John Swinney's tax raid raises questions about morality for him as well as those who may try to avoid paying more – Scotsman comment

Most people take a dim view of tax avoidance on a grand scale – even if they have diligently squirrelled away a tax-free Isa.

Acting Finance Secretary John Swinney delivered the Scottish Budget for 2023-24 last month (Picture: Andrew Cowan/pool/Getty Images)

And when John Swinney said it would be “morally wrong” for the 500,000-plus people whose taxes are set to rise to rearrange their financial affairs to reduce the amount they must pay, he was actually echoing David Cameron. In 2012, the then Conservative Prime Minister claimed Jimmy Carr had been “morally wrong” after reports suggested the comedian had engaged in “straightforward tax avoidance”.

But then ‘avoidance’ is legal, so the potential problems for the Scottish budget are real. Professor Graeme Roy, of the Scottish Fiscal Commission, has pointed out that people with higher incomes “tend to have the greatest flexibility to adjust their tax affairs”. And he stressed: “It is not a matter of tax evasion or doing something illegal.”

From April, as a result of Swinney’s recent budget, someone earning £50,000 will pay an extra £63.38 in tax, taking their bill to £1,552.48 higher than they would pay in England. The Deputy First Minister argued that if people in Scotland were benefiting from things like free prescriptions and free tuition at universities, they should be prepared to pay for them.

However, given the life-threatening consequences of the current NHS crisis and the potential for young lives to be blighted by schools run by over-worked and demoralised teachers, those whose purses Swinney is raiding have a right to demand better value for their money. When bad government allows public services to be degraded to such a parlous state as we see today, it becomes a moral issue too.