Issues to address

David Maddox writes: “Currently, close to £4.25 billion is raised in Scotland but around £5bn of income tax goes to Scotland” (your report, 3 March).

These figures need to be looked at in the context of
Holyrood’s “Scotland’s Balance Sheet for 2011-2012”.

The estimates there are based on assumptions about what we might have got then instead of passing most of our income tax etc to Westminster and getting back a per capita grant considerably higher than the rest of the UK got.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

That extra is currently some £1,300 per head for each of us via the Barnett formula.

The “Balance Sheet” indicated that income tax, VAT and North Sea oil revenues each notionally would have contributed £10bn to us, with £8bn from National Insurance.

Income tax is important, but it is only one source of revenue – and the oil revenues are essential, not a bonus, as the Holyrood Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland estimates report for 2011-2012 shows.

There was a notional deficit of more than £7bn even with most of the oil revenues accruing to us. In effect, future oil revenues are factored in and no major additional income can be expected from future oil exploitation, so the future holds a yearly deficit of many billions which will probably increase as public expenditures rise inexorably, particularly for older folk, for example.

No oil fund is feasible until the yearly deficit is brought under control. Just how that can be achieved remains unaddressed at this key time.

Joe Darby

Dingwall

Ross-shire

I have listened to both the Yes and No campaigns, but decided to do my own research and came across this interesting information I would like the Better Together campaign to answer. Why is Great Britain 26th on the World Health Organisation’s world standard of living chart? Guess which country sits at number one: a country that is smaller than Scotland – Norway.

Balance this against what Better Together tells us about why it’s good to stay and keep the status quo.

If the No campaign’s scare stories convince enough to vote No then I think I will move to Norway and leave GB to slip further down the league table.

S Chalmers

Meadow View

Cumbernauld