Holly Bruce
Scottish Green Party · Scotland
“Shirley-Anne Somerville: I am proud of the work that we have done on social security, and I recognise that it has had a direct impact on lifting 50,000 children out of poverty, as Holly Bruce mentioned. That is exceptionally important.”
“I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which states that I am a member of Glasgow City Council. The cabinet secretary has told us that the current targets mean that action can be skewed towards social security, but social security increases are one of the few approaches that work, with the child payment bringin…”
“Of course campaigners will continue to press the Government to increase the Scottish child payment still further, but I encourage them to assist with the review that we are undertaking of the types of targets and the wider approaches to tackling poverty, which are also important.”
“I move amendment S7M-00356.5, to insert at end: “; believes that the third sector would benefit from a transition to multi-year, simplified, flexible funding models that considers inflationary increases and covers full operating costs as the default; calls on the UK Government to reimburse Scottish third sector organisations for the cost…”
“A service user shared her reality with me, and I thank her for trusting me to share her experience. She said: “Whenever we ask for support, we are told these cuts are due to tough choices, but why are women’s services always the first to be attacked? Murray’s keeps us alive.”
“If the Government is truly looking for efficiencies, it should look at how it allocates its money. As I mentioned, I am pleased to hear that multiyear funding is being looked at.”
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“Of course campaigners will continue to press the Government to increase the Scottish child payment still further, but I encourage them to assist with the review that we are undertaking of the types of targets and the wider approaches to tackling poverty, which are also important.”
“Shirley-Anne Somerville: I am proud of the work that we have done on social security, and I recognise that it has had a direct impact on lifting 50,000 children out of poverty, as Holly Bruce mentioned. That is exceptionally important. I firmly believe that we should take an approach to social security that is based on dignity, fairness and respect as well as human rights. However, we cannot talk only about social security; we must also talk about the childcare that families require, the assistance that they need to get into employment and the barriers to getting into employment that they face, such as transport or childcare issues. We need to have a rounded conversation. Social security will continue to be an important part of that, but it cannot be the only aspect that we talk about.”
“I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which states that I am a member of Glasgow City Council. The cabinet secretary has told us that the current targets mean that action can be skewed towards social security, but social security increases are one of the few approaches that work, with the child payment bringing 50,000 children out of poverty, as the cabinet secretary has said. Child poverty charities are united in arguing that a £55 Scottish child payment is absolutely essential if we are to come anywhere close to meeting our targets. Can the cabinet secretary assure us that changes to the targets will not compromise work to boost family incomes, and that the £55 Scottish child payment proposal should be given urgent consideration?”
“I move amendment S7M-00356.5, to insert at end: “; believes that the third sector would benefit from a transition to multi-year, simplified, flexible funding models that considers inflationary increases and covers full operating costs as the default; calls on the UK Government to reimburse Scottish third sector organisations for the cost of increased employer NICs, which are currently estimated at £75 million per year; recognises that those working in the third sector, such as organisations addressing violence against women and girls or supporting migrants, carers and disabled people, are also experiencing multiple and overlapping inequalities, secondary trauma and harm, and that they would benefit from an approach to third sector funding that includes the Real Living Wage and fair work principles, and further recognises that some third sector organisations, particularly those working with marginalised communities such as trans people and migrants, are experiencing threats to the safety of their staff, volunteers and service users.” 16:11”
“I have mentioned and outlined the unifying piece that we have heard throughout, which is that of funding. The crux of the Green amendment is for a transition to multiyear funding as a default. The primary barrier to multiyear funding is that the Scottish Government is restricted by single-year allocations from the Westminster Government, and financial stability is restricted by the UK Government’s failure to reimburse to our third sector the £75 million annual cost of increased employer national insurance contributions. Although long-term funding remains our absolute aspiration, Scottish Labour must also work with us to demand both a fairer multiyear settlement and the full mitigation of those NICs from their Westminster colleagues.”
“If the Government is truly looking for efficiencies, it should look at how it allocates its money. As I mentioned, I am pleased to hear that multiyear funding is being looked at. The Corra Foundation has said that simply moving to a default of multiyear funding structures would save an astonishing £900 million that the third sector wastes on the endless annual application cycle. Carol Mochan also mentioned that. If we truly want to transform public services, we must start to fund our third sector sustainably. I welcome the beginning of that, which the cabinet secretary confirmed today. The job of third sector organisations is, of course, much bigger than being on the front line. The policy work that is undertaken by many charities in Scotland offers a truly unique insight into people’s lived experience.”
“Through a 25-member council that meets the Welsh Government twice a year, the scheme provides charities with high-value recognition, strengthening accountability and cross- Government co-operation. We can learn from our devolved nation counterparts. The First Minister’s decision to create a Cabinet Secretary for Public Service Reform signals that cuts are coming. However, we know from decades of austerity that, when statutory services are slashed, the third sector is left to plug the gaps, acting as the last line of defence for our most vulnerable. Shirley-Anne Somerville: Will the member take an intervention? Holly Bruce: I will respectfully not take an intervention in this debate, but I would be happy to have a conversation with the cabinet secretary offline.”
“The cabinet secretary will be aware that the SCVO’s 2026 manifesto calls on the Scottish Government to bolster the third sector and ensure the survival of what are essential, often life-saving charities. The SCVO says that that should be underpinned in statute, and I agree. I respectfully disagree with the cabinet secretary’s point that it is a time and resource-intensive experience to put legislation through this Parliament. The two things can go in tandem. There is a glaring lack of consistency between some Government departments in relation to legislation and strategies, and it is pushing the sector to the brink. Since 1999, Wales has legally embedded third sector collaboration into its government.”
“A service user shared her reality with me, and I thank her for trusting me to share her experience. She said: “Whenever we ask for support, we are told these cuts are due to tough choices, but why are women’s services always the first to be attacked? Murray’s keeps us alive. After fleeing domestic abuse, being homeless for two years with two disabled children and surviving rape, this service was my lifeline. We just want to live free from violence and recover with dignity.” Do tough choices mean abandoning women who have survived the unthinkable? The system is fundamentally broken. When will the Government move past temporary fixes and provide multiyear, inflation-proof funding that will keep such lifelines open? I am pleased that the cabinet secretary indicated in her speech that there will be some changes in multiyear funding.”
“Although we were successful in securing inflationary increases for that financial year for those sectors, the reality is that that sticking-plaster funding is no longer enough. We must fairly and sustainably fund the third sector for the life-saving work that it delivers. I take a moment to pay tribute to Kaukab Stewart for her historic time as the first woman of colour to be elected to this Parliament and as a tireless, authentic champion for equality. Earlier this week, I met Sisters Against Cuts, which is a grass-roots feminist campaign that is fighting the closure of the women’s service at Murray’s Initiative. As my colleague Iris Duane pointed out, it is a vital trauma-informed sanctuary for survivors of gender-based violence, domestic abuse and addiction.”
“What about the maternity cover, the human resources costs and the legal requirements for the charity simply to exist? Core funding for charities is essential, yet it remains painfully elusive. For people working in the third sector, those precarious contracts create a gruelling treadmill. For decades, that has driven good, passionate staff away to other sectors that offer them stability. However, it does not have to be like that. Nowhere is the crushing precarity of short-term funding felt more acutely than in services tackling violence against women and girls. As former chair of the violence against women and girls partnership in Glasgow, I wrote to the former Minister for Equalities, Kaukab Stewart.”
“I also thank them for their expertise ahead of this debate—most notably the SCVO, the Corra Foundation, Volunteer Scotland and the Poverty Alliance. There is one unifying experience among staff who work in the third sector in Scotland, regardless of whether they are specialists in crisis support or in advancing human rights, and that is the experience of funding. Entry-level jobs in the third sector are routinely part time and temporary with one-year contracts, as Carol Mochan pointed out, and that is a direct consequence of how the Scottish Government and other bodies structure their funding. Funding is isolated and it is often provided for single projects with tightly restricted budgets, which completely ignores the charity’s core costs.”
“I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which says that I am a member of Glasgow City Council. I thank the cabinet secretary for collaborating with the Greens on this important motion. I begin by thanking the third sector workforce, who are there for us day in, day out. They are the ones who step up when schools close, when the national health service is stretched to its limit and long after the police leave. They ensure that the vulnerable have a safe bed for the night, provide solace to people fleeing domestic abuse, listen to the voices of young people and stand side by side with children experiencing poverty. They do not just provide services; they guide people through the most traumatic experiences of their lives.”
“Will the First Minister join me in celebrating the contribution of refugees and migrants to communities across Scotland? Can he provide an update on when his Government will introduce the long-awaited Scottish human rights bill, so that the freedoms of new Scots are protected?”
“There is more than £12 million available in annual Historic Environment Scotland grants for conservation, restoration and community engagement, and opportunities also exist through the National Lottery Heritage Fund. It is worth noting that a blended approach that combines public funding, partner contributions and community-led fundraising is often the most successful route.”
“Will the cabinet secretary commit today to meeting me, Glasgow City Council representatives and local campaigners at the glasshouses during the upcoming recess period to explore how we can bridge that funding gap? Màiri McAllan: Holly Bruce will know that the Government understands the importance of those matters, which is demonstrated not least by the investment that we are committed to making in the People’s Palace in Glasgow. My colleague Tom Arthur will shortly update the Parliament on those plans. Projects such as the Queen’s park glasshouses can draw on a range of funding sources. The Government provides direct support for similarly ambitious projects through our regeneration capital grant fund and the place-based investment programme.”
“Such discussions can include help to facilitate access to relevant funding programmes, encouraging partnership and community-led approaches, and ensuring that the council has advice and guidance from Historic Environment Scotland on suitable conservation. Holly Bruce: As the cabinet secretary knows, Glasgow faces a unique responsibility with its array of listed heritage buildings in council ownership, coupled with an acute lack of capital infrastructure funding. In Glasgow Southside, we are already navigating the devastating prolonged closures of Govanhill baths and Langside hall. We cannot allow the historic Queen’s park glasshouses to become the next victim of the funding gap. The Glasgow Building Preservation Trust estimates that £400,000 is urgently needed to safeguard this vital community asset.”
“I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which shows that I am a member of Glasgow City Council. To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to assist Glasgow City Council in securing the necessary funding, resources and practical support required to keep the historic Queen’s Park glasshouses open, preserved and thriving as a valued community asset. (S7O-00060) The Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic (Màiri McAllan): The Government appreciates the historic and community value of the Queen’s park glasshouses. Responsibility for their operation rests with Glasgow City Council. However, I am happy to engage with the council and with partners.”
“We continue to invest in charities and social enterprises and have established our two- year pilot of the fairer funding programme, giving grants totalling more than £130 million to community and voluntary organisations between 2025-26 and 2026-27. I am confident that the ask that Holly Bruce makes is already being met. The Presiding Officer: Before we move to question 6, I remind members that the sub judice rule is engaged in live criminal cases and I therefore ask members not to comment on sentencing that is still to take place. Sentencing 6.”
“I am sure the cabinet secretary will agree that giving equity of access to long-term relational youth work in bespoke places will better enable young people from all backgrounds to thrive and will negate the need to view young people as the problem. YouthLink Scotland’s review of the Scottish National Party manifesto found key areas lacking. Can the cabinet secretary confirm that the SNP Government will commit to fairly funding youth work with equality of access, regardless of postcode, and to embedding youth work in justice, education, health and anti-poverty strategies throughout the programme for government? Neil Gray: A lot of work is ongoing in the community and voluntary sectors to support young people.”
“I step into the chamber not to play the game of status quo but to dismantle the barriers that are faced by working- class families, women and our environment. The southside has trusted us with its historic vote, and I intend to spend every day of this parliamentary session proving that that trust was well placed.”
“A lack of proximity, shift patterns—as we heard—ageing relatives and the right of women to pursue their career ambitions mean that we cannot use family favours as a substitute for social infrastructure. We must ensure that the Parliament stays family friendly—maintaining our creche and robust family policies—so that we practise what we preach. However, we must also demand that the Scottish Government makes good on its commitments to fix the issue of cross-border placements and ensure that no childcare is left to a birthday lottery. I thank the cabinet secretary for accepting our Green amendment to ensure that those immediate issues that are faced by children in Scotland are addressed as soon as possible. I look forward to working with her. The Green momentum is here because it feels right, necessary and urgent.”
“I have worked with organisations such as Engender, the Scottish Women’s Budget Group and Pregnant Then Screwed on their campaigns. I did what I could with the powers that I had. However, we must now go further. Just this month, Pregnant Then Screwed launched its annual summer survey. A mother in Glasgow Southside shared that “It seems unfair that childcare costs so much. I have gone from being the highest earning person in the relationship to the lowest, simply because I had to go part-time. I cannot afford full-time childcare for two children.” Many families are told to rely on informal childcare networks—grandparents, friends and neighbours. However, let us be honest: in 2026, those networks are not readily available to everyone.”
“I say to members, look around the chamber, into your communities and at your friends and family, and ask yourself, who are the primary caregivers, whose careers are put on hold, who do you see caring for children and who makes up the vast majority of our underpaid and underresourced childcare workforce? The answer is women. Those reflections are not to say that men or non- birthing parents do not want to care for their children. However, it helps to highlight the cultural scripts that are embedded in our society, due to the system that has been built to ensure business as usual. It is time that we disrupt business as usual, in the interests of equality. I have spent four years banging the drum for childcare provision in Glasgow City Council.”
“I also want to be clear about what the Southside rejected during the election. We saw some in the chamber resort to hostility and intimidation tactics. Glasgow Southside overwhelmingly rejected that, and I pledge to my constituents that I will stand with them to ensure that hatred never takes root. I am sure that it will come to no great surprise to members that I am a feminist. My work on feminist town planning as a councillor in Glasgow City Council attests to that. Now, as an MSP, I will work to bring a feminist lens to all areas. Addressing the crisis in childcare is a necessary place to start. Audre Lorde wrote that childcare is the “the battleground for community survival and a collective political necessity.” For too long, women have quietly provided the unpaid labour of care in our communities.”
“I will be honest: I stood and cried, due to not only exhaustion but a hope for change. I am not bitter that Lorna Slater beat me to the history books by a mere 15 minutes, to win the first-ever Green constituency seat in Holyrood. I will let Lorna have that one. However, jokes aside, I take the mandate from the southside with the utmost seriousness. My promise is not perfectionism but to do my best every day for the place that I call home. I pay tribute to my predecessor, Nicola Sturgeon, and her positive track record of serving this country. Being from a somewhat similar beginning—brought up in a working-class family that “doesn’t do politics”, as well as being the first in my family to go to university and study law—I believe that the Southside always pushed Nicola to be better in her politics, and I welcome it to do the same for me.”
“In my own seat, our campaign succeeded because we focused on proving that Green politics is all about the warmth of a well-insulated home, the security of fair rent controls, the freedom of free public transport and the stability of funded childcare. Glasgow Southside sent a clear message. Social and environmental justice are one and the same, and I intend to deliver exactly that. I realised that we had done something truly special on election night. At around 9.30 pm, a group of us were running—literally—about Govanhill, finishing our get-out-the-vote operation, and a man stopped us in our tracks. He told me that he and his family of 12 had made the leap to voting Green. He ushered his wife and children to the window, excited about what we could achieve.”
“I declare an interest as an elected member of Glasgow City Council. It is the honour of my life to stand here today representing the people of Glasgow Southside, a community that has made history by choosing a bold new progressive direction. Our victory was built on the doorsteps of Govanhill, Pollokshields, Mount Florida, Battlefield, Shawlands, Toryglen and the Gorbals and was driven by the relentless, hard-working dedication of volunteers who built a Green momentum out of the very thing that defines the southside: community campaigning and a demand for tangible change. This election defined a seismic political shift for the Scottish Greens, and we do not take that lightly.”
“Before I begin, I declare that my affirmation is to the sovereign folk of Scotland. I, Holly Bruce, do solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm, that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles, his heirs and successors, according to law. Ah, Holly Bruce, dee solemnly, sincerely an leal- hertitly sweir an uphaud, aat Ah wull be faithful and bear true lealtie tae His Maijesty King Chairles, his heirs an ony fa come aifter him, accordin tae laa.”