By Democrat reporter
Millions of Scots are better off since the election of the UK Labour Government a year ago, Scottish Secretary Ian Murray said yesterday.
In a desperate attempt to stem the tide of criticism of their first year in government, the Party released a new analysis which it claims has laid out the benefits Scots have seen in the last twelve months.
- A pay rise for 200,000 of the lowest paid Scots by boosting the minimum wage, worth up to £1400 per year for some workers
- Day one rights at work like sick leave and parental leave
- Stronger rights for insecure workers worth around £600 a year
- A £1,200 saver bonus for over 200,000 low paid Scots
- Extending £150 off energy bills to over 500,000 Scottish households
- Four interest rate cuts in a row meaning cheaper mortgages for homeowners
- Saving 3 million Scots money at the pumps by extending the fuel duty cut.
Murray pointed to the difference 37 Scottish Labour MPs on the government benches has made to funding for Scotland including:
- A record settlement for the Scottish Government budget, at £50 billion, with at least £14 billion of extra funding since Labour came to office through to 2029 compared to Tory spending plans
- £8.3 billion for GB Energy, the UK’s publicly owned clean energy company, based in Aberdeen
- £200 million from the National Wealth Fund to secure an industrial future at Grangemouth
- £200 million to further develop the Acorn Carbon Capture and Storage project
- £250 million to upgrade HMNB Clyde (Faslane).
- Up to £750 million for the UK’s national super computer based at the University of Edinburgh.
- The UK Government is now investing almost £1.7 billion in local communities over 10 years.
Scottish Secretary Ian Murray, right, said: “This time last year the Scottish people decided to stop sending a message to Westminster and sent a government instead – and every day since then Scottish Labour MPs have been at the heart of a Labour government delivering a better deal for Scotland.
“After the Tories crashed the economy Labour got the public finances back on a secure footing and the result of that stability was four interest rate cuts in a row meaning cheaper mortgages for many Scots.
“The minimum wage got a record boost and stronger rights means Scots have more security at work.
“The UK Labour government comprehensively ended austerity with billions of pounds more for public services in Scotland.
“But as waiting lists fall in England where Labour have taken control of the health service, the NHS in Scotland remains under SNP mismanagement, with one in six Scots on an NHS waiting list, people paying to go private because they can’t wait anymore and cancer waiting times at their worst ever level.
“Scots can’t risk a third decade of SNP mismanagement of our public services. That’s why next May Scots should boot John Swinney out of office and chart a new direction, with Anas Sarwar as First Minister and a Scottish Labour government.”
One political pundit said: “You would think Labour would sit quiet and shut up until the torrent of bad publicity they have been met with over welfare cuts and other matters departs, but they haven’t and it looks as though they won’t.”