Labour accuses Alex Salmond of keeping quiet on true cost of SNP policies
Margaret Curran attacked the SNP's policies. Picture: Donald MacLeod
SCOTTISH Labour has signalled its intention to move away from backing free university tuition and prescriptions, with the party’s Scotland spokeswoman at Westminster claiming Alex Salmond “doesn’t tell people the real costs” of the policies.
Shadow Scottish secretary Margaret Curran attacked the First Minister’s stance on higher education funding as sending “rich kids to university” after Mr Salmond insisted his SNP administration was fairer and more progressive than the UK government because it protected universal benefits.
Ms Curran, speaking ahead of today’s stage one debate of the Budget bill at Holyrood, said the SNP’s free prescriptions, free tuition for Scottish residents and council tax freeze had limited benefit for the neediest, since they were not targeted, and unnecessarily benefited the richest.
The Labour MP said the First Minister, who made the claims about a more progressive Scotland in a keynote lecture in London last night, had failed to address “fundamental challenges” over public services funding.
Ms Curran said SNP government policies damaged the poorest by cutting college budgets, and failing to invest adequately in childcare.
She claimed child poverty had increased under the SNP because of lack of investment in childcare and nursery education, and that Mr Salmond’s administration had cut spending on further education by 20 per cent, harming the chances of the poorest to gain qualifications for university and to secure better jobs.
“Alex Salmond wants to tell people what they can get for free, but he doesn’t tell people what the real costs are,” she said.
“The test for anyone truly progressive is not whether you get rich kids to university, it’s whether you get everyone to university. That’s the purest test of progressive politics.”
Ms Curran went on to claim that Mr Salmond had failed to explain in any detail what an independent Scotland’s welfare policies, social security payments and tax regime would be.
She said: “Tell me in what way Alex Salmond wants to redistribute resources to the poorest people in Scotland, from the better off to the worst off? He has never advocated a policy like that.”
However, senior SNP MSP John Wilson accused Ms Curran of “hypocrisy” over her comments and said Scottish Labour was “travelling in the same direction” as the Conservatives over cuts to public services and free university tuition.
Mr Wilson, deputy head of Holyrood’s economy committee, said: “Margaret Curran’s comments highlights the hypocrisy of a Labour Party that introduced tuition fees and would not commit to free prescriptions.
“The SNP government has made progress towards a society that cares for the disadvantaged through policies such as free university tuition for young people.
“The Labour Party has to address the message that it’s putting out at UK level, such as following the same direction as the Tories over the economy.”
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont criticised Mr Salmond for wanting to “liberate the English people from themselves”.
She said: “Rather than trying to set a progressive example for others, Alex Salmond could start by implementing some progressive ideas here that would deal with the rising level of child poverty and the 200 people a day losing their jobs.”
Ms Lamont’s comments came as Scottish Trades Union Congress general secretary Grahame Smith called for the small business bonus scheme to be scrapped, saying it was “was not having the desired effect on growth and jobs”.
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Comments
There are 114 comments to this article
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LondonReader
Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 03:14 PMFollowing the extinction of Toryism in Scotland it seems that Labour have decided to adopt Conservative arguments and tactics. I have no doubts this will have the same effect; so good bye bonnie Scotland, and fare well. You'll only have Brussels to blame in future.
Anagach
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 08:41 PM108 son_of_hamish Also why is our council tax so much higher than rest of UK? Twice the rate of London's most expensive councils? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Its not twice but it is higher. Thats part of the Union dividend. Most council spending comes from cerntralised block grants. The old rates system was higher in Scotland, then we had the lovely poll tax and rate caps (where it goes up but central government keeps the money and charged the council), and now we have the current system. always higher in Scotland, pre-devolution and post devoltion, one might think that there was a structural bias in the Union.
keekibump
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 06:05 PMjust got to love the labour party hypocrites. the more i hear about independence the more i look forward to it hope all the other people vote for it as well
Miles Perour
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 04:56 PMPoor bitter Margaret Curran is misguided and wrong - not that anything a Labour politician says will be believed by any sensible people now.
jaydee
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 04:37 PMHere is a extract I have just received from HM Government... The PM has allocated £400 million to mend broken Britain ......................................................... ""A lack of respect, a misguided sense of entitlement, a breakdown in moral authority, simple opportunism, pure criminality…these are just some of the responses to the riots that erupted across Britain in August 2011. But what are the real reasons behind this mass disorder? Many were quick to blame gang culture or issues within the criminal justice system, but surely the riots are really indicative of the deepening inequality within our society."" ............................................................................................................Now I am a wee bit puzzled, as for the world of me I cannot recall any riots in Scotland in 2011.. even less so in August... Now can any body tell me how much of this £400 million will be allocated north of the Border or does it fall into the same category as the British Crime Survey... in short covers England and Wales only Why do i suspect that the Scots, once again, will be paying back 9.5% of this £400 million with only 8.4% of the population and not one penny will come north of the border.. Will Comrade Curran in her new role as a Tartan Tory raise the matter in Westminster and get her new boss Mr Cameron to allocate 9.5% of that amount to Holyrood..
son_of_hamish
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 04:08 PMSNP+Salmond=Zero economic credentials. http:philtaylor.org.ukwp-contentuploads201201Salmond-letter.jpg
son_of_hamish
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 04:06 PMOf course its not-affordable, its all sap to the sad voters who will believe anything The Dear Leader tells them, he just figures he can carry this dodgy accounting on long enough to get people on the SNP side for the Great Dream (or is that dram?). We should never forget Salmond worked as an ecomist and supported wholeheartedly RBS to the point of endorsing the ABN Amro deal, the man and the party have ZERO economic credentials, as we can see by rising unemployment and debt now in Scotland that is now worse than the rest of the UK. Also why is our council tax so much higher than rest of UK? Twice the rate of London's most expensive councils?
jaydee
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 03:46 PM98... Look no further than Comrade Curran above complete with statutory red dress minus the Hammer and Sickle, This is history... Labour the New millionaire Tartan Tories... Scots in Westminster who earn £90 grand a year in wages and a further £90 Grand to get their moats cleaned out and hire porny films for partners, telling other Scots struggling to make ends meet they are to stupid, to poor and will die of hunger unless England keeps on helping them.. I am reliably informed a large proportion of the English do not believe that crap anymore, either, and many there are even in a worse position than in Scotland.. But Labour the New tartan Tories in the shape of Milliband, Lamont and her above will keep banging the poverty drum as they add to their millions..... look above and read... That is what you voted to look after you...
Charles P
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 03:46 PMCan't get away with the endless number of extreme right wing Unionists out there. Perhaps a quote from the biggest Fascist of them all, might make them think twice. 'Assertions that a peoples fate is solely dependent on Foreign Powers, has always formed the shifts of bad Government!' Mein Kampf.
Tightfisted
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 03:40 PMAttacked by Margaret Curran?? Why am I reminded of that old dennis healey remark about being attacked by Goeffrey Howe was like "being savaged by a dead sheep" Margaret Curran = our very own lump of mutton !! I can't imagine anyone in the Independence camp is losing sleep over the actions of this wifie who simply jumped from Holyrood for Westminster , with whom she has SO much more in common !!
Charles P
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 03:33 PMWhat a cheek from wee Margaret Curran who wasn't happy with only being an MSP in Scotland, they were not right-wing enough for her, so she stood for London where she'd be more at her ease among the Labour and Unionist Party, not just shadowing the Tory's but joining them! Has she forgotten being a part of a Labour administration that after Eight Years in power left Office with Scotland enjoying the highest Child Poverty rates in Europe? She's only shadow Scotland Minister, after two minutes in London, not because of ability, but because no other Labour MP would touch the job with a bargepole!
jaydee
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 03:06 PM81... Agent P... You are looking at the power of the English dominated and London based press and the effect that it has on those who are unable to think for themselves.. If you really think that Scotland is all about kilts and shortbread, you are in grand company with men who profess to be intelligent, Kelvin Mackenzie and Paxman to name but two... I know this bit is difficult for you... and I suspect a bit to subtle for you to grasp as it would be for the aforenamed... who earn a living from it... When you watch the television tonight and the phone rings to tell you one of your family who was dying of infection but is now on the up and up after being treated, think of kilts and shortbread...
Andy10
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 02:53 PMGrow up you twisted woman. We are all now getting tired of your scare mongering.. Labour - The Tartan Tories.
SNP for me
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 02:01 PMIs she for real? Free higher education in scotland as opposed to up to £9,000 per year in England and yet somehow she feels it is in Scotland that only the rich can go to university? Bonkers!
Charlie McFarley
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 01:40 PM#84 What do you expect? Like the sub office of london labour, agent orange is toxic.
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