This Christmas most of us will be waking up in our own homes with our loved ones – but a record number of Scots will wake up without a home to call their own. This is the reality of Scotland’s housing emergency for those on the sharpest end of it.
Homelessness in Scotland has risen to record levels under the SNP. That shameful record has left 10,000 children living in temporary accommodation, without a home of their own. Hundreds are stuck in limbo living in hostels, refuge centres and B&Bs.
Behind every one of these figures is a family failed and a future squandered. As Alison Watson from Shelter Scotland said: “Despite declaring a national housing emergency earlier this year, the Scottish Government has failed to get to grips with a deepening crisis… More than 10,000 children will wake up facing the trauma of homelessness this Christmas – the highest number on record.”
But while thousands of Scots suffer the painful consequences of this crisis, the SNP has done nothing to fix the underlying problems. So far this year the number of new homes started hit its lowest point in a decade, having plummeted by over 40 per cent compared to five years ago.
And this is not the only travesty unfolding on the SNP’s watch this winter. Winter has always been a challenging time for our NHS, but now services are stuck in a state of crisis all year round.
The most recent A&E statistics show more than four out of ten people attending A&E had to wait more than the target four hours to be treated or discharged.
In the space of a single week almost 3,900 people had to wait more than 8 hours in A&E and more than 1,800 people were stuck for more than half a day.
This chaos is quite literally putting lives at risk – the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimate that for every 72 people who has to wait more than eight hours to be seen, there will be one excess death.
Now as temperatures drop and the holidays begin, there is a real risk that things could escalate into a full-blown winter catastrophe. This cannot be as good as it gets.
Scots should not have to settle for another year of SNP misery and decline. The UK Labour government has turned the page on the era of Tory austerity and delivered record levels of funding for Scotland.
This budget means that the Scottish Government has an extra £5.2 billion to spend fixing the pressures on our services. The SNP has the funding it needs to invest in housing so every child has a safe, secure home of their own.
It has the funding it needs to tackle the crisis in our NHS and deliver genuine reform so it is fit for the future. Now the only thing holding Scotland back is a total lack of vision and ambition from this tired SNP government. It’s time for a change in direction, and Scottish Labour is ready to deliver it.
Merry Christmas from Scottish Labour
I want to take this chance to wish all of you a Merry Christmas. This is a time to celebrate and relax – to get together with family and remember the importance of community.
It is not only an opportunity to reflect on the year that has past, but it is also a chance to look ahead to future. It is a time to remember that even in the depth of the dark winter, new light and hope is just around the corner.
I want to send a special message of thanks to all those working over Christmas – from those volunteering to help the less fortunate to those in our emergency services and armed forces working to keep us safe.
Above all, Christmas is a time of new hope and new beginnings. As this year comes to a close, I want to recommit myself to working hard to make life better for everyone in Scotland in the coming year.
As a nation, we have so much potential – let’s work together to unlock opportunities for us all. So from my family to yours and from all of us in the Scottish Labour family, we hope you have a peaceful and joyful Christmas.
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