Alison Johnstone MSP, Social Security spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, has urged the Scottish Government to use new devolved powers to stop an estimated 20,000 Scottish children being punished by the Westminster Government’s lower benefits cap. Continue reading Greens: Scotland must act to stop benefits cap ‘cruelty’
Andy Wightman MSP, Local Government spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, has highlighted a report showing the social impact of the 2016-17 local government budget. The MSP says the report highlights a need to re-address the way councils are funded.
The SPICe/Glasgow University/Heriot Watt University report shows most council expenditure is on services used by less affluent communities – services such as social work, public transport and citizen’s advice – but that most cuts have also landed on these services.
Andy Wightman, Local Government spokesperson for the Scottish Greens and MSP for Lothian, said: “Local authorities provide a lifeline for many communities struggling to make ends meet. Good quality education, social care, public transport, libraries and citizen’s advice are essential if we want a fair society.
“I welcome this new social impact methodology which, although not ideal, is very useful in understanding the impact of cuts to local government budgets.
“Ultimately this report shows the negative impact on local services from the Scottish Government’s cuts to council funding and underlines the need for a fiscal framework between the Scottish Government and local authorities and the need to scrap the Council tax and provide greater fiscal autonomy to local government.”
Alison Johnstone MSP, Health spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, has expressed concern at statistics showing that half of Primary One children in deprived communities have tooth decay.
The NHS report concludes that “clear health inequalities persist, and reducing dental health inequality must remain a priority.”
The main finding is that in the most deprived communities 55 per cent of P1 children have no obvious tooth decay. The national target is 60 per cent. In the least deprived communities, 82 per cent have no decay.
Alison Johnstone MSP said: “Poor dental health among children in less well-off communities is a tragedy and we must do more to turn this around. Getting children into good habits to look after their teeth is vital and there are good schemes in operation across Scotland, but we need to see greater effort to support parents, carers, school staff and communities.
“On top of that, there are steps that we can take to reduce the income inequality that contributes to poor health outcomes. I’ve already persuaded Scottish Ministers to roll-out the Healthier Wealthier Children project which boosts the incomes of vulnerable families. We can go much further by improving wages and using tax powers to put more money in the pockets of those who need it most.”
National Dental Inspection Programme (NDIP) Report 2016:
https://www.isdscotland.org/
Guarantees over the future of Scotland’s mountain weather forecasts were sought by Green MSP Andy Wightman at Holyrood yesterday.
Reports emerged over the weekend suggesting that SportScotland is to end funding of the Mountain Weather Information Service, and In spite of repeatedly asking the Minister for Public Health and Sport if SportScotland had told the Mountain Weather Information Service at a meeting on July 2016 that its funding would end, Ms Campbell was unable to provide an answer.
Andy Wightman MSP, the Scottish Greens’ housing & land reform spokesperson, said: “I’m glad that the minister shares my view that the forecast service is an essential service for climber and walker safety in Scotland and that conversations with the government and its agencies are ongoing. However, the public will be looking for more transparency over what the current funding set up is and how that has been communicated to the MWIS. I’ll continue to seek updates from the minister to guarantee the long-term future of mountain weather-forecasting.
“This is a service that has provided trusted detailed forecasting for mountain users for 13 years and SportScotland has funded it since 2007. It’s a service that is trusted and relied upon by hundreds of thousands of users of Scotland’s mountains every year and safety and enjoyment of those who use our mountains is dependent upon accurate reliable, and above all trusted sources of weather forecasts.”
Green councillors have slammed Edinburgh’s Local Development Plan, saying that it fails the city on affordable housing, traffic problems and loss of greenbelt land. Continue reading Greens slam Local Plan ‘sham’
Scottish Green MSPs will use this afternoon’s (1 June) Holyrood debate on Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform to push the Scottish Government to be bolder on community energy, fracking and democratic ownership of land. Continue reading Be bolder, urge Greens
“Public confidence needs rebuilt as well as school walls: and fast” – Green Candidate Andy Wightman
The Scottish Government’s resiliency committee has met to discuss the emergency closure of seventeen PPP schools across Edinburgh – but The Scottish Greens say the ‘fiasco’ highlights the need to expose private finance failures. Continue reading Closed schools update: Scottish government offers ‘full support’
Life expectancy gap between rich and poor continues to grow
Lothian MSP and Scottish Greens’ spokesperson on Health and Wellbeing, Alison Johnstone has branded figures that show funding discrepancies between GPs in poorer and wealthier areas of Scotland as “shocking”.
The figures, published yesterday, were obtained by researchers at the University of Glasgow and University of Dundee, and demonstrate there is a £7 per person per year funding gap between GP practices in the top 10% most affluent and the 10% most deprived areas.
Johnstone highlighted that health inequalities in her home region and around Scotland are rife, with a 7.3 year gap between Local Authorities in overall male life expectancy, and a 5.2 year difference between Local Authorities in overall female life expectancy.
Johnstone urged the Scottish Government to ensure that GPs in more deprived communities are able to deliver a high-quality health service, and called for resources to be distributed according to need, not wealth.
Alison Johnstone said: “These shocking figures highlight the challenges our NHS is facing trying to provide a decent service to all those who need it. It’s vitally important that help goes where it’s most needed, and the unequal distribution of funding means that doctors in deprived communities are unlikely to have the resources to meet their patients’ needs.
“In Lothian, a person living in one of the more affluent parts of the region can expect to live nearly two decades longer than those from the poorest. If we don’t ensure that people in the poorest areas get the same quality service as wealthier communities, we have no chance of eradicating health inequalities.
“I urge the Scottish Government to take these figures very seriously and to reconsider how it distributes GP resources. It’s time to get back to basics – every single person from in Scotland deserves high quality healthcare, and we must make sure our NHS can deliver.”
Highest life expectancy for men in Scotland is in East Dumbartonshire at 80.7 years, with lowest in Glasgow City at 73.4 years. For females, highest life expectancy is in East Dunbartonshire at 83.9 years, and lowest at 78.7 years.
Figures available at: http://www.gro-scotland.gov.
Airport to end trial two months early following community pressure
Alison Johnstone has today congratulated local communities on their campaign success after the Edinburgh Airport announced it will close its controversial flight path trial two months earlier than originally planned.
Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian and Scottish Green Party candidate for Edinburgh Central, said: “I’d like to congratulate the community on their success in reducing the length of the reckless flight trial by two months. This is entirely due to sheer determination and their well organised and effective campaign.
“October will still feel like a long month for the community who have had to suffer negative health impacts and disruptive noise caused by the trial, but I am please the airport have recognised the need to listen and act. And end to this stressful situation is now in sight.
“The past few weeks have demonstrated how powerful Scotland’s communities can be, and lessons regarding the need for meaningful consultation have been learned. I look forward to working with constituents and the airport in the months ahead to ensure that the health and well-being of residents is central in all future proposals.”
Over one million passengers travelled through Edinburgh Airport last month, making it the busiest August on record for the airport and its fourth million plus passenger month in a row. A total of 1,158,794 people arrived and departed Edinburgh Airport in August, an increase of 8.7% on August 2014.
‘Scottish government must come off the fence’ – Alison Johnstone MSP
Alison Johnstone, Scottish Green MSP for Lothian and a leading campaigner against unconventional gas extraction, is challenging coal gasification firm Cluff over their claim that ‘it is neither necessary, nor in the public interest’ to examine the risks of their plans.
Cluff wrote to all MSPs before Tuesday’s announcement that their plans for drilling under the Forth are on hold, and today Alison replied, challenging the company’s views.
Scottish Green MSPs have been campaigning against unconventional gas extraction – also known as ‘fracking’ – since the 2011 election. Alison Johnstone led Holyrood’s first debate on the issue in May 2014, proposing a ban – all other parties voted against it.
Alison Johnstone MSP said: “Before Cluff got cold feet and announced a delay in their plans, they wrote to all MSPs as part of a charm offensive. Scottish Greens support the many community groups around the Forth who have made their opposition to coal gasification clear, and I have written back to Cluff challenging their claims.
“Cluff have attempted to downplay coal gas disasters elsewhere but I believe we must look at where things have gone wrong to help us understand the risks. We know of serious problems in Australia, resulting in widespread contamination of land. We know investigators were hospitalised with suspected gas poisoning during soil testing.
“It is therefore essential that Cluff lays out in detail the safety record of its projects rather than dismissing concerns out of hand. Cluff also choose to ignore the fact that we already have far more fossil fuels than we can burn if we want to limit climate change.
“Scotland is in a privileged position to end its reliance on fossil fuels earlier than other countries and create many more jobs by investing in sectors such as renewables, green chemistry, home insulation and forestry.
“In the meantime the Scottish Government must come off the fence, extend their temporary fracking moratorium to include coal gasification given it requires onshore infrastructure and turn it into a permanent ban, to protect our communities, our economy and our climate.”
