Northern Scot Column
Posted on Friday, October 12 2007
Prime Minister Innoculated for Election FeverIt seems that following a bout of bad polls the Prime Minister has now received an innoculation for the dreaded 'Election Fever' which he appeared to be suffering in recent weeks.Following a week full of headlines such as 'Brown Bottled It' I, like many others, feel that this sorry 'election' saga has been played out for far too long.It has been more than obvious that the Prime Minister's indecision has been based on waiting for the outcome of polls following the conference season and not, as he would like us to believe, on his wish to consider all the demands of opposition parties.I am more than happy to go to the polls at any time that the Prime Minister chooses but the seemingly endless speculation of recent weeks has caused nothing but a diversion from the serious business of running a country.I personally feel that the Prime Minister should have made his decision weeks ago and if he wanted to campaign then campaign we would have. I would have liked to have seen an election but it is not healthy for the Prime Minister to have allowed the speculation to continue unabated for so long to the detriment of many other serious issues.With parliament now returning from recess I would urge the Prime Minister to focus on the issues at hand rather than playing with the electorate and spending excessive time thinking about election possibilities.Work ExperienceIn recent weeks high school students from throughout Moray have been getting a taste of life beyond school in their work experience weeks. Whether they have been trying office based work, like the students we have hosted in the Moray Parliamentary Office, working in the building trade, farming, retail or any of the other varied areas of work experience I know that the students broadly enjoy their experiences (and not just because the get to miss Maths on a Monday morning!).I would like to personally thank the students who asked to come to the parliamentary office and I hope they found the experience interesting but I will also take this opportunity to give recognition to the workers who take the time to teach the work experience students the new workplace skills that they needed and the feedback to help them develop their skills even further.SkillforceIn a similar vein I greatly enjoyed visiting Lossiemouth High School to see the Skill Force project in action. Skill Force provide an alternative, more vocational, curriculum that introduces students to alternative skills and has seen huge success in helping students into employment and further education.My experience at Lossiemouth was inspirational and the students and project team put in a huge effort and, equally, get a huge benefit from the scheme's success. The scheme operates in various Moray schools and in a number of other Local Authority areas and I wish them every success for the future.And finally...Parliament is now back and there are some major new issues coming up for debate and decision. Not to mention a number of major ongoing issues for Moray - the campaign to save the motorcycle test centre in Elgin carries on, civil service job cuts continue to be a major issue and Tax Credits and the management of the Child Support Agency are both under the spotlight. I will be pushing the government hard on these important concerns.If any constituent wants to raise any matter with either myself or my Moray SNP colleague Richard Lochhead MSP the Parliamentary Office in Elgin is at 9 Wards Road, Elgin, IV30 1NL.
SNP CALLS FOR FAREPAK COMPENSATION PRIORITY
Posted on Friday, October 12 2007
DISGRACEFUL NO PROGRESS AFTER A YEARThe SNP has today (Friday) called on the UK Government to play its part and do more to compensate Farepak customers after it emerged that thousands of Scottish families, who lost a combined £8million when the firm collapsed a year ago, are yet to receive a penny. Presently, customers are likely to get only 5p in the pound returned.SNP representatives in Westminster including Moray's Member of Parliament Angus Robertson have likened the loss of savings to the recent Northern Rock difficulties where the government guaranteed savings and have questioned why the same could not be done for Farepak savers.Mr Robertson said:"It is simply disgraceful that, a year after the Farepak collapse, customers are still waiting for their money back."The UK Government must now play its part, particularly given that it was its failure to secure adequate consumer protection through regulation that allowed last years Christmas crisis to happen. The Government should step in without further delay to secure compensation for those who lost out so badly. Halifax Bank of Scotland should also act on its responsibilities."The Chancellor was quick to guarantee the savings of customers of Northern Rock when it ran into trouble, and similarly he should extend that principle to Farepak savers."Progress must be made to ensure that the hard hit families whose Christmas was stolen last year are now fast tracked on a route to compensation, and the Government must bring forward legislation so that this never happens again."ENDS
PARLIAMENTARIANS WELCOME NEW DISTILLERY FOR MORAY
Posted on Wednesday, October 10 2007
£40m ROSEISLE DISTILLERY GETS GO AHEAD Moray SNP MSP Richard Lochhead and Moray SNP MP, Angus Robertson ,have today (Wednesday) welcomed the decision by the Council to grant planning permission for a new distillery at Roseisle.The £40m distillery at Roseisle will be Scotland's first new mainland distillery in 30 years and is expected to create up to 25 new jobs. The new distillery is part of Diageo’s £100m expansion of its operations, and is scheduled to open in early 2009.Commenting Mr Lochhead said: ‘‘Today’s decision is good news for the whisky industry and the people of Moray. The plans for Roseisle are very exciting. Not only will Moray benefit from the first new distillery in many years but it will be an environmentally unique distillery that uses renewable energy and other clean technologies. ‘‘Hopefully, there will be a big economic benefit for local businesses that will be involved in the construction. The development is also good news for arable farmers in the region who know they will have an even bigger market in the whisky sector for their barley in the coming years. ‘‘I am a fan of Speyside whisky and I am looking forward to sampling Moray’s newest whisky in the years ahead.’’Mr Robertson added“The fact that Moray will benefit from a new £40m investment signals the growing confidence in the whisky sector and reinforces our reputation as the world's whisky capital."The whisky industry plays an important role in Moray and the new distillery at Roseisle will provide a boost to the local economy with jobs both during construction and once in operation.’’-Ends-
OMBUDSMAN'S TAX CREDITS REPORT SLATES SYSTEM
Posted on Tuesday, October 9 2007
Moray SNP MP Angus Robertson has today [Tuesday] welcomed the publication of a report into the operation of the Tax Credits system by the Parliamentary Ombudsman.The Ombudsman's report is highly critical of the Tax Credits system introduced by the Labour Government and raises serious questions about the disproportionate impact of the system on claimants who are the least financially secure.In the report titled 'Tax Credits: Getting it wrong?' the Ombudsman Ann Abraham has said that despite significant improvements in the system HM Revenue & Customs who operate the system have still a very long way to go. Levels of complaints made to the Ombudsman's office continue to rise with over a quarter now being on Tax Credits issues.Angus Robertson's Moray Constituency Office also continues to receive significant numbers of complaints about the Tax Credits system from constituents who are being badly affected by the management of their cases and demands for repayment of money that they had previously been given.The Ombudsman has commented that the clawback of overpayments continue to be a major problem saying: "in such instances, the impact on those concerned, typically those on the very lowest incomes who are the most vulnerable in society, is huge and highly distressing. As one complainant put it: "Tax credits are supposed to help families, not cause them money worries." It is essential, therefore, that these matters are addressed as quickly as possible."Commenting on the report Angus Robertson MP said:" Overpayments continue to cause great distress for those least able to afford to pay back money and in a large number of cases the claimants are completely unaware that they have been overpaid and are hit be an unexpected, unaffordable and unreasonable demand to repay the money." In these cases there is a clear duty on the Tax Credits authorities to assess the impact that recovering overpayments will have and they specifically have to consider whether the applicant could have reasonably known that they were being overpaid. The Ombudsman's report states that the application of this important code of practice is inconsistent and specifically that 'proposed revisions will not be enough to deal with all the problems identified in this report or to prevent harsh and unfair decisions in the future.'" These ongoing and major problems with Tax Credits require open and honest consideration by the government and parliament and the government has thus far failed to acknowledge these issues quickly or sought to have the policy reviewed in parliament. Given the significant number of people adversely affected by the system this is quite simply disgraceful." My SNP colleagues and I have raised these issues time and again with Ministers, in parliamentary questions and directly with HM Customs & Revenue but they are still failing to take appropriate action." The Ombudsman's report increases this pressure even further and I will continue to pursue these concerns in the coming parliamentary term.Notes for Editors:The Ombudsman's statement and report can be found at http://www.ombudsman.org.uk/news/press_releases/pr2007_06.htm
MORAY MP WELCOMES WHISKY INDUSTRY ANNOUNCEMENT
Posted on Sunday, October 7 2007
WESTMINSTER SNP LEADER - WHOSE CONSTITUENCY CONTAINS MORE THAN 50% OF SCOTLAND'S MALT WHISKY DESTILLERIES - HAILS CONSULTATION SNP Westminster Leader and Moray MP, Angus Robertson, has today welcomed the announcement of a consultation by UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) on the introduction of tighter definitions of Scotch whisky in law. The SNP have been pushing UK Ministers to bring forward proposals that will define the descriptions applied to Scotch whisky branding and provenance, and safeguard Scotland's whisky industry from overseas imitations. Welcoming the announcement Angus Roberston MP said: "I am delighted that the Scottish Government has been successful in encouraging DEFRA to make progress on this crucial issue. "Ensuring safeguards in law are essential to protect the high standards of Scotch whisky at home and abroad. The whisky industry supports tens of thousands of jobs, and is worth billions to the Scottish economy. "Much work has been done behind the scenes by individuals and organisations, including the Scotch Whisky Association, and I am pleased that progress is now being made. The SNP will certainly continue to play our part to ensure that these safeguards are implemented as soon as possible." -ENDS-
|