THE Equalities Minister has pledged £300,000 to help charities “tackle division” in communities across Scotland amid rising anti-immigration rhetoric by the far-right.
On Thursday, Kaukab Stewart announced the further funding on top of £7.9 million already allocated to third sector organisations.
The current funding supports anti-racism work, interfaith dialogue, hate crime prevention and asylum and refugee integration projects.
Stewart told MSPs: “Community organisations play a vital role in supporting integration and bringing people together through their projects.
“The additional £300,000 will help to tackle division and promote the shared values that strengthen our communities, particularly at a time when hostile rhetoric is creating fear and uncertainty.
“I have witnessed first-hand many inspiring projects recently, including the multicultural Pitch-to-Plate meal event at Hibernian Football Club.
“This demonstrates how local initiatives can successfully unite people from different backgrounds, cultures, and faiths through shared activities and mutual support.
“We cannot and will not allow division and hostility to define us – the Scottish Government will continue to invest in building the strong, connected communities that all of us want to see.”
The Scottish Government is providing the additional £300,000 this year to support projects that aim to “build strong and resilient communities across the country”.
The funding is set to focus on building community cohesion across a range of local initiatives.
It comes after multiple anti-immigration protests around Scotland in recent weeks outside hotels housing asylum seekers.
While she did not make a direct reference to the protests, Stewart said: “At a time when hostile rhetoric is creating real fear and uncertainty, it is vital we recognise the impact this is having on communities across the country.
“When people feel excluded or marginalised, communities suffer. Tensions rise, trust erodes and we begin to see the normalisation of resentment, division and the entrenchment of othering.”
She said “if the targeting of minorities goes unchallenged”, Scotland would be at risk of losing its international reputation as a welcoming country “known for understanding the desperate situation that those fleeing conflict and persecution are in and responding with compassion and kindness”.
Scottish Tory MSP Alexander Stewart said the announcement for additional funding is welcome, but that “local authorities are facing financial constraints dealing with the influx” of people.
He asked what measures the Scottish Government would be putting in place to help local authorities facing funding issues and if there had been any discussions with the UK Government on “dealing with the number of asylum seekers” coming to the UK.
“Our focus is not on numbers, it is making sure that we fulfil the needs of Scotland,” the Equalities Minister replied.
“We totally understand the pressures that are faced by a prevailed immigration system that is being perpetuated by decisions that are made in the UK.
“They have enhanced and sped up the progress of applications, but what they have not then done is provided adequate funding to enable that move on period.
“We have had negotiations with the UK Government, and as I stated in my statement, the response from them has been disappointing.”
