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SCOTLAND - GREEN ENERGY POWERHOUSE OF EUROPE

WIND, WAVE AND TIDAL CAN INSPIRE 'RENEWABLES REVOLUTION', SAYS FIRST MINISTER

Scotland needs the power to manage its own natural resources so it can become the energy powerhouse of Europe, First Minister Alex Salmond has said in his New Year message.

Mr Salmond predicted a 'renewables revolution' emanating from a Scotland which had won the 'natural lottery' - with wind, wave and tidal resources offering the capacity to produce some 10 times Scotland's own electricity requirements.

The First Minister pointed to the Climate Change Act - setting legally binding targets to cut Scottish greenhouse gas emissions by 42 per cent and 80 per cent by 2020 and 2050 respectively - as the most important legislation passed by the Parliament in 2009, even although world leaders in Copenhagen had failed to commit fully to a way forward.

An audio file of the message can be downloaded now at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/about/downloads

"In Copenhagen I spoke about Scotland's energy potential, our green energy potential, our ambition to be the energy powerhouse of Europe," he said.

"Many countries saw the lead that Scotland was taking as an example of the legislation and of the action that must be taken to protect our planet collectively. Despite the disappointment of Copenhagen, people power internationally will force political leadership to commit to the ambitious targets for their countries that Scotland has already set.

But the First Minister added that Scotland must get the benefit of its own resources if it was to become a major exporter and the energy powerhouse of the Europe.

He said: "Even now, we're being held back in the exploitation of these renewables because we now have to pay in Scotland much higher connection charges to the electricity grid than companies have to pay south of the border. That's totally unfair and totally unacceptable.

"If we're going to make the most of this renewable revolution, then we're going to have to have equal access to the grid - and the powers for our Parliament to secure that proper access.

"And that's why it's important, as we move into this New Year, that the people of Scotland are given their say in making sure that their Parliament can extend its powers to have the ability to mobilise the resources of Scotland for Scotland's benefit.

"The referendum on the constitution is not an abstraction - it's not something for politicians. It's something for every person in Scotland. Because if we're going to harness the power of Scotland, then we need to give Scotland power.

"So this Ne'er Day, as we look forward to 2010, I'm wishing you a happy New Year - renewing the energy of Scotland, renewing Scotland as a country. Have a guid New Year."

Background

The Climate Change (Scotland) Bill was passed unanimously by the Parliament. The legislation creates a long-term framework that:
* introduces a statutory target to reduce Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80 per cent by 2050
* establishes an interim target of at least 42 per cent emissions reductions by 2020.
* establishes a framework of annual targets
* includes emissions from international aviation and international shipping.

The Scottish Government has also set ambitious green energy targets, including meeting 50 per cent of electricity demand from renewable sources by 2020. With 6.5 Gigawatts of renewables capacity installed, consented or under construction, Scotland has surpassed the interim target of 31 per cent by 2011.

The current charging regime requires electricity generators in Scotland to pay the UK's highest transmission costs, while in parts of the south of England companies actually receive a subsidy. Generators in the north of Scotland face charges of around #21.58 per Kilowatt Hour, yet those in London receive #2.70 per kwH while more than twice that subsidy (#6.68) is paid out to firms in Cornwall, according to National Grid's own figures. This means that Scottish generators produce 12 per cent of UK generation, but account for 40 per cent of the transmission costs - or about #100 million per year more than their proportionate share.

The First Minister highlighted concerns that the charging regime creates a significant and fundamental barrier to encouraging renewable energy development in Scotland during his meeting with EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs in Brussels last month. The National Grid has rejected Scottish Government proposals to adopt a flat rate charge for use of the system but Ministers continue to engage with National Grid and Ofgem to find a way forward.

On November 30 the Scottish Government published a White Paper - Your Scotland, Your Voice - setting out options for Scotland's constitutional future and paving the way for Ministers to bring forward a Bill in 2010. The White Paper can be read here: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/11/26155932/16

The First Minister's New Year message - recorded at his office in the Scottish Parliament, for the first time in High Definition - can be viewed in full at: www.youtube.com/user/scottishgovernment

Contact
Russell Fallis : 0131 244 3054 / 07920 595435

St Andrew's House, Regent Road, Edinburgh EH1 3DG
www.scotland.gov.uk

Monday 28 December 2009

Seizing on the warning by Scotland's children's commissioner that the UK government’s key goal for tackling child poverty will not be met next year, SNP Work and Pension’s spokesperson John Mason MP said that the warning must be a wake up call for Labour Ministers.

The UK Government set the target of halving child poverty in 2010, ahead of eradicating the problem altogether by 2020. Tam Baillie, Scotland's Commissioner for Children, said progress made in earlier years had stalled, and warned the 2010 target would not be achieved.
 
Mr Mason, the MP for Glasgow East, said:

"The children’s commissioners warning must be a wake up call for Ministers in London. After twelve years in government it is shameful that Labour have failed to close the gap between rich and poor created during the Thatcher years.

"Gordon Brown should hang his head in shame as banking bosses get multi-million pound rewards while one in five children live below the bread-line.

"It is clear that there is a particular problem with the tax and benefits system which must be reformed to ensure that nobody is overlooked or trapped in a cycle of poverty. Even the Labour weighted Treasury Select Committee has expressed its dismay that, despite repeated warnings, the UK Government will fail to meet its poverty targets by a significant margin and the Scottish Parliament's Local Government Committee has called for flexibility in Scotland over the benefits system so it can work for Scotland.

"No issue underlines more why Scotland must have full responsibility for all tax, spending and social welfare issues so that we can tackle the scourge of poverty.

"The Scottish Government is doing everything it can with the powers that are available to it. Practical steps, like freezing the Council Tax, progressive abolition of prescription charges and the extension of free school meals to pupils from hard-pressed families, are delivering and we will do more.

"There is enormous political goodwill towards fighting poverty, and yet the UK government has failed to match its talk with action. Scotland has the will to eradicate poverty but we are being held back by a tax and benefits system that is failing thousands of people.”

Wednesday 23rd December 2009
 
The SNP has rounded on the UK Government over the detention of an untold number of children in immigration removal centres over Christmas.

In a parliamentary answer to SNP Home Affairs spokesperson Pete Wishart MP, the Home Office said it could make no "estimate of the number of families expected to be detained in immigration removal centres during Christmas 2009". However, official UK Border Agency figures obtained by the SNP show the UK Government detained 1315 children in three detention centres across the UK over a 15 month period - over 100 of those in Scotland.

In a separate parliamentary answer, the Home Office also failed to say whether any special festive arrangements would be made for children detained over the festive period - though a recent report revealed that an Anglican church minister, dressed as Father Christmas and hoping to bring some festive cheer for detained children, was refused access to Yarls Wood removal centre amid angry scenes with security officials.

Commenting, Mr Wishart said:

"It is simply wrong to detain children at any time of year, but an untold number face a bleak Christmas behind barbed wire because this Labour government are unwilling to find alternatives.

"Detaining children in centres made for adults is immoral. Whatever the position of the parents, there is no justification for keeping children under lock and key.

"It doesn't bear thinking about the sort of Christmas day these children will experience. I was astonished that Border Agency security even barred a church minister from delivering presents to one facility - it is like some Dickensian tale.

"The Scottish Government's success in bringing a pilot project to Glasgow to keep families out of Dungavel is welcome - but it is within the UK Government's gift to end this practice and ensure detention alternatives
are used for all children.

Notes:

1. The Home Office confirmed to Pete Wishart it could make no estimate of the number of children to be detained:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091214/text/91214w0021.htm#09121432000689

2. Church elder forbidden from delivering Christmas gifts to youngsters as Yarlswood:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/dec/13/santa-yarls-wood-father-christmas

3. In November, after several attempts SNP MP Pete Wishart finally obtained figures, normally used for internal Border Agnecy information only, revealing that:

Between October 2008 and September 2009 103 children were detained at Dungavel in Scotland

Between July 2008 and July 2009 884 children were held at Yarls Wood in England

Between Sept 2008 and August 2009 328 children were held at Tinsley House

1315 children were detained in three detention centres across the UK in a 15 month period

. In the last 5 years 889 children from 488 families have been held for over 28 days - this requires ministers to personally approve continued detention.

Mr Wishart had initially asked for the figures in July but was told the Government did not keep such information. The figures were finally released after information in the Guardian suggested the figures were held by Government.

Wednesday 23rd December 2009
 
South of Scotland MSP Alasdair Morgan today (Wednesday) welcomed support from Scotland's Directors of Public Health, including NHS Dumfries & Galloway's Dr Derek Cox, for the Scottish Government's policy of minimum pricing and challenged local politicians of other parties to reconsider their positions on the issue.

Mr Morgan said:

"I welcome this statement of support for minimum pricing from Scotland's Directors of Public Health, including Dumfries & Galloway's Dr Derek Cox. Jointly, they make a powerful argument in favour of this sensible proposal.

"Scotland's Public Health Directors have written to every MSP to give the medical reasons for their support of the Government's policy. I hope that MSPs in other parties locally and nationally will pay attention.

"Last Friday and Saturday saw a significant increase in numbers of alcohol-related offences, with some 40 people locked up across the region. That's a lot of people for Dumfries & Galloway. It is clear evidence that the ready availability of cheap alcohol can have a negative affect on public safety as well as on personal health.

"Nobody is opposed to folk having a good time and drinking sensibly so that they do not become a threat to their own safety or others'. We have to recognise however that cheap and readily available alcohol is a problem medically and socially, which needs to be addressed."

The text of the letter from Directors of Public Health is appended below:

17 December 2009
To: All MSPs
Cc.Cabinet Minister for Health & Wellbeing
Cc.Minister for Public Health
Cc. Shadow Health Spokespersons

Dear MSP,
SUPPORT FOR ALCOHOL BILL
I write on behalf of the Scottish Directors of Public Health Group to request your support for the forthcoming Alcohol Bill.

For most people in Scotland, prudent use of alcohol is a predominantly pleasurable experience. However, for too many people, the harm caused by alcohol has changed their lives forever. All ages can be adversely affected by alcohol, from the foetus in the womb affected by a mother's drinking to the older person suffering alcohol related brain damage in later life. All kinds of communities are affected too, although there is clear evidence that health related harms and deaths occur up to seven times more frequently in people from the most deprived communities than in those from more affluent areas.

Over the past thirty years in Scotland, our level of deaths directly caused by alcohol - conditions like alcoholic cirrhosis and alcoholic heart disease - has almost tripled. One person in Scotland is dying every three hours of every day as a direct result of alcohol, many of them prematurely. Fifteen of the twenty local areas in the UK with the highest male alcohol-related death rates between 1998 and 2004 are in Scotland, and the top five are all Scottish, spread across from Inverclyde to Dundee.

Enough alcohol is bought in Scotland for each man and woman to be taking around 23 units a week - when recommended limits for health are 21 units for men and 14 units for women. An enormous amount of public service resource across society is being spent on coping with the consequences of our alcohol use. It is estimated that the cost of alcohol misuse to Scottish society is at least £2.2 billion, across employment, criminal justice, social care and health. It is estimated that more than three in five homicides are alcohol-related and almost one in two prisoners say they committed their offence when drunk.

Alcohol has become more affordable over the past thirty years and increasingly widely available. In contrast to thirty years ago, more alcohol is now bought in off-licensed premises - supermarkets and shops - than in on-licensed ones - the pubs, clubs, restaurants and bars. This change in patterns of sales has been associated with patterns of promotions of alcoholic drinks - the '3 for 2', 'happy hours', 'buy-one-get-one-free' kind of offers with which we are all familiar. The Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 enhanced the controls on alcohol in on-sales premises through amendments to promotions, tighter controls on licensing hours and mandatory server training. The Act also affirmed a clear statement regarding protecting and improving the public health as one of the five licensing objectives. Off-sales have not been as constrained by legislation and still operate deep discounting of products and promotions, to gain footfall for other products and hence competitive advantage. It is clear that the off-sales sector is not able to restrict its promotional activity voluntarily in a world of such commercial competitive pressures as currently apply.

In September 2009, the World Health Organisation recognised the extent and consistency of the evidence that alcohol-related harm is linked to product price, with a particular impact on younger and heavier drinkers. Research from Sheffield University has indicated that a minimum price for alcohol can be set which will reduce consumption by young and heavy drinkers with little effect on responsible drinkers. Setting a sensible minimum price for alcohol and ending deep discounting and promotions across the board will reduce the price gap between the off-licensed and on-licensed trade. The combination of these measures will have a major impact on the health of Scotland. It will lower overall consumption with significant health benefits for the Scottish population. It will curb the ability of problem drinkers to get drunk cheaply.

We urge you to put the health and wellbeing of the people of Scotland ahead of party politics. Since the beginning of the Scottish Parliament we have shown how working together we could begin to tackle the problems associated with alcohol. That brought us a groundbreaking Scottish alcohol strategy and the farsighted reform of licensing legislation. We need to continue to show that commitment and dedication to reducing the heavy toll that alcohol problems impose on Scotland. Minimum pricing and reduced discounting are ways of reducing alcohol consumption that do not require the approval of the Westminster Parliament. For the sake of the health and social wellbeing of the people in Scotland we encourage you to support these actions.

Yours sincerely
Dr Lesley Wilkie
Chair of Scottish Directors of Public Health Group
On behalf of:
Dr Carol Davidson  DPH, NHS Ayrshire & Arran
Dr Eric Baijal DPH, NHS Borders
Dr Derek Cox DPH, NHS Dumfries & Galloway
Dr Eddie Coyle DPH, NHS Fife
Dr Anne Maree Wallace DPH, NHS Forth Valley
Dr Linda de Caestecker DPH, NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde
Dr Ken Oates Interim DPH, NHS Highland
Dr Harpreet Kohli DPH, NHS Lanarkshire
Dr Alison McCallum DPH, NHS Lothian
Dr Drew Walker DPH, NHS Tayside
Dr Sarah Taylor DPH, NHS Shetland
Dr Lesley Wilkie DPH, NHS Grampian and
Acting DPH, NHS Orkney
Dr Sheila Scott DPH, NHS Western Isles
Dr Laurence Gruer Director of Public Health Science
NHS Health Scotland
Dr. Martin Donaghy Medical Director
Health Protection Scotland
Dr Hester Ward Medical Director
Information Services Division
NHS National Services Scotland
Dr. Andrew Fraser Director of Health & Care
Scottish Prison Service

Sunday 27th December 2009
 
An analysis of all local by-elections in 2009 since the Holyrood elections shows that the swing to the SNP from Labour has more than doubled from the high water mark year of 2007 as the SNP enters its third year in Government.

In 2007 the SNP enjoyed a swing of 2.1% in all three local by-elections held in that year. Now, in 2009, the swing to the SNP from Labour in all by-elections has increased further. With 12 by-elections held in 2009 the SNP has secured a 5.3% swing from Labour.

Commenting on the analysis the SNP's Business Convener and Minister for Parliament, Bruce Crawford MSP said:

"These are excellent results for the SNP. For the swings from Labour to be increasing year on year shows that the people of Scotland support the SNP Government, and back the SNP’s record of delivery.

"For that swing to increase over three years from 2007 when the SNP ended Labour's dominance in Scottish politics shows that Labour's position in Scotland is getting weaker – and that it is the SNP which is moving even further forward from our high point in May 2007.

“People trust the SNP because the SNP trusts the people. The reality is that people like what they get from the SNP – in local communities and across all of Scotland – and they like what the SNP Government is doing by freezing council tax and investing more to help the construction sector.

"Our positive message of confidence in Scotland and the people of Scotland is winning support against the tired old scare mongering and petty politics of the London parties.

"That the swings to the SNP are also greater in supposed areas of Labour strength shows that we are breathing down their necks in what used to be their heartlands and in a strong position as we look toward a General Election and referendum campaign in the year ahead.

 
Notes:

1. BY-ELECTION ANALYSIS

i. The results of all three local by-elections in Scotland in 2007 were:

Party: Votes - % (% Change from 2007)

SNP: 3,236 - 35.3% (+1.1%)
Labour: 1,913 - 20.8% (-3.2%)
Tory: 1,602 - 17.5% (-0.9%)
LibDem: 1,770 - 19.3% (3.3%)
Other: 656 - 7.1% (-0.3%)

Swing from Labour to SNP = +2.1%

The following 3 local by-elections took place in 2007:

Midstocket/Rosemount (Aberdeen Council) 16th August 2007
Helensburgh and Lomond South (Argyll & Bute Council) 4th October 2007
Lochee (Dundee Council) 22nd November 2007

ii. The results of the local by-elections held in Scotland in 2009 are as follows:

Party: Votes - % (% Change from 2007)

SNP: 14,073 - 35.1% (+4.1%)
Labour: 11,028 - 27.5% (-6.5%)
Tory: 5,418 - 13.5% (-0.8%)
LibDem: 6,075 - 15.2% (4.6%)
Other: 3,447 - 8.6% (-1.4%)

Swing from Labour to SNP = +5.3%

The following 9 local by-elections have taken place in 2009:

Maryfield (Dundee Council) 12th March 2009
Inverness West (Highland Council) 23rd April 2009
Aboyne, Upper Deeside & Donside (Aberdeenshire Council) 23rd April 2009
Bannockburn (Stirling Council) 30th April 2009
Coatbridge North and Glenboig (North Lanarkshire Council) 4th June 2009
Drumchapel Anniesland (Glasgow Council) 4th June 2009
Bishopbriggs South (East Dunbartonshire Council) 4th June 2009
Inverclyde South West (Inverclyde Council) 18th June 2009
Monifieth and Sidlaw (Angus Council) 25th June 2009
Doon Valley (East Ayrshire) 1st October 2009
Bo’ness and Blackness (Falkirk) 19th November 2009
Bearsden South (East Dunbartonshire) 10th December 2009

Saturday 26^th December 2009

SNP MSP Bill Kidd is calling on the Holyrood leaders of the Labour and Tory parties to stop their MSPs seeking a dual mandate by standing for Westminster at the General Election and keeping their Holyrood seats – a move that goes against plans to reform Westminster.

Labour MSPs Margaret Curran and Cathy Jamieson and Tory MSPs John Lamont and Alex Johnstone are all standing in the forthcoming Westminster election, despite failing to tell the electorate in 2007 of their plans or planning to stand down if they happen to be elected. There have been rumours other Labour MSPs would stand to fill seats being vacated by their Westminster counterparts.

Sir Christopher Kelly’s review into MPs' expenses, says that the practice of dual mandate should end by May 2011 – a date set to assist Northern Irish members.

In contrast First Minister Alex Salmond made it clear to the voters of Banff and Buchan and Gordon he would be seeking a dual mandate at both the 2005 and 2007 elections, and he would stand down at the forthcoming General Election.

Commenting, Glasgow MSP and deputy Whip Bill Kidd said:

“The SNP will not only abide by the rules of the Kelly Commission, but we will abide by the spirit of it.

“Kelly wants no more dual mandates and the SNP support that position. It is ridiculous that Labour and Tory MSPs want to exploit a loophole put in specifically to help with the situation faced by politicians in Northern Ireland – to stand in both Westminster and Holyrood.

“This is the typical rank hypocrisy we have come to expect from the Labour/Tory alliance. At no time in 2007 did Margaret Curran, John Lamont or Alex Johnstone tell the voters they were seeking a dual mandate at Westminster. In Margaret Curran’s case she already tried it with the electorate of Glasgow East who gave her a resounding ‘no’.

“And Cathy Jamieson’s last minute bid to jump from Gray’s sinking ship to Westminster has only made Labour’s situation worse. Labour and the Tories are playing games with the electorate - their lack of respect for voters across Scotland could not be clearer.

“It’s clear neither Ms Curran nor Ms Jamieson expect to be busy in either Parliament – before or after the election.

“When voters want to see Westminster refreshed and reformed Labour and the Tories are refusing to commit to real change. No wonder Labour won’t legislate for real reform before the election.

“The positions of these MSPs raise questions about how seriously Iain Gray and Annabel Goldie are taking the recommendations of Sir Christopher’s report and what they will tell their MSPs to do.

“Unless they instruct these MSPs to make up their mind about which Parliament to sit in then Iain Gray and Annabel Goldie have lost all credibility on this issue and their supposed position on the Kelly recommendations.”

Saturday 26^th December 2009

SNP MSP Bill Wilson has called for action to reverse a 10% tax hike on motorised scooters for disabled people.

The tax, confirmed by the European Union in June sees mobility scooters classed as leisure vehicles – alongside Formula One Racing Cars – which sees them covered by a 10% import tax.

The 10% tax hike could mean an additional £250 being paid by disabled people for what are often essential means of transport.

The tax follows a ruling by the World Customs Organisation in 2005 and a change in the EU tax levy was confirmed in July this year.

Charity Elizabeth Finn Care, who are campaigning against the tax, estimate the Government will take in £6 million in revenue from the scooters.

Dr Wilson has lodged a Parliamentary motion calling for the tax to be dropped.

West of Scotland MSP Bill Wilson said:

“I don’t think a mobility scooter would stand much of a chance against an F1 car.

“It is utterly ridiculous that scooters used by disabled people to get around are being taxed the same as cars used for sports racing. There is no comparison between the two.

“If they are going to be taxed the same then let’s see Jensen Button and Lewis Hamilton win the Grand Prix in a scooter.

“Common sense must prevail. Disabled people are often reliant on benefit funding or in lower paid employment, with a survey for the DWP showing that 24 per cent of individuals in disabled households were in poverty compared to only 14 % in non disabled households. Adding extra charges for essential equipment is only going to make that situation worse.

“This is sheer stupidity and must be changed. I have lodged a parliamentary motion and will be writing to the UK Treasury and new EU tax commissioner calling for his ridiculous situation to be changed.”

1.       Full text of motion

2.        

Short Title: EU Tax on Mobility Scooters is Tax on Disability

S3M-05384 Bill Wilson (West of Scotland) (SNP): That the Parliament
notes that in 2007 49% of Scottish disabled people were workless, that the risk of poverty in a household was far higher if the household contains a disabled adult and that, according to the Department for Work and Pensions report, Family Resources Survey, United Kingdom, 2007-0/8, 24% of individuals in disabled households were in poverty compared with only 14% of individuals in non-disabled households; further notes that the reclassification of mobility scooters by the European Commission means that they are now subject to a 10% import tax and that this could in many cases be passed on to the consumer; therefore believes that this reclassification amounts to a tax on the disabled, and joins the charity, Elizabeth Finn Care, in calling on the UK Government to press the commission to reverse this decision or introduce measures in the UK that will ensure that the hardship of some of the most financially vulnerable people in society is not increased.

http://www.elizabethfinncare.org.uk/Mobility_Scooter_Campaign

Monday 28 December 2009

Calls for an investigation into the insolvency industry have been made amid concerns that administrators are cashing in at the expense of creditors. SNP spokesperson on regulatory reform Mike Weir MP is leading demands after parliamentary questions revealed a worrying picture of how the insolvency industry is operating.

Mr Weir’s concerns were sparked over delays and the level of compensation for the Farepak victims - the Christmas hamper firm collapsed in October 2006 owing £37m to more than 119,000 savers. More than three years later, savers are likely to recover just 5p in the pound, while the final bill for the administrators and their legal advisers could reach £3m.

But Farepak families are not alone in losing out. With as many as fifty businesses going bust every day the insolvency gravy train is an opportunity for the administration industry to make vast sums out of the recession. High Street and high profile examples include:

- Zavvi, the music retail chain which went into administration in November 2008, owing unsecured creditors nearly £185m – including 510,000 unredeemed vouchers worth an estimated £4.1m. Creditors are likely to get back between 5p and 10p in the pound. Administrators Ernst & Young have so far collected £3.2m in fees.

- Furniture chain, Land of Leather, went into administration with debts of £37m in January 2009. Creditors received just 9p in the pound, while administrators Deloitte and Touche collected fees of £2.5m.

The staggering scale of the situation is reinforced by parliamentary questions tabled by Mr Weir in the House of Commons which reveal that:

- 15,535 firms went into liquidation in 2007/08, owing an average of £349,501 each or £5.5bn in total.
- Liquidations have no statutory time limit and some, such as the Israel-British Bank, which entered liquidation in 1974 was only finalised in September this year. Also in 1974, holiday firm Apal Travel went into liquidation – finalised only in August this year by which time some of the holidaymakers entitled to receive the 74p in the pound settlement had probably died in the intervening 35 years.
- indeed, more than 19,500 liquidations started five years or more have not yet been finalised.
- 6,629 liquidations started 20 years or more ago have not yet been finalised.
- The level of fees charged by insolvency practitioners is not regulated.

Mr Weir said:

“The UK government must take a serious look at the workings of the insolvency industry which appears to be raking in a fortune at the expense of creditors. It looks like another example of rip-off Britain, and another failure by the Labour government to regulate properly.

“After three years, victims of the Farepak collapse have been left with pennies while the administrators have pocketed millions, and this by no means is an isolated case. I have been utterly astonished by the sheer number of unresolved insolvencies – there are thousands going back more than twenty years.

“There is something seriously wrong when liquidations can take a generation to finalise and people are actually dying before the insolvency gravy train comes to a halt.

“Just like the banks, current UK insolvency regulation has failed. Part of the problem seems to be that the industry is largely self-regulated. Insolvency work is handled by licensed practitioners, most of whom work for accountancy firms. The practitioners are in turn regulated by accountancy and law professional bodies, which have no independence from the firms they regulate. What’s more, there is no independent complaints investigation procedure or ombudsman to adjudicate on malpractices – there are no questions over fees or delays.

“This is clearly a pertinent and pressing issue in the current economic climate and the UK Government must not shy away from investigating the insolvency industry and taking action. We know only too well from Labour’s banking crisis the cost of doing nothing.”

ENDS

Note:

Further information from Mr Weir’s parliamentary questions can be found here:

1. On the amount of money owed to unsecured creditors by firms in liquidation:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091203/text/91203w0027.htm#0912042003339

2. On insolvencies over the last five years:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091123/text/91123w0006.htm#09112319000493

3. On the number of unresolved insolvencies over decades:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091130/text/91130w0042.htm#09120121000850

4. On complaints received by the Insolvency Service:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091202/text/91202w0020.htm#09120263000317

 

5. On the level of Fees charged by insolvency practitioners:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091124/text/91124w0007.htm#09112458000139

6. On average time taken to resolve insolvencies:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091123/text/91123w0007.htm#09112319000509

7. On Insolvency practitioner fees, the number of insolvency practitioners and the number to lose licenses:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm091123/text/91123w0007.htm#09112319000513