Kenneth J Gibson MSP

Additional funding of £5.5 million will be provided to community pharmacies to help them cope with increased pressures from coronavirus (COVID-19).

Pharmacy workloads almost doubled during March, with increased prescriptions, staff overtime and a higher level of consultations all resulting in additional costs for the service.

The additional fundin...

The Scottish Retail Consortium has welcomed the SNP Government’s decision to provide 100% rates relief to Scottish retail, hospitality and leisure sectors along with aviation industries for a full year to support them during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

The 100% rates relief will last from 01 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 and assist a wide...

Charities assisting those people most at risk from the impact of the coronavirus outbreak have been allocated £8 million further support following emergency investment in crucial services.

Age Scotland, the Child Poverty Action Group and other key partners will share this resource to provide an emergency response and ensure services continue to r...

The SNP Government has allocated £20 million through a Credit Union Resilience Loan Fund to help Scotland’s credit unions continue supporting those in need during the current coronavirus crisis.

Credit unions are suffering financially as members struggle to meet loan repayments due to the economic impact of the virus.

The fund will be managed by S...

The SNP Government has allocated £20 million to its Third Sector Resilience Fund (TSRF) for charities to help them through the crisis.

The TSRF is an emergency fund for charities, community groups, social enterprises and voluntary organisations working in Scotland to support those that already deliver services and products but find themselves in...

The SNP Government has allocated a further £1,038,000 to North Ayrshire Council (NAC) to help deliver supplies to people unable to access food due to the coronavirus.

Local authorities are sharing £30 million of new investment from the SNP Government’s Food Fund to support those struggling.

The funding will support those most in need, including fa...

Learning and childcare hubs for the children of key workers will remain open across Scotland over the Easter holidays, scheduled from Monday 06 April until Friday 17 April.

The move will help support NHS staff and other key workers on the frontline of the response to coronavirus (COVID-19).

All of Scotland’s local authorities will keep learni...

The SNP has renewed calls for the UK Government to deliver additional support for the self-employed after the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) warned that two million self-employed people would fall through the gaps in the UK government’s proposals.

New analysis from the IFS shows that around two million will not be eligible for the Self-employ...

The Scottish Parliament has unanimously supported new emergency powers to help protect the public, maintain essential public services and support the economy during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

The Coronavirus (Scotland) Bill adjusts the law on evictions to protect people renting their homes in the private and social sector. The Bill deli...

The SNP Government, Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) and other key stakeholders have acted to increase capacity for airlifting coronavirus patients from Arran and Cumbrae, should it prove necessary. These include:

• Procurement of EpiShuttles, which are single patient isolation pods, to ensure the safety of the patient and healthcare staff duri...