Supporting Scotland with Cost of Living and Reducing Child Poverty

As an amendment to motion S6M-08589 in the name of Shirley-Anne Somerville (Supporting Scotland with Cost of Living and Reducing Child Poverty), insert at end “; further calls on the Scottish Government to rapidly bring forward a new emergency insulation programme that makes every home a warm one, alleviating fuel poverty, reducing energy bills, and overcoming the slow progress of existing schemes, and urges the Scottish Government to resolve the problems around the delivery of existing early learning and childcare (ELC) policies, in light of the thousands of two year olds from deprived backgrounds who are missing out on the benefits of funded hours, families finding that the 1,140 hours provision is inflexible or even inaccessible, and the need to immediately increase rates to protect the future of private and third sector providers, at the same time as also preparing for the further expansion of the funded ELC offer to younger children that is needed to boost attainment and benefit the economy."