SNP MSP Gordon Macdonald has slammed the Tory government at FMQs this week, for ‘sneaking out’ changes to state pensions, which could affect older couples in Edinburgh to the tune of £7,000 per year. Changes to benefits for mixed-age couples – which will be introduced from 15 May 2019 - were quietly released by Tory ministers on the eve of Theresa May’s humiliating Brexit deal defeat. Currently, couples can claim Pension Credit - an income related benefit meant to top up the state pension as long as one partner is of pension age. Universal Credit will reverse this – meaning a mixed-age couple will be defined by the working-age person, not the pensioner. Experts have claimed that the changes
Amid the extraordinary chaos of Westminster and Brexit, you could be forgiven for forgetting all about the Scottish Government’s Budget plans - which were laid out by finance secretary Derek Mackay at the beginning of December. This year’s Scottish Budget announcement took place at a time of political divisiveness and uncertainty - against the backdrop of £2 billion worth of UK government funding cuts to Scotland. The Prime Minister is – remarkably – still in office despite a number of high-profile resignations, a vote of no-confidence, and an insistence on ignoring the hundreds of experts who say that Brexit will devastate our economy and cause thousands of job losses. However, the SNP in g
Gordon MacDonald MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands has written to Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson MP, after shock figures revealed the number of army homes left empty in Scotland has skyrocketed. The figures, uncovered through Freedom of Information, show that the number of vacant MoD properties in Scotland has increased from 690 in 2013 to 1136 this year. In his letter to the Secretary of State, Mr McDonald states, “The risk of homelessness is all too common among veterans, some of whom will struggle to adapt to civilian life or may suffer from mental illness such as PTSD. “The Scottish Government is stepping up actions to tackle homelessness – driving forward a number of activities to specif
SNP MSP Gordon Macdonald has called on The Scottish Parliament Corporate Body to partner with the Turing Trust to donate old computers from the Scottish Parliament to schools in Ghana and Malawi, during a Members’ Debate highlighting the Currie and Balerno Rotary Club’s international work with the Turing Trust. The Edinburgh Pentlands MSP raised the matter in his Members’ Debate in the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday 9 January 2019, where he thanked the innovative partnership work that the Rotary Club and Turing Trust has undertaken in assisting over 41,000 students to gain vital digital literacy skills. Gordon Macdonald has written to The Scottish Parliament Corporate Body, calling on them t
Photo: Gordon Macdonald MSP outside Edinburgh Napier University and Edinburgh College SNP MSP Gordon Macdonald has challenged political opponents to back the Scottish Government’s draft budget that will secure “substantial” funding for the Capital. The MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands has challenged political opponents to back the Scottish Government’s draft budget that plans to maintain investment in Scotland’s universities at over £1 billion as well as increasing spending on colleges by £18.3 million over the coming year. The proposal, set out in the Scottish Government’s draft budget plans for 2019/20, will take investment in Scotland’s colleges to over £606 million. MSPs will vote on the plan
