Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
MP calls government programme ‘inadequate’
Newly re- elected Airdrie MP Neil Gray gave his support to the SNP’s alternative Queen’s speech while calling the Prime Minister’s Programme for Government “inadequate”.
During a debate held on the Queen’s Speech, Mr Gray said: “This Programme for Government is thin gruel for those hammered by austerity for 10 years.
“It seems that the Brexit bonanza this Prime Minister predicts will not reach those on low incomes, quell surprise.”
Mr Gray then hit out at the lack of detail regarding Scotland’s place in the UK, stating: “Also conspicuous in its absence from this Programme for Government was any meaningful mention of Scotland or any legislative plans for its future.
“Scotland is not a region questioning its place in a larger monetary state; we are a nation questioning its place in a voluntary union of nations.
“Our friends in the rest of the UK will always be our closest allies; but in line with the principle of self-determination, the people of Scotland should have the right to determine whether the time has come for a new better relationship.”
The SNP’s 12-point alternative plan puts forward bills to protect the NHS, tackle the climate emergency, end austerity and ensure that a second independence referendum is granted.
Among the proposals are an independence bill to make sure that the right to a referendum is respected; a parental leave expansion bill which will see an additional 12 weeks ringfenced for fathers to take; and a climate emergency bill to introduce tougher legal targets to ensure that the UK matches Scotland’s 2045 zero-emissions target.
Mr Gray added: “Following the outstanding general election result for the SNP, it would be prudent of the Prime Minister to maybe read our alternative Queen’s speech and act on some, if not all, of the proposals we have put forward.
“While the Tory UK government seems hell- bent on forcing through Brexit, leaving 1950s women without adequate pension provisions and selling off the NHS to the highest bidder, the SNP is looking to do the very opposite.
“We want to bring forward a Women’s Pension Justice Bill to help the 3.8 million 1950s women gain justice for the current state pension age debacle and a House of Lords abolition bill to begin to dissolve the un-elected and over-privileged.
“We are not just the third biggest party in the Commons, we are the only party that has both Scotland’s and the UK’s best interests at the forefront of everything we do.”