SCOTSMAN.COM VIEW

The Conservatives and DUP have signed a deal that includes £1 billion of new funding for Northern Ireland in exchange for support to prop up a minority government

Remember, this is not Conservative and Unionist money, this is public money – no manifesto, no majority, just plenty of cash to buy the power they so desperately crave. – Brendan Murry Just think of the influence SNP administration could be enjoying just now if only they had behaved like mature politicians over the last few years! If only Nicola had demonstrated she could be trusted to act in balanced way in the best interests of Scotland, it could have been she who was achieving huge breaks for Scotland this week. – Sceptical There is going to be one heck of an argument about the Barnett formula. Government are saying that because the money is going to specific projects, there will be no equivalency payments, but that isn’t how Barnett works. It appears a significant amount of the cash is going to the NHS in NI. Health spending has 100% equivalency under Barnett. That would mean an additional £2bn to Scotland. – Philmus