Letter: Debate needed on more powers

Published on 01/04/2012 00:00

IN ALL the budget analysis and fallout last week, there was a very muted response from the Scottish Government. This was especially interesting as, in the same week, agreement in both parliaments was obtained to give the Scottish Parliament some control over income tax through the Scotland Bill.

What would we do with such powers? No-one seemed to be interested in asking the questions. Would we have retained the 50p rate? Would we have made good the supposed slight to pensioners? Why wasn’t someone asking that nice Mr Swinney these questions?

As the independence debate trundles along, we are being assured that everything of substance will remain more or less the same as it is today, with “independence in Europe” having been replaced by “independence in the UK”.

Could the Westminster Government bring forward the provisions in the Scotland Bill so that we can debate and implement our own tax rates for the 2013-14 financial year? That way, we might get some better insight into what our politicians would do with such power before we consider handing it to them completely in 2014.

Victor Clements, Aberfeldy