19th September 2022: A Week in Parliament

Tributes to Her Majesty

 Whilst I was at Westminster when tributes were being paid I opted not to speak on this occasion. I didn't have any personal stories and when she last visited Kilmarnock it was the year of my birth, therefore, I did not have any personal living memories of a constituency visit to touch upon either. I believe any tributes being paid to Her Majesty should have had that personal touch. Some of the stories being told in Parliament were fantastic and personified her grace and dignity. May she rest in peace. 

 Indyref

 Sunday was the eighth anniversary of the historic independence referendum in Scotland which is quite incredible. So much has happened in that time which has changed the political landscape of the country drastically.

 In that time I have been elected as MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun and re-elected twice! The SNP has also been elected to govern the Scottish Parliament twice with a manifesto pledge of a second independence referendum.  Earlier this year, the First Minister proposed a date for an independence referendum for the 19th of October 2023. The issue will be heard at the supreme court and a decision will be made in the coming months.

 However, the Scottish Government has a clear mandate for this and they are committed to delivering this for the people of Scotland. It must be up to the people of Scotland – not a Westminster government they didn’t vote for – to decide how Scotland is governed. It is crucial that before this referendum the people of Scotland will have the information they need to make an informed choice about their future. The case for independence is a strong one, and we will present it openly, frankly and with confidence and ambition. The preparatory work in the Scottish Government for this is underway. We are repeatedly told by Westminster and unionist politicians that it is “not the time”, but when you see the mess the Tories have made with the pandemic and cost of living crisis, Scotland deserves better and I truly believe we can do things better.

 UK Government

We can see how out of touch the new UK Government is when they are making it a priority to lift the cap on bankers’ bonuses. The EU cap was there for a reason - to stop the reckless behaviour that caused the banking crash in 2008. It is illogical to reverse that. What makes the Tories think this will somehow create a job boost? It won't even reverse the jobs lost by many companies who relocated staff to the EU.

Another ridiculous plan is that they are not going to introduce the proposed increase in corporation tax. This was one proposal by the former chancellor I fully agreed with. When we need more tax income to support people in this cost of living crisis then taxing profits at a reasonable level is only fair. Indeed, many companies and organisations have told me they are comfortable with higher corporation tax levels and prefer that to hikes in other taxes or rates for example.