I have called on the Scottish Government to take action after a labour market report highlighted that North East Fife has experienced one of the worst real terms wages decline in Scotland.

The report from the STUC found that North East Fife has seen a real terms decline in the median gross weekly pay of 18.7% which is almost three times higher than the Scottish average of 6.4% since 2007. Only two areas in the whole of Scotland, Dumfries and Galloway (24.2%) and Glasgow East (23%), show a higher decrease in wages. The figures also show that across Scotland the average worker is £27.12 a week and £1410.24 a year worse off.

The people of North East Fife are facing disproportionate reductions to their wages compared with the rest of Scotland and it is vital that the Government at both Holyrood and Westminster take action to address the decline in real term wages. North East Fife has seen a dramatic decline in the value of their salaries at a time when prices are rising and household budgets are being squeezed. This takes money out of the local economy at a time when town centres and small businesses are struggling.

The report from the STUC  follows on from last week’s monthly job figures which showed an increase in those claiming job seekers allowance across the Kingdom in the past year, with a significant increase in the number of women claiming job seekers allowance.

The Scottish Government could be taking bold action now to ensure that this imbalance is addressed but would rather put Scotland on pause to focus on the referendum. I will be writing to the Scottish Government to highlight these shocking figures and ask what action they will be taking to identify what the reasons behind the decline are and what it will be doing to address it.