[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGAVQr6m628[/embedyt] Haggis. Neeps. Tatties. Scottish cuisine at its finest. And synonymous with this time of year as we approach Burns Night. Across Scotland, and indeed across the world, there will be Burns Suppers taking place in a whole variety of settings. From grand banquets with pipers and poetry to a humble haggis supper from […]
The highly respected Scottish anti-poverty network, ‘the Poverty Alliance’ has issued a brief to Scottish parliamentarians before this weeks budget and their main proposal for the budget is to increase child benefit by £5 a week. If we are to tackle poverty then we need actions that focus on doing so otherwise all the political […]
“Blacklisting is still going on in Scotland and we need a full public inquiry to get to the bottom of this destructive practice that wrecks lives and victimises workers for seeking to do the right thing”. That was the message from Neil Findlay MSP this week as union members came to the Scottish Parliament […]
Many have been saddened, if not shocked, by the latest round of branch closures announced by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). I have been a member of that bank since my teens, mainly because it was the only bank based in the village where I live, and I have always stayed with it because […]
[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px1UAOv6ldg[/embedyt] This week at FMQs I questioned the First Minister on the release of a new Audit Scotland report on the state of Scotland’s health service. This report raises massive concerns for the state of our NHS. It shows the failings in budgets and the financial management of health and social care, the […]
I was pleased to join with campaigners from Scotland Against Fracking, the Broad Alliance, WWF Scotland and Friends of the Earth Scotland outside the Scottish Parliament today calling for support from the Parliament to end fracking in Scotland. I supported the Government motion which due to a Labour amendment effectively bans fracking from taking […]
I recently joined with a number of fellow MSP’s and campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament to support Battersea Dogs & Cats Home’s campaign calling for five year sentences for animal cruelty offences in Scotland. There is no place for animal cruelty in Scotland. This is why I have regularly stood up against it. I have […]
[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f0DUjJezx8[/embedyt] I opened a Scottish Labour Party debate in the Scottish Parliament on fiance. I moved a motion in my name stating: “That the Parliament believes that income tax should be increased to allow greater investment in public services.” The issue at the core of the debate is our public services, and how […]
[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO0NH1ni9c8[/embedyt] This week at FMQ’s I questioned the First Minister on cuts to our Fire and Rescue services. It is sadly the case that Scotland has lost 24% of its fire safety inspecting officers since 2013/14 and it is the responsibility of Government to make sure that the Fire and Rescue Service has the […]
[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ts_-S14sh0[/embedyt] At First Minister’s Questions I highlighted that too many children in Scotland are being let down when it comes to mental health services. We can do better for them. It is clear that nothing needs more investment than mental health services, particularly children’s mental health services. Actions speak louder than words. The Scottish […]