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Category: Scottish Greens

Greens back STUC plans for frequent flyer levy
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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/greens-back-stuc-plans-frequent-flyer-levy
‘We all want first-class public services and the frequent flyer levy is a direct route to funding them’
THE Scottish Greens have backed STUC calls for a new tax on frequent fliers to cut the cost of travelling by bus and train.
The plans, first outlined by the STUC’s landmark 2023 Raising Taxes to Deliver for Scotland report, suggested the levy could not only raise as much as £50 million and act as a progressive replacement for the present flat air departure tax.
Scottish Green co-leader Gillian Mackay said the party “believe in taxing wealth, and protecting our planet.”
“A frequent flyer levy would allow us to do both of those, while cutting the cost of public transport and investing in services that communities across Scotland urgently need,” she said.
Arguing the cash raised could be “invested in cheaper train tickets, better public transport and continuing to cut the cost of bus travel until we have a service that is free for everyone,” she added: “With public finances under pressure, the answer cannot be to ask ordinary working people to pay more or accept cuts.
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Article continues at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/greens-back-stuc-plans-frequent-flyer-levy
24 October 2026
Scottish government urged to fully implement sanctions against Israel
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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
People carry Palestinian flags and placards during a demonstration in support of Palestinians in front of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow, Scotland on October 14, 2023. [Ahmet Fevzi Arıcan – Anadolu Agency]
The Scottish Greens have called on Scotland’s first minister to fully implement boycott and sanctions measures against Israel in his upcoming Programme for Government, according to media reports on Monday, Anadolu reports.
“The Programme for Government must be the moment that changes. We need clear commitments and a plan to end Scotland’s complicity in the systemic abuse of Palestinians,” Scottish Greens MSP Patrick Harvie was quoted by Scottish daily The National as saying.
The call comes after the Scottish Greens repeatedly urged First Minister John Swinney to end contracts with companies identified by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk as being involved in Israeli settlement activity in the occupied West Bank.
The Greens are also calling for local authorities to be given greater powers to support the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement by repealing a Margaret Thatcher-era UK law that prevents procurement decisions from being based on geographical origin.
Harvie said the Scottish government had failed to turn its words into action, arguing that in most respects it had done the bare minimum and provided “little evidence of meaningful change” on the issue.
READ: Finnish opposition party calls extension of defence deal with Israel a “historic shame”
“If a company is profiting from apartheid and genocide, the Scottish Government must use every power it has to ensure it is not also profiting from public money here in Scotland,” he said.
Recalling that ministers issued guidance to Scottish businesses following the start of Russia’s war on Ukraine, Harvie said the government had made clear that the private sector had a responsibility to respond.
“The Scottish Government has already shown that it can act when it chooses to … Palestinians deserve no less,” he said.
“We cannot have a boycott in name only. Parliament did not vote for empty gestures. One year on, the Scottish Government needs to deliver,” Harvie added.
Meanwhile, a Scottish government spokesperson said: “As one of the first governments to call for a ceasefire, the Scottish Government has been a clear and consistent advocate for peace, justice and human rights in Gaza.”
The spokesperson added that the government had taken the “most direct and effective action” available within its powers to press for an immediate and lasting resolution and an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
READ: ‘No ifs’: Scotland’s first minister demands immediate UK recognition of Palestine state
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says he wishes someone would lock him up, small Orca speaks bluntly.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump explains why he established his Bored of Peace
31 August 2026
Burnham must end Starmer’s criminalisation of peaceful protest
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https://greens.scot/news/burnham-must-end-starmer-s-criminalisation-of-peaceful-protest
Palestine flag
Solidarity with Palestine should never be a crime.
Andy Burnham must urgently dismantle the authoritarian assault on protest rights created by Keir Starmer’s government, the Scottish Greens have said.
The call follows reports that over 100 people outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court were arrested after peacefully expressing opposition to the genocide in Gaza.
It comes less than a week after far-right demonstrators in Glasgow performed Nazi salutes and became involved in violence and intimidation, where 15 arrests were made.
Scottish Greens justice spokesperson Maggie Chapman MSP said:
“There is something profoundly wrong when people peacefully opposing genocide are immediately surrounded, detained and treated like terrorists, while men performing Nazi salutes during violent far-right disorder can walk away and wait to see whether the police eventually knock on their doors.
“People holding signs and expressing an opinion were arrested en masse. Meanwhile, self-declared Nazis were seemingly allowed to perform fascist salutes in public, intimidate people and cause fear and alarm, and then leave the scene.
“The law must be enforced consistently and proportionately. It cannot be used as an authoritarian weapon against peaceful campaigners while organised fascist thugs spread hatred and intimidation on our streets.
“Keir Starmer did his part in creating this shameful mess by abusing terrorism legislation to criminalise conscience, solidarity and peaceful dissent.”
Maggie added:
“Protest is not terrorism, and opposing genocide is not a crime.
“This will be one of Andy Burnham’s earliest and most important tests as Prime Minister. He must decide whether he will defend Starmer’s authoritarian legacy or begin undoing it.
“His government should end the prosecutions of peaceful protesters and undertake an urgent review of how counter-terrorism and public-order laws are being used against political dissent.”
https://greens.scot/news/burnham-must-end-starmer-s-criminalisation-of-peaceful-protest
4 August 2026

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