Up to date news of Malcolm's work for the people of Edinburgh North and Leith

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Malcolm Chisholm's Local News: Autumn 2009 School Closures One of the worrying aspects of the proposed school closures in Edinburgh is that two thirds of the revenue savings will result from reducing staff. For example, the closure of Fort will result in a saving of £145,000 in teacher costs and that can only mean fewer teachers and larger classes. I raised concerns about this and several other matters in the debate on teacher numbers and in my submissions to the Council on the proposed closure of Royston Primary and Fort Primary.

In those submissions I also emphasised the growing primary school population of Edinburgh in general and north Edinburgh and Leith in particular. This has not been properly factored in to the pupil projections and the result will be that Trinity and Granton are overflowing in a few years time because of the closure of the neighbouring schools. I have asked the Council to look again at the figures. Care of Older People I showed my support for the Charter of Rights for People with Dementia by signing a pledge in the Scottish Parliament. This emphasises the importance of respecting the human rights of people with dementia and ensuring that their individual needs are taken into proper account.

Breast Cancer Care web site >>> Redundancies I raised with Alex Salmond at First Minister's Questions the plight of the 100 workers who print the Scotsman and Evening News at a site on Newhaven Road and who are facing redundancy. This is a betrayal of a loyal workforce but also bad news for readers of the Evening News who will have a later and less up to date newspaper each day. He said he would raise it with the owners Johnston Press.

A couple of weeks before at First Minster's Questions I highlighted the threat to publishing jobs at Chambers Harrap in Hopetoun Crescent and subsequently had a meeting with Cabinet Secretary John Swinney. The quest for a buyer for at least the Chambers part goes on.

In both of these redundancy situations a historic connection with Edinburgh is being broken and I shall continue to do all I can to support the ongoing campaigns and the workers affected. Ways of Seeing Group I was pleased to speak at the launch of a film by the Ways of Seeing Group to mark the hundredth anniversary of the great suffragette march in Edinburgh on 9 October 1909. The group of older local women meet in the Prentice Centre in West Granton and visited many local museums in order to get material for their film. There was a great deal in it about the lives of women in the past and it was clear that getting the vote in 1928 was only one step on a long journey towards equality which is not yet complete.

The very well attended anniversary march (see picture) was as much about highlighting that fact as about remembering the great struggles of the suffragettes. Local Projects I was pleased to attend the AGMs of the Pilmeny Development Project and Dr. Bell's Family Centre as well as the official reopening of the Citadel Youth Project. These are all great local projects that provide services to young people and families and, in the case of Pilmeny, older people as well.

There has been a particular problem with funding youth work in the Leith Walk ward and I supported the campaign about this which has led to further one year funding for Pilmeny. All these projects, of which Leith can be proud, need secure long term funding. Living Wage I was pleased to attend a recent meeting at the Prentice Centre concerning the Living Wage campaign and to support it there and in Parliament. The establishment of a National Minimum Wage was a great step forward a few years ago but there are too many people in work who are still in poverty so the demand for a living wage of at least £7 an hour represents another important step forward. This is a matter of social justice but boosting the incomes of those on low pay is also good for the economy at a time when we are just coming out of recession.

Trinity Academy web site >>>
Duncan Place Resource Centre web site >>> Pilton Health Project I was very pleased to speak at the 25th anniversary celebration of the Pilton Health Project and to see the exhibition of its history in the North Edinburgh Arts Centre. Its achievements over the years have been amazing and we can all learn many important lessons from them. In particular the project has always emphasised the relationship between health and the wider social and economic circumstances in which people live. It has also started with the priorities of local people and always emphasised the importance of involving people in decisions about their own health and healthcare more generally.

Malcolm's speech in May >>>
Malcolm's speech in June >>>