The Scottish government’s budget for the coming year has been rejected by the Scottish parliament. The budget fell on the vote of the presiding officer after the vote tied at 64 votes apiece.
The SNP minority government won the support of the Tories, with Labour, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats voting against.
Labour has entered into budget negotiations in an attempt to build a budget strong enough to direct Scotland in the safest course possible through the current recession. However, despite the weaknesses of the budget and the strength of opposition amongst the progressive parties being clear since last October, the SNP have chosen to attempt to strong arm their way through the parliament with the threat that either their budget is accepted, or the country will be left with no new budget at all.
Labour’s proposals for the budget focus on jobs and health.
They are proposing an additional 7,800 apprenticeships over each of the next three years, split between adults and those aged 16-19, coupled with an Apprenticeship Completion Guarantee Scheme which matches the commitment made in Northern Ireland. South of the border, Labour is delivering 250,000 new-start apprenticeships every year. In Scotland, the same figure should be nearly 25,000, but under SNP plans, only 10,000 Scots will get the chance to train for a trade.
Labour is also looking for a clear indication from the Scottish government for significant new funding to help retrain people who lose their job.
On health, Labour is calling for funding to be invested in frontline services, seeking assurances that the total NHS budget increase of 3.9 per cent will be reflected in full in the award made to the health boards across Scotland on day one of the budget, rather than held back for future ministerial puff projects..
The measures proposed by Labour are fully costed and achievable, however, the SNP appear not to have the political will to commit to these vital undertakings, such as those on apprenticeships, which Labour at Westminster has led on.
The only real efforts to stimulate the Scottish economy have come from the Labour government at Westminster, with the SNP preferring to wring its hands and act as an apologist for those in the banking sector who played fast and loose with our savings.
The SNP now plan to reintroduce the Budget Bill within the next few days. If the new financial year begins in April without a new budget being passed, the government would be restricted to spending the latest version of the current year’s budget.
According to the SNP, this would hit Scotland with a £1.8bn loss of spending. Those who remember the SNP’s claims that Westminster was attempting to shrink their spending allocation year on year, may reflect with interest on this sudden reversal.
Tempting as political point scoring may be, however, this is a serious situation. The budget proposed by the SNP is grossly inadequate in the face of the current financial crisis. The measures from Labour are not a quick fix, but they offer fast action for those who lose their jobs, in addition to laying the foundations of a more sustainable economic future for our young people.
Labour will never stand by and allow the monies earned by Scottish taxpayers to be squandered on priorities more closely aligned to the wants of the SNP, than the needs of the Scottish people. If the SNP choose to squander this opportunity laid out by Labour, the electorate will not soon forget it.