Latest news with #JoaniReid
Daily Mail
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Swinney under growing pressure to order inquiry into Scotland's grooming gangs
has been told to snap out of his 'complacency' and agree to an inquiry into grooming gangs in Scotland. The First Minister came under fire after claiming there was not enough evidence to justify a probe into the organised sexual abuse and exploitation of children. Keir Starmer last month U-turned and ordered an inquiry into the scandal in England and Wales after a damning audit by Whitehall troubleshooter Louise Casey. But Mr Swinney said he would merely 'continue to consider the need to establish a further inquiry... should further information demonstrate a need for this in due course'. Scottish Labour MP Joani Reid told the Mail: 'It's complacency. And it's a very bizarre issue to be complacent about. 'I genuinely do not understand why he's not taking this sufficiently seriously.' Alba MSP Ash Regan also warned a sense of 'Scottish exceptionalism' risked creating 'safeguarding blind spots' She said: 'We are not immune to abhorrent child abuse, whether from individuals or grooming by rape torture gangs. Looking away is not an option - failure to act is unforgivable.' Meanwhile Tory MP Andrew Bowie, who wants the inquiry in England and Wales extended to Scotland, called it a 'deeply disappointing' decision that risked victims being 'silenced'. Earlier this year, four men and one women involved in a Romanian grooming gang in Dundee were convicted of raping and sexually abusing 10 women aged 16 to 30. Baroness Casey's audit found flawed official data meant the full extent of the crime was unknown. A failure to record the ethnicity of perpetrators in most cases was 'appalling', she said. This was despite police evidence in three forces showing 'disproportionate numbers of men from Asian ethnic backgrounds amongst suspects for group-based child sexual exploitation'. After previously dismissing opposition calls for a national inquiry, the PM agreed to one last month. Ms Reid, the MP for East Kilbride, then wrote to Mr Swinney calling for a probe into gangs in Scotland. She said the long-running Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry chaired by Lady Smith was no substitute as it was limited to children abused in care between 1930 and 2014. She also said a new 'Strategic Working Group' on the issue was too small to determine 'the scale of organised sexual abuse in Scotland'. She also called for a new mandatory reporting law making it a crime for people working with children not to report sexual abuse in England to be mirrored in Scotland. 'It is extraordinary that your government seems so reluctant to do this,' she said. But in his reply, Mr Swinney clung to previous SNP reasons for doing neither. While stressing the 'abhorrent' nature of the abuse, he rejected an inquiry, saying there was a range of ongoing work to improve child protection. Police Scotland also said there are 'no current investigations' in Scotland akin to those in the Casey audit. And despite 'a number of advantages' to mandatory reporting, there were 'also risks and unintended consequences', he said, so it was still being considered. Ms Reid said she had been contacted by whistleblowers, police officers and abuse survivors and was in no doubt there was a grooming gang problem in Scotland - and official denial. 'The institutional problems that exist in England also exist here. But Mr Swinney seems to have doubled down on the idea that there is nothing much to see when it comes to organised child abuse in Scotland. 'But if you never look, you will never spot the problems, no matter how serious they are. 'His continued failure to back mandatory reporting of child abuse is a serious mistake. 'The idea that Scotland might be the one part of Britain where adults could be aware of abuse taking place but be under no obligation to report it would be an appalling outcome. 'John Swinney should recognise that this is not the moment to hide from public scrutiny over organised child abuse. He needs to have a change of heart - and quickly.' Mr Bowie, the shadow Scottish Secretary, said: 'John Swinney appears completely oblivious to the urgent need to extend this inquiry to Scotland, where there have been well-documented cases of grooming gangs carrying out horrific crimes.' A Scottish Government spokesman said: 'Ministers will consider the need to establish a further inquiry into child sexual abuse and exploitation in Scotland, should further information demonstrate a need for this, and children and young people's needs and rights must remain at the heart of this process. 'We are working at pace with partners, including Police Scotland and the National Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Strategic Group, to assess the Casey Audit's findings and recommendations to understand how they might apply in Scotland. 'The independent Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry is one of the widest ranging enquiries undertaken in Scotland - it includes an extensive review of child protection policy and practice, and will report with recommendations for further development in due course.'
Daily Record
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
SNP Government forks out nearly £10m on 'free' bikes for children at £700 a pop
A Scottish Labour MP claimed "the one thing the SNP excel at is wasting our money" after the costs of the scheme were revealed. The SNP Government has been blasted for "wasting our money" after forking out nearly £10 million on "free bikes" for kids at £700 a pop. A Freedom of Information Request showed that the Scottish Government has spent £9.4 million on 13,244 bikes. This means the average cost of each bike was £711. High street retailers sell various models of children's bikes for under £200 and a quality child's bike from the 'Specialized' brand can be bought for under £500. Scottish Labour MP for East Kilbride and Strathaven Joani Reid said: 'The one thing the SNP excel at is wasting our money. 'It is outrageous that taxpayers are being billed millions for this failing programme. 'I am not against giving children free bikes, I am against my constituents being ripped off like this. 'Public money is precious and needs to be spent with care.' Between August 2021 and March 2023, £4.4m was spent on the Free Bikes Pilot Programme. From April 2023 to March 2024, £900,000 was spent on the Free Bikes Partnership. Between April 2024 and March this year, £4.2m was spent on the People and Place Programme. Overall this adds up to £9.4m. A total of 13,244 bikes were distributed during this period. The Scottish Government said the number includes bikes purchased as part of fleets - for example by schools - and used by multiple children for purposes such as cycle training. The People and Place Programme aims to encourage people to walk, cycle, and use active modes of transport. It aims to make people change how they travel long term - essentially encouraging them to use their cars less. A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: 'The total costs reflect not only the cost of the bikes, but the total administration of access to bikes projects using various delivery models, alongside the provision of safety equipment, security devices and cycle training.'
Daily Record
08-07-2025
- Daily Record
East Kilbride MP urges ministers to 'get tough' on knife crime after death of Kayden Moy
Joani Reid is pressing ministers to get tough with social media companies who let teens pose with dangerous weapons. East Kilbride's MP has called on ministers to "get tough" with social media companies who allow teens to pose with dangerous weapons while highlighting the tragic death of Kayden Moy. Describing social media as a "breeding ground for youth violence", Joani Reid, Scottish Labour MP for East Kilbride and Strathaven, said she would make knife crime a focus of her campaigning and constituency work over the summer. At Home Office questions yesterday, she raised the tragic and shocking death of 16-year-old East Kilbride boy Kayden Moy, who died after being allegedly stabbed at Irvine Beach on May 17. Download the Lanarkshire Live app today The Lanarkshire Live app is available to download now. Get all the news from your area – as well as features, entertainment, sport and the latest on Lanarkshire's recovery from the coronavirus pandemic – straight to your fingertips, 24/7. The free download features the latest breaking news and exclusive stories, and allows you to customise your page to the sections that matter most to you. Head to the App Store and never miss a beat in Lanarkshire - iOS - Android Three teenagers have been arrested following Kayden's death. Two 17-year-olds and a 14-year-old have appeared in court charged with murder. The MP is now pressing ministers to get tough with social media companies who let teens pose with dangerous weapons. She said the police claim they are powerless to take any action. Joani Reid said: 'Kayden's death was a tragedy for his family and a shock to the whole of East Kilbride. The worrying fact is that knife crime is rising across Scotland, even in schools, and we need to mobilise as a community to bring it under control. 'I have been sent numerous videos by concerned and frightened constituents of boys and young men posing in their bedrooms with dangerous knifes and blades. "The social media companies refuse to act, and the police say they have not got the power to act. But there can be no excuses for doing nothing when we all know this bravado leads on to violence. 'I will use the summer weeks to press social media companies, public authorities and the Scottish government to get their act together on knife crime and to insist we get real action and not more excuses.' The shocking tragedy has prompted local charities and community groups to help educate young people and urge open conversations with teens about crime. East Kilbride Neighbourhood Watch & Community Impact Project have petitioned South Lanarkshire Council and Police Scotland to urgently address the rise in knife crime and youth violence in East Kilbride. Campaigners are calling for a local task force on knife crime prevention to be set up, early intervention and education in schools and youth clubs and more visible and engaged neighbourhood policing. More than 1800 people have signed the petition and an anti-knife crime march in Glasgow on Sunday stepped up their fight for urgent action on the country's knife crime and youth violence epidemic. Sign the petition here.
Daily Record
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
East Kilbride MP blasted for 'leaving disabled in limbo' following Commons welfare vote
Collette Stevenson MSP has said Labour must now apologise to the disabled but Joani Reid MP insists Labour is turning the economy around. Joani Reid MP has again come under fire for voting in favour of Labour's Welfare Bill which her opposers say will leave her disabled constituents in limbo. The Bill had initially proposed to slash eligibility for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) - a move which the government's own analysis showed would remove support from 800,000 people by the end of the decade – but now promises a 'review' of PIP at the end of 2026. In Scotland, the SNP Government had committed to protect disabled people from these cuts by protecting the Adult Disability Payment, Scotland's equivalent of PIP, from any reductions – though Labour's cut would have had a knock-on impact on Scotland's budget. After months of backlash from disability and anti-poverty groups, an eleventh-hour change to the bill threw the vote into 'chaos and confusion', and resulted in The UK Government promising a review of PIP to be concluded by autumn 2026, which East Kilbride SNP MSP Collette Stevenson says is leaving disabled people in limbo. A revolt by Labour MPs led to 49 of them voting against the motion but that number would have been far higher but for the government making a number of eleventh-hour adjustments to gain support for the Bill. East Kilbride SNP claimed the Labour cuts would push hundreds of thousands of disabled people into poverty, hitting the most vulnerable hardest. Collette Stevenson has said Labour must now apologise to disabled people for keeping them in limbo. The MSP said: "This Welfare Bill has been a disaster from the start – Labour have gone from ignoring disabled people to changing the Bill minutes before the vote – that is a total joke, and no way to run a country. 'But by voting for this bill in its amended form, Ms Reid is only making that uncertainty for disabled people worse, by delaying any clarity on PIP until the end of 2026. "Labour have shown their true colours here - any cut to PIP will be devastating for disabled people who rely on these payments to live and work – which is why the SNP pledged to protect these payments here in Scotland. 'With the limited powers of the Scottish Parliament, we can step in to protect disabled people here in East Kilbride and across Scotland – just imagine what we could do with the full powers of independence.' In response, Joani Reid said that reforming welfare to help people "who can and should work" into jobs while protecting those who need help is all part of turning the economy around. 'With Labour the minimum wage is rising, the economy is growing and families can start to see the light at the end of the tunnel on the cost of living crisis as energy costs come down", she said. "Reforming welfare to help people who can and should work into jobs while protecting those who need help is all part of turning the economy around and I am proud of the work Labour is doing. 'But under the SNP government, slavishly supported by Collette Stevenson, the NHS is getting worse, schools are falling behind and promise after promise is being abandoned. 'Now she wants to plunge Scotland back into the chaos and division of another referendum on independence, as though that answers any of the problems our country faces. Nobody outside the SNP wants or needs that. What a colossal waste of time, energy and money that would be.' In a scathing open letter to the MP, East Kilbride South SNP Councillor Geri Gray spoke of her "disgust" at the decision by the granddaughter of veteran trade unionist and socialist Jimmy Reid who led the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders' work-ins during the 1970s. She wrote: "I am disgusted that the granddaughter of the late and legendary Jimmy Reid could vote for the welfare cuts to the sickest and most vulnerable in our society. I have worked in Welfare Rights since before you left high school, and have seen the attacks on disabled people first by the Tories and now by your government. "Have you spoken to any disabled charities or Welfare Rights organisations before you took this decision? Having recently attended a Welfare Rights Conference where Sir Stephen Timms was in attendance via video link, appears there was no discussion at all. "No one is saying that people who are disabled shouldn't be assisted to work, and many do. However where are all these dream jobs? How many employers are going to realistically take on a disabled person who wakes up that morning in pain or with poor mental health and is unable to attend work that day? Employers are running a business, they need their staff. They can only be sympathetic to a point. "So in conclusion Joani Reid, you are using disabled people as an easy source to save money. There are many other sources of income you could have looked at. "Labour were always the party of the 'working class', no longer is this true. And why my previous Labour voting family turned to the SNP over 20 years ago. How a society treats its most vulnerable is always the measure of its humanity." A Labour source said: 'Councillor Gray does herself and her party no favours with her bad tempered and inaccurate and personal attack on Joani Reid. "Spending to assist disabled people is rising substantially, something you would expect someone who claims to be an expert on the subject to know, but instead Councillor Gray claims it is being cut. She can do better. 'Nor are the measures she attacks in the Bill.'
The National
01-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
The simple Ipsos poll change that could be significant for independence
That's far more than a dry technical point, because in recent years the unusual Ipsos methodology has produced much better results for both independence and the SNP than most online polls. However, Ipsos hasn't switched wholesale to the methods of rival polling firms, and has instead adopted a hybrid approach of recruiting potential respondents offline, and then interviewing them online. The new poll therefore can't be directly compared to any previous results from any firm, and it will be a major relief for leading figures in the SNP and the Greens that the numbers do not, at least for the most part, represent a radical departure from past Ipsos polling. The 52% to 48% lead for Yes on the independence question is in fact a marginal improvement on the position shown by the Ipsos poll just over a year ago during the General Election campaign. It's true that there have been far more impressive results for Yes in other Ipsos polls over the years, but nevertheless the new poll offers grounds for optimism that the revised Ipsos methodology will continue to produce more favourable independence numbers than are typically seen from long-standing online firms such as Survation and YouGov, both of which showed a No lead in their most recent polls. READ MORE: Minister responds to claims of 'Iranian Scottish independence X accounts' Part of the reason for this ongoing contrast may be that most other pollsters differ from Ipsos in that they insist on weighting their results according to how respondents say they voted in the 2014 independence referendum – a practice that after such a long period of time carries the increasing risk of results being distorted by false recall. The SNP's 31% vote share in Westminster voting intentions is firmly within their normal range of between 30% and 34% shown in recent months across all polling firms. However, the 22% share for Labour is the second-highest showing for Keir Starmer's party since February, while Reform UK's 16% is markedly lower than the 21% reported by both Survation and Norstat in May. So it may be that the new Ipsos methodology will be a touch more Labour-friendly, and less Reform-friendly, than conventional online polling. That would make intuitive sense, because Reform supporters are perhaps disproportionately likely to be politically engaged and to sign up for volunteer polling panels. The Ipsos approach of recruiting panellists offline could produce a more realistic measure of where Reform truly stand with the Scottish public. READ MORE: Labour MP Joani Reid caught out on 'didn't support welfare cuts' claim It's a similar story in voting intentions for next year's Holyrood election, with the SNP's vote share of 34% on the constituency ballot mirroring other recent polls, but with their 11-point lead over Labour being less overwhelming than the leads recently reported by Survation and Norstat, due to a higher Labour vote and a lower Reform vote. A more significant cause for concern for John Swinney will be his party's 26% share on the list ballot, which is the second-lowest reported by any pollster this year. That may not matter much if the SNP's double-digit lead in the constituencies is maintained, but the voting system will start to skew heavily in Labour's favour if the lead contracts to low single digits. In that scenario, the SNP might need to win lots of list seats simply to remain the largest party in the Scottish Parliament – and on 26% of the list vote they probably wouldn't be winning enough.
