NOT a Westminster power grab? Dinnae be daft. Of course it is. Westminster does not want the Scottish nation to have any real power over its own destiny.
When Scotland voted No in the 2014 referendum on the promise of Holyrood becoming “one of the most powerful devolved parliaments in the world”, the extra power given to our Parliament was primarily based on income tax. The real macro-economic levers of power, corporation taxes, value added taxes, road taxes etc, are still in the control of Westminster; innocuously referred to as “reserved matters”.
The new power over income tax devolved to Holyrood by Westminster has given the Scottish Government that unique power of having the ability to hang itself out to dry. The Scottish Government does not have the power to retain the basic rate of income tax while increasing the higher rate; if it increases one rate, all rates will increase by the same amount. This is one of the restrictions that the Smith Commission suggested ought to be removed, but no UK legislation has been introduced that will have that effect.
Nevertheless, the media, the Labour Party, the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties repeat ad nauseam: “You don’t need to make cuts. You now have powers of taxation. Use them! If you don’t like it, mitigate it.”
But, what those particular organisations fail to say is: “Oh by the way, the Scottish budget is set by Westminster and year on year it’s going to shrink. You’ll have to raise everybody’s taxes to compensate for this, not just the taxes of high earners. But, you can’t continually mitigate Scottish budget cuts by increases on income tax, though. It’s an unsustainable fix. You’ll eventually be blamed for raising everybody’s taxes and still passing on Westminster austerity. Try getting yourselves out of that hangman’s noose.”
Courtesy of Whitehall, The Scottish Government is now left with its very own Hobson’s choice of either cutting council services or raising income tax. Both of these choices harm the ordinary person in the street. On income tax rises, the average Scottish worker will say: “Haud on, my taxes are going up. I’m no huvin’ that.” So, to protect the ordinary voter from this situation arising, the Government in Holyrood has to find money from somewhere else in the Westminster-dictated Scottish budget. But suddenly the ordinary Scottish voter says: “Haud on, my local services are being badly affected by these council cuts. I’m no huvin’ that”.
Since September 2014, the Scottish Government has been placed in this impossible governing position – and with Brexit and the Great Repeal Act, it looks highly likely to get worse. With Westminster enacting Henry VIII clauses of a kind not witnessed since the dictatorial days of the Divine Right of Kings, Scotland is left only with those ineffectual shiny powers that Westminster will allow Holyrood; the most powerful devolved “pretendy” parliament in all of Christendom.
Mark Saunders
Port Glasgow, Inverclyde
I READ with utter amazement and disgust your article describing how a group of senior Tory members were prepared to try to persuade Ruth to stand for PM (Tory infighting erupts ahead of party conference, The National, September 25). Does this let us know the dearth of talent there is in the Tory Party? On the basis of running a successful one-slogan campaign you can be considered for PM.
Fortunately, Davidson demonstrated the common sense to turn it down, probably due to her Scottish upbringing. Although I am surprised they did not offer Murdo the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Mind you the one slogan campaign worked in the EU referendum also – immigration. Perhaps they have indeed found the secret for political success. All other political parties take note – the electorate can be fooled.
Perhaps the Scottish electorate will now start to realise they were taken for a ride at the last General Election and indyref1. In my opinion they will have a chance to redeem themselves soon, firstly in a General Election then an indyref2.
Gordon Robertson
Blairgowrie
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