The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Mackay hails ‘best deal’ as Budget gets green light
Politics: £900m in ‘additional funds’
Finance Secretary Derek Mackay insisted his tax and spending plans will give Scots the “best deal” in the UK as Holyrood approved his Budget for the coming year.
Measures set out in the 2017-18 Budget Bill will result in “£900million of additional investment in our public services, our people and our communities”, Mr Mackay said.
It was passed by 68 to 57 after the SNP finance secretary did a deal with the Greens which will see councils get an additional £160million of funds while the threshold for the 40p rate of income tax in Scotland will be frozen at £43,000.
This is the first year that Holyrood has had power over income tax rates and bands, with ministers opting to keep the basic rate at 20p despite calls from Labour and the Lib Dems for a 1p rise to raise more cash for public services.
The Scottish Government also rejected calls to restore the 50p top rate of income tax for those earning more than £150,000 a year.
Conservatives said freezing the threshold for the higher rate while it is being increased to £45,000 for the rest of the UK made Scotland the highest-taxed part of the country
Finance spokesman Murdo Fraser said: “We should have had a Budget to boost economic growth and, as a result, boost our tax revenues.
“Instead, the Finance Secretary has presented us with a Budget that will do nothing to promote Scotland as an attractive place to do business.”
SNP ministers, however, stressed the Budget will provide a record £12.7billion for the NHS, an increase of £120million above the rate of inflation.
Further and higher education will receive £1.6billion while a cap on business rates increases is being brought in for some, following widespread concerns about the impact of a revaluation on firms.
Labour leader Kezia Dugdale, whose MSPs voted against the Budget, accused ministers of joining up with the Greens to “impose £170million worth more cuts to vital public services”.
“We should have had a Budget to boost growth”