Trying to save vital resources
SNP and Labour face off on community plans
The two great privileges of my career are having been elected as MP for the constituency where I grew up and working for 20 plus years in our NHS.
I have fond memories of working in learning disability services, mental health and addiction services across NHS Lanarkshire, and was therefore particularly delighted to pay tribute to our NHS’s 72nd birthday this weekend alongside my husband and children, clapping in recognition of all that the NHS and its staff mean to us.
As chairwoman of the Health All Party group in Parliament, I will continue to prioritise NHS staffing, funding and parity of esteem for mental health services in the House of Commons.
During lockdown, I wrote to South Lanarkshire Council’s housing department regarding the need for increased rehabilitation placements in South Lanarkshire, prior to placing homeless residents in Lindsay House or within scatter flats in our constituency. It is crucial that complex mental health and addiction needs are fully met and that residents are re-homed at a stage when they are ready for community integration.
I continue to receive high levels of mail about drug and alcohol related issues linked with scatter flats that require to be addressed.
Locally, I was livid this week to receive word back from First Bus regarding their plans to scrap our 31 bus which runs through Stewartfield.
This is entirely unacceptable as this service is a lifeline for many local residents.
I have therefore asked for a meeting with First Bus and will be requesting they reverse this ill-conceived decision.
I will be at Westminster this week, taking part in Thursday’s debate regarding the Department of International Development (DfID) and opposing the Prime
Minister’s plan to subsume it into the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
His plan offers little in terms of long-term protection for staff livelihoods in DfID East Kilbride and undermines UK international leadership regarding aid delivery.
Set up in 1997, DfID has a strong reputation for both transparency and effectiveness.
A key to its success has been working in partnership with NGOs and charities on the frontline – inoculating the world’s poorest children, protecting fragile states and assisting during humanitarian disasters including Ebola.
The UK Government are changing these priorities, stating the need for aid to be spent in the national interest via FCO.
Legislation that that binds DfID to spend aid in a way that contributes to a reduction in worldwide poverty does not apply to other departments (FCO) who only need to satisfy the OECD’s definition: to promote the economic development and welfare of developing countries.
UK Aid is projected to fall dramatically as the UK economy contracts due to the impact of COVID-19 – so the agenda and reach of DfID is also likely to shrink.
We have been rightly proud in East Kilbride to be at the forefront of helping the world’s poorest and most vulnerable and it is extremely important that the case is made for the ongoing effectiveness of this model and the long-term sustainability of local jobs.
NICOLA FINDLAY
South Lanarkshire Council’s SNP administration have accused the opposition of blocking moves to give communities a greater say in how budgets are spent.
They claim a Labour-led amendment blocked participatory budgeting at South Lanarkshire Council’s Executive meeting this week.
The SNP proposed that the council moved to a position were communities had more of a say in how council cash is spent.
However, despite the upturn in community engagement as a result of coronavirus, the Labour Party moved that the proposal was delayed indefinitely, say the administration.
The opposition amendment was backed by the Conservative Party and the Lib Dems.
Council Leader John Ross said:“Over the past few months, we have seen a huge upsurge in community engagement as a result of coronavirus.
“It was our ambition to build on that and start of the process of engaging with communities to take decisions over mainstream council budgets.
“Participatory budgeting is proven to not only build local resilience, but to make council services better as a result.
“Despite that, the Labour Party kicked the proposal into the long grass and delivered a blow to both our recovery plan and community empowerment in the process.
“People should be at the heart of our decision making process and this decision flies in the face
Scottish aid organisations are calling for the merged DfID and Foreign Office to make four key pledges to the world’s poorest.
Scotland’s leading international development organisations have set out strict criteria they say are necessary in order for the UK Government’s new Foreign and Development Office to build on the UK’s world leading reputation in aid and diplomacy.
The call comes following the widely opposed merger of the Department for International Development (DFID) with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
This sparked fears over the future of 948 positions at Abercrombie House in East Kilbride, despite the Prime Minister reassuring workers their jobs were safe.
But what aid organisations say is most important now is ensuring the UK maintains its global leadership role in tackling global issues.
Scotland’s International development Alliance of that ambition.”
But Labour Group Leader, Councillor Joe Fagan, who represents East Kilbride Central North, quashed the claim.
He said: “Nobody blocked Participatory Budgeting - an agenda item was deferred for further consideration by a majority of councillors from across parties.
“We’ve already taken steps, on a cross-party basis, to improve democratic oversight of the Participatory Budgeting proposals.
“With the Council facing a COVID funding crisis, we just want to make sure we get this right. People’s jobs and services depend on us making the right decisions.
“If the Leader of the Council and his SNP colleagues want to misrepresent what happened in a Committee meeting then they can but I think that’s rather petty and, as the record will show, this is simply a deferral.
“Pausing to take stock of where we are and what comes next should not be controversial.
“My door is always open if they want to have a grown up conversation about their political priorities but sadly the local SNP’s rather petty approach to these things is one of the reasons for South Lanarkshire Council’s unfortunate decline over past three years.”
Tory Group Leader Alex Allison said: “We in the Conservative Group, in principle, are very supportive of participatory budgeting. The SNP proposal however needs more consideration with how it is to be implemented instead of being poorly rushed through.”
Councillor Robert Brown, the leader of
It is crucial mental health needs are fully met...
(the Alliance) has put forward four commitments needed from the UK Government to maintain effective, principled progress on sustainable development across the world:
1. Commitment to poverty eradication and aid effectiveness
2. Commitment to accountability, transparency and scrutiny
3. Commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change
4. Commitment to safeguarding DFID’s expertise
The call is backed by a wide range of Scottishbased organisations, including: Halo Trust, IDEAS, IIED, Oxfam Scotland, SCIAF, Tearfund Scotland, Carey Tourism, The Scotland Malawi Partnership, WaterAid, Water Witness and International and Thrive.
South Lanarkshire’s Liberal Democrats, said: “The Liberal Democrats have always been committed to community politics and community empowerment.
“Communities should absolutely have a say in how money is spent on local projects, but it has to be done right and not just be a token move.
“In the midst of this crisis it’s sensible to take some time to consider how it will actually be delivered.”
Jane Salmonson, Chief Exec of the Alliance, said: “The merging of DFID and the FCO has caused many to raise concerns that the UK’s national interest could skew the development policy agenda.
“The Alliance and many of its members have worked closely with the hugely experienced and talented team of specialists at DFID.
“We are hopeful that working with the specialists and diplomats at the FCO will add to the skills and qualities needed to resource the UK’s renewed commitment to the world’s most vulnerable.
“This is why we have developed this briefing outlining the four major commitments we expect from the UK government to build on its worldleading contribution to international development.
“We look forward to working closely with government, with our network of development organisations and with all organisations working in this crucial field, as we move into this new era of collaboration.”