2^nd Phase Submission

Communities, Local Government and the Environment

UNISON Labour Link Scotland made a detailed submission to the Scottish Policy Forum's Phase 1 consultation on these issues. This included detailed arguments in support of our policy positions. In the 2^nd Phase we have therefore concentrated on the key points we believe should be included in Scottish Labour's manifesto for the 2007 elections.

If we are to grow our economy, have the best public services and release the potential of all our people, then we must build safe, strong, sustainable communities. A modern Scotland needs to harness the energy and talents of its entire people. We have achieved much but there are still too many Scots trapped in poverty and too many families living in poor housing, their ambitions frustrated and their aspirations low. We want to build a Scotland that other countries look to as an example of a great place to live.

Poverty and Inequality

Tackling poverty and inequality are central to building strong safe communities.

• Work can be an effective route out of poverty but there are still groups of people unable to find work. Further support and positive action is required for groups such as people with a disability.
• Work must be fulfilling, fairly paid, and secure. Public Service Organisations (PSOs) through direct employment and procurement must promote equal pay, fair wages and high employment standards.
• PSO's must modernise pay systems and historic pay discrimination needs to be addressed and financed by the Executive. Equal pay audits are an essential tool in the process and should be compulsory when awarding Government contracts.

• We must support credit unions and food co-ops to ensure access to fair credit and fresh food as well as stimulating the social economy.

• We need better identification of the fuel poor. Continuing current grant schemes for heating, insulation and other energy efficiency measures with wider eligibility, increased measures, funding and full grants for the over 60s. Making homes as energy efficient as possible i.e. "fuel poverty proof".
• Improving communication with private landlords through registration schemes, and creating a single point of access for the public to the Scottish Warm Homes Grants.

• Further measures to tackle discrimination (in line with the Madrid Declaration) including investigation into restrictions and discriminatory barriers e.g. access to public buildings and developing initiatives to change attitudes through education and service provision.

Comprehensive Environment Strategy

We require a comprehensive environment strategy using fiscal and accountability measures to promote sustainable policy and action by business and public corporations. Government at all levels should develop strategic policy and key programmes in a holistic way with sustainable development at their core including

• Strong continuous incentives should be offered, through fiscal and accountability measures, to promote sustainable policy and action by business and public corporations.
• A significant contribution towards our energy must come from renewable sources within a balanced energy policy.
• Reducing of pollution and radically reducing resource use to improve the quality of life.
• An integrated transport system which allows frequent and affordable public transport between our centres of population; and recognises the particular issues of rural areas, should be developed.

• Promoting sustainable travel alternatives, such as increased school transport and effective workplace travel plans. Alternative, convenient forms of travel, such as buses, cycling and walking, along with regulated home working should be encouraged.
• Scottish Water should remain publicly owned and accountable. Short term efficiency measures must not undermine the quality and safe delivery of services over the long term. Regulation should be reclaimed to Scotland.

Local Government

Local government should be at the heart of our communities providing democratic leadership and high quality services.

• There should be parity of esteem between the Executive and local government through the development of a new concordat that recognises the democratic legitimacy of both.
• The Council Tax should be made more progressive by broadening the banding structure. Council Tax Benefit should be devolved to Scotland and reformed.
• Business rates should be returned to local authority control.
• Grant support should reflect the increasing demands of local government and be allocated with minimum ring fencing.
• Planning reforms should recognise the importance of local democracy, community planning and provide the resources to implement the new arrangements.
• Age discrimination is patronising and alienates young people from society and the political system. The voting age for local government elections should be reduced to 16.
• Councillors should be fairly remunerated and positive measures taken to encourage under represented groups to become councillors.

Housing

• A new Housing Standard should be established to reflect standards of quality, comfort, energy efficiency, affordability, accessibility and security. Accessibility should be a key element.
• Housing stock transfer can involve the loss of democratic accountability, high costs and reduced choice for tenants. Investment allowances (the 4^th option) would provide an effective alternative, creating a level playing field between different options and allowing the building of homes to rent under public control.
• We need more support for ‘rent to buy' schemes and a genuine choice of good quality rented accommodation.

Democratising the Quango State

There are144 Quangos in Scotland spending nearly £10bn per year. Transferring local authority functions to government agencies and NDPBs is rarely a formula for good governance.

• Wherever practicable public bodies should be directly elected. Where this is not practicable boards should comprise an amalgam of elected representatives, appointed laypersons and staff representatives.
• All public bodies should have a statutory duty to involve users as partners, not as customers in the decision making process. This involves a high degree of transparency and the provision of capacity for users to fully participate.
• Whilst the location new agencies should take into account wider economic development issues it is important to recognise the impact relocation can have on staff and the effectiveness of the organisation. Any relocation plan should be fully costed and negotiated with the relevant trade unions.

PPP and the two tier workforce

• There should be equality of funding between PPP and conventional procurement.
• The implementation of the PPP Staffing Protocol should be reviewed to address the discriminatory scoping of FM services and the continued breach of the protocol from private contractors in the construction phase of PPP contracts.
• The principles in the PPP Protocol should be extended to all contracting across the public sector.

Crime and Justice

UNISON Labour Link Scotland made a detailed submission to the Scottish Policy Forum's Phase 1 consultation on these issues. This included detailed arguments in support of our policy positions. In the 2^nd Phase we have therefore concentrated on the key points we believe should be included in Scottish Labour's manifesto for the 2007 elections.

We believe that the justice system should be a public service, a system to represent people, protect individuals, workers, families and serve our communities. Labour has always fought for a justice system that upholds and protects individual rights, encourages collective rights, but maintains the need for responsibility for the common good. We must uphold the principles of justice, honesty and integrity; the right to security and the freedom of individuals from fear and intimidation; the right to equality; and the right to fair treatment, whether as an accused or a victim.

Policing

Record investment in policing has made a difference and could be strengthened.

• The three year funding for Community Wardens should be expanded and made permanent to support local communities and front-line policing.
• Police support staff should be expanded both in specialist and operational roles, freeing up police officers to concentrate on their key roles.

Tackling Anti-social Behaviour

Anti-social behaviour undermines opportunities, threatens workers, blights people's lives and destroys communities.

• There should be a consistent framework for the implementation of anti-social behaviour legislation that recognises the needs of individual communities.
• We should not demonise young people. They are more likely to be the victims than the perpetrators of crime.

• Increase funding for youth provision and social work giving these services the same emphasis as youth crime. Including resources to support Children's Hearings.
• Recognise that tackling anti-social behaviour requires a partnership approach by all agencies and those who live in the effected communities.

Tackling Crime

• Victim Support services should be better funded and supported. The Home Office proposals to cut CICA compensation for workers who are the victims of crime should not be implemented in Scotland.
• The families of deceased workers will only ever be treated fairly when guilty companies can be convicted for Culpable Homicide. We require Scottish legislation not the watered down version being considered at Westminster.
• Ensure the new Criminal Justice Authorities are properly funded to deliver a joined up service. They should be effective local area partnerships that are able to develop local solutions within a broad national framework.

• Domestic Violence campaigns should be developed into employment policies with every employer and public authority recognising their role in addressing this issue.
• The Emergency Workers Act and Executive's safety campaigns have been an important step forward in protecting workers from assault and abuse at work. The current legislation only protects a limited number of workers and needs to be reviewed regularly to extend coverage to other groups of workers who serve the community.
• Racist attacks are blight on Scotland's image at home and abroad. The full implementation of the Lawrence report by every public authority remains a priority together with effective police action.
• Marches and parades can and do effect the communities that they pass through. Communities should have a say in the decisions on the routing and frequency of marches that seek to or do intimidate those communities, such as sectarian marches and those of far right organisations.

Access to the law

• Criminal and civil legal aid should be improved to support individuals and provide equal access to the law in addition to extending law centre networks.
• Whilst small claims limits should be increased, personal injury cases should remain a privative jurisdiction to the Court of Session. The commercial interests of the insurance industry in undermining workers injury claims should be resisted.

Culture and Promotion of Scotland

UNISON Labour Link Scotland made a detailed submission to the Scottish Policy Forum's Phase 1 consultation on these issues. This included detailed arguments in support of our policy positions. In the 2^nd Phase we have therefore concentrated on the key points we believe should be included in Scottish Labour's manifesto for the 2007 elections.

Devolution has given Scotland renewed confidence both at home and abroad. We should now use that confidence to develop our culture, tourism, sport and international engagements. Promoting our values, our rich heritage and the changing nature of modern Scotland. As we approach the Scottish Parliament's third term it is also right that we review the balance of devolved and reserved powers.

Scotland in the World

Culture

Sport

Devolution

Growing Scotland's Economy

UNISON Labour Link Scotland made a detailed submission to the Scottish Policy Forum's Phase 1 consultation on these issues. This included detailed arguments in support of our policy positions. In the 2^nd Phase we have therefore concentrated on the key points we believe should be included in Scottish Labour's manifesto for the 2007 elections.

The key drivers for economic success include skills, enterprise, innovation and infrastructure, all of which are inextricably linked and each one a vital component in delivering a competitive Scottish economy. The time is right to move away from comfortable parameters which limit these factors and to consider new ways of thinking which gives greater credence to a social model in delivering economic success in a vibrant modern Scotland.

Introduce a Skills and Training Bond

Maintain and invest in a sustainable and viable manufacturing sector

Establish a Scottish Investment Bank

Develop a Balanced Energy Policy based on a diversity of fuel sources

Develop a high quality environmentally sustainable and fully integrated transport system

• Re-nationalise the railways to deliver a service that is able to be flexible to the needs of the traveling public rather than driven by shareholder interests;
• More freight transferred from road to rail networks to relieve the over-crowded road network and to limit environmental damage;
• Develop the Glasgow/Edinburgh Airport rail link to provide an integrated transport infrastructure improving access to the worlds markets.
• Increase investment in bus transport and use powers within Transport (Scotland) Act, which place Quality Partnership and Quality Contract arrangements in the bus industry on a legal footing, to impose Quality Contracts when the creation of Quality Partnerships are subject to delay.

Creating Lifelong Educational Opportunities for All

UNISON Labour Link Scotland made a detailed submission to the Scottish Policy Forum's Phase 1 consultation on these issues. This included detailed arguments in support of our policy positions. In the 2^nd Phase we have therefore concentrated on the key points we believe should be included in Scottish Labour's manifesto for the 2007 elections.

Trade union priorities in relation to education and lifelong learning in Scotland are focused on the goal of universal access to learning opportunities to help everyone achieve their full potential. This involves giving children and young people the best possible start in life with equality of opportunity to move from school to university and college and/or into the workforce. It also involves ensuring employability and access to skills and personal development throughout life.

A culture of lifelong learning brings benefits to the individual as well as to society; to the employed, to those who employ them; to the social fabric of our society as well as to the economy. Lifelong learning has an important and distinctive contribution to make to people's wellbeing, to a more inclusive society and to a vibrant and sustainable Scottish economy.

Schools

• Free full-time childcare - The current provision of free pre-school education is inadequate and more could be done to assist working families. Free, full-time childcare and early years learning for all ages, as part of an integrated childcare and early years' strategy, would assist lower income families and allow many women to remain in the workplace.
• Integrated community schools - Development of integrated community schools providing a range of services for young people and local communities in one building. E.g. educational services for adults, childcare etc.
• Funding on a comprehensive basis - Scottish schools should continue to be funded on a fully comprehensive basis, this being the best way of ensuring every child is treated equally, irrespective of background.
• Investment in all staff - Proper training and a decent pay structure should be available for all staff working in education. There should be a greater recognition of all members of the school/college/university team, including janitorial, cleaning and office staff, classroom assistants and other support staff. Specific action must also be taken to address the inequitable practices affecting term-time employees in the education sector, such as the denial of benefits during non- remuneration periods such as school holiday periods.
• Infrastructure - Educational establishments should have sufficient IT & broadband facilities to help the development of skills from an early age.
• Free School Meals - The provision of free school meals in Scotland would assist in tackling some of Scotland's major health problems and would fit well with the Government's agenda for eliminating child poverty and promoting social justice. Some examples of good work already exist - breakfast clubs, swipe cards, fuel zones. However, there is currently no uniformity in provision. Free School Meals would not cut across that good work, but would build on it.
• Capital - PFI in schools - The use of PFI in schools, with its more expensive borrowing and cost margins, is not the way forward. There should be equality of funding between PFI and conventional procurement.

Higher & Further Education

Developing people's skills and increasing access to education and training is crucial to the future success of Scotland's economy. It is also crucial to lifting people out of poverty and to combating social exclusion.

• Trade Union Role in Lifelong Learning - The training of learning reps and the promotion of workplace training and adult learning are some examples of how trade unions have played a leading role in overcoming barriers to the development of education, training and skills that Scotland's people and its economy needs. This is a role that must continue to be valued and supported for all staff.
• Expansion of apprenticeships - The achievements of the Modern Apprenticeship system are welcomed. The system should, however, be further expanded to ensure maximum accessibility E.g. for all ages and for the long- term unemployed.
• Underperforming Sectors - Specific resources should be dedicated to sectors within the Scottish economy that are experiencing particular difficulties to support re-training and/or diversification.
• Lifelong Learning Levy - Investment in education and training has been viewed negatively by too many employers and regarded as a cost burden. A voluntary approach to investment in lifelong learning will fail to deal with the persistent chronic skills crisis affecting many areas of our economy. A lifelong learning levy would, assist in ensuring that businesses commit dedicated resources to training.
• Workplace Learning - Work-based training opportunities, designed to improve skills and qualifications for work, should be expanded.
• Access for disadvantaged groups - The work of Scottish colleges and universities in seeking to widen access to education and training for under-represented groups should be adequately resourced. Breaking down barriers to opportunity and achievement must be a priority to show that tertiary education can be an achievable aspiration for everyone.
• Review FE structure - It is vital that the funding of the FE sector in Scotland remains on a stable footing together with stronger governance. Widened access to and greater investment in measures such as work-based learning , part-time and distance learning, support for trade union education and increased collaboration between schools and Further Education establishments is also fundamental to enhancing learning opportunities.
• Community Education - Strengthening the role and resources for community based education.

UNISON Labour Link Scotland made a detailed submission to the Scottish Policy Forum's Phase 1 consultation on these issues. This included detailed arguments in support of our policy positions. In the 2^nd Phase we have therefore concentrated on the key points we believe should be included in Scottish Labour's manifesto for the 2007 elections.

Scotland's health is improving - we are tackling the biggest killers including cancer, strokes and heart disease and providing public health leadership through the ban on smoking and the promotion of healthy lifestyles. We have new investment in our NHS providing new facilities and more staff to run them. We also face major challenges. An ageing population, inequalities that determine life expectancy and underpin key public health problems such as smoking, alcohol, sexual health, drugs, mental health and obesity.

Public Health

Improving Scotland's health should be the priority recognising that poverty is the underlying cause.

• Build on existing cross-cutting partnerships to address inequalities in health through health promotion and by addressing issues such as housing, employment, food labelling and fuel poverty.
• Promote health at school through teachers and classroom assistants supported by school and community nurses. Provide free, nutritious school meals, healthy snacks, sex education and enhanced physical activity.
• Enforce and support the ban on smoking in enclosed places through targeted smoking cessation programmes in areas of greatest need.
• Increase support to national programmes for improving mental health, and focus on high suicide rates, self harm and drug dependence.
• Introduce a new workplace health initiative that recognises the impact poor working conditions have on health.

NHS in Scotland

Promoting and developing the Scottish NHS model based on co-operation not competition.

• Increase democratic accountability through direct elections to health boards and deliberative involvement of patients and the community.
• Implement the National Framework for Service Change with services delivered as local as possible whilst recognising the need to concentrate some specialist services.
• Promote positive service redesign building on local best practice to address waiting times.
• Directly employ and resource cleaning staff as an important element in improving hospital cleanliness and tackling infection.
• Develop a Food for Good programme of improvement to hospital catering that ensures that food is nutritious locally sourced and prepared by directly employed staff on fair pay and conditions.
• End incentives for the development of private sector involvement in NHS care and provide a level playing field between private finance and conventional procurement.
• Employ student nurses on a proper salary as part of a series of measures to tackle drop out rates. Reduce dependency on agency nursing and tackle exploitation and discrimination against overseas nurses particularly in the private care sector.

Community Care

Whilst hospitals can dominate public debate on the NHS - 90% of patient contact is in community settings.

• Make more use of salaried GPs working in NHS health centres supported by other directly employed community health staff.
• Develop and resource the implementation of the 21^st Century Review of Social Work.
• Expand community dentistry staffed by salaried dentists and their essential support staff.
• Abolish prescription charges.

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