Scottish Government Debate: Asset Transfers and Community Empowerment – Five Years On

Tom Arthur S6M-07247 That the Parliament welcomes the progress that has been made to date in implementing Part 5 of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015; recognises that ownership, lease or management of land and buildings are powerful tools for communities to drive change and achieve their shared ambitions; acknowledges the programme of support for participatory budgeting that has given communities a stronger voice in decisions on how public money is spent, and agrees that place-based, community-led regeneration can help local areas, individuals and businesses to tackle poverty and inequality, and build community wealth, on their own terms. Douglas Lumsden S6M-07247.1 Asset Transfers and Community Empowerment – Five Years On As an amendment to motion S6M-07247 in the name of Tom Arthur (Asset Transfers and Community Empowerment – Five Years On), insert at end "; welcomes the UK Government’s Community Ownership Fund, which will allow communities to take ownership of local institutions that have fallen into disrepair or are under threat of closure, and further welcomes that there are projects in Scotland benefiting from this fund." Paul Sweeney S6M-07247.2 As an amendment to motion S6M-07247 in the name of Tom Arthur (Asset Transfers and Community Empowerment – Five Years On), leave out from "welcomes" to end and insert "fully supports measures to empower communities and devolve power away from the Scottish Parliament, and considers that part 5 of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 was a positive step, allowing local groups to take ownership of assets for the benefit of their community; believes that pushing power into the hands of local people is a key part of unlocking the potential that exists across the whole country; recognises that, in communities across Scotland, there are positive examples of local groups taking control of assets and helping their area to flourish; regrets that communities still face significant barriers in exercising the rights given to them under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015; believes that there is still much to be done to ensure that communities across Scotland are given the resources and support they need to benefit from the Act, and calls on the Scottish Government to take all necessary steps to remove remaining barriers and push more power into the hands of communities."