The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
NHS would be hit by £73m in cuts, say SNP
Tories rubbish ‘ridiculous’ claims over income tax proposals
Health bosses in Tayside and Fife would have to make £73 million worth of cuts under Scottish Conservative tax plans, the SNP has claimed.
Nicola Sturgeon told First Minister’s Questions last week that implementing Tory income tax proposals would slash NHS funding by £500m a year.
In figures published by her party, Tayside would have £39m less to play with every year, compared with £34m in Fife, which would fund the equivalent of 1,757 nurses in Courier Country.
The Conservatives said the claims are “ridiculous” and their policy, which is to keep the income tax at the UK level or lower, will increase revenue by kickstarting the economy.
Graeme Dey, the SNP MSP for Angus South, said making those on higher wages pay “slightly more” tax is funding record investment in the NHS.
The dispute boils down to whether more money is generated for public spending in the longer term by increasing taxes.
The Tories argue lower taxation is better for the economy, leading to larger government revenues through increased economic activity.
A Scottish Conservatives spokeswoman said they would support the NHS in Scotland by “cutting waste, scrapping SNP vanity projects and above all by raising more tax revenue by growing the under-performing Scottish economy”.
“The real threats to the NHS and Scottish public services are continued SNP mismanagement of resources and self-defeating tax hikes which will choke off the prospects for economic recovery,” she added.
MSPs will start voting on a Budget this month that raises income tax for those earning more than £33,000, while those on lower wages will pay the same or less.
The changes are expected to generate an extra £164m for the public purse in 2018-19.
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour will force a vote of “no confidence” in the draft Budget, saying it delivers an effective £700m cut to lifeline local services.