Financial farce

THERE’S more than a whiff of farce about the SNP consultation over taxation.

All indications are that, with the Green tail wagging the SNP dog, hard-working Scots face bigger bills to fund more inefficient public spending.

It has much to do with Nicola Sturgeon’s bid to keep a lid on a restive party as their hopes of a second independence referendum fade. And it’s tied in with SNP support being squeezed by Labour while the Tory revival under Ruth Davidson continues apace.

But this matters far more than political posturing. Jobs hinge on this. It should be obvious that taxing people more takes money out of the wider economy – families with less to spend tighten their belts.

Obvious to all except deeply unimpressive Finance Minister Derek Mackay, of course.

So the Scottish Retail Consortium urging Miss Sturgeon to do more than focus purely on what tax means for public services could not be more timely.

Growing the economy instead of constantly raiding workers’ pay packets is tough. Is Mr Mackay up to the task? FOR years, this paper has campaigned for a clampdown on ‘crack cocaine’ gambling machines – shamefully encouraged by New Labour – whose maximum stakes of £100 every 20 seconds ruin addicts’ lives and tear families apart.

So how the heart sank yesterday when, instead of slashing maximum bets to a token sum, ministers launched a consultation suggesting they should be capped at anything between £2 and a ruinous £50 (which could still mean addicts losing up to £9,000 an hour).

Will the Government plump for the lower figure? Don’t bet on it. The Mail prays our fears will prove unfounded. But doesn’t yesterday’s rise in bookmakers’ share prices say it all? LADY SMITH’S forthright and adroit chairmanship of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry continues to impress.

Yesterday she demolished Police Scotland’s feeble claim that they faced problems contacting the Good Shepherd Sisters to see if they held any records following abuse allegations.

‘Have you tried Googling them?’ asked the judge – a devastating question for a force whose stock-in-trade is meant to be investigation.