“It’s never ending”, says David Ng Hop, describing the work of an MSP.  David had asked to take part in the Opening Doors shadow scheme because he wanted to see every aspect of what it means to be a member of the Scottish Parliament.  Here is his report…

I spent four days with two very different MSPs, one a shadow minister the other an opposition back bencher. The four days allowed me the opportunity to see the variety of work which is done day to day through Parliament and also within the constituency office.  I discovered one thing very quickly – this is not a 9 to 5, Monday to Friday job.  The work of an MSP is never-ending.

Over the four days I spent two with Sarah Boyack, MSP for Edinburgh Central and two with Malcolm Chisholm, MSP for Edinburgh North and Leith.  In many ways their work is very different.  Sarah is the shadow Minister for the Environment while Malcolm’s main area of work is as a member of the Equal Opportunities Committee and the Finance Committee.

But their constituency responsibilities are similar. Both send out regular updates to people in their constituency, both get huge numbers of emails and letters every day and every single one has to be answered.

Inside the Parliament I had the chance of sitting in and listening to the Equal Opportunities Committee and from the gallery of the debating chamber I saw the vote on the Public Service Reform bill as well as general questions and First Minister’s Questions.  Following Sarah in her duties outside Parliament I visited the new Tynecastle High School (which was built under the last Labour-LibDem coalition in the Scottish Parliament) and sat in on a meeting with the Head Teacher.

I didn’t spend all the time watching. I also had the chance to help with work in the office, stuffing envelopes with letters replying to constituents campaigning against the cuts proposed by the council.

It was all very interesting.  I would like to thank both Sarah and Malcolm for allowing me to be with them over four days – and to thank their teams of Personal Assistants who all made me very welcome. I would like to thank them all.

David is a support assistant in the City of Edinburgh Council health and social care department. We would like to thank him for his enthusiastic support of the Opening Doors shadow scheme which aims to encourage ethnic minority representation in politics.

Ola Kasprzak with Malcolm Chisholm

Politicians, preoccupied with political rivalry, can forget the most important thing –  the needs of people they represent

Read Ola Kasprzak’s fascinating and forthright report of her experience  of shadowing two politicians in the Scottish Parliament and City of Edinburgh Council – she says they changed her negative opinion of politicians but her conclusions should be read by anyone standing for election this year. Or any other year.

WHY I WANTED TO TAKE PART?

I saw the Opening Doors shadowing programme as a great opportunity to increase my knowledge about political institutions and decision making processes so that I could make people in my community more aware of their rights and civil responsibilities and empower them to express their needs and concerns.

I think many people do not fully understand politics and realize how it affects the quality of their lives. They often perceive it as very abstract and unconnected to their everyday problems. This in turn can make politics even more distant from the ordinary member of society.

I come from a country where, for at least the last two decades, people have felt disengaged from politics. Frequent changes on the political scene and many scandals created a feeling of confusion, powerlessness and discouragement among Polish society. The situation illustrates how politicians, preoccupied with political rivalry, can forget the most important thing –  the needs of people they represent.

Ola at Swietlica, the Polish drop-in club in Leith

Perhaps these bad experiences help to explain the lack of civil engagement among the Polish community living in Scotland. Financial circumstances and the struggle to satisfy more basic needs may be another element.  Added to that,  the current economic and political climate (scapegoating migrant workers for the rise in unemployment), reinforces tensions and discrimination.  As a result members of ethnic minorities feel more excluded and withdraw further from social and political life.

WHAT I DID?

Shadowing Malcolm Chisholm in the Scottish Parliament and Lesley Hinds in the City of Edinburgh Council gave me a chance to see the work of politicians on two levels. Both of them ensured that I could observe the wide variety of their work.

With Malcolm I could see the work of different committees (Equal Opportunities, Subordinate Legislation and Public Petitions) and find out who they consist of and how they make decisions. I liked the fact that committees ensure public participation  and take into consideration opinions of different witnesses, specialists and members of organisations related to the issue.

The discovery for me was Public Petitions Committee, where every voter can lodge a petition. I think it could really benefit  society if this opportunity was better known.

Being in the Debating Chamber, where the competition between parties was visible in the way they present their views, was also an interesting experience.

Another part of the shadowing scheme I really enjoyed was spending time with Malcolm in the constituency, which included his surgery, visiting local community organizations (Mental Health Project and West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre in particular) and knocking on people’s doors and asking about their concerns. These were actions I did not expect from a politician and they definitely added a human face to the job.

Thanks to Lesley Hinds I was able to see the work of a city councilor, observing the Fire Board Committee and Labour Group discussing different topics and issues before the Council meeting. I discovered that the role of councilor requires a comprehensive knowledge from so many different areas. I also went with Lesley to her surgery, where people come with different concerns but all of them – even those which seem trivial – are treated seriously.

Lesley also gave me the opportunity to shadow her work in other organizations she is involved in, like community council and North Edinburgh Arts Board. It gave me an insight into how people from other communities work together and what they do to improve their lives.

CONCLUSIONS – ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

The shadowing scheme definitely helped to change my negative perception of politicians and increased my trust in them.

Thanks to Malcolm and Lesley I saw a human side of politics. I have learned that politicians are not just distant, patronizing figures, who are focused mainly on their careers but make an effort to be closer to people and hold  dialogue with them on an equal level.  I was  surprised there are so many ways of accessing politicians and politics for an ordinary person  – with public petitions committee as an additional advantage in Scotland. Above all, I have realized that the politician’s role requires a lot of time commitment, organizational skills and extensive knowledge.

However, I think that communication and cooperation between politicians and communities still needs to be improved.

1. Politicians should make an effort to speak to the public but, on the other hand, people have to understand that this is also up to them to improve their lives.
2. More actions should be taken to increase peoples’ awareness of ways of influencing politicians and politics (like, apart from voting in elections, public petitions committee, cross-party groups, politicians’ surgeries and other forms of contacting them).
3. People need to learn more about other forms of civil activity. The importance of their involvement in non-governmental organizations (the third sector) should be emphasized. It is undoubtedly easier to impact politics working together with others. Association gives a group of people an identity and additional strength. Also cooperation and networking between different organizations can result in more creative ideas and give people more voice in political institutions.

I think this would ensure greater understanding of issues different communities and individuals face and help to change their reality for the better.

Ola is now working with local voluntary organisations after studying ‘Working with Communities’ at Jewel and Esk College. She is actively involved in Swietlica, the Polish community group in Edinburgh.

Sarah Boyack MSP and Francis Kahembwe photographed between meetings on another busy day at Holyrood.

“How interesting  to see kids of 9-11yrs with so much interest in politics. I was exposed to something new which I could communicate to my parliamentary friends in Uganda.”

During his last few days as a ’shadow’ in the Scottish Parliament, Francis Kahembwe somehow found time to keep a diary. Here is his fascinating observation of Scottish politics at work – and his hope for the future.

Tue 13th Jan
The day was very busy, beginning around 9.30 am. I went with Sarah to meet three officials of the RSPB (both from the policy department). Amazingly one of them was a forester working on UK Forestry Policy in RSPB. He was happy to meet another forester and I was delighted to meet him. We plan to meet again sometime. [see earlier posts about Francis work as a forester]

Anyway the discussion was about the Climate Change Bill and the role of forestry in contributing to climate change and greenhouse gas emission reduction targets; and how it is catered for in the Bill. It was a useful discussion.

At 11.00am, Sarah met schoolkids from Edinburgh Central, her constituency, and West Lothian. Two other MSPs were present, one from the Conservative party and another from the Green party.

“How do you feel when all cameras are focusing on you? What do you think about trams in Edinburgh?”

It was very interesting to see young school kids asking their members of parliament questions such as: What problems or issues are commonly brought to your attention? What did you do before you joined the Scottish Parliament? What do you think about trams in Edinburgh? Will you expand trams in future if people like them? Can trams cause accidents  and how fast do they travel? How do you feel in parliament when all cameras are focussing on you? How many times are you allowed to talk during the parliamentary debates?

The MSPs answered  questions one by one.

How interesting  to see kids of 9-11yrs with so much interest in politics and in what their MSPs are doing. I think this is encouraging, for some of the young generation  may look into prospects of being future politicians. I was exposed to something new which I could communicate to some Parliamentary members in Uganda, some who are my personal friends. I had a feeling that when these kids go  home they would tell their parents about their trip to the Scottish parliament and would talk about these MSPs from their areas and I think that is partly what politics is about.

Open access: Francis with a group of visitors to the Scottish Parliament

12.15 accompanied Sarah to a photo shoot at The TUN building where she was invited to participate in a promotional activity for the Scottish Government Central Heating programe.

13.00 lunch in the parliament cateen where I had conversation with one of Sarah’s office staff about global warming.

14.00 went to Committee Room 4 for the meeting of the Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change Committee. It was the second sitting reviewing and discussing the National Planning Framework 2 for Transport and its related Infrastructure. The Committee took evidence from the Director for Scotland Sustainable Transport; the Chair Transform Scotland; Scottish Environment Link, Network Developer Plane Speaking; and others.

16.00 evidence from the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change. Final conclusions were heard in private so I had to leave the room at about 5.15pm.

Wed 14th Jan
I was pleased to receive from Sarah’s office most documents about the Scottish Climate Change Bill and spent the whole morning reading. In the afternoon I attended the Parliamentary debate about the Budget 2009-10 proposals. It was interesting to see how each party was pushing for their interests to be included in the budget. In the end voting was in favour of the proposal. I left the chamber at 5.00 pm

In summary these two days have been very informative about the workings of the Scottish Parliament and physically experiencing the typical working day of an MSP. Tomorrow I will spend most  of the day in First Minister’s question time.

Then I come to the end of the programme and begin preparing the Shadowing report.

“I have found out that there is still a gap that needs to be filled. At the local level, there is an immense need to involve the minority community.�

Doris Koyabe reflects on what she has learned from Opening Doors.

Why did I join the shadowing scheme?

There were three simple reasons. First of all, politics affects everything we do from the water we drink to the things we buy. Why should we leave matters relating to our well being in the hands of politicians? I have always been interested in knowing how politicians and policy makers come to a consensus since they affect each one of us on a daily basis. Given that policies and the politics of a country go together, I thought this was the best way to experience exactly how decisions are made.

Secondly, being part of the minority community I felt that we are not well represented in the policymaking arena. I wanted to know what mechanisms have been put in place to involve the minority community in politics but even more so in decision making.

And thirdly, I wanted to know what we as the minority community are doing in order to get ourselves involved and recognized as one voice when it comes to integration and implementing policy.

I was delighted to shadow Councillor Dougie Kerr not only because he is involved with issues relating to equality and discrimination in areas such as employment, gender and race. But also because I got the opportunity to see how politicians connect with local government and how local government connects with people in the community.

Councillor Kerr gave me a tour of the council building, explained what happens at the council and gave me a glimpse of the councillor’s daily routine schedule. As I shadowed him at different meetings, social gatherings and the full council meeting, I gained a better understanding of policy making.

What did I learn?

The image I had of politicians was a misconception. They have very busy lives and responsibilities that never seem to end. They have to go from one meeting to another and wherever they are – whether it is a business meeting or a social gathering – they are confronted with issues regarding decision making. Anyone can approach them and ask about anything and however trivial it maybe a lot of factors have to be considered. Basically it is very demanding and challenging and one has to be on top of things in order to succeed.

It may not seem significant to many people but now I know what newspapers to read in order to know what’s happening in the political scene – to find out what I would call “political gossip�. If I need to adopt the political culture of this country, then I have to know where to get the information. This is not to say that the press is always right but it gives an insight into what each party is doing, positive or negative. At the end of the day it’s up to an individual to decide what information to take from the media because it can be used to build or destroy the party’s image.

Most of all I have found out that there is still a gap that needs to be filled. At the local level, I feel that there is an immense need to involve the minority community. When I went to the full council meeting, my main concern was to see how the minority community would be represented in the meeting. I was surprised to see that they are so under represented.

For the future?

There is need to build up the participation of the minority community especially the blacks in this area. One may argue and say that the government is doing a great deal to integrate the minority communities in the system. But communication seems inadequate. How is information being transmitted to the minority community? Why is it that some minority communities are represented and not others? Who speaks on behalf of the minority communities in policy implementation? I feel there is a great need to examine inclusion of the minority communities in all aspects of policy implementation.

Women empowerment needs to be reinforced as well. Women are working hard in voluntary and community development projects but they also need to be directly involved with the policy makers.

But as much as I felt the minority are isolated, I also felt that we are not all working in unity with all minority communities to be one voice. United we stand and divided we fall.

My aim is to encourage Sikh women to be more involved in politics. I wanted to be able to show how we can help to influence decisions that have an impact on our lives.

It’s a cold winter day but a warm and spicy smell greets you as soon as you open the door. Wednesday is curry day at Dr Bell’s Family Centre in Leith and that is why Asha Devi Singh suggested meeting here for lunch.

Over a delicious plate of chick pea and potato curry with poppadom and coriander relish on the side, Asha explains why she decided to take part in the Opening Doors Shadow Scheme. “My aim is to encourage Sikh women to be more involved in politics,� she says, “I wanted to be able to show how we can help to influence decisions that have an impact on our lives.�

The venue for this interview therefore makes perfect sense. Our food is brought to the table by two volunteers from Sikh Sanjog, the Edinburgh women’s group who are taking part in a pilot scheme to provide Wednesday lunches at Dr Bell’s for a month. As one of the founder members and current Chair of Sikh Sanjog, Asha clearly enjoys bringing together the two cultures that shape her family life.

“As a Scottish Sikh woman I can see both sides of the coin,” she says, “and having three generations of my family, I have an understanding of issues affecting both young and old.”

Community involvement comes naturally to Asha who was born and brought up in Glasgow. “Both my grandfather and father were always helping others. I suppose you could say it is in our genes.� Because Asha’s mother could not speak English her seven children quickly learned social responsibilities outside the home, moving effortlessly between two cultures.

“As soon as I came home from school I would start making chapattis on the griddle. At weekends I went with friends to the City Mission, singing Michael Rowed the Boat Ashore. There was never any sense of, ‘No you are not allowed to do that’, from my parents.

“Being a Scottish Sikh does raise some problems for me. We are not asylum seekers or immigrants. We were born and raised in Scotland but what is our identity? I think that is something we have to address.

“I don’t think difference should be a problem. Look round this room, we are all different, we all have our own individuality. But it’s the bigots who mind differences that we should feel sorry for. They are the real minority.�

Asha is one of six people taking part in the Opening Doors shadow scheme which aims to encourage greater ethnic minority representation in both local and national government. Like Subash Punn and Celina Mbwiria (you can read their reports by clicking on Journal of the Week), Asha decided to join Opening Doors after completing the Get your Voice Heard programme run by the Centre for Human Ecology with City of Edinburgh Council.

“What I have discovered is that it is not all that difficult to get your voice heard. At first it seems like something out of your reach, you sit in meetings and don’t like to open your mouth because you don’t think what you have to say is all that significant. Then someone else says it and you think ‘I should have said that’. But once you start to get involved you find that other people are willing to listen to you.”

During the Opening Doors scheme Asha has shadowed Councillor Gordon Munro and now hopes to develop what she has learned by exploring the work of community councils.

Meanwhile, the pilot scheme at Dr Bell’s has been such a success Wednesday will continue to be curry day for the foreseeable future (see more in Out to Lunch in Leith).

[Asha was talking to Fay Young co-ordinator of Leith Open Space Group]

The Opening Doors visit to the Scottish Parliament was a first for Subash Punn. Here he describes why it made a lasting impression.

Subash Punn on the Scottish Parliament: “Never judge this building by the cover”.

My first and as yet only visit to the Scottish Parliament was full of profound surprises, the three-hour experience as monumental as the building itself.

It is a building full of contradictions almost challenging you to free up your mind and open yourself up to creative debate, the very essence of democracy itself. It is palatial but at the same time intimate. The texture is cold but framed by raw warmth. The erratic ceiling heights, though clearly defined, appear to undulate smoothly.

It is a building that seems to give you a sense of the passage of time, where history appears to be created before your eyes, in the present. I watched solitary figures pass by and as they wisped through what I can only describe as a foyer area I became curious as to where they had come from and where they were going. And as they disappeared one by one through a large door, they had already made an impression on history, and by doing – what? – something as trivial as making their way from one place to another. Had I imagined these people or did they exist? But seriously seeking the answer to this question would be a betrayal to the building’s illusion itself.

I had on many occasions walked or driven past the Scottish Parliament, always dubious about its existence and appearance. After having seen the interior I feel it has helped me gain an affinity with the exterior. Never judge this building by the cover.

The parliament also gives you an insight into the architect, Enric Miralles, who sadly died in the year 2000. His presence, I feel, is still felt in the building itself, almost making you question as to whether his presence would have been so profoundly felt had he still been alive.

“For me …politics had always existed in some virtual world far away where politicians meted out decisions that affected people’s lives either positively or negatively.� Celina Mbwiria records her reactions to a first full council meeting.

Thursday 26th October 2006
A lovely autumn morning. I woke with a purpose and a spring in my step. My colleague and I were to visit the City Chambers in Edinburgh, to observe for the very first time, the workings of a ‘full council meeting’.

We arrived at the City Chambers at 10 am and my mentor (Councillor Phil Attridge) took us to the café area to meet other Leith councillors while a lady with a register came in and out checking which councillors had not yet arrived – like school roll call. The atmosphere and the banter were relaxed and helped relieve any anxieties we may have had about participating in such a venture.

For me the whole experience was a momentous one as I had never done anything like it before. Politics always existed in some virtual world far away where politicians meted out decisions that affected people’s lives either positively or negatively. And while I have most times exercised my democratic right to vote, I had never thought deeply about how such things affected my personal life. Through programmes such as this, I am stimulated to question things more, which I think is a very good thing.

In the public galleries, I was quite surprised to see so many ordinary people come to observe such proceedings. My colleague and I were the only people from the BME communities there and only because we are in this programme. This brings home to me the importance of programmes like this in raising awareness within the BME communities and encouraging them to come and witness decisions which affect them.

Heated debate

Below us sat all the councillors with the Lord Provost chairing the proceedings. Labour councillors were furthest away, Conservatives just in front of us and Liberal Democrats just underneath us. The acoustics were quite bad and it was hard to hear what was being said. Issues of great interest were discussed and I could catch one word here and there – I made note of these: a heated debate about council money being inappropriately spent; housing affordability; inequalities and reducing the gap; carbon emmissions, global warming and parking charges. My mentor gave me a copy of the report and that helped to a certain degree.

Some time was spent discussing the furnishings of the chamber – whether to buy new chairs or refurbish existing ones. This is the only debate I could follow because we could quite clearly hear the Lib Dems and the Conservatives as they made their argument for restoration of the chairs to preserve them for posterity against Labour’s case to replace them with more storage-friendly ones to reduce mounting storage costs.

Gender balance and BME representation

It was clear from the start that great gender imbalance existed in the chamber and there was only one councillor visible from BME communities. In fact I could only count three female Labour councillors and two Conservatives and I was informed that there were four female Liberal Democrats. Of 56 councillors present there were 9 female councillors – equivalent to 16%. Clearly there is a big gap here and I can’t help but wonder why this is so. When I later inquired from our host I was told that there was a time when women councillors were labelled the Knitting Club, a term women took in their stride and turned to their advantage. Still, it’s sad to see the glaring gender imbalance and I hope something can be done about it. As regards to BME communities, there is great need for programmes like ‘Opening Doors’ to inform and encourage BME communities to become more involved and claim their rightful place in the national politics.

Lunch with councillors

Over lunch we had a chance to talk with Leith councillors about issues that affected us individually or as a community. Later our host took us to see the office he shares with another councillor, with many pictures and photographs on the walls. Two pictures stood out for me. A South African one showing a tiny black man being kicked about by four burly uniformed white men – the other was of a dessicated body of a human victim of hurricane Katriona hanging on a barbed wire fence like a ragdoll. Seeing these pictures was poignant for me because they clearly indicated what the powerful few are capable of doing to the majority poor who have no voice.

Is the developed world as civilised as it claims to be?

At the end of the day, the whole experience was worthwhile and I enjoyed it all immensely and would encourage others to take part in such projects. I would like to thank the organisers of the project and my mentor for organising the activities and for looking after us through the day

Celina is one of six ‘shadows’ taking part in the Opening Doors programme to encourage black and minority ethnic representation in local and national politics. For more about Celina see the Local Heroes section of this website.