Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 27 April 2022
27 Apr 2022 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
United Kingdom Shared Prosperity Fund
Stakeholder groups such as the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations have, on several occasions in public, referenced their meetings with the UK Government—as the minister did during the debate on 22 March—and said that there has been seriously good engagement and that, far from breaking promises, they are working well together to ensure much greater economic growth.
The second reason relates to the current economic forecasts for Scotland, which, by whatever measures are used, are extremely gloomy, particularly in terms of weaker economic growth, weaker productivity and weaker trends in the job market. We know that all that has led to weaker income tax revenues, which in turn demonstrates some of the frailties in the Scottish economy. That issue is very much a focus of the Finance and Public Administration Committee’s current deliberations. It also demonstrates that, as has been the case throughout the pandemic, Scotland benefits hugely from being an integral part of the UK. No doubt, that is why there are so few dissenting voices.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Liam McArthur)
LD
The next item of business is a debate on motion S6M-04159, in the name of Richard Lochhead, on the United Kingdom shared prosperity fund’s implications for S...
The Minister for Just Transition, Employment and Fair Work (Richard Lochhead)
SNP
In this chamber, we have discussed many times the value to Scotland of European Union membership. That value could be measured in many different ways and was...
Liz Smith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con)
Con
I am interested to hear the minister say that. Councillor Iain Nicolson, from Renfrewshire Council, which is set to get the largest investment—£38 million—sa...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
I can give you the time back, minister.
Richard Lochhead
SNP
I thank Liz Smith for her intervention, which gives me the opportunity to say that one of the big issues with the fund is that it goes only to local authorit...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
I remind those who wish to speak in the debate and have not yet pressed their request-to-speak buttons to do so as soon as possible. I advise members that th...
Liz Smith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con)
Con
I reiterate the belief among those on the Conservative side of the chamber that, in the post-Brexit era, the UK Government must make every effort to ensure t...
John Mason (Glasgow Shettleston) (SNP)
SNP
I thank the member very much for giving way. Would she accept that, while we are not criticising getting some money, we are criticising that (a) the fund is ...
Liz Smith
Con
I am afraid that that is not what is coming across from the SNP just now. What is coming across is the allegation that UK Government’s economic policy is all...
Alasdair Allan (Na h-Eileanan an Iar) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member take an intervention?
Liz Smith
Con
I will not take an intervention just now. After all, communities are best placed to know exactly what has to be done in their local area. Several SNP-run co...
Richard Lochhead
SNP
Does Liz Smith not think that voters in Scotland would like to see the UK Government sticking to its promises rather than breaking them?
Liz Smith
Con
Stakeholder groups such as the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations have, on several occasions in pu...
Christine Grahame (Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP)
SNP
Here we go.
Liz Smith
Con
I hear, “Here we go”, but why is it that so many people across local authorities have warmly welcomed that? I will deal with—
Christine Grahame
SNP
If the Conservative Party is so popular, why have only six Conservative MPs been representing Scotland since the most recent general election?
Liz Smith
Con
Let us see what is popular when it comes to the information that the UK Government is providing with regard to those extra funds. I do not think that those e...
Richard Lochhead
SNP
Will the member take an intervention?
Liz Smith
Con
I will just finish my point. Michael Gove has given a firm commitment that, as that EU money diminishes, which it will, the shared prosperity fund will be ra...
Richard Lochhead
SNP
I tried to address the disingenuous and misleading point that Michael Gove made, which the member has just repeated, that, once we add the shared prosperity ...
Liz Smith
Con
I really do not understand why the SNP Government has been using the LEADER funding in statistics, given that that money is being replaced by other funds. I ...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
I call Paul Sweeney to speak to and move amendment S6M-04159.2. You have around seven minutes. 16:24
Paul Sweeney (Glasgow) (Lab)
Lab
It was around two months ago when we discussed the UK shared prosperity fund in the chamber, and I am delighted that the Government has chosen to give more t...
Liz Smith
Con
The member makes strong points around the considerable concerns about poverty. Nonetheless, does he at least accept that one of the ambitions of the shared p...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
I can give you that time back.
Paul Sweeney
Lab
I absolutely accept that that is the intent of the fund, but I dispute the efficacy in meeting its intention. When we see those metrics, they do not give us ...
John Mason
SNP
Does the member have a suggestion as to where the £250 million that he would like to give to local authorities would come from?
Paul Sweeney
Lab
I know that Mr Mason asserts that this Government operates within a fixed budget envelope, but it has extensive revenue-generating powers that it has not inn...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
We move to the open debate. 15:33
Michelle Thomson (Falkirk East) (SNP)
SNP
The disrespect that the UK Government regularly displays in its dealings with the Scottish Parliament and Government, and by extension its arrogant dismissal...