By David Scott in Edinburgh
12 November 2009
Plans by an independent commission to give Scotland more power over finance and taxation are flawed and a ‘messy fudge’, the Holyrood government has claimed.
The Scottish National Party administration was responding to the recommendations of the Calman Commission in a paper published on November 9. It said that far from improving the financial framework for the devolved Parliament, the Calman plans would lead to ‘less transparency, less accountability and expose the Scottish Government budget to significant risks’.
It stated: ‘The messy “fudge” of the commission’s proposals and their arbitrary nature are subject to a number of significant flaws, which make them demonstrably inferior to the fiscal levels available to an independent country.’
The commission, headed by Sir Kenneth Calman, a former chief medical officer in both Scotland and England, published its recommendations earlier this year.
It called for Scotland to have a new power to set its own rate of income tax. The UK rate levied in Scotland would be cut by 10p in the pound.
According to the Scottish Government, the income tax proposals would expose the Scottish budget to a ‘significant degree of volatility, without appropriate policy levers or administrative procedures to mitigate these effects’.
The minister responsible for the constitution, Michael Russell, claimed the commission was strictly limited in its remit and its outcomes.
Delivering a lecture at University College London, he said: ‘Calman did not consider independence or full fiscal autonomy to allow Scotland to take responsibility for the money it spends and take important economic decisions for itself.’
The Scottish Government’s response came as it confirmed that it will publish a white paper on an independence referendum Bill on November 30 – St Andrew’s Day.
Opposition political parties this week attacked the minority government for pressing ahead with a Bill that was likely to fail because of a lack of support from other parties.
Labour finance spokesman Andy Kerr said: ‘It is astonishing that the SNP are still pursuing their referendum when they have not even budgeted for it. It is a mixture of cynicism and incompetence.’
12 November 2009
Plans by an independent commission to give Scotland more power over finance and taxation are flawed and a ‘messy fudge’, the Holyrood government has claimed.
The Scottish National Party administration was responding to the recommendations of the Calman Commission in a paper published on November 9. It said that far from improving the financial framework for the devolved Parliament, the Calman plans would lead to ‘less transparency, less accountability and expose the Scottish Government budget to significant risks’.
It stated: ‘The messy “fudge” of the commission’s proposals and their arbitrary nature are subject to a number of significant flaws, which make them demonstrably inferior to the fiscal levels available to an independent country.’
The commission, headed by Sir Kenneth Calman, a former chief medical officer in both Scotland and England, published its recommendations earlier this year.
It called for Scotland to have a new power to set its own rate of income tax. The UK rate levied in Scotland would be cut by 10p in the pound.
According to the Scottish Government, the income tax proposals would expose the Scottish budget to a ‘significant degree of volatility, without appropriate policy levers or administrative procedures to mitigate these effects’.
The minister responsible for the constitution, Michael Russell, claimed the commission was strictly limited in its remit and its outcomes.
Delivering a lecture at University College London, he said: ‘Calman did not consider independence or full fiscal autonomy to allow Scotland to take responsibility for the money it spends and take important economic decisions for itself.’
The Scottish Government’s response came as it confirmed that it will publish a white paper on an independence referendum Bill on November 30 – St Andrew’s Day.
Opposition political parties this week attacked the minority government for pressing ahead with a Bill that was likely to fail because of a lack of support from other parties.
Labour finance spokesman Andy Kerr said: ‘It is astonishing that the SNP are still pursuing their referendum when they have not even budgeted for it. It is a mixture of cynicism and incompetence.’
