Scotland already has the lowest rate of child poverty in the UK. See:
‘Latest data: In 2015, the rate of children on a CPP or Child Protection Register was in the mid-40s per 10,000 across Wales, England and Northern Ireland. The rate in Scotland was considerably lower at 27 per 10,000. (p88)
Latest data: In 2014 the Infant Mortality Rate across the UK was 3.9 deaths per 1,000 live births: 3.9 in England and Wales, 3.6 in Scotland, and 4.8 in Northern Ireland. (p15)
Latest data: The mortality rate per 100,000 population for children aged one to nine years in 2013/2014 was 12.1 in the UK overall and 12.2 in England and Wales, 11.8 in Northern Ireland and 11.1 in Scotland. (p20)
http://www.rcpch.ac.uk/system/files/protected/page/SOCH-UK-2017.pdf
The work of the Scottish government has already been praised. The report: ‘State of the Nation’: Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, was presented to House of Commons December 2015. Here are some of its key findings:
‘Scotland, for example, has the smallest number of children living in poverty among the constituent nations of the UK, the lowest prevalence of low pay and far more young people from deprived areas going on to higher education.’ (iv)
The above quote is taken from ‘State of the Nation: Social Mobility and Child Poverty’. The report commends the Scottish government for its efforts and compares these more than favourably with the neglect and the heartless actions of the UK government. However, that we should not gloat or that we must maintain, indeed increase, our efforts, does not mean that we should not be able to note the progress achieved so far. How else can we gauge what remains to be done? How else can we gather the strength to push on? How else can we build the strong sense of collective identity required to confidently grasp the levers of full political independence required to do so?
‘Once housing costs are taken into account, relative poverty ranges from one in five children in Scotland (21 per cent) to nearly twice this (37 per cent) in London’. (p113)
That twenty-one percent of Scotland’s children live in poverty is a monstrous blemish on the face of a democracy aspiring to much better. That it is higher everywhere else in the UK and nearly twice as high in our globalised golden capital does not excuse it, I know that. The current Scottish government makes nothing of such a comparison. It simply accepts that it is unacceptable and is now doing what it can to remedy the situation.
‘The trends in one of the key drivers of child poverty – employment – are also encouraging:
- The proportion of children in Scotland who live in workless households has decreased rapidly in recent years and is slightly lower than the UK average – only 10.9 per cent of children in Scotland live in workless households compared to 15.8 per cent in 2012 and 11.8 per cent in the UK as a whole;
- More than six out of 10 (62.5 per cent) children in Scotland live in households where all adults are in work, making Scotland the region with the most ‘fully working’ households in the UK – for example, only 54.6 per cent of children in England live in households where all adults are in work;
- Scotland has the second highest parental employment rate of any region of the UK: 83.2 per cent of people with dependent children are in work. This is driven by very high employment of mothers in couples; 79.6 per cent of whom are in work compared to 71.9 per cent in England. However, lone parents in Scotland have a relatively low employment rate – only 62.2 per cent are in work (compared to, for example, 69.8 per cent in the East of England and 69.2 per cent in Wales).’ (169)
‘State of the Nation’: Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, presented to House of Commons December 2015 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/485926/State_of_the_nation_2015__social_mobility_and_child_poverty_in_Great_Britain.pdf
Nevertheless, the above remains unsatisfactory so a bill to tackle child poverty has been unanimously approved at its first stage by the Scottish Parliament:
‘The parliament has agreed to the general principles of the Child Poverty (Scotland) Bill which will see It also provides a strong framework by which progress can be monitored at a national and local level and the government will publish a three-year child poverty delivery plan by April 2018, which will be updated every five years, and annual reports to measure progress.’
Contrary 
Talking-up Scotland 
My comments [in brackets] on:
Theresa May’s Clear Plan for Brexit
…
11 days after you vote, the EU will start the Brexit negotiations with Britain. So whoever is Prime Minister must be up to the job and ready to start.
Getting those negotiations right is central to everything and only Theresa May has the plan and the ability to deliver.
Theresa May’s 12-point plan for Brexit:
1. Provide certainty and clarity
We will provide certainty wherever we can as we approach the negotiations.
[This is SO detailed, outlining to us exactly how they will be providing certainty,,, and they don’t even mention clarity after the heading. Has she really never witnessed David Davis’ performance when answering committee questions? Or not, as the case may be. They keep SAYING this and not doing it – how is this, no. 1 as it is, a plan? The phrase ‘wherever we can’ appears to be a get-out clause for not doing whatever it is they were planning on doing (e.g. How about ‘Publish weekly reports’ or something equally simple – I mean, if you aren’t going to do it anyway, why not just shove in a practical example of what you COULD do? And this no.1 part of the clear plan is ‘as we approach negotiations’, not WHILE doing negotiations. So, if elected, they have eleven days in which to be certain and clear and provide it to someone,,, not sure, going by their track record, eleven big fat days are going to be enough. Of course, we know that the EU is going to be providing lots of clarity and certainty and big fat juicy reports and leaks and all sorts for us during negotiations, so maybe that’s why they’ve limited it to before.]
2. Take control of our own laws
We will take control of our own statute book and bring an end to the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union in the UK.
[Soooo, right. Is this a plan? It looks like a plan. It this the bit about the Bill of Rights? You know, that plan that has been slated as being nigh-on impossible to execute, and puts those same EU laws directly into English law where they can lie dormant for the next hundred years because no one can face sorting it out, and there are so many budget cuts there is no one left to do it anyway? Why do we no longer want the Court of Justice to have jurisdiction in the UK anyway? I thought they were a court of appeal, or do I have the wrong body?]
3. Strengthen the Union
We will secure a deal that works for the entire UK – for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and all parts of England. We remain fully committed to the Belfast Agreement and its successors.
[Should we read this as ‘remain fully committed to treating all nations as colonies’ perhaps? Being so entrenched in the Westminster bubble, as the phrase goes, how does she know what will work for the entire UK, she certainly has not reacted to the input from the other nations or involved them in p l a n n i n g so far, so she must believe she knows what is best for them. She does talk as though she is addressing young schoolchildren generally, a rather patronising demeanour you might say, so her opinion does appear to be that the UK populace cannot make a rational decision. She should be including herself in this, of course, because every time a garbled non-sentence comes out of her mouth you have to wonder exactly what planet she resides on and how different the laws of physics there must be. ‘Secure a deal’ does not quite tie up with her ever-popular sound bite of ‘no deal is better than a bad deal’ either – which is it to be? How can you have confidence in someone that has no confidence in their own abilities to make a deal? How on earth someone so bad at communicating got to that position I cannot fathom, it makes a mockery of the education system, equality (where someone with the skills gets the job regardless of background) and supposed democracy (is this a feudal system controlled by propaganda?).]
4. Protect our strong and historic ties with Ireland and maintaining the Common Travel Area
We will work to deliver a practical solution that allows for the maintenance of the Common Travel Area, whilst protecting the integrity of our immigration system and which protects our strong ties with Ireland.
[Aye, my erse. Strong ties, has she shown any inclination to discuss with Ireland the Brexit thing? Does she have suggestions for what some of these ‘practical solution’s might be? She has had quite a few months to come up with a few clever ideas, and I assume it won’t affect the secret Brexit negotiating stance that is ever so secret, so surely letting a few ideas loose would help along filling out some of step no.1 of the clear and certain plan? I have yet to hear in the Scottish news that Enda Kenny has stepped down as party leader -as he promised to do – and will step down as Taoiseach soon, so I guess the strong and historic ties don’t include hearing any news from Ireland within the past century. The phrase ‘protecting the integrity’ of our immigration system implies that it is fine as it is, so why has there been such a big deal made of it? We know, of course, that it is not immigration that is a problem, but the lack of investment in infrastructure and social services and laws governing workers rights, oh and tax laws too while we are at it, that causes the problems people see and experience.]
5. Control immigration
We will have control over the number of EU nationals coming to the UK.
[See above. This does not need to be controlled (to the degree they are proposing, though they haven’t even stated what that is here), the state party does (UK government). They need to be held to account for every policy and action they make and take, and it needs to be legally binding, and the consequences of each fully explored. They have been accused of being in breach of international human rights laws, yet nothing is done – it is not like no one knows how abysmal this government, and the last, is. If anyone thinks reducing the number of immigrants is going to solve anything, then they are severely divorced from reality. But,,, as a part of the Plan of Clarity, it does not make much clear; the sentence itself just says ‘this will happen’ which is not, really in any sense, a Plan. It is a statement. It doesn’t even say WHEN it will happen. Deary me, another big mark down for the education system that produced people that would write this woeful drivel and try and pass it for a plan]
6. Secure rights for EU nationals in the UK, and UK nationals in the EU
We want to secure the status of EU citizens who are already living in the UK, and that of UK nationals in other Member States, as early as we can.
[Welllll, I would hate to break it to Ms May, but I believe the EU have categorically stated that this will be sorted instantly and NO negotiations will take place before hand. So the rather feeble ‘as early as we can’, while already sending people away and bringing in discriminatory policies for EU workers, is not really good enough for a Plan of Clarity step. Showing hostility towards those you wish to negotiate with – well, on what planet do you get a good deal then? ‘We want to’ is a bit wishywashy too, it has to be done to proceed with Brexit, she could have, at least, made it sound like her idea and not an airy fairy notional idea that would be kind of nice to have.]
7. Protect workers’ rights
We will protect and enhance existing workers’ rights.
[Eh? What has this got to do with Brexit? Ohhh, yes, it is because our very own Tory party fight tooth and nail against every single workers rights legislation that is proposed by the EU. How very comforting, certain and clear of them to plan on this. I wonder what the ‘enhance’ part entails – could this be bigger banker bonuses for those already outrageously overpaid for not being very productive perhaps? How does it help with the Brexit negotiation Plan though? Should this not be in their election manifesto… Maybe it is. Well stage 7 gets a negative vote, I doubt the EU will be impressed with this as a negotiating stance.]
8. Ensure free trade with European markets
We will forge a new strategic partnership with the EU, including a wide reaching, bold and ambitious free trade agreement, and will seek a mutually beneficial new customs agreement with the EU. And because we will no longer be members of the single market, we will have control of our money once again: the days of Britain making vast contributions to the EU every year will end.
[Okay, this looks like a Planning Step. The first ‘we will’ implies a deal with the EU, the words bold and ambitious sound incredibly positive. No idea how they Plan to go about it so no clarity but at least they are thinking about it – and have been for quite a wee while now. The second part assumes outright that leave EU = leave single market. That was not what people voted for, or even understood, but we already understand they are ignoring this. How leaving the single market equates to control of our money is incomprehensible. Zero points for clarity.]
9. Secure new trade agreements with other countries
We will forge ambitious free trade relationships across the world.
[Wow. Detailed. Really, how, is there a team, is there any mention this can’t be done until Brexit is done with. This may be a post-Brexit plan, but don’t think it can be part of the Clear Brexit Plan.]
10. Ensure that the UK remains the best place for science and innovation
We will remain at the vanguard of science and innovation and will seek continued close collaboration with our European partners.
[Again perhaps lacking some detail. Already research is suffering and all this collaboration they are going to continue is being destroyed by rEU nationals being sent away despite research grants, and grants from the EU are being cut. ‘Vanguard’ is a bit of a stretch, so not sure how they are going to remain there. Are they planning to invest in research, or are they just hoping it will kind of happen? And why do they want to ensure this? Zero points for clarity and plan.]
11. Cooperate in the fight against crime and terrorism
We will continue to work with the EU to preserve European security, to fight terrorism, and to uphold justice across Europe.
[Oooo, no mention of remaining a member of any of the EU security agencies. At least is says ‘cooperate’, but I have still to see evidence of Ms May cooperating on anything, so forgive any scepticism. Can’t give any points on clarity for this one.]
12. Deliver a smooth, orderly exit from the EU
We will seek a phased process of implementation, in which both the UK and the EU institutions and the remaining EU Member States prepare for the new arrangements that will exist between us.
[Good plan. A bit wordy for the lack of information, and it doesn’t tell us anything. You would have thought this could be assumed, and maybe a vague outline of timing on those phases would have demonstrated a sort of plan, or even what those phases are?? Pah. Pitiful.]
With a strong hand in the Brexit negotiations, Theresa May can guarantee Britain’s economic security and future prosperity for you and your family.
A vote for any other party risks Jeremy Corbyn running the Brexit negotiations and putting jobs, living standards and our economic security at risk.
[oh FFS, give it a rest. If this is the best she can do to promote her own skills – which, I have to say, appear to be non-existent – to vaguely imply someone else would be worse without backing up the claims with evidence is utterly pathetic.]
[So, as a Plan; this isn’t one. On clarity: zero points. On Theresa May as a credible leader to represent the UK in negotiations: negative 100 points. The mindless inane rubbish they are producing here is an insult to the electorate, her use of the word ‘clear’ must be a hopeful expectation that no one will read the Plan. I mean, if a business produced something like this to bid for a contract, would it not be instantly binned? And also:
Theresa does not seem well:
https://mobile.twitter.com/BBCNews/status/869908350019829760
If her health cannot hold up during an election campaign then it is very unlikely she is fit enough for Brexit negotiations. This looks like a panic attack though, darting eyes and difficulty forming words, laughing at inappropriate moments. Let’s hope it is not anything more serious, but that does not take away from the fact she does not appear to be able to handle the pressures of her position.]
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