Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on supporting community ownership of (a) land and (b) buildings in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
This government is committed to the communities sector and community ownership through empowering communities to own and run those local assets which mean the most to them. To date, the UK Government’s Community Ownership Fund has helped more than 40 Scottish community organisations with around £17m in grants. As part of this programme, the UK Government is working closely with the Scottish Government to look for opportunities to jointly support projects, including through the Empowering Communities Programme and the Scottish Land Fund.
The projects awarded funding to date can be found online at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/community-ownership-fund-first-round-successful-bidders.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with (a) the Scottish Government and (b) the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for the voluntary sector in Scotland to help reduce child poverty.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
Tackling child poverty is a shared priority across all parts of the UK. I am a member of the Child Poverty Taskforce, which is confronting the wide-ranging and deep-rooted causes of child poverty. The Child Poverty Taskforce will collaborate with the Scottish Government on our common goal to reduce and alleviate child poverty. The Taskforce will work with the Scottish Government in developing the UK-wide strategy, to be published in spring next year, to improve children’s lives and life chances now and address the root causes of child poverty in the long-term.
I have had a number of discussions with Scottish Government Ministers since my appointment, as have many of my Ministerial colleagues, including the Prime Minister. T o establish collaboration on the development of a UK-wide Child Poverty Strategy, the co-chairs of the Child Poverty Taskforce met with the First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice earlier this month. We look forward to continuing our partnership to build consensus for action and deliver sustainable change for all children across the UK. The Taskforce is also engaging directly with voluntary sector organisations from across the UK.
The Chancellor will set out overall fiscal and spending plans in her Budget on 30 October and the Spending Review in the spring.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps the Government is taking to (a) support rural businesses and (b) promote rural economic development in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
Growing the economy across both rural and urban areas is a key mission for the Government, and helping rural businesses succeed is a significant part of this work. Nature recovery plays a critical role in supporting the rural economy, and in turn businesses can help provide food security, enhance biodiversity and accelerate progress towards net zero targets.
In Scotland, we work closely with the Scottish Government and its agencies to ensure that businesses have access to the support they need to grow and thrive, including through export, and that we showcase the opportunities offered in all parts of Scotland to potential global investors.
For example, the Investment Fund for Scotland offers a range of commercial finance options with smaller loans and debt finance from £25,000 to £2 million and equity investment up to £5 million. The fund covers the whole of Scotland, including rural and coastal areas..
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps the Government is taking to tackle depopulation in rural areas in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
The Government recognises the importance of tackling rural depopulation, and the wider challenges faced by rural and island communities in Scotland. We are committed to supporting these communities by boosting investment and opportunities.
For example, we are in the process of rolling out the Shared Rural Network (SRN) program (alongside EE, three, VMO2 and Vodafone), to improve mobile coverage and connectivity across the UK. Rural areas in Scotland will be among the biggest beneficiaries of this programme.
Furthermore, the UK Government is investing £50m covering the three island groups – Shetland, Orkney and Western Isles – through the Islands Growth Deal. The Deal supports the Islands’ ambitions for net zero, aquaculture and development of tourism and heritage projects. These investments exemplify the Government’s ongoing work towards growing the rural economy and improving infrastructure, which are critical to addressing rural depopulation.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on using the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to (a) support accessible tourism and (b) improve facilities for disabled people in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
The UK Government worked with the Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to inform the most appropriate mix of UKSPF interventions for Scotland. Under the UKSPF delegated delivery model, local authorities are given the autonomy to make decisions on how funding is spent in their area. Local authorities in Scotland therefore might choose to make place-based investments for regeneration and town centre improvements, which could include better accessibility for disabled people, including capital spend and running costs; as well as providing funding for the development and promotion (both trade and consumer) of the visitor economy, such as local attractions, trails, tours and tourism products more generally.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps he plans to take to support the voluntary sector in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
Volunteering is a devolved policy area. However, the UK Government funded and supported the launch of the 2024 Big Help Out, which was a UK-wide campaign and took place on 7-9 June. It aimed to raise awareness of volunteering and provided opportunities for people to support their communities. This event followed the success of the inaugural day of community volunteering to mark the Coronation of His Majesty the King and Her Majesty The Queen, held on 8 May 2023.
Millions of people took part in last year’s Big Help Out with a huge range of charities and voluntary organisations providing people with the opportunity to try out and experience volunteering.
UK Government officials will continue to engage with the devolved administrations on matters relating to volunteering policy and shared insights.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what assessment he has made of the impact of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund on (a) local business in Scotland, (b) social enterprises in Scotland and (c) Stirling and Strathallan constituency.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
Under the UK Shared Prosperity Fund ‘Supporting Local Business’ investment priority, which includes support for social enterprises, local authorities in Scotland have already spent £10.9m as of April 2024. This includes close to £400,000 spent in Stirling, and more than £270,000 spent in Perth and Kinross.
Year 3 payments have now been paid to local authorities, and we anticipate further investment under this priority in the third year of the fund.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is committed to evaluating and publishing findings on the impacts of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, and Scotland is a key component of this evaluation. The UKSPF evaluation strategy clearly sets out the approach to evaluation.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on promoting innovation and skills through the Stirling and Clackmannanshire City Region Deal.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
Since coming into office, I have had several meetings with the Scottish Government, including the Deputy First Minister. We have discussed a range of key issues including economic growth across all of Scotland, which is the priority mission of this UK Government.
The jointly funded City Region and Growth Deals programme, including the Stirling and Clackmannanshire City Region Deal, is a fundamental element to the economic growth plan.
The UK Government commitment to the deal is for £45.1m, the Scottish Government have also committed £45.1m and with partner contributions this make it a £214m Deal.
The UK Government commitment covered investment in the following: Clackmannanshire Fund, National Aquaculture Technology Innovation Hub, Scotland’s International Environment Centre, the transfer of MoD land at Forthside, the National Tartan Centre and skills and employability provision in Alloa.
Asked by: Chris Kane (Labour - Stirling and Strathallan)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the progress of City Deals projects in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
Since coming into office, I have had several meetings with the Scottish Government, including the Deputy First Minister. Economic growth is the key mission of this Government and one that I am absolutely committed to delivering in partnership with the Scottish Government. City Region and Growth Deals are a fundamental part of this mission.
Since coming into office, the UK Government and Scottish Government have jointly agreed the £100 million Falkirk and Grangemouth Growth Deal.