Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school -
3. Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Government what impact the cashback for communities programme is having in North East Scotland. (S4O-05576)
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice (Michael Matheson): We are rightly proud of our unique cashback for communities programme and have published information by local authority area on the cashback website. It demonstrates that, up to the end of March 2015, young people from North East Scotland, which covers the local authority areas of Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dundee city and part of Moray, have directly benefited from nearly £5.5 million of cashback investment that has delivered more than 250,000 activities and opportunities for young people in the area.
Stewart Stevenson: I very much welcome the £5.5 million that has been recycled from the pockets of criminals for the benefit of the public good in North East Scotland, as has happened elsewhere in Scotland. What criteria might the cabinet secretary wish to see used for the future selection of cashback projects?
Michael Matheson: Our approach in the past three phases of allocating cashback money has been to work with the 14 partner organisations that are responsible for projects across the country. They range from sporting organisations to cultural organisations and youth groups and they focus on areas that are deprived and where there are disadvantaged young people.
We are coming towards the end of phase 3 of the programme, which goes up to March 2017, and I am considering the arrangements for phase 4. I want to ensure that it is targeted more on deprived areas, that it focuses on assisting us to reduce inequalities in our communities and that, in doing so, it maximises the benefit for communities. There is no doubt that the programme has been an extremely successful way to take money from criminals and put it back into our communities. We intend to build on the important work that we have achieved in recent years with the programme.
24 February 2016
6 January 2016
(S4O-05218) Common Agricultural Policy Convergence Uplift Negotiations
5. Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made in the common agricultural policy convergence uplift negotiations with the United Kingdom Government. (S4O-05218)
The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Food and Environment (Richard Lochhead): Despite qualifying for the convergence uplift only as a result of Scotland’s low payment rate, the United Kingdom Government refused to pass on the full allocation to Scotland, which was a bitter blow to Scotland’s farmers and crofters.
The then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs promised to review the UK’s allocation of common agricultural policy funding in 2016. It is now 2016, and so I have today written to the current secretary of state urging her to set out the timetable for the review as a matter of the utmost urgency, and seeking an early discussion on its terms.
Stewart Stevenson: I very much welcome the news that the cabinet secretary is seeking to hold the UK Government to account for its previous promises. Has the Scottish Government estimated the financial loss to the Scottish economy from loss of those funds—which came to the UK only because of Scotland—and, if possible, of any multiplier effects that the funds would have had on our economy?
Richard Lochhead: It is complete larceny that that money, which was sent to the UK Government because Scotland’s low payment rates allowed the UK Government to qualify for the uplift from the European Commission’s common agricultural funding, has been denied to Scotland’s farmers, crofters and rural communities. At the time, the payment was worth £190 million over the course of the current CAP. That is a substantial resource, given the number of questions that I have just received from members who are arguing for more investment in the agriculture sector. That money is Scotland’s money: it belongs to Scotland, but we got only a small percentage of it, whereas the whole £190 million should have come to Scotland. As Stewart Stevenson rightly said, that would have had a multiplier effect across our rural and food economies.
It is essential that the UK Government live up to its words and that it undertake the review immediately on a very short timescale, with a view to delivering Scotland’s money to Scotland’s farmers, crofters and rural communities.
The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Food and Environment (Richard Lochhead): Despite qualifying for the convergence uplift only as a result of Scotland’s low payment rate, the United Kingdom Government refused to pass on the full allocation to Scotland, which was a bitter blow to Scotland’s farmers and crofters.
The then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs promised to review the UK’s allocation of common agricultural policy funding in 2016. It is now 2016, and so I have today written to the current secretary of state urging her to set out the timetable for the review as a matter of the utmost urgency, and seeking an early discussion on its terms.
Stewart Stevenson: I very much welcome the news that the cabinet secretary is seeking to hold the UK Government to account for its previous promises. Has the Scottish Government estimated the financial loss to the Scottish economy from loss of those funds—which came to the UK only because of Scotland—and, if possible, of any multiplier effects that the funds would have had on our economy?
Richard Lochhead: It is complete larceny that that money, which was sent to the UK Government because Scotland’s low payment rates allowed the UK Government to qualify for the uplift from the European Commission’s common agricultural funding, has been denied to Scotland’s farmers, crofters and rural communities. At the time, the payment was worth £190 million over the course of the current CAP. That is a substantial resource, given the number of questions that I have just received from members who are arguing for more investment in the agriculture sector. That money is Scotland’s money: it belongs to Scotland, but we got only a small percentage of it, whereas the whole £190 million should have come to Scotland. As Stewart Stevenson rightly said, that would have had a multiplier effect across our rural and food economies.
It is essential that the UK Government live up to its words and that it undertake the review immediately on a very short timescale, with a view to delivering Scotland’s money to Scotland’s farmers, crofters and rural communities.
16 December 2015
(S4O-05181) Youth Employment
8. Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how youth employment in Scotland compares with the rest of the European Union. (S4O-05181)
The Minister for Youth and Women’s Employment (Annabelle Ewing): The latest data from Eurostat show that Scotland, with a rate of 54.6 per cent, had the third-highest youth employment rate across the European Union countries for quarter 2 of 2015. Only the Netherlands, with a rate of 61.3 per cent, and Denmark, with a rate of 55.9 per cent, were ahead of Scotland.
Stewart Stevenson: That is very welcome news, although overtaking the Netherlands and Denmark should remain an objective.
What investment is being made to improve opportunities for young people across Scotland so that we can get to number 1?
Annabelle Ewing: I share Stewart Stevenson’s ambition to get to number 1. The Scottish Government has been taking a number of initiatives and making a number of investments to ensure that we do everything that we can so that young people can fulfil their potential in life. For example, we invested £12 million last year and we have invested £16.6 million this year in embedding our developing the young workforce principles and policies. We have also provided more than 25,000 modern apprenticeship starts year on year, and some 101,000 modern apprenticeship opportunities have been delivered in the current parliamentary session. We have ambitions to go further and secure 30,000 modern apprenticeships starts by 2020.
Of course, we also work with Skills Development Scotland on employability activity, we invest in community jobs Scotland, which is operated through the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, and we have extended eligibility for the educational maintenance allowance. There are a number of other initiatives, and I should add that we work with Inspiring Scotland to help young people in the 14 to 19-year-old age bracket. We are therefore conducting a number of activities across a range of areas to ensure that we are doing everything we can.
In that regard, I am pleased to note that the labour market statistics that were published this very morning show that youth employment has increased by 20,000 over the past year. We are going in the right direction, but we recognise that we have more to do.
The Minister for Youth and Women’s Employment (Annabelle Ewing): The latest data from Eurostat show that Scotland, with a rate of 54.6 per cent, had the third-highest youth employment rate across the European Union countries for quarter 2 of 2015. Only the Netherlands, with a rate of 61.3 per cent, and Denmark, with a rate of 55.9 per cent, were ahead of Scotland.
Stewart Stevenson: That is very welcome news, although overtaking the Netherlands and Denmark should remain an objective.
What investment is being made to improve opportunities for young people across Scotland so that we can get to number 1?
Annabelle Ewing: I share Stewart Stevenson’s ambition to get to number 1. The Scottish Government has been taking a number of initiatives and making a number of investments to ensure that we do everything that we can so that young people can fulfil their potential in life. For example, we invested £12 million last year and we have invested £16.6 million this year in embedding our developing the young workforce principles and policies. We have also provided more than 25,000 modern apprenticeship starts year on year, and some 101,000 modern apprenticeship opportunities have been delivered in the current parliamentary session. We have ambitions to go further and secure 30,000 modern apprenticeships starts by 2020.
Of course, we also work with Skills Development Scotland on employability activity, we invest in community jobs Scotland, which is operated through the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, and we have extended eligibility for the educational maintenance allowance. There are a number of other initiatives, and I should add that we work with Inspiring Scotland to help young people in the 14 to 19-year-old age bracket. We are therefore conducting a number of activities across a range of areas to ensure that we are doing everything we can.
In that regard, I am pleased to note that the labour market statistics that were published this very morning show that youth employment has increased by 20,000 over the past year. We are going in the right direction, but we recognise that we have more to do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
