Category: Campaign Responses

The SNP want a Scotland where everyone can benefit from investment in sport and physical activity.  Therefore, a re-elected SNP Government will double investment in sport and active living to £100 million by the end of this parliament to help Scotland get more active.  We will task SportScotland to work with organisations and individuals across Scotland to devise a new national activity plan. Its focus will be to break down the barriers, financial or otherwise, that keep too many people from leading active lives. A priority will be to support the participation of more women and girls.  We will review our investment in sport, including sponsorship, to ensure it benefits men and women equally and we will work with public broadcasters in Scotland to support them to significantly increase the…

Taxi drivers have played a crucial role in Scotland’s public transport system and I applaud their additional support during the Coronavirus pandemic in providing urgent transport for key workers. This is why the Scottish Government introduced a fund to support approximately 38,000 taxi and private hire drivers affected by the pandemic. We have also delayed the introduction of LEZs to support taxi drivers, and we are supporting the retrofit of emissions abatement measures to vehicles which do not currently meet LEZ emissions requirements. An additional local authority grant is also available, and drivers in Aberdeen, Angus and Dundee have already benefited from this additional support. If re-elected, the SNP will give taxi firms a £10,00 grant plus taxi drivers will receive a second grant of £1,500. We will continue to…

The SNP supports the SMSA and the incredible work it does in supporting men’s health and wellbeing.  In Government, the SNP delivered £100,000 for the Scottish Mens’ Sheds Association as part of a £6m fund to tackle social isolation and loneliness during the pandemic over the winter months.  If re-elected, we will increase the direct investment into mental health services by at least 25% and ensure that, by the end of the parliament, 10% of our frontline NHS budget will be invested in mental health, with 1% being for CAMHS. Furthermore, we will double suicide prevention spending as well as doubling the number of Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training programme and SafeTalk programme trainers, by the end of the parliament. The SNP will always be a champion for our armed…

In Government, the SNP has been funding and working with NHS Scotland to ensure everyone living with chronic pain is able to access the best possible care and support, and benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put people at the centre of their care. We set up the National Advisory Committee for Chronic Pain in 2017 to advise the Scottish Government on chronic pain and inform effective policy development. An SNP Scottish Government will continue to work with Versus Arthritis and everyone interested in the matter to make sure that we do everything that we can to support people with arthritis into the labour market and, if they are already in work, to remain in employment. The SNP in Government launched ‘A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People’…

The SNP Scottish Government have funded a range of services to support victims of domestic abuse. The Scottish Government are investing over £12 million over 2020/21 from the Equality and Human Rights Budget to support a range of projects and initiatives. Last year the Scottish Government allocated an additional £5.75 million to frontline services so they could respond to an increase in demand from victims of abuse. We know that services are looking for longer term and more sustainable funding. That is why the SNP Scottish Government committed to review the funding and commissioning of national and local frontline services. If re-elected, we will take forward the actions in Equally Safe. We will also: establish a new multi-year £100 million funding stream over the next three years to support frontline…

The SNP is committed to maintaining and strengthening Scotland’s relationship with our EU partners - with a view to rejoining the European Union as soon as possible. The people of Scotland voted decisively to remain within the European Union and we firmly believe that EU membership is the best option for Scotland. We will prepare to rejoin the EU by keeping a close relationship with Europe.  We will strengthen our Brussels base and make ‘Scotland House’ the hub of our diplomatic representation across Europe. We will also expand the international network by creating an Innovation and Investment hub in the Nordics. Fiona Hyslop

The SNP is firmly committed to support people living with diabetes during this pandemic and beyond. The SNP want everyone to eat well and be a healthy weight and is clear that no one living with diabetes should be left behind. The ambitious and wide-ranging action to address this challenge are set out in the Diet and Healthy Weight Delivery plan. During the pandemic, the SNP Scottish Government has published specific Covid-19 advice for people living with diabetes and has been working closely with Diabetes Scotland on how they can best support people living with diabetes during this difficult time, with specific programmes in place in Scotland to support those with Type 2 Diabetes – for control, support weight management and achieve potential remission.  The SNP recognises that while much focus has been…

The SNP recognises the importance of equal access to health and social care services for those living with dementia and is committed to providing fair dementia care for everyone. The SNP Scottish Government published the Dementia and COVID-19 Action Plan in December 2020, to build on, continue and expand national action since March 2020 on supporting people with dementia and their carers, setting out 21 commitments to assess impact and respond to the needs of this group across all care settings.  The SNP Scottish Government have been taking national action to support better and more consistent quality of care in care homes as part of the 3 National Dementia Strategies. Throughout the pandemic we have been engaging with people with dementia, their families and carers and a full range of stakeholders, including Alzheimer…

The SNP are committed to local democracy, and to involving everyone who chooses to live or work in Scotland in how our country is run. To this end, we’ve passed laws to allow 16 and 17-year olds to vote and, more recently a bill to give the vote to citizens of all nationalities legally resident in Scotland. This applies to local council as well as Scottish Parliament elections. We have long advocated for the use of Citizens’ Assemblies to help ensure the public is involved in decisions that matter to us all, and have run one on polarisation of political dialogue, following the EU referendum.  The outcome of the first Citizens’ Assembly has shown that involving citizens in the major changes affecting our lives is not only possible, but also…

It is vital that in every case the best interests of the child remain paramount and there is also a responsibility on all involved to ensure that all children are given the opportunity to have their views heard. The Scottish Government website has advice and information for anyone looking for guidance following a divorce or separation, including on the creation of a 'Parenting Plan' as a voluntary agreement. Last year legislation was passed by the SNP Scottish Government aimed at making family court proceedings easier for children. This removed a presumption that only children aged 12 and over are mature enough to be heard. It will also ensure that a court should, where practicable, use a child’s preferred method of giving their views, and explain decisions to children in ways…