Scottish Parliament News
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Cathy Peattie MSP
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Scottish Parliament budget £300m boost for pensionersCathy is delighted that the Scottish Parliament has been able to deliver a huge increase in spending on key areas of public services. In particular, she points to the billion pounds for the Scottish Health Service, and £300 million for pensioners. “As a result of this budget, I estimate that in Falkirk East, there will be over 900 pensioners getting central heating installed in the next five years, saving them an average of £550 a year in heating bills,” said Cathy. “There is to be a national concessionary travel scheme by 2002, including free off-peak travel, and a wide ranging package of support has been agreed for elderly households where someone requires care, including all but one of the Sutherland Report proposals. “While the principle of free personal care for all was accepted - and we will come back to it in the future - other measures were given a higher priority in the current spending proposals, on the basis that they benefit more people and target those in greatest need. It should also be noted that we are spending more on our alternative proposals than if we had simply implemented Sutherland, and that levels of support are beyond those for similar households in England. “Scottish local authorities already operate the best concessionary fare schemes in the UK. The latest scheme will improve on that already high standard by giving the elderly and those with disabilities free local bus travel within existing scheme boundaries for journeys outwith the morning peak. “With other improvements, such as free eye tests, the winter fuel allowance increase to £150, free TV licences for those over 75, and the guaranteed minimum income which helps the poorest pensioners, I believe that we are making a big difference to older people’s security and quality of life.” The UK government’s spending review has given the Scottish Executive an extra £3.4 billion - the highest ever level of spending on services in Scotland. If Labour wins the General Election, there will be an average 7% cash increase each year, and at the end of the first term of the Scottish Parliament, another £2 billion more than this year. Local authorities will receive 10.5% more, in real terms, over the next three years. Education spending will top £5 billion by 2003/4. There is also a 57% increase in the capital allocation to deal with decaying homes, schools and roads. It is interesting to note that the Scottish Executive gained £60 million extra by arguing that we should not be contributing to London Transport ... If you want more detailed information, please contact my office staff. Donald DewarI was shocked and saddened to hear of Donald’s untimely death. Donald had a serious operation during the summer but he appeared to have made a full recovery and was really getting back into the swing of things. Nobody hearing him at Question Time on the last Thursday before recess would have thought that within a week, he would no longer be with us. Donald was the natural choice of Labour Party members to lead the party in Scotland. He was the architect of the Scottish Parliament, leading the successful referendum campaign. It was with great pride that he marched with the Queen, up the Mound, to open Parliament last July. The people of Scotland and Labour Party members in particular held Donald in great affection and I have always found him to be a caring and supportive man. This is a sad loss - not just for Donald’s friends and family, or for the Labour Movement - but for Scotland. MSP welcomes support for local drug initiativesWelcoming a £100 million package of measures to address drug issues, Cathy Peattie MSP said that an increase in resources at local level was desperately needed in constituencies such as Falkirk East. “The Scottish Executive money includes £5 million for community-based initiatives, and £10 million earmarked for expanding community-based treatment,” said Cathy. “To make the most of this money we need to have better partnerships between statutory agencies and local voluntary organisations working in this field, such as the HOPE project and People Against Drugs. “A large chunk of the money - £27.5 million - will go to rehabilitation and training services, and there is another £21 million for education, young people and family support. The remainder is divided between alternatives to prison, and helping those in prison with drug problems. “Last year there were 340 deaths though drug misuse, and there are an estimated 30,000 problem drug users in Scotland. I am pleased to say that this package seeks to reduce that number by prevention and by providing more help for those users who want to address their problem. “There is however, plenty to be done. Telling drug users to take a pamphlet and come back in a few weeks is not the best way to reinforce their commitment to tackle their drug use. Effective action has to offer prompt and meaningful support. I hope this money enables those involved locally to offer such support.” Cathy is now the Vice-Convener of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee,She has also been chosen as the rapporteur for the committee’s SQA inquiry. Amongst other things, this involves liaising with and attending the meetings of the Lifelong Learning and Enterprise Committee as well as the two committees of which she is a member (EC&S, and Rural Affairs, who are currently considering Mike Watson’s Hunting With Dogs Bill in addition to their normal programme of business). All of which, of course, is in addition to the usual complement of constituency casework - the upshot being that Cathy is currently kept very busy. One reason that Labour’s MSPs have so many committee duties is that membership is based on the size of the full group, but only the backbenchers sit on committees. By contrast, opposition MSPs typically sit on only one committee, and if they are list MSPs (as many are) then their casework commitments are also likely to be considerably less ... which helps to explain how they have so much time in which to cultivate the media, and manage to be so readily available for the cameras in Edinburgh when stories break on Friday or Monday (sigh). Fears have also been expressed that regional list MSPs will “cherrypick” issues and cases; and against guidelines, they are sometimes misleadingly termed “the local MSP”, or other similar descriptions. Constituency MSPs are not always aware of the involvement in their area of a list MSP. But if it’s an issue of concern to constituents, then Cathy wants to be involved - so please make sure that we are contacted. |
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