Important to remember the Scottish Government froze council tax on a whim costing the public purse £147m.
Public sector workers in England & Wales have been given significant pay rises which will lead to an increase in the Barnett formula.
Yes the WFA means testing has taken money out of the Scottish government fund, but more is going back in.
I don’t get it. What spending cuts is she supposedly forcing?
There’s a benefit cut (the benefit that should have been means tested before any other was, in my view), but that’s not out of Holyrood’s budget.
There’s the public sector pay rise coming out of shuffling money around, so English public sector workers get a higher rise than Scottish ones for once. But that’s not forcing a budget cut in Scotland either, ministers up here just prioritised different things.
This is crap from Labour.
Reeves’s statement in late July was about how Labour were having to cut spending to deal with the financial incompetence of the Conservatives. Those in-year spending cuts reduce the budgets of the devolved governments. Unlike the UK Government, the Scottish Government cannot raise taxes to compensate for these cuts until next year. Unlike the UK Government, they have no option but to cut spending because of the UK government’s decisions.
Rayner can’t pretend that there’s no link here (there is), and she can’t pretend Labour have increased spending (they haven’t, and that they haven’t is their messaging). She would have been better blaming the Conservatives.
Scotland should cut stuff why should they be better off then the rest with the biggest deficit
Does anyone have the exact Barnett consequentials for Labour’s recent policy choices? Is it too early to know exactly?
From what I understand (and I’m quite sure I don’t fully understand) Labour are basically ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ at the moment. In effect taking money from one pot (winter fuel) and putting it onto another pot (public sector pay).
Shouldn’t this roughly result in a null change to the block grant? Therefore the Scottish Government has the choice of whether to replicate UK policy or continue without replicating it?
I may be totally wrong, I haven’t followed this as much as I should have.
Because of this change by Labour there will be about £140m – £160m less funding going to Scotland.
There was also no notice of this change from Labour.
8 comments
She would say that, wouldn’t she?
Objectively, either lying or stupid, pick one.
Important to remember the Scottish Government froze council tax on a whim costing the public purse £147m.
Public sector workers in England & Wales have been given significant pay rises which will lead to an increase in the Barnett formula.
Yes the WFA means testing has taken money out of the Scottish government fund, but more is going back in.
I don’t get it. What spending cuts is she supposedly forcing?
There’s a benefit cut (the benefit that should have been means tested before any other was, in my view), but that’s not out of Holyrood’s budget.
There’s the public sector pay rise coming out of shuffling money around, so English public sector workers get a higher rise than Scottish ones for once. But that’s not forcing a budget cut in Scotland either, ministers up here just prioritised different things.
This is crap from Labour.
Reeves’s statement in late July was about how Labour were having to cut spending to deal with the financial incompetence of the Conservatives. Those in-year spending cuts reduce the budgets of the devolved governments. Unlike the UK Government, the Scottish Government cannot raise taxes to compensate for these cuts until next year. Unlike the UK Government, they have no option but to cut spending because of the UK government’s decisions.
Rayner can’t pretend that there’s no link here (there is), and she can’t pretend Labour have increased spending (they haven’t, and that they haven’t is their messaging). She would have been better blaming the Conservatives.
Scotland should cut stuff why should they be better off then the rest with the biggest deficit
Does anyone have the exact Barnett consequentials for Labour’s recent policy choices? Is it too early to know exactly?
From what I understand (and I’m quite sure I don’t fully understand) Labour are basically ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ at the moment. In effect taking money from one pot (winter fuel) and putting it onto another pot (public sector pay).
Shouldn’t this roughly result in a null change to the block grant? Therefore the Scottish Government has the choice of whether to replicate UK policy or continue without replicating it?
I may be totally wrong, I haven’t followed this as much as I should have.
Because of this change by Labour there will be about £140m – £160m less funding going to Scotland.
There was also no notice of this change from Labour.