• OECD: Chancellor cannot ignore “steady drumbeat of economic misery”
• Thames Water appeal: Govt must put company into special administration
• Scottish Lib Dems: We must end big city bias in creative spend
• Rennie: Dundee University needs a ministerial taskforce
• Ferguson missing out on ferries order “hangover” from SNP fiasco

OECD: Chancellor cannot ignore “steady drumbeat of economic misery”

Responding to the OECD revising down their 2025 growth forecast for the UK by 0.3 percentage points to 1.4%, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:

The Chancellor cannot ignore this steady drumbeat of economic misery any longer. Trump’s senseless tariffs and the Government’s own economic policies are acting as an anchor on any meaningful growth.

At the Spring Statement, Rachael Reeves cannot bury her head in the sand. She must admit that her Budget has failed to break from the years of Conservative economic vandalism.

The Chancellor must change course by first scrapping her growth-crushing jobs tax which is about to hammer small businesses, and second, by embracing the idea of a bespoke UK-EU Customs Union which would unleash growth.

Only then will we see the growth needed to rebuild our public services and properly protect family finances.

Thames Water appeal: Govt must put company into special administration

Responding to the news that the court has rejected his appeal to prevent Thames Water from an additional £3 billion bail out, MP for Witney Charlie Maynard said:

Thames Water remains a cash cow for its lenders, while its 16 million customers are left to foot the bill for the company’s ludicrously expensive interest charges and advisory fees.

It is in the Government’s power to end this now for the benefit of the British public and seek to put the company into special administration.

We must not stand back and allow Thames Water’s lenders to keep lining their pockets at the expense of customers and the environment while our regulators sit on their hands and the company pumps gallons of sewage into our rivers, neglects basic repairs and hikes up customers’ bills.

Scottish Lib Dems: We must end big city bias in creative spend

Scottish Liberal Democrats have today revealed the disparities in arts spending across Scotland and urged the SNP Government to ensure that creative talent can flourish in every corner of the country.

Creative Scotland is the public body responsible for funding the creative industries in Scotland and distributing funding from the Scottish Government and the National Lottery.

A Scottish Liberal Democrat freedom of information request sent to Creative Scotland found that in 2023/24:

• The City of Edinburgh received more than 25 times as much money per head as Midlothian and East Renfrewshire, and more than 20 times as much as Renfrewshire.
• Glasgow alone had more projects funded than 29 local authorities combined, with 526.
• Despite being the third most populous local authority, Fife received funding of just £2.99 per head.
• The figures for Fife are in sharp contrast to Glasgow, which received £39.75 per head, and Edinburgh, which received £51.34 per head.
• North Lanarkshire also received just £5.37 of funding per head, despite being the fourth most populated area in the country, while South Lanarkshire, the fifth most populated area, received just £3.25.

Scottish Liberal Democrat culture spokesperson Neil Alexander said:

Scotland is world-famous for our art, our music, our comedy and our cultural achievements but when you look at these figures, it’s understandable why some people might feel they are missing out if they happen to live outside of Scotland’s biggest cities.

While we can expect some variation between different parts of the country, I am concerned by how sharp some of these differences are.

Talent and skill should be nurtured everywhere, as should the jobs and economic benefits that they can bring.

The ongoing review of Creative Scotland ought to look at this big city bias and how we can seize opportunities that exist in every corner of Scotland.

Rennie: Dundee University needs a ministerial taskforce

Commenting on the government action to protect jobs at the University of Dundee, Scottish Liberal Democrat education spokesperson Willie Rennie MSP said:

We need a ministerial taskforce to save the jobs at the University of Dundee.

The proposed cuts would deliver a seismic shock to households across Tayside and Fife. In previous situations where mass job losses were on the cards like Michelin and BiFab a government-convened taskforce helped to ensure that every avenue was explored to secure jobs and retraining.

So far there does not seen to have been anything of this magnitude proposed for the university.

A ministerial taskforce needs pulled together rapidly to protect as many jobs as possible and ensure that anyone who is made redundant is provided with opportunities to get their lives back on track.

There also needs to more thought given to the long term future of the sector. Yes, there have clearly been management errors at Dundee but what has been missing from the Scottish Government response is an acknowledgement that the funding model that underpins Scottish universities is hollow. It cannot cope with geopolitical upheaval and rapidly rising costs. A crisis was simply a matter of when, not if.

I would urge the Scottish Government to pull together cross-party talks on the future of the wider university sector. So far the SNP have been reluctant to include other parties in this discussion. I think that is a mistake if a sustainable model is to be secured.

Ferguson missing out on ferries order “hangover” from SNP fiasco

Responding to the news that the Scottish Government-owned Ferguson shipyard has missed out on a crucial order for seven small all-electric ferries for west coast operator Caledonian MacBrayne, Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokesperson Willie Rennie MSP said:

This is the hangover from the SNP’s ferries fiasco.

Every blunder by SNP ministers has made it harder to protect jobs and secure the yard’s future.

After doing so much damage to Scotland’s reputation for shipbuilding, someone in this SNP Government must finally carry the can.