Thursday 21 June 2018
GSA
I pay tribute to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service who showed bravery and professionalism in bringing the fire under control and ensuring the safety of the public. The Mack as it is affectionately known is an iconic institution loved by many both here in Glasgow and across the globe. Many are mourning the devastation this fire has brought.
I took the opportunity to question the Cabinet Secretary for Culture on what support will be offered and when we can expect some answers on how this fire ensued. You can read the exchange here: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.aspx?r=11610&i=105214
Glasgow City Council have offered support to residents and you can get support by calling North West team on 0141 276 6168 during office hours and 0800 838 502 out-of-hours and for Businesses within the safety cordon should contact Business Glasgow at businesssupport@glasgow.gov.uk or 0141 276 5333.
Visits
It’s always great to welcome constituents to the Parliament and this week was no exception. On Wednesday some members of my own family and their friends popped into the Parliament for a tour. As you can see they were delighted to be here so much so that they stayed to watch and listen to the debate on the music industry in Glasgow of which I was contributing.
FemEng
International Women in Engineering Day is marked on 23 June this year with the theme of Raising the Bar. It is an international awareness campaign to raise the profile of women in engineering and focuses attention on the amazing career opportunities available to girls in this exciting industry. It celebrates the outstanding achievements of women engineers throughout the world.
My colleague Gillian Martin MSP led a members debate in the Parliament on this subject and I took the opportunity to contribute highlighting a hugely successful and positive project FemEng and FemEng Rwanda.
You can read my full speech here: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.aspx?r=11610&i=105233
Mental Health
Royal Mail and their charity partner’s Action for Children, Scottish Association for Mental Health and the Prince’s Trust were in the Parliament this week highlighting their work on improving mental wellbeing both in young people and throughout the Royal Mail’s workforce.
In May 2017, Royal Mail announced a new charity partnership with Action for Children, to focus on addressing mental health issues in young people. They raised more than £2 million for Action for Children to employ specialist youth workers to deliver face-to-face support sessions for 8,000 young people aged 15–18, to help prevent them from developing depression and other mental health problems.
Music Venues
One of the members debates this week focused on the music industry across Glasgow and in particular a recent report Growing the Value for Music Tourism in Glasgow from Scottish Enterprise in partnership with Glasgow Life.
Representing the city centre with a high concentration of popular music venues I took the time to contribute to the debate.
We are extremely lucky to have such a fantastic, thriving live music scene across the city and in order to have this we need the venues that have been catalysts for the success of so many young aspiring musicians over decades.
They are both cultural landmarks and tourist attractions as well as being the home of fantastic live music and it goes without saying with the best audiences in the world but some of them are under threat from developers in their pursuit of providing high end accommodation in the city centre. Developers don’t want to pay for soundproofing of their buildings and would instead have the venues – already established and many over decades – foot the cost.
I support the introduction of the Agent of Change whereby developers and those either building or buying property adjacent to a music venue are liable for any costs of soundproofing.
You can read the full debate here: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.aspx?r=11613&i=105267
Epilepsy Connections
What a pleasure to have more guests from Epilepsy Connections visit the Parliament this week.
They had the full works with a tour of the parliamentary complex, followed by a trip to the public gallery to watch First Ministers Question Time.
I managed to catch up with them in between their full itinerary for a quick chat and this lovely photograph.
Refugees
In marking World Refugee Week I spoke in the Scottish Government’s debate on Thursday. I am proud of the approach of the Scottish Government – humane, empathising, supportive and welcoming. The second New Scots Strategy builds on the work gone before with a foundation of dignity and respect at its heart.
You can read the full debate here: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/ReportSelectPage.aspx?type=plenary&year=2018&page=0&meeting=-1
MND
My colleague Christina McKelvie MSP led a parliamentary debate on MND this week where she outlined how the Scottish Government is working to ensure that people living with MND have access to the best possible care, support and research. The SNP in government has invested £2.5 million in a Specialist Nursing and Care Fund each year since 2015, more than doubling the number of MND specialist nurses across the country. The Scottish Government is also developing Scotland’s first National Action Plan on Neurological Conditions, investing in research capacity and bringing major MND studies to Scotland. Since 2015, the government has committed more than £750,000 has been committed in Scotland to research into MND and is funding two new recipients of the Gordon Aikman Scholarship again this year.
Charities
Charities Aid Foundation were exhibiting in Parliament and I took the opportunity to stop by and chat to their representatives about their work.
We spoke of charitable trends across Scotland and how these compare against the UK as a whole. Now in its second year, Charities Aid Foundation’s report Scotland Giving offers the first opportunity to draw comparisons and changes over time.
Over 100 charities also attended the event in Parliament along with MSPs who had the opportunity to hear first-hand about the climate in which Scotland’s charities are operating.
CAF’s report is now in its second year and is the only major study of its kind. It found that Scotland accounts for 11.8% of all UK charitable donations, despite representing 8.4% of the UK’s population. The report also found that the most popular causes supported by those in Scotland were children and young people, with 28% of those surveyed saying they had donated to this cause. This was followed by medical research (27%) and animal welfare (25%).
