Dundee Liberal Democrats - www.dundeelibdems.scot

Responding to the decision by Audit Scotland to value the Scottish Government's equity stake in BiFab at only £6m as opposed to the original £19m Willie Rennie said:

"The Scottish Government needs to redouble its efforts to secure a good future for the yards at BiFab.

"The fall in value in the government's stake is a big price to pay on top of the hundreds of jobs at stake.

After the think tank Reform Scotland today claimed "there is discrimination at the heart" of the Scottish Government's early years expansion, with some children set to receive 24 months of free provision while others receive just 15 because of when their birthday falls in the year, Scottish Liberal Democrat spokesperson for children and young people Carole Ford commented:

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has today said that the Prime Minister must not make the same mistakes that the Scottish Government made, as he warned that industrial scale stop and search "undermines community policing and poisons the relationship between officers and the public".

The Prime Minister has convened a new National Policing Board, whose membership includes Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House - the former Chief Constable of Police Scotland. This week, Boris Johnson announced the expansion of police stop and search powers.

Shetland's Liberal Democrat candidate Beatrice Wishart has today detailed her priorities for improving Shetland's transport links, building on Tavish Scott's record of delivery for Shetland.

In launching her plan, Ms Wishart warned the SNP Government that that lifeline services should no longer be "held to ransom". She said policies including the Sumburgh parking charges and the failure to deliver on the promise cheaper ferry fares are damaging the islands.

After the First Minister told an audience at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe that football clubs must root out sectarianism or the Scottish Government will "step in", Scottish Liberal Democrat justice spokesperson Liam McArthur said that her intervention will prove lightweight unless she publishes the secret data ministers hold on sectarianism.

Scottish Liberal Democrats are turning up the heat on the SNP in the Shetland by-election with only ten days until polling day.

In advance of his second visit to the campaign, Willie Rennie, Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, has challenged the SNP candidate to declare immediately whether he would vote with his constituents or his party on another independence referendum. There will be a parliamentary vote on the issue within days of the by-election and therefore voters have a right to know how Tom Wills would vote.

Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Shetland Beatrice Wishart today revealed that Shetlanders are waiting more than 600 days for mental health treatment on the SNP's watch, describing the waits as "devastating".

A Scottish Liberal Democrat freedom of information request has shown:

• 62 adults waiting over a year to start their treatment (treated in 2018/19 or still on the waiting list at the end of the year),
• Adults waiting up to 643 days (over 21 months) to begin their treatment.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie today warned the Scottish Government is set to "leave families in the lurch" after a buried report showed the Scottish Government's early learning expansion is 5,135 childcare places and 416 staff behind schedule.

The report, dated June 2019, was only made available in response to a Scottish Liberal Democrat parliamentary question answered on 7 August. It wasn't the subject of either a Scottish Government or Improvement Service press release and it hasn't appeared on either of their publications pages or on social media, despite being highly anticipated by those in the sector.