SNP punishing Scots who want to get on

THE SNP would have us believe that it’s the party for aspirational Scots, that only it truly champions the hard-working families that keep our economy afloat.

But behind the Nationalists’ rhetoric about standing up for Scotland lies the miserable truth that their policies punish Scots who want to get on in life.

Scottish business leaders have warned that High Street stores could be forced to close next year because of rising business rates. Those most seriously affected will not be the fat-cats whose excesses make headlines but established businesses which provide real jobs in an already uncertain economy.

Town-centre stores are already struggling to compete for business against internet giants. A Scottish Government committed to protecting vulnerable jobs would be doing what it could to help those businesses rather than raising their tax bills.

The Scottish Retail Consortium warns that some of its members will see their tax bills soar by almost a third next year. The effect could be quite devastating.

High Streets across Scotland are already scarred by boarded-up shops; those which remain deserve all the support that the SNP can give them. Instead, Finance Secretary Derek Mackay’s short-sighted cash grab will spell the end for some.

Mr Mackay has already signalled his intention to lower the rate at which the top rate of tax is payable, making Scotland the most highly-taxed part of the UK.

At the same time, the Scottish Government proposes to spend millions picking an unwinnable fight over Scotland’s membership of the European Union. The SNP’s priorities are all wrong. A strong, prosperous Scotland is dependent on the success of companies that provide vital jobs and stimulate the economy. It is dependent, too, on the efforts of aspirational Scots who want to succeed.

Punitive taxes on businesses and workers may give a short-term financial boost to Government coffers but the long-term effect will be to reduce the number of companies in existence and, thus, send the tax take plummeting. The SNP came to power promising to be business-friendly, reassuring employers that it understood their concerns. But in government it has devised a programme of reckless tax rises, the effects of which will reverberate for a long time.

Derek Mackay will bring his draft budget back to Holyrood early in 2017. When he does so, he should scrap his plans for the punitive taxation of ambition.