£500 MILLION CUT CONFIRMED – SCOTLAND WILL SEE REAL TERMS CUT IN INVESTMENT
9,000 JOBS UNDER THREAT – SCOTLAND FACING BIGGER CUT THAN UK DEPARTMENTS
SNP Treasury spokesperson, Stewart Hosie, has highlighted Scottish Government figures that point to a threatened 9,000 job losses as a result of the real terms cut in the Scottish Budget in 2010/11 announced by the Chancellor today.
Mr Hosie pointed to remarks of the Chancellor during the Budget statement when he warned that spending cuts would “choke off recovery” and “you can grow your way out of recession – you cannot cut your way out of it.” The actions the Chancellor rejected for the UK are ones he is now forcing on Scotland. Scotland’s share of the proposed spending cuts is above our population share and will see a reduction next year in the Scottish Government’s Departmental Expenditure Limit of £500 million.
Commenting Mr Hosie said:
“Darling and Brown are speaking with forked tongues. This Budget threatens 9,000 Scottish jobs. It will mean a real terms cut in Scottish spending, and is the wrong choice in the middle of the recession.
“The Prime Minister and Chancellor attack the Tories for planning cuts in UK spending and yet Labour are doing the exact same here in Scotland.
“This is the first real terms cut in Scottish spending since the dark days of the Tory spending plans of the 1990s.
“The Chancellor’s actions will threaten our actions for recovery, by slashing the money available in Scotland to invest in jobs and communities.
“Unemployment has risen by 15,000 over the year in Scotland, and in one day, the Chancellor’s actions have put at risk 9,000 more.
“Labour are cutting the wrong things – they should not be cutting investment in Scottish economic recovery but the £5 billion they will spend on ID cards or the £25 billion cost of replacing Trident.
“It is right to tighten our belts, that’s why the Scottish Government has a 2% a year efficiency programme, with the savings reinvested in public services. But the UK plans top slice money from the Scottish Government budget.
“Labour have chosen to stab at the heart of crucial Scottish budgets in health and education, skills, housing and enterprise. The price will be paid by Scottish families and communities in lost jobs.
“It isn’t too late to force the UK government to think again – the people of Scotland can do this and protect jobs and our recovery at the European election in a few weeks and the general election in a few months.”
SPENDING CUTS WILL ONLY ADD TO ANXIETY OF HOUSEHOLDS AND HIGH STREETS
DARLING MUST RULE OUT CUTS AND LOOK TO US FOR STIMULUS MODEL
SNP Treasury spokesperson, Stewart Hosie MP, has expressed concern over Treasury trails of the Budget saying that that Chancellor is set to cut public spending by £15bn in the teeth of recession. The SNP have urged the UK Government to deliver a fiscal stimulus similar to the approach taken by the US Government.
There is growing opposition to the cuts with unions and business organisations both warning of their potential harm. Business Secretary Lord Mandelson acknowledged yesterday (Sunday) that there was also mounting public concern.
Mr Hosie said:
“Slashing public spending in the teeth of recession will only add to the anxiety of households and high streets.
“First, the Chancellor told us this would be a short sharp recession, while every independent authority suggests it is going to be long and deep. Now, he tells us efficiency savings are the way to go despite serious warnings from union leaders, business organisations and the governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
“Just weeks ago Gordon Brown was gallivanting around the globe calling for a massive fiscal stimulus, but now Alistair Darling is doing the opposite.
“The £15bn cut exceeds the £12.5bn value of the UK Government’s VAT cut and risks negating any good this cut may have done.
“In the teeth of a recession, this dangerous move will seriously set back economic recovery.
“The Chancellor must look to America where President Obama has introduced an economic stimulus package worth $787bn and more than half of that is being spent at State level.
“The state of Maryland, for example – which has a similar population to Scotland – will receive some £2.6bn extra funding, supporting 66,000 jobs over the next two years. Yet in the UK, Alistair Darling’s Budget is proposing to cut Scottish public spending from 2010 by £500m a year, which would destroy 8,700 jobs in Scotland.
“There is clear blue water the width of the Atlantic between President Obama’s stimulus package, which will support some 3.5 million jobs nationwide, and the budget-cutting response of Labour.”
BUDGET MUST SECURE PUBLIC INVESTMENT
SCOTLAND HAS WHAT IT TAKES FOR A STRONG RECOVERY
Cuts to Scotland’s public spending in this week’s UK budget would damage Scotland’s recovery.
SNP Treasury Spokesman and MP for Dundee East Stewart Hosie today called on the UK Government to heed the warnings from the STUC not to cut public investment in this weeks budget.
STUC General Secretary Graeme Smith today warned the Labour Government that “cuts in funding for vital public services would be a disaster which Scotland’s communities will feel for many years to come.”
Welcoming the STUC’s intervention Mr Hosie said:
“Scotland has what it takes to recover strongly from this recession with public investment in jobs, training and enterprise, capital projects
across the country and support for frontline services.
“The SNP Government’s announcement off £95 million of investment in
skills, training and enterprise is exactly the kind of public support that
will see Scotland come through this recession in a stronger position.
“I fully agree with the STUC that cutting Scotland’s public spending at
this time could be deeply damaging to Scotland’s communities.
“It is simply nonsensical when what is needed in the economy is continued public investment that the UK Government would seek to limit Scotland’s potential with damaging cuts.
“As the First Ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have made clear – now is the time for investment in jobs and prosperity not public spending cuts that could have a harmful impact on our frontline services.
“Scotland’s communities will not easily forgive any politician or any party that stands in the way of Scotland’s recovery.”
SNP WINNING TEAM TO LEAD EUROPEAN AND WESTMINSTER CAMPAIGNS
WE’VE GOT WHAT IT TAKES TO WIN IN EUROPE
The SNP today announced Dundee West MSP Joe FitzPatrick and Dundee East MP Stewart Hosie will lead the SNP’s European and Westminster campaign.
Speaking to the SNP’s conference in Glasgow SNP MSP and Minister for
Parliament Bruce Crawford said:
“We have what it takes to put Scotland at the heart of Europe and to have Scotland’s interests heard loud and clear at Westminster.
“In Dundee we have shown we have what it takes. In Stewart Hosie and Joe FitzPatrick we have two campaigners with a proven track record, who have what it takes to win in Europe and to deliver a strong voice for Scotland in Westminster.
“They have proven they have what it takes to win at every electoral level in a city that Labour once counted as their heartland. And this success has been crowned just last month with the spectacular victory of Craig Melville and our capture of the council’s administration.
“With Stewart and Joe leading our campaigns in Europe and in Westminster we have what it takes to build on our success in 2007 as we show Scotland has what it takes.”
SNP MSP and European Campaign Manager Joe FitzPatrick said:
“This election will be a straight choice between a party that has what it takes to fight for Scotland’s jobs in Europe and a party that wants to cut Scotland’s spending.
“We have what it takes to lead in Europe, to build on the record of Winnie Ewing, Allan Macartney and Neil MacCormick to capitalise on our green energy potential, to deliver jobs and to turn Scotland’s renewable windfall into jobs for Scotland and Scottish jobs in Europe.”
Dundee East MP Stewart Hosie said:
“With our winning experience in Dundee we’ve got what it takes to win
across Scotland.
“In the Dundee by-election voters agreed that we’ve got what it takes – as they asked the SNP to focus on jobs, education and skills in their city.
“In Scotland, at Europe and in Westminster we have what it takes to fight for those Scottish jobs, to oppose Labour’s cuts and to show the SNP and Scotland have what it takes.”
MP Requests 7-Day Stay of Eviction at Discovery Packaging
Dundee East MP has intervened after a call from the workforce at the former Prisme Packaging unit in Tannadice Street for his assistance in preventing their eviction from the premises they have occupied for the past six weeks.
Dundee East MP Stewart Hosie said: “I have been working with constituents who were members of the workforce of the above company and who are now attempting to form a new company and I am aware that they are close to finalising a deal with a backer. This will happen early next week.”
“I have faxed an urgent letter to the landlords of the premises, Granite Edge Property Developers in Edinburgh asking them to consider delaying serving an eviction notice for a further seven days.
The MP wrote: “While I am aware that as the landlord of the former company you have been unable to collect rent or service charges for the past six weeks, I am sure you will agree that in these financially unstable times, any attempt to save existing jobs and industrial manufacturing business is for the benefit of all.
“The nascent company is also receiving financial support from local agencies.
“I am hoping that I can persuade you to delay serving an eviction notice for a further seven days to allow the backer and other agencies to conclude a deal that will allow your existing tenant to fulfil tenancy agreements and pay rent and service charges.”
MPC ANNOUNCEMENT UNDERLINES CREDIT MARKETS STILL NOT MOVING
“HIGH PRICE OF LOANS CRIPPLING BUSINESS”
Commenting on the announcement that the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is to keep interest rates at a historically low 0.5% and continue with a £75bn programme of quantitative easing, SNP Treasury spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP said:
“Alistair Darling’s attempts to jumpstart the economy are not working, and indeed he admitted that recovery is likely to take much longer than he predicted in November.
“The real difficulty is the cost of borrowing. Every day, I hear reports of loans being offered at well above LIBOR. This is crippling business.
“Last month, the MPC approved a radical programme of quantitative easing but this is yet to have the desired effect of getting credit markets moving.
“I have long held reservations about the effectiveness of printing money. While it is early days, the Japanese experience in the 1990s – where bank lending actually decreased – offers little encouragement.
“One thing we do know is that the UK Parliament was denied the opportunity to formally debate whether this tactic would work before it was introduced.”
SNP TREASURY SPOKESPERSON DEMANDS ANSWERS OVER RBS JOBS LOSSES
UK GOVERNMENT HAS ‘DEEP BURDEN OF RESPONSIBILITY’
SNP Treasury spokesperson, Stewart Hosie MP, has today (Wednesday) written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer expressing his concern over the shedding of 4500 jobs by RBS and seeking answers to the many questions raised by this development.
Commenting, Mr Hosie said:
“It is absolutely imperative that the impact of any job losses is minimised as far as possible.
“It is particularly distasteful that the axe is likely to fall on those who built the bank’s success – and not those responsible for its failure. The fact is, the UK Government now owns the majority of shares in RBS and has a deep burden responsibility to the staff as a result.
“Very real concerns exist over practicalities and that is why I have written to the Chancellor seeking clarification on how many of these jobs will be lost in Scotland and what role, if any, UKFI will play.
“The Chancellor must answer questions over how the UK Government will reconcile its role as majority shareholder with its welfare responsibilities as a government.
“I am pleased that the Scottish Government has committed to sending a PACE team to assist those who may lose their jobs. I am seeking assurances that the UK Government stands similarly ready to help.”
SNP POLITICIANS COMMENT ON RBS JOB LOSSES
EVERYTHING MUST BE DONE TO LIMIT IMPACT ON SCOTLAND
SNP politicians, Stewart Hosie and Shirley-Anne Somerville, have expressed concern over reports that RBS are to shed 4500 jobs in the UK.
Commenting, SNP Treasury Spokesperson, Stewart Hosie MP said:
“These are the inevitable consequences of decisions taken by RBS.
“Looming job losses are concerning and never more so than in the teeth of a recession.
“RBS said in a statement that they will seek to offer new jobs and to use only voluntary redundancy. This is welcome but there must be real constructive discussion with unions and across the sector through the financial sector jobs taskforce to minimise the impact of these losses.”
Lothians MSP Shirley-Anne Somerville, whose region includes the RBS Headquarters on the outskirts of Edinburgh where the RBS Group Manufacturing hub is based, added:
“Today’s announcement will be devastating for those working at RBS and will cause great concern across the city as we wait to find out where the job losses will take place.
“After RBS initially said only 2500 jobs would go, these figures are a dramatic increase.
“I have already contacted the Scottish Government and I am confident SNP Ministers will give every support they can to those who now face redundancy.
“We have enormous talent in Edinburgh and with new entrants like Tesco Finance basing themselves in the city it is vital that we do everything we can to ensure Edinburgh and its residents are able to recover strongly from events at RBS.”
Politicians’ Praise for New Council’s Jobs Priority
Dundee parliamentarians have welcomed Dundee City Council’s early statement to develop an economic recovery plan for the city. The new SNP Administration on Dundee City Council have been quick off the mark to make jobs and prosperity their top priority as they take over the reins of power in Dundee City Chambers.
Dundee East MSP Shona Robison said: “I am pleased that the new Administration has moved so quickly to highlight the need for an economic recovery plan for the city and to discuss ways in which the Scottish government can assist with that plan.
“We will work with the Council to build on the success of securing substantial resources for the waterfront development, and to use this £33m of investment as a catalyst for the further regeneration of the city including moving forward the Dundee V&A project. This will help to cement both the Waterfront development and the city’s reputation as a centre for the Arts.”
Joe FitzPatrick, Dundee West MSP added: “The city has many reasons for optimism. We are seeing expansion of the bio-medical sector and the digital media sector and games industries in the city but our focus should be on working together to maximise employment and tackle the challenges of the recession.
“Shona Robison and I will be seeking an early meeting with the new Administration to help facilitate big ideas for the city including the opportunity to make Dundee the renewables capital of Scotland in the same way that Aberdeen benefited from North Sea oil and gas. By working with Forth Ports, Scottish Enterprise and Dundee Council, we can help the city take advantage of its port and ideal location for turbine manufacturing.
Stewart Hosie, Dundee East MP, said: “In the circumstances of the worst economic recession we have faced for many years, it is important that we work together for the benefit of the city.
“Recent blows to our manufacturing industry demand a joined-up approach from the Council and the Scottish and UK Governments. I look forward to the Council engaging with business people, trade bodies, in fact everyone in the real economy to bring in investment to help the city move forward.”
DUNFERMLINE MORTGAGE DEAL “A DISGRACE”
The SNP has branded the Nationwide’s decision to prevent Dunfermline customers accessing new lower rate mortgages offered by the Nationwide a “disgrace”.
Where the Nationwide is to offer it’s customers rates of 2.5% at the end of their current mortgage term, Dunfermline customers will be restricted to a rate of 5.49% – at a time when the base-rate is currently 0.5%.
Central Fife MSP Tricia Marwick, whose constituency includes many Dunfermline workers and mortgage holders said:
“This is an outrageous move by the Nationwide.
“Mortgage holders with the Dunfermline will be very angry. When mortgage deals come to an end they should have access to the best deal in what is now one society.
“Their building society has been sold off behind closed doors and now they are expected to pay a premium for the privilege. This raises more questions over the terms on which the Treasury sold Dunfermline.
“Retaining the Dunfermline brand is important, but that should not mean Dunfermline savers and borrowers suffer.
“Scots will bear the cost of any job losses at Dunfermline HQ – they should not have to pay these additional costs as well.”
SNP Westminster Treasury spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP added:
“The Dunfermline deal has been sold by the government as the best deal for customers and workers, but that is already unravelling.
“While I welcome the fact that Nationwide customers will benefit from this new rate, why should Dunfermline customers be treated differently.
“It is clear Nationwide have taken on the mortgages only to rip customers off.
“Nationwide have taken over the best parts of the Dunfermline business, and is even being guaranteed taxpayers money to pay for the takeover – the least we should expect is an even handed approach.”