Lib Dems manifesto includes 1p tax rise
Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie will today urge Scots to back his party’s call for a 1p rise in tax to fight austerity.
The Scottish Liberal Democrats will today unveil their manifesto in Edinburgh, with opposition to a second independence referendum at the heart of the plans.
The party is confident of building on the solitary MP it returned in 2015, with East Dunbartonshire and Edinburgh West among the key target seats for the party.
Speaking ahead of the launch, Mr Rennie said: “With the Scottish economy teetering on the edge of a recession, the performance of Scottish education dropping down the international rankings and mental health services failing to deliver, the last thing our country needs is another divisive and distracting independence referendum.
“The Liberal Democrats are setting out a positive plan to invest in mental health and education. A modest penny on tax secures those.”
The party backs an extra penny on the basic rate of income tax both south of the Border and in Scotland, where Holyrood controls tax rates.
The party also backs a second referendum on the terms of Brexit.
Mr Rennie added: “We will keep the triple-lock on the state pension.
“We will scrap the Conservatives’ two-child rule for tax credits which causes the ‘rape clause’ that has outraged people in Scotland.”