At last! Salmond does the maths
SNP finally speaks to an expert about true costs of breaking up Britain
ALEX Salmond has held private talks with an expert on the costs of setting up an independent Scotland.
The meeting has raised hopes that the First Minister will finally, with only 90 days until the referendum, tell Scots the true cost of separation.
He was j oined by Professor Patrick Dunleavy, of the London School of Economics, and Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, at Bute House, last week.
A briefing note was provided for the First Minister, on start-up costs, ahead of the meeting at his official Edinburgh residence.
However, it did not contain new information beyond what was provided for the Scottish Government’s White Paper on independence, or an estimate for the 180 institutions an independent Scotland would need.
A spokesman for the First Minister said the meeting was set up at
‘Treating voters like fools’
the request of Professor Dunleavy, to inform his report on ‘transition costs’, which will be published on Sunday.
At First Minister’s Questions, Mr Salmond was pushed on whether he would produce his own figure as opponents accused his government of ‘panic’.
Tory leader Ruth Davidson said: ‘The people at the top of this government tell us that work has been commissioned, but then they say that it has not.
‘They say that the work is substantial but then they say that it is not. They say that it will be published before the referendum but then they say that it will not be.
‘First Minister, the people of Scotland have to know: what is going on?’
Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie also pressured Mr Salmond for answers. ‘ The First Minister has been able to estimate the cost of his policies, those that he likes, down to the last three decimal places but, on the set-up costs, he cannot even give us a quarter of a billion either way,’ he said.
The opposition benches erupted in approval as he added: ‘That is exactly why the people of Scotland are worried that the Scottish Government is refusing to look at the downsides of independence. That is why they are concerned.’
John Swinney endured a car crash radio interview last month, in which he failed to reveal the start-up cost for an independent Scotland, despite being asked 13 times.
Less than two hours later, the Finance Secretary was humiliated by his boss Alex Salmond, who backed Professor Dunleavy’s claim that it would be ‘ about £250million’.
During FMQs, Mr Salmond again chose to criticise the Treasury rather than talk about his own government’s calculations.
‘The best way to describe it is that, as Professor Dunleavy put it, there were three problems with the Treasury figures,’ he said.
‘First, the Treasury said that all 180 public bodies would be major departments, which they are not. Secondly, several of them already exist in Scotland and would simply need to be enlarged.
‘Thirdly, his estimate was applied to the “chaotic” way in which the previous Labour Government established new departments – and none of us would want to have the chaos of the Labour Party visited on an independent Scotland.’
This was met with roars of approval from Nationalist backbenchers, but concern is growing outside the parliament that Scots are walking blindfolded into their biggest decision in 100 years.
Anne McGuire, Labour MP for Stirling, said: ‘With less than 100 days to go until the referendum, the Nationalists are all over the place on how much independence would cost us.
‘Scots can’t be expected to go to the polls in September without knowing how much it would cost to set up a new state. Why can’t Alex Salmond just be up-front with people instead of treating voters like fools?’
Miss Davidson last night accused the First Minister of attempting to ‘con’ voters. She said: ‘With just 90 days until the referendum vote, these are clearly the actions of a government running around in panic. Ministers are like headless chickens.
‘For Alex Salmond to continue hawking around his version of independence, while refusing to say how much it’s going to cost, is nothing but an attempt to con people.
‘How can people believe Alex Salmond’s claims on the economy of an independent Scotland in 2020 when he can’t tell them the set-up costs of that country in 2016?
‘The clock is now ticking for Alex Salmond to come clean and t ell voters t he t r ue cost of independence.’