The real Mackay More people backing Yes vote
BY RENFREWSHIRE NORTH AND WEST MSP DEREK MACKAY
Everyone will have now received their exam results - so congratulations is in order if you received the marks you were looking for to get into your chosen college or university course.
If you don’t quite have the results you were hoping for, or do not know what you want to do next, don’t panic.
There are plenty of options available and help and advice is at hand.
The Skills Development Scotland helpline is now open from 9am until 5pm, on 0808 100 8000.
Whatever the outcome, this is only the beginning of the journey to your chosen career.
Renfrewshire’s schools return next week and many of you will still be running around getting school uniforms.
Uniforms can be a considerable cost for families which is why I was proud when earlier this year Renfrewshire Council and the Scottish Government increased the grant for eligible families to £100 for this coming year.
This increased grant will help to remove the stigma that kids unfairly face due to circumstances which are completely outwith their control.
Every child in Renfrewshire should be able to attend school feeling comfortable, confident and ready to learn and this should not be hindered by the lack of appropriate clothing.
I am pleased that at both a national and local level, the SNP are taking steps to remove barriers for both children and families.
If you think you are eligible and haven’t get applied for this coming year, there is still time.
Phone Renfrewshire Council or visit the website at renfrewshire.gov.uk/ Freeschoolmealsandclothinggrants for more information on eligibility.
A new poll published this week shows 52 per cent of Scots back independence, with a majority favouring a referendum before 2021.
This phenomenal poll for the Yes campaign – the first since Boris Johnson became Prime Minister – shows more and more people see the opportunities of Scotland taking our own decisions.
Independence means getting a government people in Scotland vote for and that will act in our interests.
That stands in stark contrast to recent experience of Westminster, which is incapable or unwilling to act with those interests in mind.
A broken Westminster system means Scotland is being dragged towards a No Deal Brexit, regardless of the heavy price we’ll pay for lost jobs and lower living standards.
That project is being led by Boris Johnson — a Prime Minister who Scotland didn’t elect and who has no mandate to tear Scotland out of Europe with all the damage that will entails.
The SNP Scottish Government, by contrast, has a very clear mandate from the people of Scotland — to give them the choice of a better future with independence.
It would be a democratic outrage for any Tory government to deny that, and this poll shows such an anti-democratic position is completely unsustainable.
For more information on school uniform and school meal grants visit renfrewshire. gov. uk/ Freeschoolmealsandclothinggrants
If you need advice about your exam results call 0808 100 8000.