Category: News in Lothian

“I welcome the additional 60 new teachers to West Lothian with 28 new primary teachers and 32 new secondary teachers recruited to our schools.” “As with the rest of the country we have seen recruitment support the recent demands on learning and teaching, but West Lothian has one of the biggest percentages of young people under 19 in any of the Council areas in Scotland, so this additional recruitment of teachers is additionally important.” The SNP Government pledged £80 million of support this summer to help local authorities with recruitment for the safe re-opening of schools in 2020. Last month’s figures have shown an almost 30% rise in the number of newly-qualified teachers going straight into employment under the SNP’s leadership. Fiona commented, “It is vital that local authorities are fully…

Hyslop highlights the annual celebration of the Living Wage movement across the UK which began on Monday the 9th of November. Within West Lothian, 29 businesses are signed up as Living Wage employers, and Ms Hyslop would like to congratulate them all on signing up to this commitment and maintaining it throughout the pandemic. A wide and diverse range of businesses in West Lothian are Living Wage employers from Riverside Cottage Nursery in Blackburn to Ian Macleod Distillers in Broxburn. The real Living Wage is an independently calculated rate based on the cost of living and is paid voluntarily by employers. Fiona commented: “The Living Wage Campaign is essential to ensuring that employees are paid enough to achieve a decent standard of living. I would like to thank all 29…

The new Scottish Child Payment - which has been described as a “game-changer” in the fight to tackle child poverty - will open early for applications this month. Local Constituency MSP, Fiona Hyslop, has encouraged parents and carers in West Lothian who are eligible to apply now so that the Scottish Government can process and start making payments as quickly as possible once the benefit starts in February next year. The SNP Government has prioritised the early introduction of the new benefit, which will provide eligible families on low incomes with a child under 6, an extra £10 per week for each child.  Latest figures estimate that 194,000 children aged under-6 in Scotland will be eligible for the new Scottish Child Payment - with 7,200 children set to benefit in West Lothian. Fiona commented: “The…

In the last financial quarter, the Scottish Welfare Fund made 1,570 crisis grant payments to people in West Lothian to help pay for essentials such as food, energy bills, and household necessities.   The latest figures show that the Scottish Welfare Fund has paid out a 27% increase of crisis grants in West Lothian compared to last year, and a total of 25,860 crisis grants to households in West Lothian since the fund was established in 2013.  After the Scottish Government increased the amount of funding available, the Scottish Welfare Fund awarded £5.2 million in crisis grants across Scotland between April and June 2020, which is an increase of 77% on the same period last year. Fiona commented, “This vital support stands in stark contrast to what is happening at Westminster, with Tory MPs…

SNP GOVERNMENT PROVIDING £10 MILLION FOR SCHOOL MEALS OVER HOLIDAYS More than 5447 children across West Lothian will benefit from extra funding to extend free school meals over the Christmas and Easter holidays. £10 million has been made available by the SNP Government so that councils can continue providing free school meals through the winter breaks with future funding confirmed to extend support over Easter. Last week, Tory MPs voted rejected a plan to extend free school meals into the school holidays, arguing that it was not the job of schools to “regularly provide food during the school holidays”. No Scottish Tory MP voted to support the plan, despite recent indications from Douglas Ross that he wishes to end the Tories’ opposition free school meals provision.  Fiona commented: “Many families…

Hyslop has welcomed the Scottish Government Independent Review into policing during the miners’ strike. The Independent Review of the 1984-85 miners’ strike aimed to provide an opportunity for those impacted by the strikes to share their views and have their experiences heard. The review demonstrates Scotland’s leadership and commitment to have those affected by the strikes to be heard. A range of significant evidence was reviewed by the panel, including academic reports, Government files and powerful testimonies from those who experienced the strikes first hand. The Scottish Government proudly announced today that, in principle, it accepts the recommendations outlined in the review to introduce legislation to collectively pardon the actions of miners in relation to the strike. Today’s statement marks the beginning of a new phase for the history of…

Hyslop has welcomed an announcement that the SNP Government will further extend its funding support for Scotland’s bus operators. Announced recently by Scotland’s Transport Secretary, the SNP Government will invest up to £52.6 million in maintaining Scotland’s bus services between November 2020 and January 2021. This latest announcement is in addition to the £109.7 million in funding that the SNP Government has been providing since June to support bus services. Bus travel typically accounts for just under three quarters of all public transport journeys. This funding is to cover the anticipated loss of fare-paying passenger revenue that operators will experience due to physical distancing and reduced carrying capacity during a period when more people would normally be travelling.  Fiona commented: ‘The pandemic has been a tough time for us all,…

Hyslop has encouraged projects in West Lothian to apply for a new £1 million fund, which has been launched by the SNP government to help promote town centres and online businesses and encourage people to spend locally. Grants of between £500 and £5000 will be given out as part of the Scotland Loves Local scheme, which aims to enable visitors and residents to safely shop, eat and relax within communities. The funding aims to support small scale improvements that will help motivate people to shop, eat and relax within their community whilst ensuring public health safety, and can be used for measures such as protective screens, physical distancing markers, hand sanitising equipment and PPE. Fiona commented: "The pandemic has shown the importance of supporting local businesses and produce, and this…