In April I had the joy of attending two separate dog events through Green work. This, alongside a few days of recess, means that I am rested and energised for the last few months of term.
Extending free bus travel
I’m really pleased to share that my motion to Transport and Environment Committee that called for free bus travel for carers/companions was agreed with cross party support. The next step is to determine whether or not the Scottish Government will fund or part-fund the scheme which will help young people under 22 who struggle to travel independently.
When interviewed for Edinburgh Live after the vote I said:
“Wherever in the city you are, or whatever background you have, being able to take your kid on the bus and teach them about independent or active travel is really good for people’s purses and the planet.”
Public diners
Having cheap, accessible, and nutritious food is a basic human right and I think our governments should do more to achieve this. An initiative that fights food insecurity, food poverty, isolation, food waste and more is the state-sponsored restaurant, or public diners. I joined Nourish Scotland for an evening of chat and good food where they shared their latest report on Public diners in Scotland.
As they describe on their website;
‘Public diners are a bold policy intervention which has the potential to transform the food system in the UK. They will be regular eating places that make it possible to dine out more than once a week without breaking our banks or our health.
‘Public diners will be places that enable us to do food better: better for us, for our health, our climate, our communities.’
At our next Full Council meeting on Thursday 8th May, Greens will be proposing a six-month trial to provide simple and healthy meals, using locally sourced ingredients to gauge the interest, use and cost of the scheme for the local authority.
You can read Cllr. Dan Heap’s full motion here.
Dogs and more dogs
Earlier this month I had the joy – and I mean so much joy! – of hanging out with greyhounds in the Scottish Parliament thanks to Unbound the Greyhound campaign. This was all to raise awareness and celebrate Mark Ruskell’s bill to ban greyhound racing which was lodged this month. You can read more from Mark here.
Finally a big shout out to the people’s (paw-ples?) princess Nova, the Green team candidate in this year’s Holyrood Dog of the Year. She may not have won a top prize in the competition but she sure won the hearts of photographers and brought the real entertainment.
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