£20m spending on Indyref2 next year ‘not prudent’ say pro-uk group
JOHN Swinney has been told spending £20 million on an independence referendum next year is “not prudent” as he was urged to reallocate the money to boost the economy.
The call was made by a pro-uk business group ahead of the Scottish budget next week, and comes after demands by opposition parties for the cash to be reassigned, following the Supreme Court’s ruling that Holyrood cannot hold a vote on leaving the Union without consent from Westminster.
Nicola Sturgeon’s plan for an independence referendum in October 2023 now appears highly unlikely as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has refused to agree to one and said both governments should work together. The First Minister has insisted the SNP will fight the next General Election as a “de facto” independence referendum.
In a letter sent yesterday to Mr Swinney, the Deputy First Minister and acting finance secretary, Struan Stevenson described plans to spend £20 million on a referendum, outlined in the Scottish
Government’s spending review in May, as not sustainable and outlined how money should be spent.
“Against the current economic backdrop, it seems clear that such significant spending on constitutional matters can no longer be thought sustainable or prudent in the current economic climate,” the chief executive of Scottish Business UK (SBUK) told Mr Swinney.
“Indeed, having tasked a large civil service team to build a new case for taking Scotland out of the UK, and having spent a reported £1.5m on activity including a set of three ‘Building a New Scotland’ policy papers ahead of a referendum that is not going to happen, there is an urgent need for a change of direction in this month’s Scottish budget.”
He said the money should be spent on almost doubling a £25 million Low Carbon Manufacturing Challenge Fund to help Scottish manufacturing companies develop low carbon products and processes or by increasing spending on computers in schools.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “In light of majority support within the Scottish Parliament for an independence referendum, Scottish ministers remain ready to engage with the UK Government at any point on delivering a referendum.
The 2023-24 Scottish Budget will be published on December 15 2022, and will set out the Scottish
Government’s spending plans for 2023-4.”