Schools have now finished for the summer and pupils and teachers are now enjoying a well earned holiday. But our local schools continue to be short-changed by the Governement at Holyrood and the powers in Renfrewshire Council.

“More NATS: Fewer Teachers” – that will be the epitaph of this administration as they near the end of their four year term.

They have overseen the loss of 2,500 teaching posts across Scotland – 245 in Renfrewshire, the deepest cuts of any council of our size. Leaving us with the worst secondary school pupil teacher ratios in all of Scotland. On education the  end of term report is a fail. The Scottish Government have failed on class sizes of 18, failed on free school meals for P1 to P3, failed on PE, failed on student debt, failed us on nursery education – and now they are failing us on the Curriculum for Excellence.

Boiler Scrappage

July may seem an odd time to talk about boilers – but the summer is a good time to get the replacement installed. Following the axing of Labour’s scheme for free central heating systems for pensioners – we finally succeeded in getting a boiler scrappage scheme for Scotland to match the English scheme. The scheme awarded £400 towards the cost of a new boiler. But such was the demand for the small number of £400 grants available, added to the fact they were advertised to be released on a certain date, it created a race situation not unlike the frantic clamour for a T-in-the-Park festival ticket!

It came as no surprise that the 5000 Scottish Boiler Scrappage applications were snapped up in just over 24 hours! There were only 211 successful applicants in Renfrewshire – that’s less than one in twenty of those who applied. Given Labour’s free central heating systems went to over 14000 households each year, I am pressing for a relaunch of the boiler scrappage scheme before the autumn.

Student Debt Rising

In 2007 the current Scottish Government made a lot of promises. One was a pledge to students to “dump the debt and reintroduce student grants” (page 6 of the SNP Manifesto 2007)

But the “DUMP THE DEBT” promise made to students is in tatters as student debt increases again. The figures for 2009-10 reveal a 7% increase in the total amount students in Scotland owe. The previous year showed a 9% increase in the total debt.

“Dumping Student Debt” was a cynical and hollow promise made to students and the current  Scottsh Government should apologise for misleading them. Most students I know are struggling to find summer jobs – and are even more worried about what happens when they graduate. With unemployment in Scotland overtaking England again, local job seekers face a double whammy from Tory cuts and the Salmond slump.

Knife Crime

Well done to Kelly McGhee and her family for the way they have risen above the personal tragedy of losing their beloved Paul to argue for tougher laws against knife criminals. The Scottish Government may not have listened to Kelly, but the rest of us tried to reflect the views of the victims in the legal reforms we voted for last week in Holyrood. The vote for mandatory sentences for knife crime may have been lost – but the campaign goes on.

Congrats to Renfrew Old

I am pleased that in its most recent set of grant awards, the National Churches Trust has agreed to contribute £40,000 for repairs to the Old Parish Church, Renfrew. This was the largest grant given in this set of awards.

I know Renfrew Old and other local congregations have a huge task on their hands to preserve historic buildings so every little bit of assistance helps. Well Done!

Linwood

I was delighted to attend a most heartening 150th Anniversary celebration service of Linwood Parish Church.

Unsurprisingly over the following lunch, discussions turned to the continuing frustrations and disappointment over Tesco’s lack of progress on the town centre. Many Buddies will be aware that Tesco’s promises to Linwood over three years ago were not merely for a store but for a whole new town centre. Hence this delay has meant no sign so far of the promised new health centre, library, community halls, and supermarket – and significantly no news of a planned start date offered from Tesco as yet.

The reason cited for the delay over recent months is the sensitive legal process of moving the remains from the 19th century Speirs family vault. The Court of Session in Edinburgh is currently presiding over the case. But I was reminded that it was the office bearers of the Linwood Parish Church themselves who told Tesco, three years ago, about the existence of the burial vault. So it is understandable that locals wonder why this legal process began only in the spring of this year.

The current collapsing unoccupied centre renders the whole town centre derelict and unsafe. Anything of scrap value has been stolen and the windows of the empty flats above the shops have provided attractive targets for brick throwing local youths. The empty flats have been broken into and I am also urgently pursuing with Tesco the reports of additional potential dangers associated with live electricity and gas. I continue to press senior Executives of Tesco not only make the site safer but to show the people of Linwood they will make good on their promises and announce their full commitment to start the much awaited new project before the end of this year.

Disability related harassment – have your say

The Equality and Human Rights Commission is investigating whether public bodies and public transport providers are fulfilling their legal obligations to prevent disabled people from being harassed. 

Every working day at least one person on average appears in court charged with a crime against a disabled person, nearly half of which involve violence.  Evidence suggests that many more incidents of targeted violence or hostility go unreported or are not dealt with properly.  The Inquiry is examining how victims of disability-related harassment, which includes name-calling, intimidation, bullying or violence, have been supported by public bodies and

Members of the public are being asked if they sought help from any public body or transport provider and what support they got, either as a result of being harassed because of their disability or because of their connection to someone who is disabled. 

The first wave of evidence will be collected until Friday 10 September 2010.

More information about the Inquiry and how to give evidence can be found on the Commission’s website at www.equalityhumanrights.com/disabilityharassmentfi  or by contacting the Scotland Commission’s helpline by Telephone: 08456 045 510 or Textphone: 08456 045 520

Anti Social Behaviour Orders

My postbag and surgery visits from constituents sadly tell me that Anti Social Behaviour has not disappeared in Renfrewshire – far from it. It therefore puzzles me that not one ASBO was issued in Renfrewshire last year. I am asking the local police Commander why that can be?

Renfrewshire Chamber of Commerce

This week I and fellow Renfrewshire constituency colleagues will meet with the Chamber of Commerce to discuss issues for our local businesses and the challenges they face in these difficult economic times. The Chamber plays an integral role in local businesses prosperity and it works to keep Renfrewshire as a whole in a commercial spotlight as a good place to do business.

Summer fun at PACE Youth Theatre

For anyone looking for something for kids in the summer, PACE Youth Theatre is running their performing arts festival over the summer holidays. It’s open to all, members and non-member, between 3 & 18.  SummerFest 2010 runs from 30th June to 16th August, usually between 10-4. For any child interested in music, dance or drama it looks fun packed. More information including the full programme can be found at /www.pacetheatre.co.uk/YouthTheatre/fest_home.asp or by calling 0845 130 5218

Crime focus

Crime, anti-social behaviour, the search for decent housing, and safer streets are the big issues at my surgeries. They often generate around ten times the complaints as the health service or education. So this week I and colleagues will meet Stephen House, the Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police.

Underage Drinking

I will be raising underage drinking. It is a local menace – often worse during the summer. Tougher licensing laws were introduced by the last Scottish Government. But the most recent figures show just 8 ‘proceedings’ against shops in Renfrewshire and not a single license suspension. I am pressing for better enforcement and stiffer penalties.

There can be no excuse for selling alcohol to children, but rogue retailers are getting away with a slap on the wrists. Scottish Ministers have admitted that retailers convicted of selling alcohol to children receive an average fine of just £244. This is a completely inadequate penalty. Shop keepers convicted of selling alcohol to a child should have their license suspended.

Even more worrying, Renfrewshire Council seem to have almost given up on applying for Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs). Few have been promoted by the police or council to deal with the disorder in Linwood or Gallowhill or in the West End of Paisley despite repeated requests for action from local people.

And little use has been made locally of the “powers of dispersal” allowing police to ban a crowd gathering and causing disturbance in the same location night after night. I want to see the full powers the Scottish Parliament gave police and councils through the Anti-Social Behaviour Act, used effectively.

I believe we need a formal process to allow local people to force authorities to take their complaints seriously. I want the Scottish Government to allow community groups such as Community Councils or Tenant & Residents organisations to apply to the local council to issue Anti-Social Behaviour Orders. The council or police would then either go forward with that request or would have to meet with the organisation and explain their reason for refusal and then set out an alternative approach. The community group could appeal a decision if they disagreed.
Inaction on Knives ‘Not an Option’

The tragedy of the young soldier Paul McGee, honoured for his bravery in Iraq, only to die at the hands of a knife wielding assailant in his home street, hits every law abiding citizen in Renfrewshire hard.

Tragically the most recent figures show a record 58% of murders were committed using knives in 2008/09 and the proportion of murders committed with a knife hit a 20 year high.

Last year almost 2,000 victims of knife crime were admitted to Scottish hospitals, at a cost to the NHS of more than £500m. That’s £500m that could have been spent on Scottish schools, hospitals, children or older people.

The knife murder rate in Scotland is more than double the UK average. Yet the majority (71%) of those found guilty of carrying an offensive weapon currently do not serve a custodial sentence. It needs to be made clear to criminals that if you carry a knife you will go to jail. That’s why 30,000 Scots signed Labour’s ‘Carry A Knife, Go To Jail’ petition,

Giving Victims a Voice

I am supporting plans for a Victim’s Commissioner in Scotland. I also want Parliament to guarantee the right of victims or their families to make oral representations to the Parole Board when a criminal reaches a potential parole date. So in future when criminals ask for Parole their victims will also have a right to be heard.

Hopefully, the Chief Constable will have some good news this week about next steps. Certainly the new policing plans for every ward are a basis for more targeted action. Labour toughened the law on underage drinking, anti-social behaviour, knife crime and support for victims. But police and the Councils have to use these powers day in day out to help make our communities safer.

Accord Summer Fayre

Finally, try and get along to Accord Fayre at the Town hall on Saturday from 10am. It has something for everyone and is a firm favourite with my kids.

I was given, at my Linwood surgery last week, a petition signed by 300 Clippens residents unhappy about youth gangs causing regular problems in their area. The PDE itself has recently published details of this story but I want local Police bosses to meet with some of these residents to hear first hand of the impact of the disturbances to their community. When incidents reach the levels they have over recent weeks, reassuring words to the press or politicians are not enough. Even for under-16s the Police and Children’s panel have powers to act and they should be willing to use them.

Advice

Tomorrow RCVS is hosting ‘Transforming and Empowering Renfrewshire’ event in the Wynd Centre from10am to 3pm – for people involved in the local voluntary and community sector.

The two workshops: ‘Transforming Social Work’ and ‘Empowering Communities’ will allow all participants to input their ideas on these important issues. So if you would like to attend call Anne Keir or Paul Hannah on 0141 587 2487 or email info@rcvsweb.co.uk.

Big BONUSES

It was bad enough to see pay rises of up to 22% awarded by local SNP councillors to senior council officials. Now the SNP Government in Holyrood has awarded £1.3 million in bonuses to their senior civil servants in just nine months at the peak of the recession.

In the current economic circumstances these kind of lavish bonuses are inappropriate and they should be stopped. It would be far better if this money was spent supporting jobs and frontline services like health.

NHS Falls Behind

Meanwhile the SNP Government have awarded Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board only 2.6 per cent extra next year. Whilst in England, the NHS has received a significantly higher overall increase of 4 per cent from the UK Government.

The SNP’s poor funding settlement will create real challenges for the local NHS and leaves us falling behind England.  Nicola Sturgeon won’t say why she now believes health is less of a priority in Scotland.

However there is some good news on the health front. Today the new Renfrew health and social work centre opens its doors. I lobbied the last Labour health minister hard, but successfully, to commit the funds required for the new centre. He found the money needed to make it happen.  So all the campaigning effort by so many local people is rewarded today when the first patients arrive for appointments in this fabulous new building.

Knife crime

Many readers will know of Labour’s campaign “Carry a Knife – Go to Jail” – a campaign this paper has vocally supported. Astonishingly new figures show that 71 per cent of knife criminals in Scotland currently still do not receive a custodial sentence. Sheriffs and judges need to respond better to the justified public anger about knife carrying. 

On song, on sport…proud Buddies.

Congratulations to the Thomas Coats Memorial Choir who held their 30th Anniversary concert last night. Their success is another feather in the cap of the Paisley choral tradition and another reason Paisley can claim to be Scotland’s top choir town.  On any other Sunday I would have been delighted to attend but one other huge event for Buddies was taking place at Hampden on the same day – the CIS Cup Final between St Mirren & Rangers.

As I write this column the excitement locally is building. St Mirren fans have had to wait a long 23 years since winning the Scottish Cup in 1987, and I am thoroughly looking forward to joining them in the quest for 2010 winning success this weekend. Today, as you read this column published, I dearly hope it follows a night of football celebrations for Gus and the team, St Mirren supporters and all of Paisley!

Campaigning Pays off

In January my post bag was dominated by objections to the axing of the Renfrew Ferry. Local campaigners like Liz Grant, tirelessly collected 2800 signatures in just a week to keep the Ferry. Jim Sheridan MP, I and many others lobbied Strathclyde Passenger Transport to reverse the decision. SPT were wrong to propose closing the Ferry and we did not let party loyalty get in the way of condemnation on a wrong decision.

Thankfully – SPT’s new leadership have been “big” enough to think again. They have successfully searched for a new operator for the ferry. So I expect we will now have operator, with a new ferry boat on the route and a saving to the public purse by the summer. This is politicians listening and responding to public pressure. We need more of that today.

Let’s hope SNP led Renfrewshire Council is also “big” enough to think again today on school transport. Labour Councillors have called an emergency meeting which is taking place today. I hope the hundreds of parents who petitioned for a rethink since this wrong decision was taken in January are not disappointed.

Linwood gangs

I have been pressing for a greater police presence in response to the trouble at the Clippens shops. The police tell me Linwood West in one of their priority areas with police officers robustly targeting youth disorder and seizing alcohol from under age drinkers. They promise they will explore Anti Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs). There is no doubt people want quick action. Several gang members are now taking part in a KANDO gang diversion programme. Diversionary activities, including the youth bus, football and rugby are also being provided. Campus Officers in schools are also working with head teachers to tackle gang violence.

But these are longer term solutions. The community want the police to make good the Divisional Commander’s recent promise that this disorder will not be tolerated and we will continue with all of these measures to target the minority of individuals whose actions cause fear within the community.

No Smoking day 2010

No Smoking Day takes place on 10 March 2010.The smoking ban was controversial but it is making a real difference. But smoking still remains the number one cause of premature avoidable death in Scotland with 13,500 deaths due to smoking every year, so there is a real need for more support to stop smoking.

Water Problems

Lots of people contact me about flooding matters. So I am pleased that Scottish Water is holding a Public meeting tomorrow night, Tuesday 9th March, in the Glynhill Hotel, Paisley Road, Renfrew. They will be holding a question and answer session from 6 p.m. and everyone is welcome. If you want to attend phone 01383-8482782.

Factoring

Last week in the Parliament I was pleased to support a Labour led debate urging action against bad factors. Research had shown that the property management market is not working well for consumers in Scotland – and locally, regular contacts to me from constituents confirm there have been number of cases where factoring has been a real problem.

The proposals debated would require property factors to be registered and to provide for their clients a negotiation procedure for the homeowners to access in cases of dispute. This should offer a better chance of fair resolution between the parties. Progress was made toward the introduction of legislation to ensure better accountability of property managers for their standards and the services that they provide.

Mod Success

Congratulations to Paisley on securing the Mod in 2013 for the first time ever. This is great news for the local tourism and hospitality industry. Well done to everyone who made it happen.

Andrea another local mum wrote
“My child is expected to walk to 2.5 miles to school – St Benedict’s High School – and again 2.5 miles home, which equates to 25 miles a week. I’ve walked the “safe route” (in my opinion it’s not safe for an 11 yr old) it took me over 1 hour so a child of 11 with a heavy bag full of book, a violin and lunch box and a change of clothes for the Scottish winter will be lucky if he can do it in, 1.5 hrs, which will add probably more than 15 hours on to his school week. When exactly is my child expected to do homework without being completely exhausted?”

These are just two of the many pleas by parents opposed to the proposed school bus cuts.  The buses may be a council matter but the bus cuts are the dominant issue at my surgeries. Angry parents are demanding all elected representatives do what they can to encourage a rethink.

So surely the time has come for council bosses and SNP/Liberal Democrat Councillors to think again? To be fair when they have got things wrong in the past they have been willing to think again.

This time last year the same council bosses and councillors proposed axing weekly lessons for pupils learning to play a musical instrument.

In response parents, pupils and music teachers successfully argued that children needed a weekly instrument lesson in order to progress.  The campaign was hard-fought attracting national media interest.  A huge petition, lobbying of councillors surgeries and delegations to council meetings went into getting the decision reversed.  Labour councillors called an emergency council meeting to try to get the necessary U-turn. Somewhat later, when the official U-turn came, it attracted prominent coverage in the PDE.

One year on we are back in the same place. If anything the outrage about the cutting of buses is ever greater. Many parents feel their child’s safety is at stake and they want a U-turn.

We had one last year on instrument lessons and we need one now on the buses issue.

And if SNP/Liberal Councillors are worried about finding £410,000pa required to keep the buses running they could start with agreeing a 5% pay cut for all top officials. It would be a small but important statement about Council priorities. Especially after the same councillors agreed an eye-watering 22% pay rise over the last 2 years for every head of service post.  Then there is the £2m in uncollected council tax and over £1m in uncollected rates this year – a small fraction of which could help keep the buses running.

So come on Cotton Street – do the right thing and think again.

My postbag has been very busy lately. This week has had a typical spread of issues arising including an elderly constituent needing a quicker Occupational Therapy Assessment, action on dog fouling, the overcrowding faced by a expanding family, a pregnant woman looking for a H1N1 vaccination, a request for speed cameras on a rat run road, an appeal for bus passes by workers at Haven Products a local social enterprise, and concerns about the timing of lights in centre of Paisley. 
Sometimes the public pronouncements of politicians that get reported can give the impression that all our energies go into disputing the big issues of the day. But behind the scenes most elected politicians and their staff try and deliver a really high quality service to constituents. Typically most MPs/MSPs have just one dedicated caseworker and those workers are real “local heroes” plugging away on constituents behalf with the local health boards, the police, Scottish Government, the local council and a raft of Government agencies like SEPA, Transport Scotland and the Care Commission to get action on behalf of their constituents. 
A recent case in my Paisley surgery involved a woman with cerebral palsy having to live in a one bedroom flat even though she now needs a carer staying over 3 nights a week. And young mums worried about the neds in their close making it harder for their children to come and go in peace. Close cleaning – or the lack of it – by neighbours is a huge ongoing issue! And the condition of Renfrewshire roads is fast rising up the agenda after the big freeze of the winter.
In addition to these local issues there has been lots of lobbying by Buddies about measures in the Scottish Parliament. Appeals from parents of disabled children about the failure to ring fence monies for respite care, support for a private members bill to create a national strategy to help families cope with Autism, representations for and against Margo McDonald’s End of Life bill, appeals for a stronger Marine Energy legislation and against seal culling, support for my efforts to persuade the Transport Minister to help save the Renfrew Ferry and support for a rethink of the cancellation of the Glasgow Airport Rail Link.

Dad’s leave

This week I have been planing my childrens’ birthday party. I have been resisting party bags which I think are a bad invention! But we are inviting lots of toddlers to enjoy traditional party games, cake etc. So with parenthood on my mind I was delighted to see the annoucement of new rules by the UK Government on leave for parents that will come in next year.
In future others will be able to choose to transfer the last six months of their maternity leave to the father, with three months paid. This will give families more choice and flexibility in how they balance work and care of children, and enables fathers to play a bigger part in bringing up their children. The flexibility will help many Scots families who are juggling busy lives. 
 
Hill Tracks

Finally since spring is around the corner let me end on a couple of bits of Parliamentary business about Scotland’s magnificent countryside. Labour is highlighting a worrying boom in the number of hill tracks on the Scottish uplands. There is no scrutiny over the tracks and we want greater controls to stop them almost appearing overnight on the hillsides.
Snaring Ban
I am also backing calls for an outright ban on snaring. The League Against Cruel Sports and Advocates For Animals recently lodged a 11,000-strong petition. It is disappointing that the Scottish Government continues to support those groups which back the continued use of these devices. Most people think snares, in any form, are simply not an acceptable means of animal control in today’s world. 
So if you are out enjoying the Scottish spring – get in touch if you think we need to do more to protect our wildlife and scenery for future generations.

Many readers may have seen articles, including in the PDE, offering money off a replacement boiler. The problem is the scheme only applies in England and Wales because the SNP Government have so far refused to introduce it in Scotland despite our colder weather up here.
Ten years ago with Donald Dewar I helped create the free central heating systems scheme for pensioners which ran for a decade. I was proud of the fact there was no means-testing involved. I reasoned if an elderly person does not have a central heating system it is because they cannot afford it. This scheme was scrapped by the SNP Government last year.

So it is doubly disappointing that the SNP Government are now holding out against a boiler scrappage scheme. We all know it worked for the car industry last year. We should learn the lessons. A boiler scrappage scheme would improve energy efficiency and boost the country’s plumbing industry.

I am campaigning for the Scottish Government to think again. Householders would get £400 towards the cost of a new energy efficient boiler. A new boiler would reduce people’s bills by as much as £235 a year and help those eligible to cut their carbon footprint. 12,000 homes would benefit.
There is no reasonable justification for failing to press ahead with the scheme, especially when the money is there to pay for it. The Scottish Government should move quickly to introduce a similar cash-back scheme for efficient boilers.
This is one of those win-win ideas -  it saves money, protects our environment, and supports local business. There’s no downside for the Scottish Government so there is no reason for Scots to miss out.

Renfrewshire budget

Sometimes people think campaigning makes no difference – my message is that it does.
Over the last year I have been involved in two big education campaigns locally. One to keep musical instrument tuition in our schools and another to halt the £2.5m cuts in local school budgets. I am glad to see in the Council budget – there were no further cuts in music tuition (although education bosses had drawn up plans for this) and local school budgets faced no further cuts.
One lesson I can take is that campaigning matters. So this year I want to see an end to cuts in teacher numbers – Renfrewshire has axed more proportionately than any other authority in Scotland – and a rethink of plans to cut secondary school buses. The alleged savings from cutting buses could be covered five times over if the council could just collect all the council tax it is due.

Renfrew Ferry

And on the subject of campaigning – if you have not done so please sign my online petition to save the Renfrew Ferry. Find it in the ‘Have your say’ section.

Finding consensus

And if all of the above suggests politics is always about differences – it is sometimes about building consensus. Labour has been trying to build a parliamentary consensus to implement the findings of Labour’s Literacy Commission.
We all know of cases where kids leave primary school without enough of a grasp of the basics. So 18 months ago I helped establish the Literacy Commission and we recruited author Ian Rankin to the cause.
The Commission recently reported that almost 1 million Scots have difficulties with literacy and every year almost 1 in 5 children leave primary school unable to read and write.
The Commission said that the use of synthetic phonics has hugely improved literacy levels in West Dunbartonshire and Clackmannanshire. So I want to work with all parties to implement a Literacy Action Plan based on the Commission’s report immediately. What is required now is the political will to act and act quickly.

The cold snap seems to have gone on and on. I was turned back at Glencoe on the 19th December, turned back from Crieff on 27th December and stopped from crossing at Scotch corner on 3rd Jan! And the car park at Abbeymill where my office is has become like an icerink. And it is the cold snap’s very duration that is causing so many serious problems. People’s lives have now been disrupted for weeks. In Parliament this week – I was relieved to be taking the train and not driving to Edinburgh – we have been asking questions about gritting, emergency helplines and support for the elderly.

Understandably many people are rightly worrying about their forthcoming fuel bills. Sadly the Scheme to provide pensioners with free central heating systems that I introduced a decade ago with Donald Dewar was abolished by the SNP last year. But there is an Energy Assistance Package which aims to reduce fuel bills and improve the energy efficiency of homes. To find out what the package can offer you, telephone 0800 512 012 or visit www.energyassistancepackage.com.

The package has four stages:

• Stage one offers free energy advice to anyone who phones the Energy Savings Scotland Advice Centre (ESSAC) network on 0800 512 012.
• Stage two provides advice on low cost energy tariffs to those at risk of fuel poverty.
• Stage three provides a package of standard insulation measures (cavity wall and loft insulation) to older households and those on benefits.
• Stage four offers enhanced energy efficiency measures to those who are most vulnerable to fuel poverty.

So please make sure anyone you know who could benefit gets in touch with the helpline.

Scottish Climate Change

It may seem strange in a cold snap to be talking about climate change – but weather extremes is one of the consequences of rising emissions. I hope in 2010 after a disappointing Copenhagen Summit we pick up the pace in Scotland. It is six months since the passing of the Climate Change Act in Scotland and we need to start seeing these measures put into practice now.
We have not yet seen enough action on the basics like cutting red tape on mini wind-turbines, increasing insulation in homes or boosting the use of electric vehicles in the public sector. The Scottish Government’s manifesto commitment to have renewables in every school – has also been abandoned.

We must seize the renewables opportunities whether those are in marine renewables or local community renewables. I want to see council tax and business rates reductions for those who make their homes and buildings more energy efficient. We need to support public transport and cycling, and the use of electric cars and battery technology to support the industry in Scotland. We must make the most of all opportunities that could come from green jobs and investment, not only to help our environment but also to boost job prospects and our economy.

GIVE BLOOD this week in Paisley

The bad weather puts the NHS under more pressure than usual. So please consider giving blood. The blood service holds donating sessions every month in Paisley Town Hall, the next session being tomorrow Tuesday 12th, 2 – 3:45 p.m. & 5:15 – 8 p.m. OR on the Donating Bus in County Square on Wednesday 13th from 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. & 1 – 3:30 p.m. I certainly plan to come back from Edinburgh early on Tuesday to be there. For more information, including sessions in Linwood, Renfrew and Johnstone please visit http://www.scotblood.co.uk/ or call the Scottish Blood Service on 0845 301 7270.

Santa supports charities as bankers withdraw

One of the most imaginative Christmas presents I have come across this year is from the National Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC). They have been running a Santa reply service. For a small donation to the NSPCC they will send a colourful, personalised letter from Santa to your child. For more information and to order call 0845 839 9304 or online at www.nspcc.org.uk/santa . You’ll have act quickly to use the service this year as the last day for ordering is the 16th. 

I mention it also because the wider fundraising challenges facing our charities are real. A huge step backwards was the decision of Lloyds Banking Group – a recipient of hundreds of millions of pounds worth of taxpayers guarantees over the last 15 months, to threaten the ending of its existing Covenant with its own charitable foundation.  Lloyds wants to halve from 1% of pre-tax profits to the cash going to its charitable arm.

Astonishingly the bank bosses – whose bank has benefited from billions from the taxpayer over the last year – seem reluctant to think again. When they appeared at the Parliament’s Economy Committee recently I left them in no doubt about how local charities feel about their plans to halve funds to their own Foundation.  Vital projects like Renfrewshire Carers Centre are currently benefiting from Lloyds TSB Foundation support. 

Leading banks were quick enough to demand taxpayer support to stop them going under so it is a disgrace they now seem loath to show a little charity themselves. The public have every right to be outraged.

On the subject if Renfrewshire Carers I was delighted to join them to celebrate National Carers Day recently – marked here in Renfrewshire by the launch of a new training service for local carers.  The training programme runs throughout 2010 and looks likely to be another big success for the local Carer’s Centre.

Teacher Jobs Struggle

This week sees important council meetings. For months my postbag has brought many letters or emails from newly-qualified teachers languishing without a job. Renfrewshire did not give a single one of its probationers from last year a full-time permanent job when the schools went back in August. One reason why there were so few jobs for new teachers in Renfrewshire is that 210 teaching posts in Renfrewshire have been axed in the last 2 years.

Renfrewshire now has the worst pupil teacher ratios in the whole of Scotland.  Renfrewshire’s administration has been axing teacher posts at three times the national rate. And our pupil teacher ratios in Renfrewshire have risen a whopping six times faster than across Scotland as a whole.

In Holyrood the First Minister recognised he had to act to put things right. We have begun to see some change of direction. Will we also get that vital change of direction in Renfrewshire?

Later this week Renfrewshire’s Education Board and Council can also start putting things right.  Just two months ago the SNP-led Administration voted down calls for a report into the arrangements for supply and ex-probationary teachers to see if any improvements could be made.

Meanwhile we still have local teachers who are getting no work and are having to sign on or work in evenings in shops, cafes and care homes.  All so they can make ends meet whilst they wait for a few days’ supply work.

It is time they got a fair deal in Renfrewshire.  Of 14 different budgets agreed by the Council, education came fourth bottom in the percentage change in resources it got this year. 

Ten other Council budgets did better than education according to a letter from the Chief Executive to MPs and MSPs (1 June 09). For example – leisure, environmental, finance, planning, roads and social work – all got a better deal from the budget – all got a real terms rise in resources.  Overall Renfrewshire’s budget was rising but education still got short-changed. This cannot continue.

It is time for an early New Year resolution from Councillors “we promise to stop short-changing local schools compared to other departments”. Otherwise I predict this issue will be every bit as toxic for the SNP in Cotton Street as it has proved to be for the SNP in Holyrood.