Hansard

It is a huge privilege to make my maiden speech as Scottish Labour and Co-operative MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East. I thank the voters across our communities who placed their trust in Scottish Labour and in me. I also thank those who ultimately decided to put their cross elsewhere for our conversations and for sharing their challenges with me.

Politics should take place not just online or in the chamber but on doorsteps, in community meetings and in conversations with our neighbours. That is where mistrust of politics and politicians can be overcome, consensus can be reached and progress can be made.

Although the election result is settled, the challenges that Scotland faces are not. The need to tackle deep-seated issues in Scotland remains as urgent today as it was during the campaign, and this Parliament must rise to that challenge.

I pay tribute to Sarah Boyack, who represented the Lothian region before me, for her years of public service, her commitment to the Labour movement and her wise counsel over many years. I also thank Chris Murray MP, who campaigned by my side, proving that Westminster and Holyrood can sometimes work together.

Politics is indeed a team effort. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to the people who supported me over the past few years—they know who they are and I thank them not only for their belief in me but for their belief that Scotland can be a fairer, better country.

I am especially proud to represent a region that has been my home for most of my adult life. Over the years, I have made many friends here, raised my family here and worked here. I know the communities of Leith, Portobello, Musselburgh, Wallyford and Elphinstone not simply as places on a map but as places that welcomed me and my family—places that are full of warmth, resilience and enormous potential.

One of the first votes that I cast was for the establishment of a Scottish Parliament—never imagining then that one day I would stand in this chamber. I believe deeply in the power of devolved Government to improve people’s lives—however, good intentions alone are not enough; Government must deliver in practice. A policy cannot just sound good on a campaign leaflet; it must make the everyday lives of working families better.

I am therefore pleased that my maiden speech comes in a debate on childcare. My involvement in politics began with campaigning for fairer access to childcare for working parents some 10 years ago. Many of the problems that parents faced then are still with us today. Across Scotland and the Lothians, parents speak about nursery costs consuming huge chunks of household income, long waiting lists, inflexible hours and free childcare provision that does not cover the full cost. For many families, childcare determines whether a parent can return to work, increase their hours or progress in their careers. Therefore, although I welcome the commitment to expanding childcare provision, we must address the pressures that families are under now.

In Edinburgh, restrictions on cross-boundary nursery placements have affected families from East Lothian and Midlothian who need childcare close to where they work. Parents have lost access to nurseries that match commuting patterns and working hours or they have lost funding for places where children were happy and settled. Those points speak to a wider challenge at the heart of Scotland’s childcare system, which is to align national ambition with local delivery and the everyday realities that working parents face.

Childcare is one of the most important investments that we can make in Scotland’s future. When childcare works, parents can participate fully in the workplace, women are more able to continue their careers and children get the best possible start in life. However, for too many families, that is not the reality.

On behalf of the families and staff who need change, Scottish Labour will hold the Scottish National Party to account in keeping its promise on delivering childcare policy in this parliamentary session. The SNP introduced this debate, and our questions for the Government are simple: when and how will the delivery of childcare policy happen? Scottish Labour has set out its own plan to reduce the cost of childcare for working parents, improve the flexibility of the system, support childminders and give parents more choice and control. A failure to tackle those matters would be a missed opportunity that no family can afford.

I turn to the motion in the cabinet secretary’s name. In the election campaign, the First Minister and his party promised big on expanding childcare, and they now have the responsibility to deliver. Parents such as me have been raising these issues for 10 years. That is why I am calling on the Government to fix the issues now and to set out a fully costed plan and a timeline for delivery.

As a new member of the Parliament, I hope to contribute constructively and seriously to that work. I came into politics because I believe that Scotland deserves a Government that is relentlessly focused on making the country work better for working people. It is the honour of my life to stand here representing Edinburgh and Lothians East, and I look forward to serving its people.

I move amendment S7M-00128.2, to leave out from “acknowledges” to end and insert:

“further recognises that the Scottish Government needs to do more to reduce the costs of childcare for working parents, improve the flexibility of the childcare system, support childminders and give parents more choice and control over the childcare that works for their family, and calls on it to set out a fully costed delivery plan and timeline for its commitment to extend year-round childcare support to every child from nine months old to the end of primary school.”

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