Members' Business — S6M-09747 Alex Rowley: Supporting the Work of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust

That the Parliament notes the publication of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Coalfield Communities’ report, Next Steps in Levelling Up the Former Coalfields; welcomes the recommendations of the report to support the continued development of former coalfield communities; believes that the work of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust is instrumental in the progress seen in Scotland’s former coalfield communities; supports what it sees as the success of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s work in developing community capacity, mentoring, coaching and supporting grassroots organisations to tackle issues in their communities through the Coalfields Investment Programme, and introducing young people from former mining areas to what it understands are the life-changing benefits of sport, through Game On, which is the Trust's Sport for Change programme, among other initiatives; notes the reported concerns that the Scottish Government plans to make what has been described as a significant cut of £100,000 from the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s funding of £750,000; further notes the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s characterisation of this planned cut as “a devastating blow to communities” such as Kincardine and former coalfields communities across Mid Scotland and Fife; understands that the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s funding has been frozen at £750,000 since 2011, and considers that had this amount kept pace with inflation, it would currently be worth £1,034,658; further understands that a proposed cut of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s funding in 2011 was reversed due to the damaging impact this would have had on Scotland’s former coalfield communities; notes the calls for the Scottish Government to reconsider any cut to the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s funding on the same basis, and to support the future success of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust by offering a secure multi-year funding stream such as that provided by the Welsh Government to the Coalfields Regeneration Trust in Wales.