Judith Robertson: Alex Salmond should support Robin Hood tax

A Robin Hood tax, set at the right level, is “perfectly reasonable”. That’s the judgment of the Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones, who last week became the first government leader in the UK to voice his support for the tax.

That’s the judgment of the Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones, who last week became the first government leader in the UK to voice his support for the tax.

His statement stands in direct contrast to the continued opposition of the UK coalition. We think it’s time for Scotland’s First Minister to show similar leadership.

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By doing so, Alex Salmond would show just how isolated the UK coalition is – not just within Europe, but even within the UK.

He would also reflect public opinion north of the Border, with a recent poll showing 62 per cent of Scots support the measure.

Little wonder the tax is so popular. Last week, the Royal Bank of Scotland announced that despite making a £2 billion loss last year, it will pay bonuses of £785 million. Yet the bank wouldn’t even exist without the taxpayer.

In voicing his support, Mr Jones said the financial sector must share responsibility for the economic turbulence we now face. He also said the concept of “social responsibility” is well understood in Wales.

We think it is equally well understood here in Scotland. As such, the Scottish Government should echo the Scottish public’s support for a fair and affordable tax on the industry that caused the global financial crash.

When the welfare state is being squeezed and many people are struggling, Scotland’s politicians should be listening to the public.

A global Financial Transaction Tax of about 0.05 per cent on transactions like stocks, bonds and foreign currency could raise around £250bn a year.

Under a Robin Hood tax, this would be spent on poverty at home and abroad, as well as climate change.

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A growing list of global political, business and civic leaders support the measure, including Microsoft founder Bill Gates, former US vice president Al Gore and 1,000 economists from 53 countries.

Even Mr Salmond’s own economic adviser – the Nobel Prize-winning economist, Professor Joseph Stiglitz – supports the tax. It’s time for Scotland’s First Minister to back it too.

• Judith Robertson is head of Oxfam Scotland.