The profits made by Shell over the last year are obscene given the amount of people struggling to heat their homes.
And yet this Tory Government has done nothing to stop the oil giants cashing in on soaring energy prices.
Labour’s Shadow Scottish Secretary Ian Murray was right when he said that these eye-watering record profits are driven by the energy crisis.
Too many Scots have been suffering through the winter. They have had to go without, living in dark and cold homes. Many Scots have had to choose whether to heat their homes or feed their families.
This has been bad for people’s mental and physical health. It has also hampered children’s development. All the while shareholders at the energy giants are lining their pockets.
The Tories have often said that we have to “tighten our belts” and that “we’re all in this together”.
But Shell’s profits show that our suffering has been a sham.
Energy prices may have started rising because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but the big energy companies have used this as an excuse to pump money into their already bursting bank accounts.
So it is only fair that these mammoth piles of cash should be put to use for the good of everyone. The Tories must introduce a proper windfall tax, not one with an investment incentive loophole which allows the firms to avoid paying tax.
This could raise billions of pounds which could help heat our homes and subsidise energy costs. They must also rule out raising the energy price cap in April. It is not fair for most people to struggle while a few get even richer. If the Government does not intervene, it will prove that they only care about the wealthy and not about working families.
Even they must see that this is an injustice. It is time for them to act.
Fix fire risk flats
People have a right to feel secure in their own home.
But residents in a Glasgow apartment complex now face the nightmare of being told their dwellings require a constant fire monitoring team.
The developer of the flats has failed to carry out necessary repair works following an inspection last year.
It forced the Scottish Government to intervene and pay for fire safety patrols to offer residents peace of mind.
It has called on the developer to step up and fix the property but there is no word on how long this could take. It’s only one example of the problems facing thousands of high-rise developments in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
It’s vital remedial works on the building are carried out as soon as possible – and that developers pick up the bill.
It’s not fair to leave residents in limbo like this.
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