Ross Greer

They deserve their right to decide the future of this country.

By electing Lorenzo, voters in Portobello/Craigmillar have demanded radical change in Scotland’s capital.

For the first time ever our capital has elected a Scottish Green councillor at a by-election, showing the failing Labour administration that Edinburgh demands better.

We pushed for its expansion across the rest of the country as soon as possible and we are glad bus users across the West of Scotland will start saving money from next week.

If Ministers are serious about their commitment to boycott and divest from Israel, they need to stop hiding behind vague words and start actually delivering what MSPs voted for.

If a company has profited from apartheid and genocide then they should not be able to profit here in Scotland.

It is one year to the day since our parliament voted to boycott apartheid Israel, but the Scottish Government isn’t even doing the basics.

Delaying the roll out to the rest of the country by up to five years is completely unacceptable though.

The current £2 bus fare cap across the Highlands and Islands was secured by the Scottish Greens. Much like our free bus passes for young people, it has been a huge success.

I hope that the First Minister will ignore these corporate lobbying efforts, hit pause on all applications immediately and protect the interests of people and planet.

If they’re allowed to go ahead, hyperscale data centres will be another case of multinational companies extracting huge profits from Scotland whilst our economy sees next to no benefit and our environment suffers.

These giant tech firms are desperate to get their hyperscale data centres approved before the penny drops and the Scottish Government realises what a disaster they would be.

The Scottish Government must call time on this idea and start looking towards serious investment plans that are proven to work.

The Scottish Government can already borrow through existing routes which are cheaper and lower risk. Why would the SNP choose to issue expensive bonds instead, especially when they put another barrier in the way of Scottish independence?

The richest 2% have more wealth than half the population combined.

The Scottish Government needs to drop this bonds plan and use its regular borrowing powers to deliver the homes, rail lines and public services that our communities are crying out for.

Borrowing to meet Scotland’s infrastructure demands isn’t just a good idea, it's crucial.

Our country needs investment in transport, in homes, in hospitals and schools, but these bonds are not the way to achieve it.

Rather than wasting time on endless reviews and discussions, the Scottish Government should fix the taxes already under its control.

The public shouldn’t have to pay the price for multi-millionaires and billionaires hopping between their shooting estates and super yachts.

The super-rich take around 12,000 private jet flights in Scotland every year. That is nothing short of a disaster for our climate.

Companies that profit from apartheid and genocide against Palestinians should not be rewarded with Scottish Government partnerships, it’s as simple as that. Cosying up to Barclays is the opposite of what our Parliament voted for.

This was a simple test of the Scottish Government’s commitment to boycotting companies complicit in some of the gravest war crimes of this century, and they failed it.

There is no BDS-compliant way to work with Barclays. The bank has financed companies supplying the weapons used in Israel’s genocide against Palestinians and it is a partner in the Israeli government’s own bond scheme.