John Swinney in crunch talks over Scots funding arrangements

John Swinney has insisted that the Scottish Government is 'not asking for any special favours' ahead of crunch talks aimed at reaching a deal over new funding arrangements for Scotland.

John Swinney. Picture: Neil Hanna

The Deputy First Minister will meet Chief Secretary to the Treasury Greg Hands for talks in London today, less then a fortnight before the 
12 February deadline set for an agreement.

Mr Swinney said: “We are not asking for any special favours. We are not asking for a penny more than the Barnett formula would have delivered to Scotland. But we do demand a fair deal – one that lives up to the key principles at the heart of the Smith Commission report.”

Mr Swinney has already said the SNP administration will not back the Scotland Bill until it finds the cut to Scotland’s block grant acceptable, amid concerns it will leave Holyrood worse off financially.

A UK government spokesman said: “From the outset our position on the fiscal framework has been clear: we stand ready to do a deal that is fair for Scotland and fair for the rest of the UK.”