Must-read 6 Steps to Build Community WealthUsing what we already have to generate local economic growth co-operatively
27th March 2020 Lowest Earners and the Self-Employed will bear the Finanical Brunt of Covid-19 Rhoda Grant MSP MSP for Highlands and Islands It is clear that it will be these households that will bear the financial brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic and that there exists the clear and present danger that these households may slip into poverty.
11th March 2020 If this is genuinely a levelling-up budget, then business rate reform must be at the top of the agenda Jim McMahon Chair Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group and Shadow Minister Communities and Local Government Town centres are the beating heart of communities - but they are struggling to survive, especially in our most deprived neighbourhoods. Business rate reform is critical to save the sector and support our town centres.
10th March 2020 Now more than ever, the Chancellor should learn lessons from the co-operative sector Jonathan Reynolds Shadow Economic Secretary (Treasury) Co-operation offers an antidote to many of the economy's failings, from poor productivity to corporate tax avoidance - so this budget should learn the lessons offered by the co-operative sector.
27th February 2020 Not another quango – Consumer Scotland must empower consumers Jackie Baillie Member of the Scottish Parliament For a body dealing with consumer issues, it is important that consumers are represented.
6th February 2020 Scottish Co-op MSPs challenge the Scottish Government to stop the cuts to our communities Rhoda Grant MSP MSP for Highlands and Islands Sarah Boyack MSP It is high time that the SNP Government provided councils with the resources that they need and bring an end to the age of austerity in our councils.
5th February 2020 How will new Scottish National Investment Bank support co-ops? Claudia Beamish MSP for South Scotland and Shadow Minister for Environment and Climate Change It is important that co-operatives and mutually owned businesses are recognised and encouraged through the Scottish National Investment Bank.
16th January 2020 Now we’re (sausage) rolling: Greggs shares its profits Ian Hayes Policy Intern Greggs, the high street baker renowned for steak bakes and sending Piers Morgan into a rage over vegetable-based flakey pastry, announced last week they were sharing their better than expected profits with their workforce.
22nd October 2019 Does your morning coffee contribute its fair share of tax? John Lehal Every time we shop, we have a choice to make. Do we choose to shop with businesses who pay their fair share of tax, or do we choose to contribute to the profits of firms registered in tax havens, with complex structures that help them pay lower taxes?
8th April 2019 Switching the UK onto mutual credit Oliver Sylvester-Bradley Co-Founder of The Open Co-op The Open Credit Network is changing the way businesses trade, launching a mutual credit trading scheme to support co-ops and SMEs. Guest contributor Oliver Sylvester-Bradley explains.
3rd April 2019 Long read: proposals for a new public banking ecosystem Anna Birley Policy Officer A new report came out this week with detailed proposals for a transition to a banking ecosystem that puts the public interest first. Our Policy Officer, Anna Birley, shares some highlights from the report.
14th March 2019 The People’s Money – Financial Institutions that serve people and their communities Richard McCready Political Officer At the Scottish Labour Conference last weekend in Dundee we held a very successful fringe meeting titled, 'The People’s Money'.
13th March 2019 There is also a Spring Statement today… Anna Birley Policy Officer Our economy needs a radical overhaul to shake us out of stalled growth and our Brexit malaise - but today's Spring Statement looks unlikely to propose anything that will genuinely tackle low wages and poor productivity.
7th March 2019 Common decency in action: Mondragon co-operatives, Spain Archived: Ben West Communications & Digital Officer Our vision of Common Decency isn’t just a dream or an idea; it’s a model that already exists. And it works.
6th February 2019 We must look at a new way of providing free access to cash so that local communities are not left behind Ged Killen New funding cuts announced recently mean free ATMs are closing at a rate of 250 every month. Fresh new thinking is needed to ensure communities and local businesses aren't left behind.
31st January 2019 We need a Budget which protects Scotland’s communities James Kelly As a Scottish Co-operative Party MSP I will be looking for a Budget today which is bold and which transforms the way in which out economy is run.
30th January 2019 It’s time to ditch the big banks – Britain’s consumers deserve a more diverse financial sector Caitlin Prowle Youth Organiser Consumers are being failed by a lack of diversity in our banking sector, and the backlog of complaints at the Ombudsman proves it. Credit unions, co-operatives and community banks are already showing that a fairer financial services is possible.
18th January 2019 Credit unions: a serious, mainstream alternative to banks Richard McCready Political Officer This week the Scottish Parliament has debated credit unions and their contribution to Scottish society
17th January 2019 Scotland – the co-operative well spring of democratic ownership Richard McCready Political Officer The Scottish Parliament has called on the Scottish Government to increase support for co-operatives and employee-owned businesses in a motion moved by the Scottish Labour Leader and supported by Scottish Co-operative Party MSPs
10th January 2019 Government failure is leaving people vulnerable to food poverty – but the co-operative movement offers hope Caitlin Prowle Youth Organiser Yesterday’s Environmental Audit Committee report on food insecurity shows that this Government’s failed policies are leaving people hungry. But where the Government is failing to take action, the co-operative movement is already working to help.
17th December 2018 Supporting the UK’s fishing co-operatives Archived: Ben West Communications & Digital Officer It is one thing to declare the UK an 'independent coastal state'. But it is UK policymakers who will shape what that means in practice
21st November 2018 Doubling the size of the co‑operative sector in our countryside David Drew In this week's committee debate on the Government's Agriculture Bill, I argued that more co-operatives would deliver a fairer and more resilient sector which works for farmers. Our proposed amendment would provide agricultural co-operatives with the funding, support and protection they need to thrive.
2nd November 2018 When people look at their town, it is a test for what the future holds for their place and their community Jim McMahon Chair Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group and Shadow Minister Communities and Local Government Speech by Jim McMahon MP, Chair of the Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group in this week's Budget debate
29th October 2018 Budget 2018: Ending austerity means building a co‑operative economy Jim McMahon Chair Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group and Shadow Minister Communities and Local Government Response to today's UK Budget from Co‑operative Party Parliamentary Chair, Jim McMahon MP
27th September 2018 “Why on earth shouldn’t the people who create the wealth own the wealth that they create?”, asks Richard Leonard Richard McCready Political Officer
27th September 2018 Richard Leonard backs plan to give first-year school pupils a £20 credit union ‘starter for 20’. Richard McCready Political Officer Scottish Labour Leader Richard Leonard MSP has demonstrated his commitment to co-operative principles by putting forward a policy which will implement our ideas about credit unions right across Scotland.
6th September 2018 Ofgem’s energy price cap is a sticking plaster on a broken industry Anna Birley Policy Officer While £75 off bills is a welcome short-term fix, our energy industry desperately needs an overhaul. Democratic public ownership, where customers and workers have a say and a stake in where their energy comes from, is the only way to ensure a "fair" tariff.
5th September 2018 The water industry is in desperate need of reform, but South West Water’s consumer share offer is too little too late Anna Birley Policy Officer While South West Water's consumer share offer looks good on paper, in practice it amounts to little more than a cheap gimmick. The broken water industry needs deeper reform which truly puts ownership back into the hands of customers and workers.
25th June 2018 Government plans to strengthen the Social Value Act Joe Fortune General Secretary The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster speaks to the ‘Reform’ think tank about re-building trust in public procurement post-Carillion.
21st June 2018 Scots want to see governments intervene more robustly to encourage responsible tax palnning by business Richard McCready Political Officer
Policy paper: an economy where wealth and power are sharedPolicy paper drawing on members' submissions, which forms the basis of policy debate 2 at 2018 Annual Conference