Children’s Hospice
In Renfrewshire we are blessed with Accord and St Vincent’s, two fantastic hospices which provide a caring and essential service to those who are terminally ill. Last week in the Scottish Parliament I put my support behind a motion supporting the work of the Children’s Hospice Association Scotland (CHAS). CHAS is a charity that provides the only hospice service in Scotland for children and young people who have life shortening conditions for which there is no known cure. CHAS runs two hospices in Scotland, one in Kinross, and one in Balloch. CHAS also provides a home care service. Every year CHAS supports over 250 families with children who require palliative care. As well as its highly skilled and dedicated staff, CHAS like other hospices, relies on the support of volunteers and the wider community. CHAS volunteers donated over 78,500 hours in 2010-11, a truly remarkable commitment. It is heart breaking for any family to watch a child die. CHAS makes a remarkable contribution in helping children and families at a distressing time. Thank you to the staff, volunteers and supporters who make this all possible.
Neilston Scout Hall
Scouts Scotland have achieved a growth in numbers for the sixth consecutive year. Indeed Scout numbers in Scotland has outpaced the rest of the UK for the third consecutive year. The Scouts are no longer a boys only organisation and now one in seven of the 41,261 youth members are girls. The Scouts provide enjoyable and exciting opportunities for young people locally, nationally and internationally. Many employers take a positive view of scouting experience when considering job applications. Participation in scouting helps to build confidence, responsibility and leadership. In Neilston, local Scouts have had to do without a Scout Hall for many years, after vandals burned down the old building. I was recently delighted to attend the opening of the new Scout Hall in the village. It has been a long hard slog for the local committee to raise the substantial funds to build the new hall. Not only have they done this, but they have built a magnificent hall which will be a real asset to local Scouts and to Neilston. Congratulations to everyone concerned.
REMPLOY
REMPLOY provides employment and training opportunities for disabled people. In the current economic climate, it is hard for anyone who is unemployed to find a job. For disabled people the problems are even greater. It’s at times like this that we need organisations like REMPLOY. It’s cruel that the Tory/Lib Dem coalition has decided to cut back on support for REMPLOY. Even worse are the cruel and uncaring comments from the Tory Minister, Iain Duncan Smith, that REMPLOY staff should “get a proper job”. It might be easy for well off Tories to find a “proper job”. For REMPLOY staff the prospects are pretty bleak. Same old uncaring Tories, this time helped by unprincipled Liberal Democrats.
Granny Tax
The Tories and the Liberal Democrats have decided to give tax cuts to the super-rich. 18,000 top tax payer will receive a tax cut worth £10,000 per year. Unfortunately someone has to pay for this tax cut for those who don’t need it. The Tories and the Lib Dems have decided that pensioners will pay for this unfair tax cut. New information obtained by the Labour Party shows that in Scotland, 420,000 pensioners will face average tax hikes of £83 per year by 2015-2016. This is 60,000 more than George Osborne admitted to at the time of the budget. Pensioners who have worked hard all their lives for a modest works pension will be outraged at this tax grab to help the rich. Why should decent hard working people have to pay for a tax cut for top earners?
Network Computer Services
Congratulations to Network Computer Services in receiving £6,900 from the Big Lottery Fund. Computer services support can be a real problem for small organisations, particularly charities and voluntary organisations. They often don’t have the money or expertise to access the latest computer technology which can make a real difference. Eddie Hart and his team at Network Computer Services are there to help provide this expertise and the lottery grant will help to develop and expand services. If you think your organisation could benefit from their advice, give them a call on 0141 876 9535. The Tories and the Liberal Democrats have decided to give tax cuts to the super-rich. 18,000 top tax payer will receive a tax cut worth £10,000 per year. Unfortunately someone has to pay for this tax cut for those who don’t need it. The Tories and the Lib Dems have decided that pensioners will pay for this unfair tax cut. New information obtained by the Labour Party shows that in Scotland, 420,000 pensioners will face average tax hikes of £83 per year by 2015-2016. This is 60,000 more than George Osborne admitted to at the time of the budget. Pensioners who have worked hard all their lives for a modest works pension will be outraged at this tax grab to help the rich. Why should decent hard working people have to pay for a tax cut for top earners?
