Meeting of the Parliament 10 January 2024
That said, the Scottish Refugee Council has highlighted a number of issues on which action could be prepared and planned. It is incumbent on us and on the Government to ensure that those preparations are well advanced, because we know where some of the most serious impacts will arise.
Given that time in the chamber is limited, it would be productive, as I said, for us to focus on some of the work that we can do. The minister mentioned the new Scots and ending destitution strategies and the fact that a refreshed new Scots strategy is due in March. It is important that we continue to scrutinise that work and ensure that the voices of lived experience and the third sector organisations that are so crucial are heard in the formulation of those strategies, and that we push them forward to ensure that we provide good support to asylum seekers and migrants in Scotland.
Our amendment outlines the challenges that exist in relation to local authority budgets and the provision that local authorities can make, not least in the context of the challenges that exist in housing. The promise to provide 110,000 affordable houses by 2031 is unlikely ever to be met by the Government after it cut the affordable housing supply budget by 30 per cent in real terms this year. It is crucial that it is borne in mind that the decisions that are taken in that regard will have a knock-on impact on all our communities, including on the members of those communities who are new Scots or people who are seeking refuge and asylum.
It is clear to me from speaking to people in local authorities that they are really struggling to keep services on the road and to ensure that populations are being well looked after. It is therefore crucial that we get to the nub of the issue, which is the need for sustainable local authority funding and for local authorities to have the resources that they need to support all their citizens.
It is important that we continue to call out the UK Conservative Government for its failed policies and its callous approach. It is clear that change will come with a UK Labour Government, which will take a different approach to our asylum system and ensure that we treat people with dignity. However, for our part, here in Scotland, we need to ensure that we use all the powers of this place to support asylum seekers and our local communities.
I move amendment S6M-11803.2, to insert at end:
“; acknowledges the pressure placed upon local government budgets after a decade of Scottish Government cuts; calls for fair funding settlements from the Scottish Government for local authorities; notes that Scottish Government commitments to provide safe and secure accommodation for refugees must come with support for local authorities to provide suitable long-term housing, and acknowledges that Scottish Government cuts to affordable housing budgets will negatively affect local authorities’ ability to provide adequate accommodation for refugees.”
15:24Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.