Attempts to remove barriers to access in public life should be applauded.
The John Smith Centre is trying to do that with half a million pounds of taxpayers’ money.
However laudable that sounds, the aim risks being undermined by the centre’s own leadership. All eight people on the board are white.
It’s not a good look for a group aiming to make a “meaningful difference”. One of the board members is Kezia Dugdale, the former Scottish Labour leader.
She is joined by Ruth Davidson and former MSP Andrew Wilson, among others. No one should doubt their commitment to improve trust in politics and public service by taking on this
initiative.
It will help around 50 people through a professional and personal development programme, which includes mentoring and living wage placements in public and charity sectors.
But can an all-white group of leaders really send the right signals to young minority ethic people that diversity is being improved?
It’s important to break down obstacles for young people, as the centre aims to do.
They need to look closer to home and sort out a woeful lack of representation at senior levels at the same time.
Keeping jobs alive
The Scottish Government estimates 61,000 jobs could be saved if the furlough scheme is extended for another eight months.
The price tag is a hefty £850million but, as a paper published yesterday concluded, it could “pay for itself”.
Ministers in Edinburgh are now calling for the lifeline scheme to be extended across the UK.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak should listen and change his plan to end furlough payments next month.
Keeping the scheme going over the winter months will provide tens of thousands of families with security and help businesses survive.
Christmas is going to be hard enough this year, with the threat of coronavirus placing a strain on the whole country.
But for many of the families helped during the furlough period, the holiday season could be anything but festive.
Both France and Germany extended their own job retention schemes by up to two years. The UK Government must now follow their example.
