Councillor Don welcomes plans to restrict sale of Fireworks

“These new proposals to restrict the sale and use of fireworks will be welcomed by many people including myself”, said Councillor Natalie Don, SNP candidate for Renfrewshire North and West at the next Scottish Parliamentary election.

Scottish Ministers are proposing a major reduction in the quantity of fireworks that can be sold to members of the general public, with the limit for purchase for people without an explosives licence being cut from 50kg to 5kg. It is hoped the changes can come into force at the end of June this year, well ahead of the main fireworks season in November.

Gilly Mendes Ferreira, of the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA), welcomed the new regulations, saying they would be a “positive step, not only for animal welfare, but for those who care for or work with animals”.

She added: “Tightening the times that fireworks can be used will allow owners to prepare and put safeguarding measures in place to protect their animals against the negative effects of fireworks.”

Ash Denham MSP, Community Safety Minister, said: “The proposed changes to legislation I have put before Parliament mark an important milestone in our journey towards a significant shift in our relationship with fireworks.”

More than 16,400 people responded to a Scottish Government consultation on the issue in 2019, with the minister adding the results of this showed “strong public support for changing how fireworks are sold and used in Scotland”.

Councillor Natalie Don added: “Recently Renfrewshire Councillors backed a proposal seeking a review of existing legislation surround the sale and use of fireworks, so I welcome this move by the Scottish Government.

“It’s not just animals and their owners who are affected by fireworks, more and more complaints have indicated the impact these explosions have on vulnerable people, especially those with PTSD who have served in the armed forces.

“The cancellation of all official fireworks events due to Covid has raised concerns that the public had bought more fireworks than usual, and this could have resulted in more injuries.  It really is time for tighter restrictions for the sake of public safety.”

The new regulations would mean the public could only set off fireworks between 6pm and 11pm, with the exception of November 5, when they could be used between 6pm and midnight, and New Year’s Eve, the night of Chinese New Year, and the night of Diwali, when they could be used between 6pm and 1am.  It is also planned to limit the time of day when people can buy fireworks to between 7am and 6pm.

SNP Candidate for Renfrewshire North & West, Natalie Don highlights concern to cut Universal Credit

“This latest comment from a former Tory Government adviser highlights the scandal of child poverty across the UK”, said Councillor Natalie Don (SNP candidate for Renfrewshire North & West) commenting on new research showing that 1.3 million children under five are now living in poverty in the UK.

Following new research showing 1.3 million children under five are now living in poverty in the UK and stark warnings from a welfare expert, the SNP has repeated calls for the UK government to make the Universal Credit uplift permanent and extend it to legacy benefits.

Dame Louise Casey, a former homelessness adviser to the UK government, has again warned the Tory government against its plans to cut Universal Credit in April after research from Little Village and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation revealed 34% of families with children under five live below the poverty line. Two in five of these families have seen a reduction in their earnings as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

The former UK government adviser said that maintaining the £20 increase is “the least we could do” and not doing so would be “unthinkable”. She added that with regards to poverty, “the numbers are just too big to ignore” and the UK government must “thing big and think long” to properly tackle the growing issue.

The SNP has repeatedly called on the UK government to go beyond increasing Universal Credit and other legacy benefits and strengthen all welfare protections after the Tories spent a decade dismantling the social security net - including matching the Scottish Child Payment, which has been hailed as "game-changing" in tackling child poverty in Scotland.

Councillor Natalie Don added:

"If the UK government won't listen to the SNP and the countless anti-poverty campaigners then it must listen to its own former adviser – who has said scrapping the Universal Credit uplift in the middle of a global health pandemic and economic crisis is “unthinkable.”

“The Tory government must make the Universal Credit uplift permanent and roll it out to legacy benefits, if we are to protect the incomes of six million people in the middle of an economic crisis and global pandemic.

“As Dame Louise Casey rightly says, it will take more than maintaining and extending the uplift to fix the damage done to millions of families but it would be a start. Beyond this the UK government must strengthen welfare protections across the board and rebuild the social security net it spent years dismantling with its austerity agenda - including bringing in an equivalent to the Scottish Child Payment.

"However, SNP calls for UK ministers to do this have repeatedly been ignored – we still have the cruel two-child cap, benefit cap and one of the lowest levels of Sick Pay in Europe. Scotland shouldn't have to wait for Westminster to act. Westminster’s repeated failures have proven that the only way to secure a strong, fair and equal recovery is for Scotland to become an independent country – with the full powers needed to build a fairer society."

Natalie Don: Scotland Are Leading The Way On Fairtrade

Scotland has the highest percentage of council areas which are recognised as fair trade areas compared with the rest of the UK, according to new statistics. Fairtrade UK has revealed that 21 of Scotland’s 32 council areas (65%) are fair-trade areas compared with just 33% of councils in England and 41% in Wales.

Endorsing fair trade products and practices means farmers in developing countries get a fair price for their products and are not exploited. Fair trade means farmers in industries like coffee and cocoa can earn a fair living to put food on their tables. One Scottish council placing great importance on this is Renfrewshire Council, which has its own Fair Trade Steering Group.

Commenting, SNP councillor Natalie Don and candidate for Renfrewshire North and West said:

“Fair trade is vital in ensuring farmers in the developing world get an acceptable price for their goods and are not exploited for cheap labour.

“It’s great news that Scotland is leading the way in recognising the benefits of being a fair trade area.

“Shoppers may not see the impact of fair trade when they buy a coffee or fruit, but you will know that making that choice is helping some of the poorest people across the world to make a living and have control of their lives.

“In Renfrewshire we have placed great importance on this issue. I would urge all councils in Scotland who have not already signed up to start their journey to becoming a fair trade area and make Scotland the first fully fair trade country.”

NATALIE DON CALLS FOR THE TORIES TO SCRAP THE BENEFIT CAP AS NUMBER OF FAMILIES IMPACTED BY BENEFIT CAP DOUBLES

SNP candidate for Renfrewshire North and West Natalie Don has said ‘it’s blatantly obvious’ the Tory government must urgently scrap the Benefit Cap to avoid more families and children in Renfrewshire being pushed into poverty - after stats revealed that the number of households hit by the ‘cruel’ policy has shot up. New figures revealed that the number of Scottish households affected by the Benefit Cap has nearly doubled during the pandemic, from around 3,300 in January to around 6,400 in August.

The stats show that during this time the average amount lost due to the Benefit Cap was around £50 per week, or £2,600 per year. A large majority (97%) of these households contain children, while just over 66% were lone parent families. There were no couples without children who were affected by the Benefit Cap.

Cllr Natalie Don said:

“It’s blatantly obvious that the Tories must scrap this cruel policy that is harming people and families across Scotland. The SNP have continually opposed their disgraceful record on poverty while out of touch politicians in London continue plunging vulnerable people into debt, hardship and hopelessness.”

Boris Johnson and his Tory chums are happy to stick their heads in the sand and ignore the criticism of their shameful record on poverty, which has been condemned by the United Nations, countless poverty charities and experts across the world.

These latest figures are grim and show that the number of people impacted by the Benefit Cap has essentially doubled during the pandemic. If the Tories were really serious about improving people's lives they would scrap this harmful policy now, to avoid plunging more families and children into poverty through the Covid-19 crisis.

“The Scottish Government continue to mitigate the worst of these callous Tories policies but it shouldn’t be left to them to pick up the pieces all the time. We could do so much more to tackle poverty and inequality if Scotland had the full powers of independence."

Natalie Don: Scotland Can Lead The Way In Video Games Improving Our Mental Health

A recent study by Oxford University showed that video games can have a positive impact on our mental health. SNP candidate for Renfrewshire North and West Natalie Don is urging the Scottish Government to look into and support further studies that show video games can have a positive impact on our mental health. The study, which focused on players of Nintendo’s Animal Crossing, as well as EA’s Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, found that people who played more regularly reported greater wellbeing than those who played less.

The Oxford University team was able to link up psychological questionnaires with true records of time spent playing games. Previous studies carried out had tended to focus on self-reported time playing, which is weakly correlated with reality. The findings of this study contrast with the advice from the World Health Organisation (WHO) that have classed ‘gaming disorder’ as a mental illness. A diagnosis of gaming disorder is deemed appropriate for a person who, over a period of at least 12 months, lacks control over their gaming habits, prioritizes gaming over other interests and activities, and continues gaming despite its negative consequences.

The UK Government has also come under pressure in recent years to have stricter regulations on the gaming industry in the UK. Concerns over gaming disorder, the excessive violence and sexual content in games and the relationship video games have with gambling through such means as in game currencies, loot boxes and pay to win games.

Cllr Natalie Don, a self proclaimed avid gamer herself, is standing for Holyrood at this year's Scottish Parliament election. Cllr Don is calling for more work to be done here in Scotland, not on the negatives but on the positive impacts that video games can have for your mental health and well-being.

Cllr Don said

“I was pleased to see the findings of this study, as an avid gamer myself I know first hand the positive impacts that video games have had on my own mental well being. The immersion and escapism that you can feel from tuning into your favourite game cannot be replaced and is a mental lifeline for many people. I enjoy playing video games and if done appropriately is no different to reading a book for enjoyment.”

3 billion people on the planet play video games. Many people will have been playing more than usual due to the pandemic. The video games industry has never been bigger and it’s important that if we are regulating it that we work with actual gamers to get it right and that we also look at the positives and don’t just focus on the negatives of playing the computer.

Scotland has a brilliant gaming industry of our own, famously working on the Grand Theft Auto games. Employment in the Scottish video games industry grew by more than 17% between November 2018 and April 2020. Gaming is huge in Scotland and the more the industry grows the more opportunities that will become available for graduates wanting to get involved.

“The Scottish Government has done and continues to do incredible trailblazing work on mental health here in Scotland. The pandemic has made clear the importance of looking after ourselves, and of keeping well. If we can look at ways in which we can improve people’s mental health through video games and the positives that come from it then we absolutely should. I believe this is an issue that Scotland could really lead the way forward in exploring. “