Scotland faces mounting challenges at this critical moment in time and now more than ever this country requires great leadership.
Say what you will about our new Prime Minister, but you cannot deny that Liz Truss is laser focused on getting our economy back on track. The same cannot be said, however, for the tired Nicola Sturgeon and her incompetent SNP Government.
While public services crumble and the economy slows in Scotland, the SNP have focussed only on distracting from a mess created by their own hand. And how do they choose to do that? By sowing the seeds of division.
As Scotland’s Real Alternative, the Scottish Conservatives will not let Nicola Sturgeon and her reckless SNP Government distract from Scotland’s real priorities.
Our Party Leader, Douglas Ross, took to the stage at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham this week, bringing with him new policy proposals to build Scotland’s real alternative.
As Shadow Minister for Further and Higher Education, I of course am most excited about the proposal for a National College of Scotland. The SNP Government has left colleges facing a £50 million real terms cut, with an expected 25 per cent reduction in staff by 2027 for many colleges, alongside falling student numbers.
But the Scottish Conservatives have a solution. We want to create a National College of Scotland that will offer online courses to every Scottish adult regardless of where they live.
I feel passionately about this proposal because it would allow learners to learn at their own pace, meaning they can still hold down a full-time job or have more flexibility when it comes to childcare.
But this is not to take away from the great work already being offered by colleges and universities. In fact, our policy would complement this. It would offer a new, more accessible entry point into higher education and it would allow colleges to streamline the courses they offer.
The National College of Scotland would be driven by higher education institutes and employers, giving them the opportunity to fund the delivery of courses and ensuring their skills needs are being addressed.
Another issue wreaking havoc in Scotland is the housing crisis. Homelessness is rampant and students are being placed in emergency accommodation. The SNP/Green Government are only likely to exacerbate this crisis by imposing rent controls and eviction moratoriums. But ultimately, it stems from the SNP/Greens inability to meet their own housebuilding targets.
The Scottish Conservatives want home ownership to be an affordable goal for every Scot. Therefore, we have announced the Rent to Own Scheme, which would see renters receive 25% of the rent paid over the duration of their tenancy to buy their home, after a minimum of two years and a maximum of five years renting the property. They could also use 50% of the increase in property value (if any) as a deposit towards purchasing the property.
Another area hampered by the SNP’s rampant centralisation is Rural Scotland. Rural Scotland has so much economic potential but Scots living there have worse services and fewer opportunities. The Scottish Conservatives would set up a Rural Development Bank, providing a dedicated funding pot for projects that promote job creation or support increased production or diversification of our agriculture sector. The SNP are holding rural Scotland back, but the Scottish Conservatives know that Rural Scotland has potential that is ready to be unleashed - not only for our rural residents, but for the whole of Scotland.
The last area of focus for these new policy proposals is our defunct justice system. The Scottish Conservatives are firm on the fact that we need to be tougher on crime.
Throughout the pandemic, fraud skyrocketed, and oftentimes people forget just how devastating this appalling crime can be. But we are increasingly seeing money stolen, savings wiped, and personal details compromised. With just one in five criminals convicted of fraud going to prison under the SNP’s soft touch justice system, we must send a stronger message to scammers.
We are proposing a new offence of cyber fraud to increase punishments for scammers defrauding the public. This proposal would also increase the maximum punishment for online scammers and ensure they do not have access to a mobile while in prison. Cyber fraud has doubled in the space of just two-years, and it’s important that we address this crime before it spirals out of control.
In addition to this, attacks on war memorials in Scotland have increased within the last decade and we require stronger legislation to deter potential perpetrators. The Scottish Conservatives are launching a Bill to protect Scotland’s War Memorials for future generations by amending the Vandalism Criminal Law Act 1995 to bring punishments in line with England and Wales. War memorials commemorate our history, recognise our veteran communities, and are at the heart of our communities, and for some, our ancestry. Current measures do not go far enough, and we will urge the Scottish Government to back this deterrent.
Those are just our newest proposals. You can visit the Scottish Conservative and Unionist website to view our existing proposals: https://www.scottishconservatives.com/news
The list does not end there, and we will continue working on policy proposals, because we are a party with a plan. We are Scotland’s real alternative.