Meeting of the Parliament 14 January 2020
Thank you, Presiding Officer. I am delighted to bring the motion to the chamber for debate. This is an important opportunity for members of all parties to commit to working together to improve the lives of Gypsy Traveller communities in Scotland, and it is a chance for Parliament to take a united stand against unacceptable levels of prejudice and discrimination towards Gypsy Travellers. I welcome our friends from the Gypsy Traveller community and organisations that work with them who are here. They include members of the Gypsy Traveller women’s voices project who have worked very closely with us on formulating our plans, and a group of young people who have also been key in helping us to develop our plans.
As the First Minister said when she welcomed members of the Gypsy Traveller youth assembly to Parliament in 2018:
“This is your Parliament, and you deserve the very best representation from your elected politicians.”
I hope that our debate today will demonstrate at least some of that.
It is important to point out—
I am sorry. I missed a bit out. I have something else to say later about a different debate.
“Improving the Lives of Scotland’s Gypsy/Travellers” was published last October. It was developed jointly with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, so I am delighted to welcome to the gallery Councillor Peter Barrett, who is here representing COSLA. The report is an example of what we can achieve when we work together in partnership. Councillor Elena Whitham has been key in the work, too. That partnership has been incredibly important.
As we know from all the available evidence, our Gypsy Traveller communities continue to experience poorer outcomes in terms of living standards, education, health and employment. They also often face extreme and persistent stereotyping and hostility, as they go about their daily lives. The action plan recognises those injustices and the need for urgent action to improve the lives of Gypsy Travellers. In the past, we have all rightly been accused of talking too much and doing too little. I see my colleague Mary Fee nodding her head: I am sure that she has lots to say, and is expecting lots of action. That we talk too much and do too little was concluded by Kaliani Lyle, the Government’s former race equality adviser, and by the Equalities and Human Rights Committee. We take their comments very seriously.
Now that we have published the plan, we must move from words to action, so I hope that I will, for Mary Fee and everybody else, demonstrate the action that we will take to make a difference to people’s lives. The plan sets out five key areas in which we will take that action. Number 1 is provision of better accommodation, which was a pivotal issue for everyone to whom we spoke in the community. Number 2 is provision of access to public services, number 3 is to increase incomes in and out of work, number 4 is to tackle racism and discrimination, and number 5 is to improve Gypsy Traveller representation across the board.
I want to speak a little about all those areas. Everyone has the right to a safe and secure warm home. That can make a difference in how people take up their opportunities for education and work, and in how they look after their health and wellbeing. It is clear that the commitment to develop more and better accommodation is the most important one for the Gypsy Traveller community. We will make a one-off investment of up to £2 million to improve existing public sites, and we will take direct action to improve provision in the short term. Council leaders have pledged to work to agree how the money should be spent: the vital thing is that the Gypsy Traveller communities themselves know best what they need. It is therefore absolutely crucial that the communities, with the agreement of COSLA, are fully involved in all decisions about improvements to their sites.
The plan also commits the Scottish Government and COSLA to reviewing our housing investment programmes, and to working with Gypsy Traveller communities so that we better understand their accommodation needs, in order to inform future provision. That work is being done cross-portfolio with many ministers in the Government: on the accommodation aspects, my colleague Kevin Stewart’s work is absolutely key. We will continue to work with partners.