9th May 2022: A Week in Parliament

Election Congratulations

Firstly, I’d like to pay tribute to all candidates who got elected, and re-elected, in East Ayrshire. I am certain all councillors, irrespective of political party, will work their socks off and do their utmost in working hard for their constituents to improve the area. Special mention to my staff member Elaine Cowan who was elected in Kilmarnock North, she has worked in my office since I have become an MP and it’s great to see her back in at council level. Elaine is a board member at Celebrate Kilmarnock and cares about the area deeply – she will be a fantastic addition to East Ayrshire Council.

Election Success

The most telling aspect of the results was the rejection of the Tories, south of the border too! This election was an opportunity for voters to send a message to Boris Johnson that we have had enough of his sleaze-ridden, law-breaking Westminster government. The Tories have run out of excuses for their negligent inaction on their self-made cost of living crisis that is hammering families across Scotland. Rather than bringing forward meaningful financial measures to help support families and to put money into people's pockets, the Tory government is instead sitting on its hands and resorting to treating people with contempt – they have now paid the price for this.

Whilst the Tories and Labour try and spin it one way or another, the fact of the matter is this is the 11th victory in a row for the SNP and our greatest showing at local council level ever. Meanwhile, it is Labour’s second-worst result in nearly 50 years and the Tories are down 100,000 votes nationally – slumping to 1990 levels.

New Farm Loch Gala

At the weekend it was fantastic to stop by New Farm Loch Gala Day. I am enjoying being back out and about in the constituency and having face to face engagement with constituents. There were several wonderful stalls and activities for people of all ages to enjoy. I am really looking forward to attending more in the coming weeks. Well done to all involved.

With restrictions now easing I am hoping to carry out more visits and find new ways of engagement within the constituency. If you are a local business or organisation and would like me to come along for a visit please don’t hesitate to contact my office on 01563 501412 or email me: alan.brown.mp@parliament.uk

Darvel Juniors

With Killie’s season now over, I turned my attention to Darvel FC. An unbelievable achievement to win the West of Scotland Premier League, beating Kilwinning Rangers 3-2 on Saturday. The achievement is even more incredible when you consider the number of games they played over the past few weeks in all competitions – 12 since the start of April! It was a pleasure to see them lift the trophy in front of a brilliant crowd at Recreation Park. Let’s hope they can kick on, win the play-offs and compete next season in the Lowland League – ‘Mon the Vale!

Grange Amateurs

A final congratulations to Grange Amateurs on winning the Ayrshire Sunday League for the first time. To lose only one game all season is remarkable and being one of only three teams from East Ayrshire, they have done the area proud. Well done to all involved.

Local Elections

Column suspended from 11th April and returns on 9th May due to local elections.

4th April 2022: A Week in Parliament

BEIS Trip

As part of a BEIS Committee enquiry into digital market laws, I was part of a group trip to the United States. In what sounds like a holiday, we visited San Francisco, Washington DC and New York over five days. It was genuinely exhausting because of the time difference and our days starting just after 7am each day. However, it was also very useful and insightful. The bug tech boys for mobile phones – Apple and Google control digital access via their app store access and get to dictate terms to new entrants. Basically, they operate as monopolies and utilise unfair tactics. Of course, they profess no such things. We heard plenty of counter-evidence including from the Justice Department in the States. What this means for us as consumers is that we do not necessarily get the choice we would want, and it is costing way more in subscription fees than it would otherwise. It was made clear that the UK can actually put in place regulations that make it much more difficult to employ nefarious tactics. However, you also need to be able to enforce the regulations which mean properly funding enforcement and a willingness to fight the big boys in court if need be. We were advised that Facebook employs 100 lawyers for every lawyer the Justice department utilises in a case. Their profit in a day and a half is equivalent to the Federal Trade Commission’s entire annual budget. These companies make so much money that they are more powerful than many countries' entire economies. Frightening really and we need to do as much as possible to keep them right.

Energy Cost Crisis

As if things are not bad enough with the rising cost of energy, the new standing charges have been announced, and sadly, with no surprise, Scotland is getting ripped off in the new pricing structure announced by Ofgem. South West England is the only region in the UK higher, but on average Scottish standing charges are higher than every other region, and compared to London, in East Ayrshire we pay 52% more in the daily standing charge. How is this levelling up?

Brownings’ Energy Update

After I raised the case of the crippling electricity prices inflicted on Brownings’ the Bakers, John Gall advised that several brokers were in touch and he has secured a deal that is more affordable [still a huge increase]. Despite the Government doing nothing to help, it is always pleasing that some form of outcome is derived from myself being willing to take a case up in Parliament. Some people question the validity of being at Westminster where Scottish MPs and the SNP, in particular, can be treated with disdain by the Tory Government. Getting outcomes for constituents is the whole reason for being there. While I want independence and the end of Westminster rule, while elected there I will always do my best to secure the right outcomes for constituents or try and influence energy policy to make it better.

28th March 2022: A Week in Parliament

P&O Ferries

I was part of a joint BEIS-Transport Select Committee session into the P&O sacking fiasco. It was incredible that the chief executive of P&O admitted they broke the law on advance notification/consultation on the redundancies because “no union would ever accept the new terms and conditions”. He also admitted that they had offered an enhanced pay-off package, calculating that this would “buy off” any tribunal action. Ruthless, despicable and callous. 800 workers just part of a balance sheet to trade-off. This is Global Brexit Britain. I appreciate Tory Ministers don’t want 800 P&O Ferry staff paid off. However, when I grilled the employment Minister about the fact there are better employment protections in France, Germany and the Netherlands, he argued that the UK has “more flexible laws” making it easier to create jobs. What he means is hire and fire easier. As I also pointed out, with vastly reduced workers' conditions, P&O can then undercut competition, meaning for example, that Stenna will come under pressure to cut terms and conditions in a race to the bottom. I certainly will not be using P&O again, that’s for sure.

Spring Statement

The Chancellor failed again to do something about the cost of living crisis. He has headroom as income was higher than predicted. For people the reality is: March 2021 energy cap was £1138; April 2022 it has increased to £1971, a 73% increase. Petrol after the 5p duty cut is +30% compared to March 2021. Meanwhile, oil prices are now +80% than predicted in March 2021 which gives a rough indication of just how much additional money the Treasury will have made from oil and gas revenues. They are still raking in extra VAT on our energy bills as well so he can choose to help if he wanted to.

Refugee Update

I wish I had better updates for families my office is dealing with. The online application system is taking way too long to process. In a briefing from a legal advisor on the process, he has stated people should consider going to the media to speed matters up. This is indicative of a system failure as legal advisors seldom recommend such action. It is so frustrating and with parliament recess, I cannot bring matters up in the chamber. Also, written questions are not answered or even published either. Meanwhile, every other country in Europe is still taking refugees with no family ties without the need for visas. It is soul-destroying.

Brownings the Bakers

I illustrated the impact of high energy costs on Brownings the Bakers. Electricity costs of £4 per week now increased to £11k per week and an offer made of a two-year contract at £17k per week! When I pointed out to the chancellor that he is making more VAT on these high costs, his answer was I was wrong! Not only is he ignoring households struggling with energy costs but he is also ignoring businesses and reality with his stupid response to me. Frustrating as these non-answers are, I will always do my best to put constituency matters forward.

21st March 2022: A Week in Parliament

Refugee Update

Our office are now dealing with two families who are trying to get close family members over from Ukraine. It is so stressful for all concerned. Unfortunately, despite the rhetoric from the UK Government, it is not easy. The fact that the UK Government are demanding up to date passports is an issue. Why not accept out of date? Why insist on biometric data in such circumstances? The UK Government, and Priti Patel the Home Secretary keep citing security. Patel insisting we need to be wary of Russian women sneaking in with biochemical weapons. Is this really such a high risk? Such a move by Russia while the invasion of Ukraine is ongoing would be tantamount to war being declared on the west. Russia is headed up by an evil dictator and we cannot ignore the previous attack on UK soil – the Salisbury poisonings. However, we also need to remember that happened under full security checks and the use of biometric passports. They really need to be more compassionate.

Johnson

While Tories are rallying to defend Boris Johnson for his leadership at this time of crisis, up steps Johnson to compare Ukraine defending themselves against a Russian invasion to the UK Brexit vote as the UK wanting “freedom”. How can he be so crass to do so, and to do this in front of the Ukrainian Ambassador who was a guest of honour at the Tory Conference? This is the Ukrainian Ambassador who has had to point out that the UK are so awkward about immigration it was really difficult for his wife to get entry into the UK. If the Ambassador struggled previously, then what chance really for refugees in a time of crisis? When you look behind the rhetoric, the Tory UK Government truly are awful.

National Insurance Rise

The Spring statement is the last chance for the Chancellor to ditch the 1.25% rise to National Insurance. It beggars belief to do this when we have this cost of living crisis. It is not a fair tax as it hits those on lower wages the hardest. If we believe it is so important to balance the books, or raise money for the English NHS, then altering the higher rates of income tax would be much more equitable.

P & O Ferries

What a scandal that P & O Ferries have sacked 800 staff by a zoom call with no advance warning to replace the seafarers with cheap foreign labour. We already had British Airways doing fire and rehire on their staff, after receiving large amounts of furlough money. My colleague, Gavin Newlands tried to bring in a private members bill to outlaw such practices. The Tory Government refused, and now P & O have taken it to a new level. It is disgraceful – throwing their own staff on the scrapheap while taking advantage of desperate foreign workers. I suspect when they get operational again, it could backfire – many people will exercise choice and use alternate ferry companies. I have written to P & O to outline my anger.

14th March 2022: A Week in Parliament

Refugees Welcome

My office continues to be contacted by constituents wanting to help Ukrainian refugees or to vent their anger at the mismanagement by the UK Government. Every day, a Minister or Secretary of State has been called to the dispatch box and each day they make a small concession while saying they are “leading the world”. It is bonkers when we know each country in Europe is doing much better. It is wasting time, putting people at more risk and means resources are not being concentrated properly.

I made the point that there are people who have had to flee their homes who might be reliant on humanitarian aid but are entitled to be in the UK as they have relatives here. What a waste of resources and money and emotional distress for the people involved. This is why the UK Government needs to be more compassionate as well as more practical.

Roman Abramovich

If ever there was a symbol of how the UK has mismanaged the Russian Oligarchs, then Roman Abramovich is it. Why does it take a war for the UK to act? It is now 19 years since he bought Chelsea, channelling billions of pounds of what the UK Government now says is dodgy money into Chelsea. By taking action now, it is saying “we know he was involved in corruption, but it didn’t matter back then”. It is also further proof that football, particularly the English Premier League clubs really need to have a look at themselves at who they allow to run their football clubs and what credibility they then give these people.

Visas

We know how difficult it is to get visas for refugees coming here in contrast to the “investor visa” that rich Russians were able to utilise. Commit to invest £2m and you get a visa. Make it £10m and you could apply for permanent settled status after just two years. As the adage goes, money corrupts. This scheme was started by Gordon Brown – what was he thinking about? It has been utilised extensively under the Tories until it closed recently. We have to remember that when we are told how London subsidises the rest of the UK that London has benefited from these lax rules and Governments not tackling the Russian dirty money being laundered through the City of London. It is also this money that allows so much construction work to take place in London, the flats sold and often never inhabited but retained as an asset.

Top of the League

Well done to Kilmarnock F.C. for getting back to the top of the league. Doing so against our local rivals was certainly enjoyable. On a personal note, I would like to thank Ayr United who facilitated access to the section for disabled supporters. With a cast on my broken foot, I am not allowed any weight on it so have the use of a wheelchair on a temporary basis. I have had to suffer jokes about my instant recovery when Killie scored right at the start of the game! 

7th March 2022: A Week in Parliament

Ukraine Bravery

The bravery of the Ukrainian soldiers and the wider population has been amazing. There is no doubt the war hasn’t gone as Putin intended. The bravery of citizens standing in protest in front of Russian soldiers where cities have been nominally captured is incredible. It conveys the powerful message that they will not give in. It is high risk – it doesn’t take much in these situations for soldiers to get trigger happy if they feel threatened. Indeed, we only have to look at Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland. It is a relief, so far, the Russian soldiers have just stood by.

Nuclear Weapons

I understand for many people this re-ignites the debate on the UK holding nuclear weapons. Especially with Putin stating he has put his on “high alert”. The argument for nuclear weapons seems simple and logical…they are required to stop a madman like Putin from threatening you. However, how do you deal with a madman? The point of nuclear weapons is the agreement of mutually assured destruction if one state uses them. It becomes kind of self-defeating. If they are deployed, each country is agreeing to annihilate each other. Worse, Russia has such a huge landmass, that someone like Putin may think the gamble is worth it…the UK would be destroyed, and we know we will be taken out in the fallout from the destruction of Faslane, but Putin might think enough of Russia would survive. So, the weapons are not keeping us safe.

I also find there is a paradox that everyone agrees chemical weapons is illegal and that we shouldn’t hold them. I put this to a commander who was arguing for the deterrent. He stated that chemical weapons had proven to be wrong, immoral and not the right weapon anyway. I do not understand why one weapon of mass destruction is wrong but another is ok, even though both are as deadly in the hands of a madman.

Community Support

Well done to Bryce Cunningham of Mossgiel Farm and Shirley Wallace of Saxen Furniture for coordinating aid to Poland. The community rally round was amazing. It was really frustrating that the lorries were held up because of the paperwork created by Brexit. I have tried to assist by raising matters in the chamber and it is clearly better coordination and approach is needed to help the air get through quicker.

The UK Government has been found wanting with their support for refugees as well. It is the only country in the EU not to have waived visa requirements for Ukrainians and so far, have only processed 50 visas from 10,000 applications. Shameful.

Broken Foot

I suffered a broken foot when playing 5 asides, leading me to get an operation on my foot as well. Thanks to those who took great care of me. There is no doubt that Westminster is not a disabled-friendly place so I am looking forward to getting a moonboot so I can get about easier. I cannot imagine what it must have been like for the first modern wheelchair user, Anne Begg MP, back in 1997.

28th February 2022: A Week in Parliamenet

Ukraine

My hopes that Putin would step away from the brink has sadly passed. We now have a war on European soil. The courage of the Ukrainian population and armed forces has been incredible. It seems the invasion hasn’t gone as smoothly as Putin expected. He now knows Ukraine will not bow down. If the Russian aspiration is long term occupation of Ukraine, then it will also seem there will be ongoing resistance from the Ukrainian population. This means a war of attrition, similar to the Russian occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s, and it will be damaging for the Russian economy as well as the suffering caused by continued casualties.

Sanctions

It is quite clear the West, and the UK in particular were too slow to impose sanctions. Embarrassingly, when the UK initially announced “record sanctions”, it was only on three people who have already been sanctioned for years by the US. For seven years the SNP has been demanding action on the Russian “laundromat” schemes in the UK. I raised the Russian money at PMQs, and the fact that Boris Johnson and David Cameron had agreed to play tennis with a Russian connected to Putin, based on a £160k bid at a Tory fundraising evening. Ruth Davidson also had a lunch appointment won by the wife of a Russian banker for £20k.

We have Lebedev, son of a KGB agent, made a Lord by Johnson. We know the Tories have taken millions from Russian nationals, so their words are somewhat hollow on these matters.

No-Fly Zones

There has been talk of a no-fly zone. However, the reason NATO has not moved to this yet, is that the reality of introducing a no-fly zone, means you are committing to shooting down Russian aeroplanes. Russia would also be targeting, say, UK planes operating in that airspace which would inevitably mean UK planes having to take out anti-aircraft machinery on Russian soil. In short, a no-fly zone immediately becomes a wider war with Russia. This worst possible consequence may come to pass, but no one wants a full-scale war to be opened up right away.

Visas

Many constituents have contacted me to lobby for visas to be waived for Ukrainian Nationals. I fully support this. It was outrageous that a UK Government Minister advised that Ukrainians can apply to work here via the seasonal worker scheme. Ukrainians don’t need a visa to travel to the EU. Ireland has waived the visa requirements into Ireland, it is time for the UK to also act. I have submitted a question on this and written to Priti Patel.

Covid

Eventually, covid came to me – I suspect I caught it travelling back from Norway. I was not too unwell but did suffer headaches, tiredness and cold/flu symptoms. It seems crazy that in England I would be free to go about my daily business while positive and possibly pass it onto many others, who may suffer worse symptoms. I was really frustrated to have to miss the Stewarton torch parade so hopefully, I can participate in their next one. The online footage looked fantastic – well done to all involved.

21st February 2022: A Week in Parliament

Norway 

Westminster had a week-long February recess, for which I was away in Norway through the Armed Forces Personnel Scheme. We visited the new base for 539 squadrons of the Royal Marine Commandos. It was fascinating seeing the way they operate and the harsh conditions they are training to survive in. They are training to operate as guerrilla warriors in the case of say, Russia, invading Norway - or elsewhere. They are based within the Arctic Circle, and I even had the “pleasure” of sleeping in a snowhole for a night which was an experience. We were shown survival skills and it is incredible the stamina these guys have and that they train to live in the Arctic conditions for weeks. We can only hope that they are not required to be deployed properly. Interestingly, when we go on these trips, there are always concerns raised in general about cuts in overall numbers of the armed services and the fact that they need more spent and better procurement on equipment. These are all aspects of the UK government pumping their money into the Trident Successor programme rather than spending it on personnel which is a self-defeating strategy.

Norway Observations Continued

One other interesting aspect of the trip is fellow MPs acknowledging how rich a country Norway is, without seeing the irony that Scotland could similarly be so wealthy as an independent country. Instead as part of the UK, the revenue was squandered on tax cuts. They then also argue Scotland is better off with the broad shoulders of the UK!

Another observation is that passport queues are back. And the Tories in general do not like passport queues, yet they knew this was an inevitable consequence of Brexit. In each passport queue, I was in, there were Scottish voices muttering “we didn’t vote for this”. How true, and a better understanding of the situation compared to the Brexiteers.

Covid/Self-Isolation

Partygate investigations continue. Johnson is still as brazen as ever, and now we know that even more donors to the Tory party are getting direct access to the UK Government as “advisors”. Basically, they are reconfirming if you are rich and donate to the Tory party, you can advise the Government on policy measures that will make you richer. This really is outrageous. Meanwhile, Johnson is using the Ukraine crisis as a photo opportunity to get an RAF plane specially diverted for his photo and then returned to base. What a waste of money and resource. Next up in his deflection tactics is abandoning self-isolation in England. Medical advice is against such a move. Think about it – Omicron may be milder, for most, more flu-like, but no self-isolation means possibly putting more vulnerable work colleagues at risk for example. It sends the wrong message, which basically says we can all do what we want and testing is then pointless. In short, it is irresponsible, but a way of Johnson getting right-wing Tories off his back and putting pressure on us in Scotland when still trying to do the right thing and follow the advice of the experts.

14th February 2022: A Week in Parliament

Above Adventure

I was delighted to visit Above Adventure, the new Climbing and Bouldering Centre at Woodstock Street, Kilmarnock [the former Grange Church]. It is testament to the commitment of the Trustees and the man determined to see it through, Dean. They must be so pleased to see it come to fruition with years of work to secure the funding and get the works undertaken. This involved dealing with covid, Brexit, rising building supply costs, and unplanned works arising from an old-listed building. Steeple works are ongoing and some additional funding is required to complete the steeple climbing space. In the meantime, let's hope the bouldering area is a great success. I recommend getting along as soon as possible - we are lucky to have such a facility in Kilmarnock. Given I was able to reach the top it proves that as well as being designed to take experts, it really does cater for all ranges including absolute beginners!

Windfall Tax

As the energy crisis has intensified, a talking point has been a windfall tax on the oil and gas companies. It sounds appealing, but Labour hasn’t actually told us how it will work. For example, profits announced this financial year by BP and Shell will fall within existing tax laws. If a new law is brought in, it will not catch these profits anyway, unless it is applied retrospectively. And retrospective tax laws are generally only applied in authoritarian states or banana republics. That said, one could be introduced to catch profits for the next financial year. There is a risk this will still scare off investment as happened with all three previous windfall taxes. This meant a short term cash boost would actually do more long term economic damage.

In a debate, I pointed out to Ed Milliband that when Labour was in power, oil prices bottomed out at $12 a barrel in 1998 rising to nearly $100 a barrel ten years later. They should have set up an oil and gas fund but instead spent the lot as it came in. A terrible waste. This is the entire problem with the North Sea oil and gas – it has been used as a cash cow all these years by Westminster.

Going forward, we do need to review the tax system for the industry. We need to look at the tax rebates companies get in terms of decommissioning and capital investment. If they are getting record profits which they argue they will re-invest then there shouldn’t be tax rebates for the capital investment.

Let’s not forget the oil and gas industry is providing at least £3.5bn extra to the Treasury for this year and next, not to mention what should now be payment of corporation tax at the higher rate they pay. The treasury should already be using their own windfall to help us, instead of giving a poxy £200 loan to billpayers. The sad reality is that despite Scotland being energy-rich in terms of resources, our households are energy poor because of UK energy policies and regulations.