Margo puts the squeeze on Swinney for healthcare cash

Published on Thursday 7 February 2008 09:23

MARGO MacDONALD today said she expected the SNP to give Lothian extra cash for healthcare after she helped the Government pass its first budget.

The independent Lothians MSP voted along with the Tories in support of the SNP's 30 billion spending plans for next year.

First Minister Alex Salmond had threatened to resign and force an election if the budget was not approved. But in the end Labour and the Lib Dems abstained, giving the SNP a 63-1 victory.

During the debate, Ms MacDonald said she had written to Finance Secretary John Swinney, arguing for an extra 11 million for health in Lothian.

She said that was the shortfall the area suffers because of the current funding formula.

And she highlighted pressures on maternity and accident and emergency units in particular.

Mr Swinney told the parliament the allocation of financial support to health boards would be announced in due course. But he added: "I assure Margo MacDonald that our joined-up Government is fully aware of the issues and pressures that apply in different health boards, such as Lothian NHS Board, throughout the country."

After the vote Ms MacDonald said: "I expect to hear in the near future that my very reasonable request has attracted favourable attention."

Ms MacDonald's support for the Government in the first vote on the budget last month has already won the promise of a "capital city supplement" to be introduced in next year's budget in recognition of Edinburgh's extra financial burden.

The budget paves the way for a council tax freeze across Scotland, abolition of the graduate endowment fee and the phasing out of prescription charges. Concessions by the SNP mean extra cash for police recruitment, more money to tackle climate change, a speedier introduction of business rate cuts, additional funding for bus services and the promise of a new drugs strategy before the summer recess.

The SNP accepted a Labour amendment which called on the Government to seek ways of expanding skills training and secure national minimum standards of service for vulnerable groups. But Labour then refused to back the motion, even though it had been changed as they proposed.

The sole vote against the budget was Labour backbencher Cathie Craigie, who denied she had pressed the wrong button.

Mr Swinney hailed the approval of the budget as historic and taunted Labour over its performance. He said: "They have a lot of thinking to do about how to handle the position of opposition and on this first crucial test in relation to the budget process the Labour Party has spectacularly failed in that respect."

Tory finance spokesman Derek Brownlee said the approval of the budget marked "the final humiliation of Scottish Labour".

But Labour finance spokesman Iain Gray defended his party's stance. He said: "The SNP government will now have to come back to parliament and say how they will address issues around vulnerable groups and skills but they cannot claim we endorsed their flawed budget."