On Wednesday 26 January, I led a member’s debate on domestic abuse charges. I believe the Scottish Government must analyse and evaluate the outcomes of specialist domestic abuse courts in Glasgow and Edinburgh, with a view to rolling them out across the country.
Arran Ferry Action Group
The Scottish Government still refuses to recognise Arran Ferry Action Group, supported by over 1,000 islanders, as an official stakeholder. Here is my full correspondence with Transport Minister Graeme Dey about the issue:
National Care Service
I have written to the Scottish Government to express my concern at recent contracts awarded to multi-national consultancy companies for the National Care Service. The new system must be a universal service run in the public sector.
Wild Salmon Protection Zones
It is shocking that in nearly 60 % of salmon rivers across Scotland, salmon populations are in poor conservation status. SEPA – Scotland’s environmental watchdog – has launched a consultation on proposed wild salmon protection zones and a sea lice exposure threshold that applies in these zones. Sea lice from marine finfish farms can pose a […]
Safe Home Campaign
Walking home in fear should not be part of any job. Unfortunately, most hospitality workers are left with the choice of either spending sometimes a couple of hours wages on a taxi or walking home alone in the dark. For women and precarious workers in particular, this can be dangerous, and there have been alarming […]
EU Citizens’ Rights
Unfortunately, thousands of EU citizens are still at risk of becoming undocumented immigrants. Although the EU Settlement Scheme deadline has passed, many people with complex individual cases still face becoming undocumented migrants and losing access to public services. That is why I support the Citizens Rights Project, a community-led charity who have there are ten active […]
Energy Bills
A new survey by Citizens Advice Scotland has found that 36% of all Scots can’t afford fuel bills. This is unsurprising: bills have risen following the record increase of the energy price cap and the Tories’ callous cut to universal credit. These inflated prices have only exacerbated existing issues for the hundreds of thousands of […]
Violence Against Women
I spoke in the Scottish Parliament in the debate about violence against women and girls. The statistics are stark and concerning: the number of sexual crimes reported to Police Scotland, including rape and attempted rape, have gone up by 114% over the past 10 years. In 2019, only 43% of all attempted rape cases lead […]
UCU Strike
University and College Union (UCU) members across Scotland and the rest of the UK have taken strike action in the first week of December. I have passed on my full support and solidarity. I believe the way workers are treated in academia is shameful: staff pay has fallen by an astonishing 20% in real terms […]
Ferries Strategy
Over the past few years, we’ve seen countless ferry breakdowns. More than half of the 31 state-owned vessels are older than the average life expectancy by most industry experts. However, bar the two overdue vessels being built at Port Glasgow, the Scottish Government have failed over many years to invest in building new ferries. We […]