Window on Westminster July 2010
Tory Lib Dem Budget picks on the Poor
Westminster has been dominated by the Budget since Parliament returned. I couldn't believe my ears when I heard Tory MP David Mundell describe the Tory Lib Dem Budget as 'fair to people on different incomes' We must have been listening to different Budgets. The one I heard George Osborne deliver was a budget that picks on the poor..
This was not a budget for growth or jobs - it is a vicious assault on Scottish families and an attack on Scottish jobs. These are not just the wrong cuts at the wrong time - they are cruel cuts at a tough time for Scottish families. Cuts to tax credits, pregnancy grants taken from new mums, child benefit frozen for years, support for disabled people being cut, housing support slashed, attacks on the public sector - they are the same old Tories.
Rises in VAT will hit the poorest people the hardest and force families to pay over £400 a year extra on household bills.
Taken together, these measures will hit Scottish families harder than any budget in living memory. The sight of Tory and Lib Dem millionaires in the Cabinet making decisions they know will push Scottish families into poverty is shameful. The eleven Scottish Lib Dem MPs should hang their heads in shame at what they have done. The Scottish Lib Dems campaigned against these things in the election. Now the Lib Dems are supporting measures which will make people lose their jobs - just so they can keep theirs.
The fairest way of halving the deficit is to create growth but this budget offers no satisfactory plan for growth in Scotland. This is a budget of risk and broken promises which takes support out of the economy at precisely the time it needs it.
Unlike the Lib Dems I know what I campaigned on during the election and I know the mandate I got from the voters. I was elected to stand up for working people and fight the Tories at every turn. This is what I intend to do.
On a happier note I have been able to join in a number of community events so far this summer with lots more to come.
Maybole's Big Day
Maybole's big day, the annual Gala, was held on Sunday 20th June.
Events got under way on the day with the parade from Carrick Academy being led by Maybole Pipe Band. This year's Gala King and Queen of Carrick are Robert McEwan and Alix Anderson of Cairn Primary – who were crowned before an afternoon of fun, stalls and entertainment. The organisers deserve our congratulations for all their hard work.
Armed Forces Day
Cheering and clapping crowds lined Ayr's High Street to pay tribute to our armed forces last Saturday as the Armed Forces Day Parade marched past with the Lord Lieutenant, John Duncan, taking the salute. The day began with the raising of the Armed Forces Day Flag at County Buildings. My fellow MP, Brian Donohoe and I were proud to join the parade behind the men, women and youngsters in uniform. This was an occasion for Ayrshire with the Carrick area well represented.
