Working families are increasingly turning to charity to make ends meet, with many now relying on school uniform banks to prepare their children for the new term. This trend underscores the severity of the cost-of-living crisis and the state of the Scottish economy.
Rising Reliance on Charity
Foodbanks are already used by employed people whose wages cannot cover rent, energy bills, and food. Now, school uniform charities are seeing unprecedented demand, as reported today. This situation reveals the failure of successive Tory, Labour, and SNP governments to ensure that work pays.
For generations, a job was sufficient to lift people out of poverty and provide for life's basics, with room for small luxuries like holidays. Now, a full-time job is no guarantee of being able to pay rent. The simple reason: wages are too low.
Weak Unions and Low Wages
Trade unions have been weakened for years, allowing big businesses to suppress wages. No government has adequately addressed this issue, leaving millions in poverty despite working full-time. Andy Burnham and John Swinney, both centre-left politicians, sincerely want to reduce poverty for working families. The best way is to ensure hard work pays.
This means increasing the minimum wage in line with inflation annually and giving workers the freedom to demand higher wages through stronger unions. Better wages help families prosper and strengthen the economy.
NHS in Disrepair
The NHS, once the envy of the world, has been neglected by successive governments. Spending has risen, but it is not enough to repair the growing number of crumbling buildings. More than a third of the NHS estate is in poor condition, up from 19% in 2020. Many hospitals and clinics date from the 1970s and 80s, with repairs being piecemeal over the decades.
Public spending is under huge pressure, as those waiting for a replacement Monklands hospital know. But ignoring repairs only worsens the problem. Patients deserve modern, clean environments, not corridors with buckets catching rainwater.
