Independent Scotland could follow Denmark’s example in supporting workers

The idea that an independent Scotland would be unable to unleash the spending required to tackle the Covid-19 crisis seems to be gaining currency, perhaps spurred by Brian Monteith’s latest column (Perspective, 23 March).

Now there is an interesting word – currency. The UK government is doing what any country with its own currency can always do. In the colloquial parlance, it is printing money to spend on necessary action – the same as it did after the financial crash of 2007-08. The problem was that they saved finance and not the people, who endured austerity instead.

Whether the government chooses to balance spending with borrowing to meet some point less fiscal target is neither here nor there. Borrowing via the process of selling bonds is in reality a means of risk-free saving for an element of the private sector. In the current crisis, not much of that will happen as such potential savers are running scared and looking for other ways to save their wealth.

Where was the massive, emergency tax bill to allow them to balance the books? The Government will spend those extraordinary amounts by instructing the Bank of England to credit the reserve accounts of the banks of the recipients of the extra spending, as it does every day in normal times.

An independent Scotland with its own currency would be able to make the same choices, and I hope our Scottish government would make the right choices for the benefit of those who elect them.

To those suggesting Scotland is too small, I would refer them to Denmark, a country with about the same population and its own currency. Although not in the eurozone, they are dependent on the EU relaxing their silly fiscal constraints.

However, before that happened,denmark unleashed an impressive level of firepower to support its workers – a very similar job retention scheme to that of the UK which provides 75 per cent of wages. The Danish plan means spending 13 per cent of GDP in three months, similar to a proposed, but not yet agreed, $2.5 trillion stimulus in the Us. they also guarantee 70 per cent of new bank loans to companies, and will compensate companies for their fixed expenses like rent and contract obligations. Their benefits system will also be more generous during the crisis.

GEORGE S GORDON Belmont Road, Juniper Green