Scotland's debt mountain

[Ignitionnet]

Scotland's debt mountain: Holyrood's borrowing could hit £50bn by 2020

Guardian investigation finds public sector borrowing for schools, roads, rail and education is set to dwarf Scottish parliament’s annual £30bn budget, prompting auditor general and opposition parties to call for greater transparency

Grauniad.

[Derek]

Bah typical English talking down Scotland and scaremongering.

Everything will be fine, the oil at $120 a barrel will solve everything and we'll have enough left over for a free unicorn for everyone.

Finally the collective insanity of the yessers is slowly lifting and people are beginning to ask questions instead of taking the "Ooh the nasty tories are responsible" line without hesitation.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by Derek

Bah typical English talking down Scotland and scaremongering.

Everything will be fine, the oil at $120 a barrel will solve everything and we'll have enough left over for a free unicorn for everyone.

Finally the collective insanity of the yessers is slowly lifting and people are beginning to ask questions instead of taking the "Ooh the nasty tories are responsible" line without hesitation.

That might be why 'Splurgeon' wants extra tax raising powers, gotta get the cash from somewhere...

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/1..._for_Scotland/

I wouldn't be surprised if they tried levying a new tax on English tourists by way of a thank you...

[nashville]

I would not be surprised at what the Tax they charge for us now, But no doubt Westerminster will get the blame again,

It was in the Times in Sunday that the SNP were thinking of introducing a Local Income Tax on higher earners (no figure was given about where the boundary was).

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/u...cle4640309.ece

Middle and high income earners should pay more for local services, according to a long-awaited report on local government taxation which will be published today.

The report, by the Commission on Local Tax Reform, will recommend the end of the council tax and the introduction of a new system which takes greater account of wealth and ability to pay.

The report will not endorse one specific system of local taxation. It will instead suggest several alternatives and argue that it is for the political parties to decide which one to recommend to the voters at next year’s election.

According to sources close to the commission, the report will call for an end to the council tax because it does not place a big enough financial burden on those with the ability to pay. It will suggest either a property-based tax or an income-based tax or a combination of the two as its replacement.

Any new property-based tax would be different from the council tax because it would have different bandings — which would lead to higher bills for those in bigger houses.

If a new property tax was introduced, then the current valuations for houses in Scotland would be discarded and a new set of valuations would be done to more accurately reflect rising house prices in property hotspots.

This would have the effect of placing a greater financial burden on those in the most expensive houses.

[Taf]

Spend, spend, spend.... buying future votes perhaps?

[Osem]

Originally Posted by Taf

Spend, spend, spend.... buying future votes perhaps?

Yes and look where that got us...

Maybe she's thinking 'what Brown can do I can do better' but the day of reckoning will come, sooner rather than later.

[Stephen]

Speaking of Tax, I got a letter through the post today stating that as of April next year some of my tax will be paid staright to the Scottish Government!

I never agreed to this. We are the UK so all money should be grouped together. I don't want the SNP getting hold of my money directly.

[Arthurgray50@blu]

This what they call bottle. Scotland have there own government. Just as we are being ripped to pieces by the Tories.

There is a TWO tier system in ENGLAND. The poor get poorer and the rich get richer. This has always been the case.

In Scotland it may be different. I think the good thing is that Sturgeon said that she will look after the SCOTTISH people. That means ALL scots.
My wife is Scot and comes from Glasgow.

Scottish people are great and deserve the best, this is what Sturgeon will give you. Just wish she was the PM for the ENGLISH government

[Stephen]

No Arthur, Sturgeon will NOT give us that! The SNP will just keep racking up debt as they try and make us all believe they are doing the right thing.

Yes we have our own Government as do the Welsh but the SNP are just concerned with tearing this nation apart.

They are no better than the Tories.

[Arthurgray50@blu]

I think Stephen, that both governments are the same. They give a load of crap to the voter. And it gets believed.

This why the Tories got back in, and now we will also suffer for another five years

[techguyone]

Go & live in Scotland then Arf, cause my wife & her side of the family are all Scots, and they really like having to wait up to a month for a Doctors Appointment for example.

Walk a mile in their shoes before you glorify how wonderful it is up there, I think you'd be surprised at how many Scots hate the SNP & b ulls hit policies and Sturgeon/Salmond etc.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by techguyone

Go & live in Scotland then Arf, cause my wife & her side of the family are all Scots, and they really like having to wait up to a month for a Doctors Appointment for example.

Walk a mile in their shoes before you glorify how wonderful it is up there, I think you'd be surprised at how many Scots hate the SNP & b ulls hit policies and Sturgeon/Salmond etc.

You will also be suprised how many still support the SNP and will still vote for them. I have a brother and sister in the (North) of Scotland and they say that SNP support is still very strong in a lot of areas.

They may start to change their views if this accumulating debt start to impact them and their own so time will tell ..

[papa smurf]

the sporrans empty then

Originally Posted by ianch99

You will also be suprised how many still support the SNP and will still vote for them. I have a brother and sister in the (North) of Scotland and they say that SNP support is still very strong in a lot of areas.

They may start to change their views if this accumulating debt start to impact them and their own so time will tell ..

Politics is febrile up here at the moment. The SNP still has a large wedge of the referendum Yes vote under its belt. That won't be the case come 2021, but it will see them into a good position after the 2016 election.

On top of that, it has the support of a good chunk of Labour's natural voter base, because Labour is an outright joke and the SNP is seen as the only credible alternative.

However, they have now spent two whole terms in office enacting short-term, populist policies designed to set Scotland in contrast to England and promote independence, and the cracks are beginning to appear (literally, in the case of the Forth road bridge). Sadly, I think things won't be bad enough, quick enough, for them to take the kicking they deserve next year, but it will come.