Author Archives: Scottish Labour Party Blog

Thank you Mr Speaker for the opportunity to give my maiden speech in this debate, it is an honour to be standing here representing the good people of Rutherglen and Hamilton West as their new Labour and Co-operative MP and it is a pleasure to follow excellent maiden speeches across the house and, in particular that of my honourable friends, the members for:
I’d like to begin, Mr Speaker, by paying tribute to all of those affected by recent events in London and Manchester, painful and shocking tragedies that were truly felt right across the country.  One of my own constituents Piotr Chylewska was seriously injured in the Manchester bombing. Originally from Poland, Pitor now lives in Rutherglen and was among the last of the injured to be discharged from hospital in Manchester. I am pleased to say Piotr is making good progress and I’m sure members across this house would like to join me in wishing him well.
Often in the most of tragic of circumstances, we see the very best in each other and I’d like to thank Father Paul Morton, the St Bride’s Parish in Cambuslang and the wider community for the support they have shown Piotr.  It is that coming together in times of adversity that I think is a testament to our shared values.  Values that I see examples of every day in my wonderful constituency of Rutherglen and Hamilton West.
In my home town in of Rutherglen, we have Coffee Shops like the Black Poppy collecting and distributing toiletries for the homeless; In Blantyre, public houses like the West End Bar supporting generations of families affected by Chernobyl; community councils like Burnside and Halfway working hard to stand up for local interests; Proud Lanarkshire institutions like Equi’s Ice Cream in Hamilton; Social enterprises like R:evolve Clothing; residents associations, churches and community development trusts like Healthy ‘n’ Happy;  and too many more to name; a diverse mix of decent people all coming together and helping to make our communities better places to live one small act of kindness at a time. They are the everyday heroes and I want to thank each and every one of them for the job that they do.
Mr Speaker, my predecessor, Margaret Ferrier was a strong advocate in this house for Human Rights across the world.  I have no doubt that she cared as deeply for my constituency as I do, and I wish her well for the future. In her maiden speech, she spoke of working together in a spirit of collaboration. 
I like to think of myself as a pragmatist who welcomes consensus and, although it won’t be surprising that I few fond memories of pervious conservative Governments, as the first Gay Married Man to represent my constituency, I welcomed the equal marriage legislation passed under the 2010 coalition government and I look forward to the continued advancement of LGBTI equality in this place and across the whole of the United Kingdom.
In reading the speeches of my predecessors, Mr Speaker, I was struck that the occasion of a maiden speech is an opportunity to leave a message for future generations.  I hope both my successor and I will be able to look back and have at least one fond memory of the current government. Unfortunately, initial impressions suggest I may be disappointed.
Having served as a local councillor, I have seen first-hand the effects of the government’s austerity programme on the communities in my constituency.  Real consequences for jobs, services and the local economy.
When I hear stories of people using candles to heat and light rooms in their home; of disabled people unable to put on their own socks and shoes being found fit to work; of siblings in their 20s sharing a bedroom because they have nowhere else to go;  When I hear these stories not from the pages of history where they belong Mr Speaker, but from real life in my constituency in 2017, I wonder, where is the deal for them?  Who from the government benches will negotiate to protect their interests? Support for those that need it most and investment in public services are not luxuries to be rationed or traded off.
The lack of ambition of the Scottish Government in these matters will not escape my scrutiny or criticism but if the members opposite are truly to be a government of all of the nations and regions of the United Kingdom it is time to start acting like it.
We need a government looking out for people across the country, not for the people sitting on the benches behind them and, as we go forward, it is the individual lives, the every day heroes that I want to focus on in this place.
It has been an exciting and somewhat unexpected journey for me from Gorbals boy to Member of Parliament via Rutherglen and Blantyre.  And in this era of fixed term parliaments, Mr Speaker, the great irony is that I have no idea how long I will have a seat in this place.  But my pledge to the people of Rutherglen and Hamilton West is that no matter how long that is, I fully intend to make every day count.

This speech was delivered on June 29 2017. It should be checked against delivery. 

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Martin Whitfield MP May I thank the Speaker for calling me during this debate on the Gracious Speech and allow me to deliver my maiden speech. This parliament sits at a time of constitutional uncertainty and change, a parliament in the balance ove… read more

Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland Lesley Laird MP Mr Speaker Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak in today’s debate.  Before looking forward, I want to take a few moments to pause and reflect on the maiden speeches… read more

Hugh Gaffney MP Mr Speaker, it has been a privilege to start work here and a privilege to represent the people of Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill   who have sent me here to work. I do offer some sympathy to the man I have replaced – … read more

Jeremy Corbyn writes for the Sunday Herald on Labour’s plan for Brexit:

One year on from the EU referendum, Theresa May’s minority Tory government has finally started the Brexit negotiations weakened and in disarray.

This week’s threadbare Queen’s speech underlined that the Conservatives have ran out of ideas and lost their political authority.

They are divided and ill-prepared to carry out some of the most important negotiations our country has ever faced.

Two months ago the Prime Minister called a general election to win a landslide and a mandate for a Tory Brexit that would see a race-to-the-bottom in jobs and living standards. She failed and lost her majority instead.

The Conservative government’s approach to Brexit threatens to damage links with our most important trading partners, ditch workers’ rights and environmental protections, slash corporate taxes and lead to even deeper cuts to our public services.

A Tory Brexit would put British jobs and living standards at risk, damaging our economy and and threaten to take Britain over an economic cliff, worsening the already outrageous levels of poverty and inequality here in Britain.
 
Labour would do things very differently. We are clear, just as we were during the election, that the issue of Brexit has been settled. We are leaving the EU. The question is what kind of Brexit we will have.

A Labour Government would negotiate a Brexit deal that puts jobs and living standards first, and secures workers’ rights and environmental protections.

We would seek a close relationship with the EU – not membership, but a partnership for peace, trade and co-operation – that strengthens trade and security, and underpins the investment in jobs and the industries of the future that will raise living standards for all British people.

Unlike the Tories, who started the negotiations with megaphone diplomacy, Labour would work sensibly with our European neighbours to ensure a flourishing post-Brexit economic relationship that works for both sides.

That is the kind of jobs-first and community-first Brexit that Britain, and Scotland, need.

Labour’s Brexit team would seek continued tariff-free access to the single market, with no new non-tariff burdens for British business.

The precise institutional mechanism for achieving that is less important than ensuring that jobs, the economy and living standards are protected and expanded, not cut or damaged. We need a Brexit that delivers for the many, not the few.

Yet we have a Prime Minister, who having failed to secure the mandate she wanted for a Tory Brexit, appears to be willing to give up on tariff free access to the European single market before negotiations have even begun.

Leaving the EU means Britain will have a different relationship with the single market. The government’s focus must be on securing a new partnership with the EU that maintains the benefits of both the EU single market and the customs union.

How that is best achieved, along with the freedom to negotiate new international trade agreements, should be part of the negotiations.

When it comes migration, our reform of the immigration system would put jobs and the needs of the economy first. Leaving the EU will mean that freedom of movement will end.

In its place, we support fair rules and reasonable management of migration, underpinned by tough action to end the undercutting of pay and conditions by unscrupulous employers and stop overseas-only recruitment.
 
This week, Theresa May has finally put down her first offer on the rights of EU Nationals in Britain, by promising a “settled status” for those who have lived in Britain for 5 years. This is too little, too late and falls far short of the full guarantee Labour would make.
 
Labour would give a clear commitment to all EU nationals who live and work in Britain, and make a huge contribution to our society, that they will retain their existing rights.

From my own discussions with European leaders, it is clear that unilaterally guaranteeing the rights of EU citizens to remain in Britain would be the best way to secure the rights of British nationals living in other parts of the EU.

For Scotland, we are clear that the voice of the Scottish people must be heard – and the same goes for the other devolved administrations.

The EU will only negotiate with the British government. But Scotland needs a clear input into the Brexit negotiating process. The Scottish government must have regular and systematic access to the British negotiating team so that the Scottish perspective, especially in those areas for which the Scottish Parliament is responsible, is fully taken into account.

That is of course a two-way street. The Scottish government also needs regularly to share the content of its dialogue with the Westminster government with the Scottish people through the Scottish parliament and the other political parties in Scotland.  

Of course Brexit is going to be difficult and the negotiations will be challenging. But with the right approach and negotiating plan, I am convinced we can negotiate a new relationship with the EU that works for all our people, not just a privileged few.

We have set our plan for the Brexit negotiations, and we believe that only our plan can protect living standards and our wider economy, and deliver a Brexit for jobs, living standards and investment in our future.

The Tories have no mandate, no authority and no vision for our country’s future. Labour is determined to build the fairer Britain that the millions who voted both ‘Remain’ and ‘Leave’ last year want to see.

Labour is the only party which can deliver a jobs-first, people-first Brexit that brings our country together. We are now a government in waiting, ready to provide that leadership.

 

This article first appeared in the Sunday Herald on June 25, 2017

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