Alex Salmond refutes Labour’s ‘MacMince’ jibe over economy
FIRST Minister Alex Salmond today insisted his Government was taking “real action to help real people” in the face of rising unemployment, despite claims from Labour that the SNP’s economic plan was “MacMince”.
The party leaders clashed on the issue the day after the latest jobless figures were published.
These showed unemployment in Scotland had reached 215,000, with 100,000 young people among those who are out of work.
Labour leader Iain Gray hit out: “In the last two years the number of people unemployed is worse, the unemployment rate is worse, the employment rate is worse, the economic activity rate is worse.”
He branded the Scottish Government’s “plan MacB” economic strategy as “nothing but a lot of MacMince”.
He continued his attack on the First Minister and said: “Alex Salmond would like to be called Prime Minister in a separate Scotland - doesn’t that tell you everything you need to know about the priorities of his Government?
“When is he going to stop thinking about his next job and give our young people a first job so they can get a start in life?”
But Mr Salmond hit back at his rival, saying: “Unemployment is down in Scotland over the last year and employment is up, uniquely in the United Kingdom.”
He also said that faced with a “Westminster cutback in capital spending”, his administration was re-allocating £750 million of revenue spending for capital investment projects.
The First Minister added: “We’ve got a non-profit distribution programme which is going to generate £2.5 billion in capital spending, which is giving us total capital spending, unique in these islands, which is rising every year to 2014-15.”
He insisted that was “real action to help real people”.
Mr Gray and Mr Salmond clashed over unemployment at First Minister’s Questions in the Scottish Parliament, with the Labour leader demanding: “How many Scots have to find themselves on the dole before the First Minister admits his Plan MacB is not working?”
The SNP leader conceded that the “unemployment situation in Scotland is extremely serious”.
But he told MSPs the Scottish Government was “working flat out to generate the maximum number of jobs”.
He also stressed: “We have lower unemployment, higher employment, lower economic inactivity than the rest of the United Kingdom.
“That is an important aspect which indicates some of the efforts we are making are bearing fruit and bringing people back into employment and generating employment for our young people.”
Mr Gray, however, asked if the “limit of the SNP’s ambition” was to be “not quite as terrible as the Tories”.
He added: “Even by that very, very low bar, youth unemployment in Scotland is higher than in the UK as a whole.”
The Labour leader went on to state that UK Chancellor George Osborne was “cutting too fast and too deep” and added: “Isn’t the truth that Alex Salmond is cutting capital budgets and public-sector jobs even faster and even deeper than the Tories?”
The First Minister insisted: “Thanks to the efforts of the Scottish Government to mitigate the effect of Westminster cutbacks, we find that employment in Scotland is higher than the rest of the United Kingdom, unemployment is lower.”
He then told Mr Gray: “In terms of ambition, my ambition and the ambition of the Scottish National Party is to have this country free to harness the resources to bring wealth and employment to all our people.”
However, the Labour leader hit back: “If any of these 215,000 unemployed people are listening that will not sound like a plan MacB to them, that will sound like nothing but a lot of MacMince, and that is what they have come to expect from their First Minister.”
Mr Gray said: “Between last year and this George Osborne cut capital budgets by 11 per cent. Alex Salmond cut them by 21 per cent. George Osborne got rid of 3.8 per cent of public-sector jobs. Alex Salmond got rid of 4.1 per cent. George Osborne cut colleges by 3 per cent or 4 per cent. Alex Salmond cut ours by 10%.”
He said that if the First Minister could “not give those 100,000 young people a job then at least he can give them the truth” as he asked the First Minister: “Will he admit he is cutting faster and deeper than the Tories and that is why unemployment is rising in Scotland?”
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Comments
There are 126 comments to this article
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Vote 'NO'
Friday, November 18, 2011 at 08:00 AM"I refute, I refute". When Gray persisted, Sslmond ate him. Jolly nice he tasted, too.
Cagey
Friday, November 18, 2011 at 07:46 AMSalmond, made a good point about Wales, voted Labour at every Assembly and Westminster election since 1922, united with England for over 700 years. The poorest region in the UK in terms of GVA per capita, with an employment rate of 67.7% versus 71.2% in Scotland. Labour thinks this is the way to go?
Kon
Friday, November 18, 2011 at 06:29 AMShrek alert!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, ahhhhhhh,, http://i.imgur.com/6tYb8.jpg
The Harder They Come
Friday, November 18, 2011 at 12:01 AM122. Your right, cynicus, manly spartan love, backing up poor old rufus to the hilt..... Oh dear.
Blackberry Tart
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 11:53 PM121 I think its Greek
The Harder They Come
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 11:47 PM118. Is that russian for what I think it is?
Exiled Leither
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 11:33 PMI think the paper got this story all WRONG, they don't mean Plan MacMince or even plan McB, the actually should have said Plan MacD's, not only for our leaders supper, but also for our countries youth unemployment problem. My lads are still waiting for real apprenticeships Alex, instead of these pretendy ones you came up with that aren't attached to a job!
Cynicus in Exile
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 11:32 PMWardog: is the Brazzers subscription now so unaffordable that you have to fill your time tormenting us with this effluent?
Cynicus in Exile
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 11:29 PM"Rufus - The original MacMincer."-#105 Wardog ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wardog -an-UNoriginal mincer
whitstomatowiu
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 11:16 PMTartancult,-----------------You have just proved how unhinged you are,You should get your Mummy to get you certified----------------------------------How you unionistas have been damaged and it can all be traced back to a certain date and that date is MAY 5th this year----------- MSM headline "SNP accused of cruelty too Unionistas"--------------------You lot lost too put in mildly King Alexander has you dancing and you can do nothing about it------------------------DANCE you little Tartan Cult ----------------------------------------BTW I made a spelling mistake at cult there should be an N in it somwhere but I had pressed the post comment too soon.
Vote 'NO'
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 10:57 PMBankers = greed and incompetence = Fred Goodwin = RBS = Salmond's correspondence = support for RBS purchase of ABN Amro = we're all in the right doo doo.
Vote 'NO'
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 10:55 PMCaption #3 "There's REAL mince in their pies - no a wee pretendy mince, but MacMince?" Lapdog, heel - sorry Kenny Mac, get me a dozen.....
Paulista
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 10:50 PMI suppose Dominie Gray has become so interested in the unemployed as he will soon be one of them. ------------- Mind you, he´s had about seven months notice and will find himself standing in the Broo with Bella and the other guy.---------- Meanwhile, Salmond will be doing something worthwhile like getting Scotland out of the quicksand brought about by being trapped in this odious state known as the UK.
Tartancult
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 10:50 PM#103 I think Mummy will still have to wipe your botty.....................As you wish, though why you would volunteer your mother for such a task is questionable. And your reference to my nether regions is disturbing - is this what comforts you at night - mens' 'botties'?
Vote 'NO'
Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 10:50 PMMacMince caption #2 "Did I understand you correctly - you're saying the canteen sells Killies famous pies?"
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