Programme for Government – Eradicating Child Poverty - Amendment
Submitted by:
Paul O'Kane,
West Scotland, Scottish Labour.
Date lodged:
Wednesday, 04 September 2024
Motion reference: S6M-14322.1
Current status:Taken in the Chamber on Thursday, 05 September 2024
As an amendment to motion S6M-14322 in the name of Jenny Gilruth (Programme for Government – Eradicating Child Poverty), leave out from first "notes" to end and insert "agrees that child poverty should be a national mission for the Scottish Government, but deeply regrets that, after 17 years of a Scottish National Party (SNP) administration, there are 30,000 more children in poverty; acknowledges that child poverty rates across the UK have risen under the economic mismanagement of the previous Conservative administration, but also recognises that Scotland has its own legally-binding child poverty reduction targets that the SNP administration is likely to miss, despite successive First Ministers declaring action on child poverty to be a priority; notes the damning assessment by Scotland’s Poverty and Inequality Commission that progress from the SNP administration in tackling child poverty “is slow or not evident at all”; is deeply concerned by the Scottish Government’s decision to cut measures that act as barriers to poverty, including cuts to the affordable housing budget, parental employability schemes, the Fuel Insecurity Fund and the freeze to the Scottish Welfare Fund; condemns cuts to education funding, including the Pupil Equity Fund, digital device provision and attainment funding in the poorest local authorities; agrees that there is a need to tackle in-work poverty and so welcomes the work of the UK Labour administration to strengthen workers’ rights, review Universal Credit, build a fairer social security system, and deliver a pay rise for 200,000 of the lowest-paid people in Scotland with a genuine living wage; welcomes the establishment of a cross-government Child Poverty Ministerial Taskforce by the UK Government, and encourages the Scottish Government to work collaboratively to tackle the root causes of poverty across Scotland."
Vote
Result21 for, 95 against, 4 abstained, 9 did not voteVote Defeated
Submitted by: Jenny Gilruth, Mid Fife and Glenrothes, Scottish National Party, Date lodged: Tuesday, September 3, 2024
Supported by: Graeme Dey, Natalie Don-Innes, Paul McLennan, Shirley-Anne Somerville, Kaukab Stewart
Current status: Taken in the chamber on Thursday, September 5, 2024