MPs Diary June
The new Council
I thought I would let things settle a bit on the local elections before commenting in my column. First of all congratulations to all those who were elected to serve in North Carrick and Coylton and in Girvan and South Carrick. Where there are winners there are also losers and I commiserate with Ian Fitzimmons and Mairi Low who both lost their council seats. I am sure they are already finding out that there is life after South Ayrshire Council.
The most interesting outcomes were in the south where local community activist Alec Clark was elected as an independent with a huge vote. The STV election system favours independents but this was much more than this – it was an expression of how strongly Girvan feels about the way they were treated by the last Tory SNP Council, especially over the Girvan Swimming Pool. The new administration has given Alec the Chair of the Rural Committee and I know he will bring all his enthusiasm and commitment to that role. He will also find out the constraints of what councils can actually do faced with competing needs and limited resources. He will need the support of those with power and influence.
This brings me to the success of another local Councillor, John McDowall. John had an exemplary record on supporting the Girvan Pool, the future regeneration of Carrick, and had served all the villages of the ward well over the years. As Labour Group Leader he has negotiated a share of power in the new council administration and is now Deputy Leader of the Council. I mention this because what Girvan needs is a combination of local commitment and political clout, Unfortunately the reality is that councils have less power and resources than they have ever had – certainly less than they had when I was a councillor nearly 20 years ago. 83% of council funding now comes from central government and there is a freeze on the council tax – the only source of revenue over which it can have some control. It is not good to be so dependent on central government at a time of a failed austerity programme by the Tory Lib Dem Government and an SNP government in Edinburgh passing on the cuts. It will be in the interests of the people of Carrick to have Labour involved in the administration of South Ayrshire Council over the next few years.
U Turns and the Static Caravan Fiasco
Now I turn to George Osborne's pantomime U-turns on some of the most unpopular elements of March's budget? Within minutes of its announcement, the story had been largely reduced to that of the "pasty tax" This provided a lot of comedic material but the reality is that first, the British pastry trade accounts for thousands of jobs and millions of pounds (Greggs alone employs 2,500 people, and recently reported pre-tax profits of £53.1m, though the VAT hike saw £30m wiped off its share value); and second, that it was the caravan part of the story that was arguably the more significant. I was one of many MPs who received petitions signed by static caravan owners protesting at the proposed imposition of VAT. Caravans are a vital part of Ayrshire’s tourism industry. We were able to join forces to present all the petitions to Parliament last month.
The static caravan industry employs about 6,000 people. The surrounding supply chain involves close to 20,000 jobs. Most of these jobs are in East Yorkshire and Humberside- one of the most economically blighted parts of the country. Bearing in mind the cash-strapped consumers who form their core market, industry insiders said that imposing VAT on static caravans would have led to a likely fall in demand of about 30%, and the loss of around 1,000 jobs in the industry, with sizable knock-on effects elsewhere.. The £30m the Government claimed would be generated by the extra VAT would have been neutralised by the cost of job losses and people being unemployed, facing uncertain futures. The U turn on this means that the imposition of VAT is now to be replaced by a 5% tax and is proof of what happens when an industry marshals its forces and makes its case. But how long before the Tory Lib Dem government's idiocy strikes again.
Local Jobs
As we are in the throes of a double dip recession and the cost of living is ever rising, jobs have never been more important. Following recent announcements on job losses from Solway Precast and Nestles I have been working with management and unions and met the Managing Director of Nestles in London. He was adamant that production must be reduced to keep the company viable in future but did say everything possible will be done to minimise job losses. I am aware the unions continue to press for an alternative approach given Nestles huge profits and I have also asked the Secretary of State for Scotland to intervene.
I requested a meeting with John Swinney MSP the Scottish Government Minister as soon as the future of Solway Precast was brought into doubt and I am pleased to say he has now agreed to meet me along with Adam Ingram MSP and I hope the local councillors, to discuss how we can improve the economic outlook for Carrick.
The new Council
I thought I would let things settle a bit on the local elections before commenting in my column. First of all congratulations to all those who were elected to serve in North Carrick and Coylton and in Girvan and South Carrick. Where there are winners there are also losers and I commiserate with Ian Fitzimmons and Mairi Low who both lost their council seats. I am sure they are already finding out that there is life after South Ayrshire Council.
The most interesting outcomes were in the south where local community activist Alec Clark was elected as an independent with a huge vote. The STV election system favours independents but this was much more than this – it was an expression of how strongly Girvan feels about the way they were treated by the last Tory SNP Council, especially over the Girvan Swimming Pool. The new administration has given Alec the Chair of the Rural Committee and I know he will bring all his enthusiasm and commitment to that role. He will also find out the constraints of what councils can actually do faced with competing needs and limited resources. He will need the support of those with power and influence.
This brings me to the success of another local Councillor, John McDowall. John had an exemplary record on supporting the Girvan Pool, the future regeneration of Carrick, and had served all the villages of the ward well over the years. As Labour Group Leader he has negotiated a share of power in the new council administration and is now Deputy Leader of the Council. I mention this because what Girvan needs is a combination of local commitment and political clout, Unfortunately the reality is that councils have less power and resources than they have ever had – certainly less than they had when I was a councillor nearly 20 years ago. 83% of council funding now comes from central government and there is a freeze on the council tax – the only source of revenue over which it can have some control. It is not good to be so dependent on central government at a time of a failed austerity programme by the Tory Lib Dem Government and an SNP government in Edinburgh passing on the cuts. It will be in the interests of the people of Carrick to have Labour involved in the administration of South Ayrshire Council over the next few years.
U Turns and the Static Caravan Fiasco
Now I turn to George Osborne's pantomime U-turns on some of the most unpopular elements of March's budget? Within minutes of its announcement, the story had been largely reduced to that of the "pasty tax" This provided a lot of comedic material but the reality is that first, the British pastry trade accounts for thousands of jobs and millions of pounds (Greggs alone employs 2,500 people, and recently reported pre-tax profits of £53.1m, though the VAT hike saw £30m wiped off its share value); and second, that it was the caravan part of the story that was arguably the more significant. I was one of many MPs who received petitions signed by static caravan owners protesting at the proposed imposition of VAT. Caravans are a vital part of Ayrshire’s tourism industry. We were able to join forces to present all the petitions to Parliament last month.
The static caravan industry employs about 6,000 people. The surrounding supply chain involves close to 20,000 jobs. Most of these jobs are in East Yorkshire and Humberside- one of the most economically blighted parts of the country. Bearing in mind the cash-strapped consumers who form their core market, industry insiders said that imposing VAT on static caravans would have led to a likely fall in demand of about 30%, and the loss of around 1,000 jobs in the industry, with sizable knock-on effects elsewhere.. The £30m the Government claimed would be generated by the extra VAT would have been neutralised by the cost of job losses and people being unemployed, facing uncertain futures. The U turn on this means that the imposition of VAT is now to be replaced by a 5% tax and is proof of what happens when an industry marshals its forces and makes its case. But how long before the Tory Lib Dem government's idiocy strikes again.
Local Jobs
As we are in the throes of a double dip recession and the cost of living is ever rising, jobs have never been more important. Following recent announcements on job losses from Solway Precast and Nestles I have been working with management and unions and met the Managing Director of Nestles in London. He was adamant that production must be reduced to keep the company viable in future but did say everything possible will be done to minimise job losses. I am aware the unions continue to press for an alternative approach given Nestles huge profits and I have also asked the Secretary of State for Scotland to intervene.
I requested a meeting with John Swinney MSP the Scottish Government Minister as soon as the future of Solway Precast was brought into doubt and I am pleased to say he has now agreed to meet me along with Adam Ingram MSP and I hope the local councillors, to discuss how we can improve the economic outlook for Carrick.