view that hotels are not appropriate accommodation for people seeking asylum.
“While I welcome your recognition that the asylum decision backlog must be tackled, I want to make clear that it is completely unacceptable and reckless for the UK Government to shift a significant burden onto local authorities without providing financial support.
“The UK Government must provide funding to local authorities and work constructively with them to ensure that people receiving a positive asylum decision are supported to move-on from asylum accommodation, without creating unmanageable pressure on housing and homelessness services over a short space of time.
“It is UK Government mismanagement of asylum decision making which has created the backlog and the consequences of that cannot be passed to local authorities without any support to manage them.
“I request urgent provision of funding to local authorities to support move-on associated with the backlog clearance.”
Gordon Macdonald MSP has welcomed the announcement that a one-off £2,000 payment from the SNP Scottish Government will be made available to young people who are leaving the care system across Edinburgh.
First Minister Humza Yousaf announced the payment following the Independent Care Review’s findings that those with care experience have an increased risk of poor mental health, addiction, homelessness, and exploitation.
The payment is co-designed with care experienced people to ensure that it meets their needs and helps to reduce some of the financial impediments in their way as they seek to live independently.
Commenting, Gordon Macdonald, SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands said: “The SNP Scottish Government is committed to Keeping the Promise by 2030 to all children and young people leaving care, and part of that is ensuring that they are supported on their journey into adulthood.
“Living independently can be a huge adjustment and comes at a pivotal time for young people leaving care across Edinburgh, especially if they don’t have family support.
“The SNP Scottish Government is therefore providing support to care experienced young people across Scotland through the Care Leaver Payment, and this will make a real difference to the lives of young people across the city.”
Letter to UK political leaders to support a humanitarian corridor
First Minister Humza Yousaf has written to UK political leaders urging them to support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, to allow a humanitarian corridor to open. The First Minister says the UK should stand together to stop the humanitarian disaster that is unfolding in Gaza.
The letter reads:
To: UK political leaders From: First Minister Humza Yousaf
The abhorrent terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas on 7 October must be unequivocally condemned, and I will continue to join you in doing so. Hamas must release immediately and unconditionally all hostages and cease its missile attacks on Israel.
The killing of innocent civilians can never be justified, wherever it occurs. Israel, like every other country, has a right to protect itself from attack, but in doing so it must comply with international law.
Since the tragic events of that day, the loss of life has escalated. More than 1,400 Israelis and 5,700 Palestinians are reported to have been killed. More than 1.4 million Palestinians have been displaced and in excess of 600,000 people are sheltering in UN-run facilities. Many British citizens are trapped in a warzone with nowhere to go, under intense daily bombardment of the Gaza strip.
Food, water, fuel, and medicine are being restricted, with limited humanitarian supplies – nowhere near enough – being allowed in. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) – the largest humanitarian agency working in Gaza – has warned that unless fuel is allowed into Gaza immediately, the agency will be forced to halt all operations as of today.
I am, therefore, writing to ask for your support in helping to stop the staggering humanitarian disaster we are witnessing, which is set to get even worse.
We should stand together and united in unequivocally calling on all parties to commit to an immediate ceasefire to allow a humanitarian corridor to be opened, so that lifesaving supplies can get into Gaza and innocent civilians who want to leave be given safe passage out.
The situation in Gaza is at the point of being cataclysmic. All of us must do everything we can to prevent that. There must be no more dithering, or delay, together we must call for an immediate ceasefire.
The First Minister’s letter has been sent to:
Rishi Sunak, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Mark Drakeford, First Minister of Wales
Michelle O’Neill First Minister (Designate) of Northern Ireland
Sir Keir Stamer, Leader of the Labour Party
Sir Ed Davey, Leader of the Liberal Democrats
Rhun ap Lorwerth, Leader of Plaid Cymru
Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsey, Co-Leaders the Green Party of England and Wales
Douglas Ross, Leader of the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Anas Sarwar, Leader of the Scottish Labour Party
Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater, Co-Leaders of the Scottish Green Party
Alex Cole Hamilton, Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats
Clare Adamson, Convenor of the Scottish Parliament Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Alicia Kearns, Chair of the UK Parliament Foreign Affairs Select Committee
MEANWHILE, THE UK GOVERNMENT HAS ABSTAINED IN A VOTE CALLING FOR A HUMANITARIAN TRUCE IN GAZA …
UK statement following the UN General Assembly vote on the Jordanian draft resolution on the situation in Gaza, Friday 27 October 2023:
The UK abstained on the Jordanian-drafted resolution.
We welcome the draft’s call for all parties to respect International Humanitarian Law, including the protection of civilians, for the immediate release of hostages and for full and sustained humanitarian access.
These are UK priorities and we have been working tirelessly with partners to achieve these on the ground, including the UK Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary’s engagements with Egypt to open the Rafah crossing to get aid to the Palestinian people.
We are proud to have pledged an additional $37 million in UK aid to help civilians in Gaza since the beginning of the crisis. The UK Prime Minister has been clear that we recognise the need for humanitarian pauses to deliver this aid safely and in a sustained way.
We also welcome the draft’s emphasis on preventing regional escalation of the conflict. It is in no-one’s interest for this conflict to spread.
However, we are deeply disappointed with the draft’s omission of an unequivocal condemnation of Hamas’ terrorist attacks that killed over 1,400 people and took over 200 hostages last week. This should not be controversial.
That is why we voted in favour of the Canadian amendment which would have corrected this.
But we cannot vote for a resolution that is silent on the largest terror attack in Israel’s history.
Hamas has embedded itself in civilian populations, is still holding civilians hostage, and firing rockets at Israel while using Palestinians as human shields. It is clear that Israel is under attack by terrorists and is entitled under international law to defend itself. Any resolution on the situation in Gaza and Israel should be unequivocal on that too.
This is why we abstained on this resolution.
We will continue to work closely with Israel, Palestine, the UN and our partners in the region to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. To ensure that civilians are protected and have access to food, water, medicine, and shelter. And to work towards the peace and stability which can only be achieved by working towards a sustainable Two State Solution.
Gordon Macdonald, SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, has urged residents across the city to take part in the Scottish Government’s consultation on the introduction of the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment.
From winter 2024, the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment, which will be an annual payment, will replace the UK government’s Winter Fuel Payment in Scotland.
The Scottish Government are consulting people across Edinburgh to understand who should be eligible for this payment, when and how it should be delivered, and what measures can be put in place to support those living off the gas grid. The consultation closes on January 15th 2024.
Gordon Macdonald MSP is urging constituents across Edinburgh Pentlands to complete the consultation to ensure the payment is as effective as possible in helping pensioners with their winter heating costs.
Commenting, Gordon said: “The new Pension Age Winter Heating Payment delivered by the SNP Government will help over a million pensioners in Scotland with their heating costs, including thousands across Edinburgh.
“The SNP Government is committed to helping the most vulnerable through the difficult winter period – but it is vital people make their views known of how this payment can best be delivered.
“Since setting up a devolved social security system with compassion, fairness, and respect at its core – 13 benefits, of which 7 are unique to Scotland, have been established.
“Social Security Scotland is set to deliver £5.3 billion in devolved benefits in 2023-24 alone, supporting over 1.2 million peopleas the SNP continues to deliver every day for the people of Scotland.”
