Commenting on the Chancellor’s Budget, North East Fife MP and former Leader of the Liberal Democrats Sir Menzies Campbell said:

“This was a Budget which should have been about honesty and fairness but sadly had neither.

“Honesty was needed about the impact that the cuts in Government expenditure are going to have on the lives of all of us and fairness was needed in the tax changes which the Chancellor proposed.

“How can it be right that those with the lowest incomes in Britain pay a higher proportion of tax than those who earn the most?

“This was a ‘get us through the general election’ Budget if I ever saw one.”

North East Fife’s MP Sir Menzies Campbell is showing his support for WWF’s Earth Hour.

WWF’s Earth Hour is a global initiative taking place on Saturday 27 March 2010 between 8.30pm-9.30pm. WWF is calling on individuals, businesses, iconic landmarks and local authorities to sign up to switch off their lights for one hour to show they care about people and wildlife threatened by climate change. This year’s event is set to surpass those from previous years’, with over 1,100 cities and towns across the globe switching off their lights in support of Earth Hour.

This year more than 91 countries taking part. A ripple will cross the Earth as landmarks in 25 time zones switch off. Many of the world’s most iconic landmarks are on board including Piccadilly Circus and the London Eye, Manchester’s Trafford Centre, and Inverness Castle.

Commenting after attending a parliamentary reception to show his support, Sir Menzies said:

“The WWF’s Earth Hour initiative is really building momentum. On 27th March, as lights are switched off across the globe, world leaders will be left in no doubt about people’s support for immediate action to tackle climate change. I am very pleased to play my part.”

Government figures obtained by Sir Menzies Campbell MP show that as many as 2,000 pensioners living in North East Fife could be missing out on receiving Cold Weather Payments triggered by the recent bad weather.

Cold Weather Payments of £25 a week are paid to people on low incomes who receive a qualifying benefit, such as Pension Credit. It is paid when temperatures are below zero degrees Celsius for seven consecutive days.

Up to 1.7 million pensioners in the United Kingdom are missing payments worth an estimated £42.5 million.

Commenting, Sir Menzies said:

“During a period of extended bad weather Cold Weather Payments are a lifeline to people on low incomes who are already struggling to pay their usual heating bills. If pensioners are to heat their homes adequately during such periods, they must have the reassurance that they will be financially supported.

“In the short-term the Government must do all it can to identify those pensioners who qualify for this payment. In the long-term they must simplify the benefits system so that vulnerable people can more easily access the financial support due to them.”

Commenting on the publication of the Scottish Government’s white paper on Scotland’s constitutional future, Sir Menzies Campbell MP said:

“Alex Salmond wants full financial responsibility for Scotland. It is a great pity his party is not exercising responsibility on this St Andrew’s Day. To waste money on an unwanted referendum is an act of unpardonable folly when so many Scots are anxious about their jobs and their mortgages.

“In Mr Salmond have we found Scotland’s own Nero, fiddling while Scotland burns?”

ENDS

The charitable foundation at the centre of a funding row with Lloyds TSB gave almost £1million to charities in Fife over the course of the last three years according to figures released to North East Fife MP Sir Menzies Campbell.

Lloyds Banking Group has announced plans to cut the funding it gives to The Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland because of the financial crisis. Hundreds of charities across Scotland, including many in Fife, now face significant cuts in their funding. The Foundation has announced it is suspending its grant-making activities for the foreseeable future while it looks for alternative funding. It will honour all existing funding agreements.

Commenting, Sir Menzies Campbell said:

“Over three years the Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland has awarded almost one million pounds to Fife charities. This money has made a huge contribution towards improving the lives of some of Fife’s most vulnerable people.

“The Foundation has helped by providing larger grants for major projects, but it also supports smaller projects through funding for toddler groups, daycare centres and families struggling with debt problems. If the Foundation’s future funding is put at risk, some of those most in need in Fife will suffer most.

“Lloyds Banking Group has received massive support from the taxpayer. It goes against the grain that the Banking Group has chosen to downgrade its charitable activities in favour of commercial priorities.”